Professor Irene Bertschek leads a new era of innovation research!

Professor Irene Bertschek leads a new era of innovation research!

On August 6, 2025, Prof. Dr. Irene Bertschek was unanimously elected as the new chairwoman of the Federal Government's Expert Commission for Research and Innovation (EFI). She follows Prof. Dr. Uwe Cantner from the University of Jena and brings extensive scientific experience. Bertschek is head of the “Digital Economy” research area at the ZEW (Leibniz Center for European Economic Research) in Mannheim and professor for the economics of digitalization at the Justus Liebig University of Giessen (JLU). Prof. Dr. also highlighted the importance of digitalization for Germany as a location for innovation. Katharina Lorenz, President of the JLU, congratulated her on the election.

Bertschek has an academic background in economics, which she studied at the University of Mannheim and the Université catholique de Louvain in Belgium. Her doctorate took place as part of the European Doctoral Program at the same institution. She has been working at ZEW since 1999 and has headed the digital economy research unit since 2001. Her involvement at JLU began in 2017 when she was appointed professor in the Department of Economics. The close cooperation between ZEW and JLU aims at joint third-party funded projects and supports both students and young scientists.

Tasks and challenges of the EFI

The EFI plays a central role in advising the federal government on scientific issues and producing reports on research, innovation and technological performance in Germany. The commission carries out comprehensive analyzes of the strengths and weaknesses of the German innovation system, both over time and in international comparison. Particular attention is paid to the 13 key technologies in which Germany lags behind countries such as the USA, China and South Korea. This particularly includes the areas of artificial intelligence and digitalization.

The EFI office, which has been located at the Donors' Association for German Science since September 1, 2011, coordinates scientific work and prepares important reports. The head of the office, Dr. Helge Dauchert is responsible for organizing and preparing the commission's meetings and for integrating key results into its reports. These processes are crucial to ensure relevant input for political decision-makers and to further develop Germany as a science location.

Current challenges in research and innovation

In its latest report, which was recently presented to Federal Minister of Education and Research Bettina Stark-Watzinger, the EFI highlights the urgency of digitalization. Despite advances in areas such as quantum technology and digitalization initiatives, the pace remains below expectations. According to Cantner, who was previously chairman of the EFI, it is not enough to strengthen existing projects; Rather, investments must also be made in the future in order to catch up with the gap in key technologies.

The slow progress in the digitalization of administration is particularly alarming, where only 84 of 575 planned online services have been implemented. The EFI therefore calls for industrial policy measures to promote digitalization, especially in microchip production. These developments are important not only for the country's competitiveness, but also for its independence from foreign technology supplies.

In summary, Prof. Dr. With her election as Chairwoman of the EFI, Irene Bertschek is well positioned to address the challenges in the area of ​​research and innovation and will help keep Germany fit for the future.