Innovations in Germany: “Now it’s all about everything”

Industry and engineering were once the driving forces of the German economy. Today, a commission of experts considers the situation to be dramatic. Its head, Uwe Cantner, explains what a new federal government must now do.

You have just presented the new report on research and innovation in Germany. What is the situation?

The situation is serious - economic performance is below average, the research and innovation system is in trouble. The demands are high, Germany has set itself a lot of goals, including climate neutrality, digitalization , large infrastructures, the education system, demographic change, and we know that this costs a lot of money. If things continue like this, we will destroy the basis from which this money comes.