There are moments in life, as in history, when decisions set the course, as it were. Decisions that significantly change directions and processes. Such moments usually define a time window of conscious shaping – or of irreversible procrastination and omission. When it closes, it may not be possible to reopen it for many years. Europe […]
In her “State-of-the-Union” speech on 15 September, Commission President von der Leyen spoke clearly about Europe’s security challenges. Her appeal culminated in the words: “What we need is the European Defence Union.”At the same time, the same EU Commission is pushing the Green Deal, which is intended to create the transition to a modern, resource-efficient […]
China is currently experiencing its Sputnik moment. Just as the Soviet Union surprised the USA with the first satellite in space in the late 1950s, China’s Sputnik is currently appearing for Europe in the form of artificial intelligence and futuristic, battery-powered vehicles. The Chinese AI start-up DeepSeek is showing the American tech champions Google, Apple […]
The new EU fiscal rules have been in force since last fall: the maximum permissible government spending is now calculated using so-called Debt Sustainability Analyses (DSA). These project how the debt ratio of a member state will develop 14 to 17 years into the future. We show that these analyses ignore a key factor: the […]
With his sweeping tariff agenda, President Trump has launched a wrecking ball into the global trade order. His partial ‘pause’ does not change the overall picture. US tariffs pose a major challenge to the EU economy: exports to the US account for 20% of all EU exports, worth €530 billion or roughly 3% of the […]
The coalition agreement between the CDU, CSU and SPD has been finalized. This is basically good news – for Germany and for Europe: after the elections, the Federal Republic will be able to act again. And yet, as a European politician, I am disillusioned when I open this document. Europe? You really have to look […]
Across the EU, politicians and interest groups are calling for action to quickly lower energy prices to support struggling energy-intensive industries. At the EU level, the “Affordable Energy Action Plan,” to be proposed alongside the “Clean Industrial Deal” this week, will outline how energy prices can be lowered in the short and long term.As some […]
With the Digital Services Act (DSA), the EU has created a successor to the E-Commerce Directive (EC-RL). The regulatory package is intended to complete the digital single market and define the future of the Internet in Europe. For 20 years, the EC-RL formed the legal foundation for online services. Considering the rapid development in the […]
On June 9, 2024, the French will be called to vote for their 79 members of the European Parliament. Historically, this election has mobilized few people in France: Barely half of the French voters show significant interest. However, the political challenges are not insignificant: This election could solidify the far-right Rassemblement National (RN) and the […]
Almost all digital services working with large amounts of data have a high potential for value creation through AI. Europe must tackle three challenges to not be left behind in AI development.AI makes GDPR reform inevitableThe intelligence of an AI is partly determined by its technology but above all by the quantity and quality of […]