Six Months of “AI in Practice”: eco Association Initiative Sets Course Towards the Digital Future

Artificial intelligence (AI) plays a key role in many business processes and opens up new opportunities for organizations of all sizes – this is a mid-term assessment after six months of the “AI in Practice”. Following the launch of the eco initiative in spring 2024, it now provides assistance with artificial intelligence: the initiative independently helps to utilize potentials while simultaneously addressing the challenges of AI implementation.

The AI revolution has begun – but many German companies are in danger of sleeping through it. A recent YouGov survey commissioned by the eco – Association of the Internet Industry shows that one in three companies in Germany (33%) have not yet started using artificial intelligence and have no concrete plans for the future. A quarter of corporate decision-makers are still in the evaluation phase when it comes to artificial intelligence (AI). Only 8 percent of companies have a comprehensive AI strategy.  

Large companies are further ahead in this regard. Their decision-makers expect AI to boost productivity (34%), save costs (35%), and make more efficient use of resources (35%). We at eco can identify how many small and medium-sized enterprises are not yet aware of how they can take advantage of the opportunities offered by artificial intelligence. The goal of our initiative is therefore to support companies in the secure, high-performance and beneficial application of AI techniques on an industrial scale. To achieve this, it offers:

• Comprehensive information such as relevant news, studies and best practice examples from the world of AI.
• Recommendations for action such as practical tips and guidelines for the implementation of AI solutions.
• Access to a network of experts and potential partners.
• Competitive advantages through strengthening one’s own market position through innovative AI applications.

In essence, with our initiative we aim to moderate the diverse aspects of the secure, high-performance, and beneficial application of AI methods on an industrial scale. At eco Association, we offer a 360-degree view for networking all relevant participants, as eco has been committed to a free, neutral, resilient, and secure Internet for 30 years.

Current activities and initial results

From the kick-off event in March 2024 with 80 participants and 17 pitches, five topics and working groups have emerged in line with the relevant business areas. Around 50 registrations in 5 groups are developing pre-competitive action concepts:

1. Platforms for AI offerings: Creating a neutral platform for the mediation and evaluation of AI applications.
2. AI applications: Developing and providing practical AI solutions for various industries.
3. Data ecosystems: Establishing secure and trustworthy data spaces for the use of AI.
4. Data centers and sustainability: Optimizing the use of data centers for AI applications in considering sustainability aspects.
5. AI framework conditions: Supporting compliance with legal and ethical framework conditions in the field of AI.

Outlook and call to action

For companies, especially SMEs, the major challenge is still to determine which AI application is suitable for which processes. What helps to assess usefulness and integration includes additional orientation knowledge about AI applications, their classification in company processes, what users should look out for when selecting them, and best practices. The urgent recommendation from the working group is neutral marketplaces with simultaneous educational work.

Fundamentals such as uniform quality and user-oriented description criteria for listings in catalogs have been jointly developed. Combined with smart searches, this can significantly make it much easier for users to evaluate the appropriate service.

The question now is: Which marketplaces are currently developing or already exist? Networking and exchange on these mechanisms can be contributed through the experience of eco members as well as from completed projects.

The sessions of the five working groups have each taken place two to four times since April. To ensure that participation in the initiative can be integrated into everyday life, the time commitment for participants is only around one to two hours per month.

Finding partnerships with foresight

The “AI in Practice” initiative is still in the development phase, but already offers valuable support for companies that look to successfully implement AI in their business processes.

The development in the market towards data ecosystems, such as in value chains, along with the increasing data volume via AI will significantly change the requirements for infrastructure providers. From hyperscalers to local providers of cloud, edge, and even smaller IT service providers, there are completely new opportunities through networking. In future, many things will have to be orchestrated in order to meet customer requirements. For competitors, this means not only staking out claims, but also finding forward-looking partnerships. Participants in the working groups also discuss how to ensure quality and other forms of SLAs (Service Level Agreements) across infrastructure chains. eco is preparing a project called FACIS (Federation Architecture for Composed Infrastructure Services) to address these and other aspects.

A guide to the AI Act

As a guide to the implementation of the new EU regulation on AI, the working group “Framework Conditions for AI” has set itself the task of creating a framework for AI. Dr. Jens Eckhardt, IT Specialist Lawyer at the Düsseldorf law firm pitc legal and Board Member of EuroCloud Germany, supports answering this question: “When is a company actually affected by the AI Act?”

Other participants are contributing solutions to the question: “How can compliance monitoring be enabled, and preferably automated for different applications?”

Interested companies can take part in the initiative at any time. Further information and registration options can be found on the eco Association’s website: https://international.eco.de/ai-in-practice/

Conclusion

The “AI in Practice” initiative is an important step towards driving forward the digital transformation of the economy and establishing Germany as a leading location for AI innovations. Companies that want to prepare for the future should actively participate in this initiative.

Further information:

• Website of the “AI in Practice” initiative: https://international.eco.de/ai-in-practice/
• eco Association: https://international.eco.de/
• Artificial intelligence: Artificial intelligence - Wikipedia

Christine Neubauer is the Project Manager for AI and Industry 4.0 at eco – Association of the Internet Industry. As the “AI in Practice” initiative manager, she now brings to the table practical experience in project and communication consulting in the specialized areas of cloud, SMEs, and certification criteria from various national and European projects.

With extensive experience in content creation and communication, René Bernard is a highly valuable figure in the realm of public relations. He holds a Master's degree in Political Science from the University of Bonn and worked as a Senior PR Editor for almost seven years at eco – Association of the Internet Industry.