BERLIN, June 24 (Xinhua) -- For every one in five Germans, the image of artificial intelligence is best represented by the robot sidekick R2-D2 that beeped and whirred its way through nine Star Wars films, a study by the German opinion and market research institute IfD Allensbach on Monday showed.
The infamous Terminator, played by Arnold Schwarzenegger, as well as the android Commander Data from the Star Trek universe followed R2-D2 in second place with 17 percent of Germans thinking that these two characters are representing AI the best.
Germans also favored R2-D2 as a personal assistant. 15 percent of the respondents desired the Star Wars robot as an assistant. 13 percent favored the intelligent sports car K.I.T.T. from the 90's television series Knight Rider. Star Trek Commander Data followed in third place with 8 percent.
The German government has announced in May, that it is planning to invest 570 million euros (690 million U.S. dollars) in the promotion of AI research in Germany.
"We will make Germany's outstanding AI research even more competitive internationally by expanding our competence centers for AI research and networking them with industry and business," announced Germany's minister for education and research Anja Karliczek.
A further 500 million euros (570 million U.S. dollars) are to be invested in AI research, according to budget plans for 2020 by the German government. (1 euro = 1.14 U.S. dollars)
