Digital Future

The possibility of processing ever-larger volumes of data ever more rapidly has taken the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to a new level. Here, as in many areas of digital transformation, legislators are struggling to keep abreast of technical developments.

There is much talk of forward-looking mobility concepts at the moment and all of them have one thing in common, namely automated/autonomous steering, with the human driver/pilot being successively displaced by computers.

Big data is one of the key terms at the heart of digital transformation. IT applications are today in a position to analyse huge quantities of unstructured data at high speed – and their capacities continue to grow. This enables the making of new findings, the uncovering of underlying structures, and the preparation of forecasts in many different areas of our lives.

Blockchain is seen as one of the most promising and revolutionary new technologies: Crypto assets create new investment possibilities, token sales are heralding a sea-change in the way in which capital is raised, and smart contracts promise the extensive automation of complex agreements and bulk transactions.

Auf Basis einer Blockchain können Vermögenswerte in Form von Crypto-Assets genauso kostengünstig, schnell und sicher über das Internet übertragen werden wie Informationen. Möglich machen dies Tokens, eine Art digitale Wertmarke, die exklusiv einem Inhaber zugeordnet werden kann und als solche handelbar ist.

Cyber security is one of the key issues that has a significant influence on the digital transformation process. With each new media report on hacks and data theft, the pressure mounts on companies, governments and supervisory authorities.

Data is the driving force of digital transformation and at the same time a key motor of the economy in the modern world. The new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) has tightened the legal requirements businesses have to meeting when collecting and processing personal data.

Huge advances in medical and information technology are transforming the healthcare sector in a special way. Innovative approaches in the area of telemedicine are changing how doctors and patients interact.

Innovative technologies have taken hold in almost all areas of the financial sector. InsurTechs, WealthTechs and PayTechs are entering the market, usually in the form of start-ups. They make use of the possibilities offered by decentralised data storage and mobile communication to offer their customers especially user-friendly solutions.

The Internet of Things (IoT) is gaining in importance in many areas of daily life. Whether in smart homes and cities or networked factories – the use of voice control, M2M (machine-to-machine), C2C (car-to-car) and C2I (car-to-infrastructure) communication and control mechanisms in industrial “just-in-time” production is on the rise.

Blockchain technology is laying the foundation for the automation of more and more hitherto human-driven processes. One key element is “smart contracts” – computer protocols that are not only a technical manifestation of contracts, but actually perform them autonomously.

Token sales are one of the most innovative methods of raising funds. In token sales blockchain-based tokens are issued to investors in exchange for national currencies or other tokens.

The taxation of cryptocurrencies is a very important matter for both investors and issuers. For the tax burden is generally a deciding factor for the profitability of an investment.

The continuing digitalisation and automation of business processes has already changed the work culture in many areas. Work 4.0 demands increased flexibility and agility of operations and staff to keep businesses competitive.