Citizens' jury wants more participation in AI research
The Citizens' Jury “AI and Freedom” in the German state of Baden-Württemberg makes nine recommendations on how citizens can be involved in the publicly funded research and development of artificial intelligence (AI). The members of the mini-public presented their findings to Science Minister Petra Olschowski on 10 March 2025.
Among other things, the Citizens' Jury recommends the establishment of a secure infrastructure for data donations, a collection point for proposals for AI research and better networking between medical professionals, patients and researchers with the help of AI. With regard to artificial intelligence in transport policy, the members are proposing the establishment of a permanent Citizens' Jury. This body should help to increase the safety of cycle paths and reduceCO2 emissions in road traffic.
‘Important to involve citizens’
‘Artificial intelligence is changing the way we live. That's why it's important to involve citizens in this transformation process. The Citizens' Jury “AI and Freedom” at the University of Tübingen is doing pioneering work here. The randomly selected members from the country enter into dialogue with researchers and have the opportunity to contribute their individual perspectives. I would like to thank the citizens for their commitment: their recommendations not only provide important impetus for AI research and development, they also promote social discussion,’ said Science Minister Petra Olschowski.
‘Research results and technological developments influence the lives of all citizens. Their interests, needs and perspectives should therefore be taken into account at an early stage,’ emphasised Professor Dr Dr h.c. (Dōshisha) Karla Pollmann, Rector of the University of Tübingen. A Citizens' Jury is an effective means of working together to find the best solutions and develop proposals for implementation.
Recommendations for clusters of excellence
The mini-public is also making its recommendations available to the “Machine Learning for Science” Cluster of Excellence at the University of Tübingen and the Cyber Valley Public Advisory Board. This innovation campus in the state is the largest AI research network of its kind in Europe.
Artificial intelligence (AI) has an impact on the everyday lives of all people. So what should AI research be orientated towards? In Baden-Württemberg, research into artificial intelligence is also financed and supported with public funds. This allows the state to help shape the framework and direction of AI research and set priorities.
What is artificial intelligence?
Artificial intelligence (AI) uses computers and machines to mimic the problem-solving and decision-making abilities of the human mind. An AI is able to extract information from data that a human could never gather, for example because it is too numerous or existing patterns are too complex to recognise. Instead of being programmed for every purpose, an AI can find answers and solve problems on its own.
In the Citizens' Jury, participants contributed their personal views on and experiences with artificial intelligence. Together, they explores the question of how artificial intelligence affects individual and social freedom in their specific personal lives and what opportunities there are for them to participate. The participants were able to exchange ideas with AI experts and gained insights in this way.
Participants randomly selected
The participants in the Citizens' Jury "Artificial Intelligence and Freedom" were randomly selected. This was to ensure fair conditions for participation. The aim was to bring together a group that brings as many different perspectives and individual experiences as possible to the Citizens' Jury.
When randomly selecting the municipalities, care was taken to ensure that municipalities from all four administrative districts of Baden-Württemberg were represented. At the same time, the Citizens' Jury should bring together people from municipalities of different sizes, which is why one municipality, one small town, one medium-sized town and one large city were randomly selected for each administrative district. The municipalities of Hemsbach, Kleines Wiesental, Reutlingen and Waiblingen were taking part.
Reflection of the population
A number of citizens from each of the randomly selected municipalities participated in the mini-public that corresponds to the proportion of the population in the respective municipality size in Baden-Württemberg.
A total of 3,239 randomly selected people were invited to the Citizens' Jury. Of these, 156 (4.8 per cent) expressed an interest in participating. Based on the responses, the 40 members of the mini-public were put together in such a way that they were an approximate reflection of the population in terms of age, gender, education, place of residence and migration background.
Accompanying public events
The Citizens' Jury “Artificial Intelligence and Freedom” met at four different locations from 21 September 2024 and discussed how research on artificial intelligence should be in the future so that it corresponds to social values and also keeps scientific freedom in mind.
In addition to the meetings of the Citizens' Jury, there were accompanying public events the day before each meeting, which focused on the AI topics discussed in the jury. All interested parties were invited to attend. Through various forms of interaction, the accompanying events also gave participants the opportunity to get involved, ask questions and enter into dialogue with experts from AI research and development. On 23 November 2024, the Citizens' Jury concluded its work.
The official handover of the recommendations does not mark the end of the Citizens' Jury process. The results and impact of the project will be documented on an ongoing basis on the website of the mini-public.
‘I have grown’
Taking part in the Citizens' Jury has made a personal difference for Jenny Pfister (43) from Hemsbach. She is the mother of three children, has completed a commercial apprenticeship and has worked for a recruitment agency in Mannheim for many years. ‘I have grown. I may be a small light, but I can shine,’ says Pfister. And perhaps she can encourage other people to contribute their perspective as well. ‘When it comes to our common future, we are all experts.’
Arthur Zechiel from Waiblingen also took part in discussions in the Citizens' Jury. The 57-year-old is a master locksmith and grandfather of two. Discussing a complicated topic in working groups with strangers and coming to an agreement in the end - that was something new for the master craftsman. But it worked out quite well, the group ‘actually harmonised well’. And that despite clear differences, for example in terms of previous professional knowledge on the subject of AI and also in terms of age. Some participants were under 20 years old, others over 70. For Zechiel, the Citizens' Jury was also “democracy in action”.
Mini-public co-initiator Patrick Klügel has learnt two things in particular from the Citizens’ Jury: ‘A project like this can enable people who don't initially feel competent to say anything about artificial intelligence to contribute important perspectives to the shaping of AI research,’ he says. He is also surprised that all participants were willing to ‘think constructively’, says Klügel. ‘It could have been the case that they focussed more on regulations, as we are currently seeing in the political discourse.’
Funding by the Excellence Strategy
The Citizens' Jury was funded by the Excellence Strategy. With the Excellence Strategy, the federal and state governments are strengthening top-level university research. Clusters of excellence in specific fields of research and universities of excellence are funded as strategic support for outstanding university locations. The Centre for Rhetorical Science Communication Research on Artificial Intelligence (RHET AI) and the International Centre for Ethics in the Sciences and Humanities (IZEW) at the University of Tübingen were involved.
Ideal partners and supporters of the Citizens' Jury were the Cluster of Excellence Machine Learning for Science at the University of Tübingen, Cyber Valley GmbH and other organisations and research institutes in Baden-Württemberg. The project team was advised by Mehr Demokratie and an interdisciplinary scientific advisory group. The agency translake GmbH was involved in the implementation.
Research project on the involvement of citizens
As part of the Citizens' Jury, the organisers combined dialogue-based participation with science communication. The initiators of the Citizens' Jury AI and Freedom are particularly keen to ensure that the perspectives of very different people can be incorporated into the wider AI discourse and political decision-making processes relating to publicly funded AI research via the Citizens' Jury.
The Citizens' Jury was therefore being accompanied by a research project by Anika Kaiser from RHET AI, which is investigating the obstacles to the inclusion of citizens and thus their knowledge, their everyday and life experiences and their values in the mini-public and how the knowledge of people with a wide range of identity characteristics can be productively included.