Creative industries fight for new rules of the game

Hamburg - On 28 and 29 April, Hamburg will become the central meeting point for the German creative industries at the German Creative Economy Summit. The focus will be on current developments relating to artificial intelligence - from new business models and the handling of copyrights to the impact on creative work. With over 100 speakers from politics, the media and the creative industries, the summit offers a broad programme of panels, talks and presentations that shed light on these changes from different perspectives.

Carsten Brosda, Senator for Culture and Media Hamburg: "Artificial intelligence is currently changing the framework conditions for creative work with great dynamism - it opens up new opportunities, but also raises fundamental questions about authorship, value creation and responsibility. However, human creativity remains the decisive resource. It provides direction, meaning and attitude - and turns technological potential into cultural progress. The creative industries are therefore far more than just an economic factor: they create meaning, generate social dialogue and shape our democratic public sphere. Formats such as the German Creative Economy Summit are key venues for conducting this dialogue, developing common guidelines for the use of AI and actively shaping the combination of technological innovation and artistic freedom."

Egbert Rühl, Managing Director of Hamburg Kreativ Gesellschaft and organiser of the GCES: "Artificial intelligence is fundamentally changing the way the creative industries work and organise value creation. At the same time, new business models and forms of collaboration are emerging. The question is not whether something is changing - but how we deal with it and, above all, how this development can be organised. The creative industries are also part of the solution in this phase of upheaval. The German Creative Economy Summit in Hamburg brings together those who are actively driving this transformation - from creatives and companies to politicians and associations."

The current developments surrounding artificial intelligence affect an industry of considerable economic and social importance: with around two million employees and an annual turnover of over 200 billion euros, the creative industries are among the most important economic sectors in Germany. With its 11 submarkets (music, film, books, press, architecture, broadcasting, performing arts, design, software/games, art, advertising), the creative industries have an impact on other economic sectors and play an important role in the development of society and democracy in Germany.

The range of participants at the summit is correspondingly broad: speakers include Dr Carsten Brosda, Hamburg's Senator for Culture and Media, Gitta Connemann, Parliamentary State Secretary at the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy, and Björn Böhning, State Secretary at the Federal Ministry of Finance. There will also be leading representatives from the media and business - including Rhys Noelke, Chief Data Officer at Bertelsmann, Dr Paul Evers, Head of AI at FUNKE Mediengruppe, and Virginie Briand (Deloitte). Key industry voices such as Matthias Hornschuh (Initiative Urheberrecht), Michael Duderstädt (GEMA), Olaf Zimmermann (Deutscher Kulturrat) and Prof Dieter Gorny (Initiative Musik) are also involved. Larissa Pohl and Aïssou Diallo (both GWA), among others, will contribute perspectives from the agency environment.

The programme will be complemented by perspectives from culture, the public sphere and digital media practice, including musician Balbina, newsfluencer Fabian Grischkat, journalist and podcaster Gregor Schmalzried and author and journalist Wolf Lotter, who will discuss current developments from different perspectives.

A special programme item is the premiere of the documentary "Hirschhausen and the Deepfake Mafia" with Eckart von Hirschhausen. Afterwards, the topic of deepfakes and trust in the media will be discussed with experts from the media, research and practice. The possibility of creating deceptively real content raises new questions about trust, authorship and control - and makes it clear how profoundly AI is changing existing structures.

The summit offers media representatives numerous points of contact for reporting - with dialogue partners from politics, the creative industries, associations and science as well as insights into current developments relating to the transformation to the AI economy. Interviews can be arranged in advance and on site.

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About the German Creative Economy Summit
As a leading platform, the German Creative Economy Summit connects creative professionals and companies from all eleven submarkets of the creative industries with decision-makers from politics, science, associations and national funding organisations. The conference is organised by Hamburg Kreativ Gesellschaft, Germany's largest public funding institution for the creative industries in Hamburg. The German Creative Economy Summit is sponsored by the Hamburg Ministry of Culture and Media.

About the Hamburg Kreativ Gesellschaft
Hamburg Kreativ Gesellschaft has been the city's business development organisation for the creative industries in Hamburg since 2010. As one of the largest and oldest institutions of its kind in Germany, it supports creative professionals from all eleven submarkets - from design and music to film and architecture, games and advertising. With funding programmes, advice, networking events and innovation formats, Hamburg Kreativ Gesellschaft strengthens the economic and social relevance of the industry. It is also actively involved in the procurement and development of spaces for creative professionals and in neighbourhood and urban development processes. With the Jupiter project, the conversion of a former department stores', it has created a nationwide beacon for creative interim use, which was honoured with the polis Award in 2024. Further information at: kreativgesellschaft.org