At Rise of AI 2019 in Berlin, Manuela Mackert, Chief Compliance Officer at Deutsche Telekom AG, argues that digital ethics is as important as the technology itself and that value-based AI is a competitive advantage, not a brake on innovation. She insists that values such as freedom, self-determination, transparency, respect, tolerance and appreciation must hold in the digital world exactly as they do in the analog one, and that humans must stay in the loop so AI never becomes uncontrolled. She describes how Deutsche Telekom turned these principles into practice: AI guideline development built on dialogue with partners in the US, Israel, academia, NGOs and companies; a crowdsourced, cross-national ethics team; mandatory review of AI-related projects through an internal privacy and security governance process; and a dedicated ethics center in Berlin that makes AI applications, such as a dementia-therapy robot, tangible for customers. She calls for European sandboxes to test AI safely, a European data marketplace, and closer cooperation with the US and China, while warning that future risks, including manipulation of brain implants, require clear guardrails and certification, especially in healthcare.
Key takeaways
- Manuela Mackert argues values like transparency, self-determination, tolerance and appreciation must apply identically in digital and analog contexts.
- She frames trust and value-based AI as a competitive advantage for European companies, not a constraint on innovation.
- Deutsche Telekom requires every AI-related project to pass an internal privacy and security governance review before approval.
- She opposes a single AI law, favoring existing regulation like GDPR plus sandboxes for safely testing new AI.
- Deutsche Telekom opened an ethics center in Berlin that demonstrates AI applications, including a robot used in dementia therapy.
Detailed notes
Values must hold in both the analog and digital world
Mackert argues that as Chief Compliance Officer she is not opposing AI but enabling business by managing its risks. She insists there is no difference between analog and digital values: freedom, self-determination, transparency, respect, tolerance and appreciation are non-negotiable in both. She frames trust as a competitive advantage, since customers, investors and business partners increasingly want to know what happens with their data, and argues customers in the US and China are less alert to AI's negative side effects than European customers, which she sees as an opening for Europe to compete on trust.
A European framework for trustworthy AI
She names three elements she considers vital for global competitiveness: mastering AI fundamentals, building AI key products, and committing to trusted rules for developing and using AI. She opposes a single blanket AI law, arguing existing regulation such as GDPR already provides a strong foundation if applied well, and instead calls for regulatory sandboxes where companies can test AI in a secure environment. She also argues for a European marketplace for secure data exchange, keeping data within Europe, and for treating data intelligence as a key success factor, while stressing that Europe needs partners in the US and China rather than isolation.
How Deutsche Telekom implements digital ethics
Mackert describes Deutsche Telekom's AI guidelines, published the previous year, as the product of dialogue with partners in the US, Israel, academia, NGOs and companies, defining who is responsible for each AI system and requiring full transparency so customers know whether they are dealing with a human or a machine. Internally, a crowdsourced ethics team spanning the company's global operations supports a "professional ethics" program for developers and data scientists, reinforced by roadshows explaining the technology to employees. Every AI-related project must pass through an internal privacy and security governance process before approval. Rather than wait for external regulators, whom she says cannot grasp the technology's complexity, Deutsche Telekom is developing its own trust seal or certificate. The company also opened an ethics center in Berlin, used as a showroom and study space, that demonstrates AI applications such as a robot used in dementia therapy.
Future risks and the case for guardrails
Turning to healthcare, Mackert highlights brain and body implants as an area of both major opportunity, such as treating Parkinson's disease, and serious risk, including hacking and manipulation once implants have full connectivity. She calls for clear guardrails and standardized certification in healthcare AI, arguing that data quality, designer bias and accountability across the many people involved in building a system all need scrutiny. She closes by urging investment in human intelligence and public education about AI, so society can meaningfully participate in decisions about the technology, with humans always kept in focus.
Quotes
AI has to serve the humankind.
Manuela Mackert
We create an competitive advantage if we follows our values.
Manuela Mackert
Questions answered in this talk
Why does Deutsche Telekom treat digital ethics as a competitive advantage?
According to Manuela Mackert at Rise of AI 2019, customers and investors increasingly want to know what happens with their data, and she argues European customers in particular are more alert than US or Chinese customers to AI's negative side effects, making trust a market differentiator.
How does Deutsche Telekom govern its AI projects internally?
Mackert explains that every AI-related project at Deutsche Telekom must pass through an internal privacy and security governance process, supported by a crowdsourced global ethics team and a professional-ethics program for developers and data scientists.
Does the speaker support a dedicated AI law?
No. Mackert says she is against a specific AI law, arguing existing regulation such as GDPR is sufficient if properly applied, and instead calls for regulatory sandboxes to test AI safely.