The Digital Humanism Initiative is an international collaboration seeking to build a community of scholars, policy makers, and industrial players who are focused on ensuring that technology development remain centered on human interests.

Being a cornerstone of Vienna’s digital agenda it’s worth taking a closer look what “Digital Humanism” actually stands for.

The panel featured  Eva Czernohorszky (Vienna Business Agency), Hannah Wundsam (CEO at Austrian Startups), Michael Strassnig (Vienna Science and Technology Fund), Carina Zehetmaier (CEO at Taxtastic) and Markus Hengstschläger (Head of the Center for Pathobiochemistry and Genetics), Clemens Wasner (CEO at enliteAI) and was moderated by Werner Smejkal.

Topics & key take aways:

• The ever increasing pace of digitalization is putting pressure on businesses, democratic institutions and individuals.
• Education is key in both harnessing the potential of new technologies and combat misinformation and fake news. To achieve this goal, education needs to be strengthened.
• Regulation per se is not a disadvantage for the European economy, as other countries and regions often follow the EU’s lead and establish similar regulations.
• However, Europe would be ill advised to focus on regulation alone. Without proper funding of research and initiatives, falling is not just likely but inevitable.
• Current proposals to fund AI research with EUR 1.3 billion are a mere drop in the bucket - what Europe needs is a large scale initiative similar to the EU Chip Act.

The entire panel can be rewatched under:

https://www.puls24.at/video/4gamechangers/4gamechangers-festival-digitaler-humanismus-vom-menschbleiben-in-zeiten-technologischen-fortschritts/v-cl01ur3dvw3d

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