AI tax: CDU deputy leader Prien calls for taxing value created by machines
Family Minister Karin Prien is calling for new forms of taxation on profits from artificial intelligence. The idea divides the conservatives: Reiche rejects it and Merz is seen as skeptical.
Archive image · Photo: Sandro Halank, Wikimedia Commons / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped and resized)
Karin Prien, deputy leader of the Christian Democrats and Germany's family minister, has come out in favor of taxing artificial intelligence. "If value creation essentially works through artificial intelligence, it must also be taxed," she told Stern magazine. "We must arrive at new forms of taxation." The gains must not benefit only a very few, she said.
Prien linked the demand to the situation of young people, saying they must be able to afford property and support a family and that rents must stay affordable. She also called for streamlining the welfare state and investing more in opportunities for children and young people.
The issue is contested within the conservative bloc. Digital Minister Karsten Wildberger had floated a levy on AI revenue but later softened his stance. Economy Minister Katherina Reiche wants AI rolled out before any tax is discussed, while Chancellor Friedrich Merz is regarded as skeptical.