Digital Index: huge gap between AI users and abstainers in Germany

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Artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly shaping everyday life and the world of work. However, when it comes to its use, a new digital divide is opening up along largely familiar lines: 60 percent of people in Germany with a high level of education use the technology– but only 17 percent with a low level of education. These are figures from the Digital Society Situation Report for 2024/25, published by Initiative D21 on Monday.

According to the authors, the current representative study, for which the market research institute Kantar conducted 34,257 interviews on behalf of D21 between August 2023 and July 2024, shows "a dynamic development" in AI in Germany. A quarter of the population uses ChatGPT (up 7 percentage points). Other AI applications such as Microsoft Copilot (7 percent) and Google Gemini (6 percent) are catching up, but are still less widespread. According to the researchers, "Generation Z+", i.e. those born after 1995, are particularly indicative of the potential of these technologies with an AI usage rate of 68%.

According to the authors, the clear divide in this area makes it necessary to promote AI skills in a "targeted and inclusive" manner. The motivation for using AI is the practical added value associated with it: people particularly value the simplification of everyday life (33%), time savings and free services (28% each). A clear focus on concrete benefits forms a solid basis for the further spread of Kl applications. According to another study, the situation in the USA is almost the opposite: there, less educated people are more likely to use AI specifically.

43 percent use AI bots as a search engine

The different generations have different priorities, according to the analysis. For the under-30s, the focus is on saving time, while high costs are the biggest hurdle for them. The up to 60-year-olds and baby boomers see the simplification of everyday processes as the most important advantage, with older generations also paying particular attention to data security. Different target groups can therefore be reached with different arguments.

"Trustworthiness plays a key role for further development," the study concludes. People must be able to rely on the fact that Kl applications "are developed and used responsibly - especially in terms of data protection and data security as well as the quality of Kl-generated information". This is also supported by the fact that 43% of users already use Kl systems as search engines.

However, the "transformative power" of AI is underestimated, the experts point out: 50 percent of professionals regard it as a useful tool for unpleasant and monotonous tasks. However, many do not yet expect technology to fundamentally change their workplace. Only 15 percent feared that they would no longer be needed as a result of AI. However, 77% of respondents expected certain activities or professions to disappear by 2035 as a result of digitalization. In general, the continuous development of digital skills is proving to be the key to staying in the saddle. However, only 16% of employees had taken advantage of further training courses on digital topics funded by their employers in the previous year.

Digital fitness was already higher in previous years

In general, the digital index only rose by one point to 59 points compared to the previous year. By way of comparison, it was 63 out of 100 points in 2021 and 60 in 2020. This indicator measures how fit the population is in dealing with digital technologies in their private and working lives. The researchers consider the stagnation in skills, which are a key prerequisite for active participation and adaptability in the digital world, to be alarming.

The index also shows how differently people in Germany experience technological developments: 36% of citizens are digital professionals who can deal competently with change. 48% see digitalization as an opportunity for personal and professional development. 63% of people in Germany feel well prepared for the transformation. In contrast, 15 percent are digital avoiders and therefore have little or no involvement in the digital society. Around 52% have a distanced, skeptical or negative attitude towards change. A good half of citizens lack basic digital skills. According to the EU target, this figure should only be 20 percent by 2030.

Still 4.2 million offline

According to the study, 4.2 million German citizens are still offline. The Federal Statistical Office counted around 3.4 million non-liners in 2022. Among this group, the perceived complexity of technology is growing as a reason for rejecting the internet, it is now said. Lately, a kind of "digitalization fatigue" has set in, the researchers note. This applies in particular to the assumption that the digital turnaround will also have a positive impact on the green transition. However, 28% of the German population use digital tools such as smart home systems for efficient energy management to reduce their ecological footprint.

Another finding: political opinion-forming is increasingly shifting to social media. 11% of those surveyed inform themselves about political issues exclusively there. In Generation Z+, the figure is as high as 29%. 51% are confident that they can check the accuracy of information and its sources online. However, the proportion of citizens who say they can distinguish between serious and dubious news has fallen from 60% in 2022 to 57%. D21 President Marc Reinhardt emphasizes: "Digitalization must not divide – it can and must connect: Generations, educational levels and regions."

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