Critical situation in the industry
Industry is particularly crucial for value creation, export power and productivity in Germany. According to the State of Industrial AI Report recently published by Cisco, a fifth of German companies use AI extensively and in a sophisticated manner in ongoing industrial processes. However, many companies are reaching their limits due to a lack of prerequisites, particularly in terms of network infrastructure, cybersecurity and IT/OT operating models. This is especially true when AI is used in real-time production. Accordingly, industry in particular needs a modern and scalable infrastructure, because with AI, network capacity becomes part of the real value creation.
If AI really is a second chance for Germany to make up for digitalization shortfalls, as Uwe Peter, Managing Director of Cisco Germany, postulates, then there is a need for action. Peter demands: “Germany must now urgently invest in AI-capable and quickly scalable networks in order to remain competitive. Otherwise, our business location is at risk of falling significantly behind, especially compared to other industrialized nations.”
The worldwide comparison
A danger that the study seems to confirm. 23 percent of companies worldwide (16 percent in this country) see their network infrastructure as fully prepared for the AI future. And only 76 percent (Germany 84 percent) of global companies require upgrades. When it comes to company-wide AI usage, the global average is currently ahead of Germany in all three areas:
- Generative AI 51 percent,
- Physical AI 28 percent
- and Agentic AI 33 percent.
The wireless network is often a bottleneck. Half of companies cite Wi-Fi as the area with the greatest capacity need. There is currently a political dispute over the 6 GHz band. While experts are calling for this frequency band to be released for Wi-Fi in order to create the necessary capacity for AI, an EU advisory committee is currently recommending prioritization of mobile communications.
“Spectrum policy is now industrial policy,” criticizes Peter. There is a lot at stake for Germany: the industry could lose 13.7 billion euros by 2030 if the spectrum is not made accessible for WLAN applications in time.
