Consider the timing of Germany’s rise. For decades it has been subordinate to the United States, and its advances have paled compared to China’s. But Germany’s quiet rise as Europe’s leading industrial and military power could catapult it ahead if it harnesses the power of one critical development: artificial intelligence.
Brad Smith, vice chair and president of Microsoft, said considering the most important measures of competitiveness—investment and AI usage—then Germany is a front-runner.
On February 15, Smith announced on X: “Microsoft is committed to enabling companies across the German economy to use AI to remain at the cutting edge of global competitiveness. This €3.2 billion investment will double Microsoft’s AI infrastructure and cloud capacity to meet the country’s accelerating demand for AI services and offer digital skills training for more than 1.2 million Germans by the end of 2025.”
Germany is a leader in automotive, mechanical engineering, chemical and electrical industries. All these are about to be revolutionized by AI.
In 2019, former German Defense Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg said, “Artificial intelligence is still something Europe could shape. We have a well-established industry, which still has to be far more connected to the new technologies. But once this happens, it will develop a totally different field of power than a purely technological or digitalization firm.”
Germany already ranks second worldwide in its companies using AI. Given Microsoft’s investment and other developments, we can expect this “totally different field of power” to emerge this year.
But all history shows that industrial development is always accompanied by military development. Germany especially has a history of using its economic strength for military advances. And it is bracing to do the same today.
The timing should alarm us.
During the Cold War, governments reasoned that launching a nuclear war would be suicide. Today, they are starting to look at this differently. They believe that if they can surpass their enemies with AI, they can overcome the principle of “mutually assured destruction” that has prevented nuclear wars!
We must pay close attention to this trend.
In its February 8 article “How Tech Giants Turned Ukraine Into an AI War Lab,” Time highlighted the work of United States tech company Palantir, which develops data and AI software to support Ukraine’s defense. Palantir ceo Alex Karp noted that AI could “allow David to beat a modern-day Goliath.”
This is true economically and militarily, and there are indications from world political developments and Bible prophecy that a German-led Europe will take the lead!