Guest lecture and panel discussion “Ethics in AI” with Nikolas Klassen

On June 10, 2025, Nikolas Klassen was a guest of the Master's lecture “Innovation Management”. Invited by Professor Gordon Müller-Seitz, who got to know him during his research stay at the University of Colorado Boulder, Nikolas Klassen first gave a short keynote speech on current ethical issues in dealing with artificial intelligence.

This was followed by a lively discussion with the students. Topics included myths surrounding AI, specific application examples from his work at Google - such as the use of AI in Nobel Prize research into protein folding - and the question of how human expertise influences the performance of AI. Fundamental ethical questions about the responsibility and “consciousness” of AI were also critically reflected upon.

Nikolas Klassen had already explored these topics in depth in an open discussion with the chair team in the morning. Many thanks for the inspiring insights and the lively exchange!