Sustainability potentials of AI

AI Innovation Competition

This is the conclusion of a new study conducted as part of the research accompanying the technology program "Artificial Intelligence as a Driver for Economically Relevant Ecosystems" (AI Innovation Competition) of the Federal Ministry of Economics and Climate Protection (BMWK). The study examined twelve use cases that originated from funded projects of the BMWK's AI Innovation Competition and Smart Data Economy technology programs.

It was shown that these can make a significant contribution to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) defined by the United Nations (UN). With the involvement of an expert panel, the study concludes that the use cases examined can have a positive impact on nine of the UN's seventeen SDGs. These include, in particular, SDGs in which greenhouse gas emissions and energy and resource efficiency play a key role.

The comprehensive evaluation of the use cases also showed that quantifiable statements on sustainability impacts can be made for about half of the use cases examined. In the other use cases, the necessary data basis for quantifiable statements is still lacking in many cases.