In the coming months, 73 percent of companies worldwide plan to invest in artificial intelligence (AI). In Germany, the proportion is only 65 percent, according to a survey by the Boston Consulting Group (BCG). Only a quarter of businesses currently see a benefit from using AI applications. However, nearly a third of companies plan to invest more than 25 million US dollars. Job cuts due to AI tools are mostly not planned in these companies.
More than half of the executives surveyed in Germany feel restricted by legal regulations when using artificial intelligence. This is the highest rate in a global comparison, where the average is 44 percent. Additionally, 62 percent of German companies are concerned about the data security of AI, and 44 percent fear a loss of control. “Clear, practical guidelines for AI use are needed to remove investment barriers,” says Andrej Levin, a partner at BCG.
The fact that most companies do not yet see a benefit in AI tools is explained by Levin with the way they are introduced into the workday. This usually happens under the leadership of technology teams. For successful integration, support from the management level is needed, he explains. There is also a lack of guidelines and their review. Worldwide, 60 percent of companies do not yet measure performance metrics for AI applications, and in Germany, the proportion is almost 70 percent.
In German companies, 95 percent of executives state that they do not expect a reduction in the number of employees due to AI use. Instead, they want to train their employees in dealing with artificial intelligence. Only in 30 percent of German companies have more than a quarter of the workforce participated in such training, even though the AI Act makes it mandatory in the EU from February. Internationally, Germany lags behind countries like Singapore and Japan.
The use of AI agents is considered by 30 percent of the managers surveyed in Germany. This is slightly above the global average. In the USA, the proportion is 37 percent, and in Spain, it is 38 percent. “Many companies still seem to be in a phase of experimentation with AI,” Levin assesses the situation. However, it is important to define clear goals for its use and work towards them, he advises.
For the study, BCG surveyed about 1800 C-level executives from 19 countries and 12 industries, including technology, financial services, and energy. Nearly 200 respondents were from Germany. Investments in AI have recently also benefited suppliers and data center operators.