National Academy of Science and Engineering (acatech)
Member Academies
Munich Office – Karolinenplatz 4 / 80333 München, Germany
T. +49 (0)89/52 03 09-0
Funded by the Federal Government and the Free State of Bavaria, acatech – National Academy of Science and Engineering is the voice of the technological sciences at home and abroad. We provide advice on strategic engineering and technology policy issues to policymakers and the public. We fulfil our mandate to provide independent, evidence-based advice that is in the public interest under the patronage of the Federal President.
Identity
Jan WÖRNER
President
Start: March 19th, 2021
End: The presidency is still ongoing
Thomas WEBER
President
Start: March 14th, 2023
End: The presidency is still ongoing
Founding date:
February 15, 2002
Number of Fellows and Associate Fellows:
658 (in total)
Percentage of women among Fellows and Associate Fellows:
16,4%
Bilateral relations with other member academies of Euro-CASE:
acatech maintains numerous strategic partnerships with sister academies and other organizations worldwide. For details, please see: https://en.acatech.de/international-cooperation/
Number of staff:
212 (in 2023)
Annual budget:
21.106.000€ (2023)
Financing sources:
Universities and Research Institutions:
Private funding: 1,159 million
Other (please specify): 0,763 million € (EU funds)
Academy is member of:
CAETS (International Council of Academies of Engineering and Technological Sciences)
Mission
We provide policymakers and society with independent, evidence-based advice that is in the public interest. In doing so, we aim to promote sustainable growth through innovation.
Committees / Main working groups
Topics: Work & Education, Circular Economy, Digital & Self-learning, Energy & Resources, Mobility, Technology & Society, Biotechnology, Innovation, Healthcare Technologies, Security.
Principal objectives 2025 and key realisations 2024
We develop studies and options for action, moderate platforms and accelerate the transfer between research and industrial application wherever technological innovation enables social progress and sustainable growth. Current updates on our projects and events can be found on our homepage en.acatech.de .
Next academy annual event
October 2025 (tbc)
Highlights 2020-2021
- In January 2020, the Third Innovation Dialogue took place with Chancellor Angela Merkel and her Ministers. At the event, Henning Kagermann, Chairman of the acatech Board of Trustees, together with representatives from industry and science, discussed the ‘Innovation Potential of Second Generation Quantum Technologies’.
- Within the framework of the National Platform for the Future of Mobility, the Steering Committee, chaired by Henning Kagermann, launched the project RealLabHH, a real-world laboratory in Hamburg exploring the digital mobility of the future.
- In December 2020, the National Platform Artificial Intelligence, co-chaired by the federal Minister of Education and Research Anja Karliczek and acatech President Karl-Heinz Streibich, published a progress report summarising the main results of the past years in key areas of AI research such as intelligent mobility, machine and deep learning, man-machine interaction, and AI and discrimination. It presents examples of practical applications in everyday life and also makes its own contribution to the innovation and socio-political AI discourse.
- In March 2021, Johann-Dietrich (Jan) Wörner was elected as one of acatech’s two Presidents, succeeding Dieter Spath. He is an engineer who has previously served as Director General of the European Space Agency (ESA), Chairman of the Executive Board of the German Aerospace Center (DLR) and President of the Technical University of Darmstadt.
- In May 2021, the “Circular Economy Roadmap for Germany” was officially handed over to the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF). The roadmap is a framework for action that describes the necessary steps for Germany’s transition to a Circular Economy. With funding from the BMBF, the Circular Economy Initiative Deutschland was carried out under the guidance of acatech in cooperation with SYSTEMIQ.
- In late 2021, the acatech IMPULSE “5G in Industry” was published. It discusses the potential of 5G technology and possible barriers to its implementation and proposes a series of policy options for science, industry and government.
