The jury of the Communicator Award, comprising communication experts, recognises the researcher as a long-standing and steadfast bridge-builder between science, education, business and politics in the field of artificial intelligence. The jury emphasised that Ute Schmid has, through her commitment to communication, laid the foundations for an informed debate and a confident, reflective use of AI applications not just since the recent boom in applications, but since the 1990s.
Science communication as part of scientific responsibility
“I am delighted to receive this award. Science communication is for me not an add-on to research, but a central part of scientific responsibility – especially when it comes to a topic like Artificial Intelligence which is changing the way we live, learn and work in so many areas.” It's important to empower people not only to use AI-system but to understand their capabalities and limitations. Only on this basis can we, as a society ,decide how we want to shape Artificial Intelligence.”
Prof. Dr. Ute Schmid To the profile
According to the jury, alongside the purely technological perspective on the functioning and development potential of AI, Ute Schmid’s communication activities have always focused on the socio-cultural perspective. This perspective focuses on the question of what impact the development and use of artificial intelligence have on individuals and societies. In this regard, Schmid’s communication activities have always pursued the overarching goal of enabling participation and understanding AI as a social task that can be shaped.
This perspective also shapes her work at bidt: for example, in the project “Human-AI co-creation of code with different prior knowledge: Effects on performance and trust” (pAIrProg) and in the project “Ethical implications of hybrid teams of humans and artificial intelligence systems” (Ethyde), which focus on issues of human-AI collaboration, explainability and appropriate trust in AI systems.
To the research projects
Making AI understandable – for schools, society and businesses
The jury particularly highlighted the variety of formats tailored to specific target groups through which the award winner communicates scientific findings. These are aimed at both primary school teachers and pupils, as well as decision-makers in politics, academia, committees or small and medium-sized enterprises.
For instance, Schmid encourages early engagement with AI topics in education through numerous teacher training programmes, such as the online course ‘Data Literacy’. A prime example of this is an analogue educational game designed by Ute Schmid for primary school pupils on the topic of ‘machine learning’, which was professionally produced by the toy company Haba. With her textbook “Programming Artificial Intelligence Yourself”, Schmid targets young people. In addition to presenting AI concepts and methods in an age-appropriate manner, the book explains step by step how AI algorithms can be implemented in the Python programming language.
To bring the opportunities and workings of AI to life in small and medium-sized enterprises, the award winner initiated the SME AI Center, funded by the Bavarian Ministry of Economic Affairs, and developed awareness-raising workshops. The centrepiece of the AI Center is a production facility, built in collaboration with a specialist plant manufacturer, which is equipped with various robots and sensor technology. This facility allows the diverse possibilities of machine learning and human-robot collaboration to be clearly demonstrated.
“In addition to traditional media appearances, numerous lectures and popular science publications, Ute Schmid addresses a non-scientific audience precisely through workshops designed to encourage dialogue,” the jury stated in its reasoning. Schmid also carries out essential educational work in the field of AI-generated disinformation campaigns and on the topic of humanising AI.
Commitment to political consultancy and public discourse
“Ute Schmid pursues her aim of actively shaping socio-political discourse with impressive commitment in the field of policy advice,” said the jury. The bidt director contributes her expertise to, amongst others, the German Ethics Council, the German Bundestag’s Enquete Commission on Artificial Intelligence, the Bavarian AI Council, the Plattform Lernende Systeme, and numerous other scientific advisory boards and committees. As an expert and driving force, she is committed to ensuring that public debates on AI are fact-based and that both opportunities and risks can be realistically assessed.
About the Communicator Prize
The Communicator Prize has been awarded by the DFG and the Stifterverband since 2000. It honours researchers who are particularly creative in their research, take innovative and even bold approaches, and engage their target audiences in appropriate and effective ways. They are also expected to recognise the societal dimension of their research and contribute their knowledge to public debates, opinion-forming processes and decision-making. The prize money is intended to support the laureates in their commitment and also to enable the implementation of new projects. The jury selected this year’s laureate from 70 applications and nominations in a multi-stage selection process. The award ceremony at the end of June will be presided over by DFG President Professor Dr. Katja Becker and Dr. Volker Meyer-Guckel, Secretary General of the Stifterverband.
