artificial&intelligent

Generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) has long since become part of many areas of our everyday lives. Systems that can generate text, images, audio, and other types of content open up new possibilities while also raising questions about their impact and the conditions under which they are used. How is GenAI changing work and education? What impact does it have on social participation and democratic processes? And how are knowledge, creativity, and the design of digital technologies evolving?

To understand these developments and help shape them responsibly, we need research that examines GenAI from different perspectives. At the Weizenbaum Institute, our researchers explore both the opportunities and risks of these technologies, addressing widely discussed expectations and concerns with current studies and research findings.

On this page, we have brought together research from across the Weizenbaum Institute, including research projects and publications as well as interviews, podcasts, and other contributions and events. This collection provides an overview of our research on generative AI, the questions that drive our work, and the insights it generates.

Ongoing Research Projects

Generative KI in der Wissenschaft (KIWi): Wie verändert sich die wissenschaftliche Praxis?
This research project examines the impact of generative AI tools (genAI) on scientific practice and knowledge production.

Generative KI in der Arbeitswelt (GENKIA)
The wide range of potential uses for generative AI applications makes them highly relevant to the world of work. This research project examines the implications of this for employees, business units, and the quality of work.

Evaluating GenAI Evaluations
This interdisciplinary Weizenbaum short project investigates the methodological and theoretical foundations of GenAI evaluation, which not only shape how it is evaluated, including who evaluates for whom, but also shape narratives around AI capabilities and risks in general.

Metacognitive Interventions for Navigating the Drawbacks and Threats of Using GenAI
The use of generative AI (GenAI) has become firmly established in society. In addition to desirable effects, recent research findings also point to psychological drawbacks and risks associated with GenAI use. Metacognitive interventions tailored to GenAI could therefore provide users with strategies to protect themselves from these psychological drawbacks and risks. A central objective of this project is to identify measures that are simple and intuitive enough to be applied independently by GenAI users in the general public.

Past Research Projects

KI-gestützte Sozialwissenschaft: Labeling-Methoden für TikTok News-Inhalte
The project critically examined the potential applications of generative AI as a method for the social sciences.

Unveiling the AI-Bias
The empirical goal of this project was to clarify perceptions of AI systems and to test how the term affects perception and decision-making.