{"id":22494,"date":"2025-08-01T11:30:22","date_gmt":"2025-08-01T09:30:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.rwth-aachen.de\/itc\/?p=22494"},"modified":"2025-10-14T11:33:15","modified_gmt":"2025-10-14T09:33:15","slug":"ki-washing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.rwth-aachen.de\/itc\/en\/2025\/08\/01\/ki-washing\/","title":{"rendered":"AI Washing: Is There Even AI in It at All?"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"twoclick_social_bookmarks_post_22494 social_share_privacy clearfix 1.6.4 locale-en_US sprite-en_US\"><\/div><div class=\"twoclick-js\"><script type=\"text\/javascript\">\/* <![CDATA[ *\/\njQuery(document).ready(function($){if($('.twoclick_social_bookmarks_post_22494')){$('.twoclick_social_bookmarks_post_22494').socialSharePrivacy({\"txt_help\":\"Wenn Sie diese Felder durch einen Klick aktivieren, werden Informationen an Facebook, Twitter, Flattr, Xing, t3n, LinkedIn, Pinterest oder Google eventuell ins Ausland \\u00fcbertragen und unter Umst\\u00e4nden auch dort gespeichert. N\\u00e4heres erfahren Sie durch einen Klick auf das <em>i<\\\/em>.\",\"settings_perma\":\"Dauerhaft aktivieren und Daten\\u00fcber-tragung zustimmen:\",\"info_link\":\"http:\\\/\\\/www.heise.de\\\/ct\\\/artikel\\\/2-Klicks-fuer-mehr-Datenschutz-1333879.html\",\"uri\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blog.rwth-aachen.de\\\/itc\\\/en\\\/2025\\\/08\\\/01\\\/ki-washing\\\/\",\"post_id\":22494,\"post_title_referrer_track\":\"AI+Washing%3A+Is+There+Even+AI+in+It+at+All%3F\",\"display_infobox\":\"on\"});}});\n\/* ]]> *\/<\/script><\/div><p><div id=\"attachment_22626\" style=\"width: 310px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blog.rwth-aachen.de\/itc\/files\/2025\/08\/KI-Washing_20250729_BAU_Blog.png\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-22626\" class=\"wp-image-22626 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.rwth-aachen.de\/itc\/files\/2025\/08\/KI-Washing_20250729_BAU_Blog-300x200.png\" alt=\"Illustration of a washing machine. Inside the drum is a stylized computer chip labeled 'KI'\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.rwth-aachen.de\/itc\/files\/2025\/08\/KI-Washing_20250729_BAU_Blog-300x200.png 300w, https:\/\/blog.rwth-aachen.de\/itc\/files\/2025\/08\/KI-Washing_20250729_BAU_Blog-1024x683.png 1024w, https:\/\/blog.rwth-aachen.de\/itc\/files\/2025\/08\/KI-Washing_20250729_BAU_Blog-768x512.png 768w, https:\/\/blog.rwth-aachen.de\/itc\/files\/2025\/08\/KI-Washing_20250729_BAU_Blog.png 1500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-22626\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Source: Own illustration<\/p><\/div><\/p>\n<p>In the age of the AI, artificial intelligence is a central component of almost all new technologies. From mobile learning apps to soft drink recipes: AI is being used everywhere. At least according to the manufacturers. Can this even be true? Why is it so important for companies to advertise their products with AI? In this article, you can find out more about the modern phenomenon of AI washing.<\/p>\n<p><!--more--><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #00549f;\">What Is AI Washing?<\/span><\/h3>\n<p>AI washing refers to the practice of misleadingly marketing products or services as AI-supported, even though they either contain no AI functions or only very basic AI functions. Similar to greenwashing, companies use the current trend of artificial intelligence to make their offerings appear more appealing. Advertising with AI not only makes the products interesting for users, but also more attractive for investors. Companies benefit from the fact that there is no standard definition for AI and AI-supported. In addition, technology is changing so quickly that technologies that were referred to as AI a few years ago are no longer considered AI by experts today. Companies are deliberately using this room for interpretation to secure a competitive advantage. The negative consequences are mainly felt by consumers and the AI industry in general.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #00549f;\">Why Is AI Washing a Problem?<\/span><\/h3>\n<p>The integration of AI offers numerous exciting possibilities. Unfortunately, many developers focus primarily on creating an \u201cAI-based\u201d product as quickly as possible and bringing it to market. The market is flooded with AI products, very few of which address the needs of users and some of which use hardly any AI technology worth mentioning. This can lead to real AI innovations being overlooked. In addition, AI-washing undermines consumer confidence, as many products do not deliver what the \u201cAI\u201d label promises. Companies are not spared the consequences either: legal and regulatory consequences &#8211; particularly regarding data protection and ethical standards &#8211; cannot be ruled out.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #00549f;\">How Can You Recognize AI Washing?<\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Due to the vague definition of AI, it is not always easy to recognize AI washing directly. Nevertheless, there are typical characteristics of AI washing that you should be aware of &#8211; and avoid. Caution is advised when a company promises exaggerated revolutionary developments. These products are often advertised using a variety of technical terms to give the appearance of AI innovation. If companies do not clearly explain how they are using AI, skepticism is warranted. So-called AI washers often hide simple or conventional technologies behind complex language. Reputable providers, on the other hand, provide clear information about their use of AI. Also pay attention to whether companies provide information on the data sources and their quality for their AI applications. Before deciding on a product, it is worth consulting independent reviews or contacting reference customers to get a realistic assessment of the actual AI capabilities.<\/p>\n<p>How much artificial intelligence there is in a product is usually only known by internal employees. According to the employees of the start-up \u201cEngineer.ai\u201d, the company exaggerates its AI capabilities. [1] The company claims to use AI to develop mobile applications, but these AI tools are described as \u201chuman-assisted\u201d. Consequently, we can assume AI-washing in this case. [2]<\/p>\n<p>As the AI industry continues to expand, it is important to understand AI washing. Only then can you effectively protect yourself from it &#8211; and find the AI applications that benefit you.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>Responsible for the content of this article is <a href=\"https:\/\/www.itc.rwth-aachen.de\/cms\/it-center\/it-center\/profil\/team\/~epvp\/mitarbeiter-campus-\/?gguid=PER-2DF4PAN&amp;allou=1&amp;lidx=1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Masimba Koschke<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The following sources served as the basis for this article:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/qymatix.de\/en\/ai-washing\/\">[1] Qymatix<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/vaultinum.com\/blog\/ai-washing-lessons-from-the-builder-ai-collapse\">[2] Vaultinum<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Sorry, this entry is only available in Deutsch.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6316,"featured_media":22626,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"c2c_always_allow_admin_comments":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[311,1514],"tags":[620,1500,39],"class_list":["post-22494","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-fun-facts","category-ki","tag-ki","tag-ki-washing","tag-technologie"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.rwth-aachen.de\/itc\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22494","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.rwth-aachen.de\/itc\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.rwth-aachen.de\/itc\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.rwth-aachen.de\/itc\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6316"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.rwth-aachen.de\/itc\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22494"}],"version-history":[{"count":31,"href":"https:\/\/blog.rwth-aachen.de\/itc\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22494\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":23105,"href":"https:\/\/blog.rwth-aachen.de\/itc\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22494\/revisions\/23105"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.rwth-aachen.de\/itc\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/22626"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.rwth-aachen.de\/itc\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22494"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.rwth-aachen.de\/itc\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22494"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.rwth-aachen.de\/itc\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22494"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}