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Technical University of Munich

Prof. Dr. Christian Djeffal

Associate Professor for Law, Innovation and Legal Design

Recht, Innovation und Legal Design

Prof. Dr. Christian Djeffal is a Professor of Law, Innovation, and Legal Design at the Technical University of Munich (TUM). He is also Director of the Center for Responsible AI Technologies and serves as a board member of the National E-Government Competence Center (NEGZ), where he chairs the Committee for Research and Projects. At the TUM School of Social Sciences and Technology, he researches the interplay between law and technology, focusing on the regulation and design of emerging technologies like Artificial Intelligence and the Internet of Things. Prior to joining TUM, he led the research area “Global Constitutionalism and the Internet” at the Alexander von Humboldt Institute for Internet and Society (HIIG). He earned his doctorate in international law from Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin; his dissertation, “Static and Evolutive Treaty Interpretation: A Functional Reconstruction,” was published by Cambridge University Press. He studied law at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität in Munich and University College London. His work has been shaped by research stays at leading institutions, including the Amsterdam Center for International Law, the Lauterpacht Centre for International Law at the University of Cambridge, and the Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law. In 2019, he was also a Visiting Fellow at the Institute for Technology, Society, and Law at the University of Zurich.

The research of Prof. Djeffal centers on three interconnected core areas at the intersection of law, technology, and society:

1. Law of Digitization
How can we shape digitization to align with our fundamental constitutional values? This focus area is dedicated to developing effective legal frameworks for a just digital order. The research analyzes existing and future governance structures and examines how regulation can not only protect but actively promote the principles of democracy, human rights, and the rule of law in the digital age. This also includes a reflexive development of constitutional law in light of new technological affordances.

2. Legal Design
This innovative approach applies design methods to legal questions to create novel and practical solutions for complex problems. A central concept is "Law by Design": analogous to "Privacy by Design," the goal is to integrate normative principles like fairness or transparency directly into the design of technology. Through pioneering publications and projects, the research group has established itself as one of the leading academic voices for Legal Design in Germany. The aim is to enable constructive reconfigurations of law and technology.

3. Normativity and Technology
As a theoretical foundation, this area investigates the fundamental interplay between technology and normativity. The research explores the question of how technology and societal norms mutually shape and influence one another. This understanding is crucial for analyzing and responsibly steering the deeper societal impacts of new technologies.

Current courses can be found hier.

Executive tRAININGS

Christian Djeffal trains leaders from various sectors, in particular from public administration, in the field of artificial intelligence. In these trainings, he deals with technical, ethical, legal and social aspects and teaches the basics of socio-technical creativity for the design of artificial intelligence. His clients include the IT Planning Council, the Administrative Academy Berlin, the Summer School of the Partnership for Germany, the Confederation of German Employers’ Associations (BDA) and the German Trade Union Federation (DGB). The core content of the training has also been made available to a broader group of participants, for example at the Long Night of the Sciences in Berlin or for the student of the NachDenkstatt 2019 in Oldenburg (Germany).

Media Appearance

Meinungsbaromter.info (2023): WARUM ES ROTE LINIEN FÜR KI BRAUCHT – Und welche Regelungen zu weit gehen würden. Interview with Prof. Dr. Christian Djeffal. Available at: https://www.meinungsbarometer.info/beitrag/Warum-es-rote-Linien-fuer-KI-braucht_4642.html (last checked 26 June 2023).

Djeffal, Christian (2022): Reflections on AI: Q&A with Christian Djeffal. Institute for Ethics in Artificial Intelligence (IEAI). Munich, Germany. Retrieved from https://www.ieai.sot.tum.de/reflections-on-ai-with-christian-djeffal/.

Deutschlandfunk online (2020), “Zweifel an Genauigkeit von Algorithmen bezüglich Rückfallgefahr von Straftätern”, available at: https://www.deutschlandfunk.de/studie-zweifel-an-genauigkeit-von-algorithmenbezueglich.2850.de.html?drn:news_id=1101515, last updated 16 February 2020 (last checked 18 June 2020).

Krempl, S. (2020), “Studie: Algorithmen prognostizieren Rückfallkriminalität besser als Laien. Big-Data-Programme können Rückfallwahrscheinlichkeiten offenbar unter gewissen Bedingungen doch genauer voraussagen als zufällig gewählte Clickworker.”, heise.de, available at: https://www.heise.de/newsticker/meldung/Studie-Algorithmen-prognostizieren-Rueckfallkriminalitaet-besser-als-Laien-4661585.html, last updated 15 February 2020 (last checked 18 June 2020).

Science Media Center Germany (2020), “Genauigkeit von Algorithmen bei Vorhersage für Risiko von Rückfallkriminalität”, available at: https://www.sciencemediacenter.de/alle-angebote/research-in-context/details/news/genauigkeit-von-algorithmen-bei-vorhersage-fuer-risiko-von-rueckfallkriminalitaet/, last updated 14 February 2020 (last checked 18 June 2020).

Kuhn, J. (2020), „Umfrage zur Digitalisierung: Kein Vertrauen in die Digitalkompetenz von Politikern und Parteien: Deutschland zählt in vielen Untersuchungen unter den Industrienationen zu den Nachzüglern in puncto Digitalisierung. Die Verantwortung für diesen Rückstand sehen die Menschen einer Umfrage zufolge eher bei Staat und Verwaltung, weniger bei den Unternehmen.“, Deutschlandfunk, https://ondemand-mp3.dradio.de/file/dradio/2020/01/09/digitalreport_2020_vorgestellt_plaene_fuer_dlf_20200109_1318_db327b9a.mp3.

Winterer, B. and Quaisser, W. (2020), “Neue Technologien human gestalten”, Akademie-Report (Akademie für politische Bildung Tutzing), No. 02, pp. 20–22. The whole article can be found here.

Global Solutions Journal (2019), “Sustainable development of artificial intelligence (SAID)”, available at: https://www.research.net/r/LLKVHXT, last updated 24 April 2019 (last checked 18 June 2020).

Panels

Renewing the Public Sector – The Role and Potential of AI
5th Digital Future Science Match. Tagesspiegel, Hasso-Plattner-Institut, Zuse Institute Berlin. KOSMOS Berlin, Berlin, Germany, 14.05.2019. Further information

5G, IoT and AI – Addressing Digital Inclusion and Accessibility
Internet Governance Forum 2018. Internet Governance Forum of the United Nations. UNESCO Headquaters, Paris, Frankreich, 14.11.2018. Further information

Streitgespräch zum Für und Wider von Künstlicher Intelligenz (KI) und ihrem Einsatz in der Entwicklungszusammenarbeit
Digital Kontrovers. Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ). Repräsentanz der GIZ, Berlin, Germany, 12.11.2018. Further information

Artificial Intelligence, Ethics and the Future of Work
European Dialogue on Internet Governance. Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development of Georgia, Small and Medium Telecom Operator’s Association of Georgia, Georgian National Communications Commission. Rooms Hotel, Tbilisi, Georgi, 06.06.2018. Further information

Maschinendämmerung. Fragen an eine (nicht mehr zu) ferne Zukunft
Ethik und Künstliche Intelligenz. re:publica. Lichthof des Auswärtigen Amts, Berlin, Germany, 01.06.2018.

Artificial Intelligence: Goverance and Inclusion
RightsCon Toronto 2018. Access Now. Beanfield Centre, Toronto, Canada, 18.05.2018. Further information

Moderation of workshops and panels

Agents, Actants and AI
Association of Internet Researchers Conference 2018: Transnational Materialities. Le Centre Sheraton Montréal Hotel, Montréal, Canada, 12.10.2018.

Artificial intelligence for good: Strategies to open the black box of algorithmic decision-making
Shaping a digital future for all: Our voice, our data, our privacy. Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ). GIZ Representative Office Berlin, Berlin, Germany, 14.06.2018. Further information

Organisation of events

Transatlantic Conference: Building Common Approaches for Cybersecurity and Privacy in a Globalized World
From 01.10.2018 to 03.10.2018. NYU School of Law, Berlin, Germany (International). Further information

Digital Identity, Citizenship and Democracy in Europe Kick-Off Event
Kick-Off Event: Digital Identity, Citizenship and Democracy in Europe. 20.08.2018. Humboldt Institut für Internet und Gesellschaft, Berlin, Germany (International).

Das Ende der Transparenz?
Lange Nacht der Wissenschaften 2018. 09.06.2018. Humboldt Institut für Internet und Gesellschaft, Berlin, Germany. Co-Organised by: Lange Nacht der Wissenschaften Berlin + Potsdam (National). Further information

Digital Identity, Global Citizenship and the Future of Democracy Workshop
17.05.2018. Sirius Minds, Berlin, Germany (International).

Track III: In law we trust – in IoT we trust?
IoT & Trust. From 23.02.2017 to 23.02.2017. Alexander von Humboldt Institut für Internet und Gesellschaft, Berlin, Germany (International).

Vom E-Government zum Smart Government?
From 01.12.2016 to 02.12.2016. Humboldt Institut für Internet und Gesellschaft, Berlin, Germany (National).

Participation as expert

Das digitalisierte Anthropozän
Wissenschaftlicher Beirat der Bundesregierung, Globale Umweltveränderungen. Umweltforum, Berlin, Germany, 20.06.2018.

Gute Künstliche Intelligenz (KI) in der öffentlichen Verwaltung gestalten: Ein Führungskräftetraining
Verwaltungsakademie Berlin, Berlin, Germany, 31.05.2018. Further information

Künstliche Intelligenz in der öffentlichen Verwaltung
Zukunft Digitalisierung Partnerschaft Deutschland, Hertie School of Government. Akademie Schmöckwitz, Berlin, Germany, 22.09.2018.

Member of the Board of the National E-Government Competence Center (NEGZ)

Memberships:

  • Arbeitskreis Open Government
  • Arbeitsgemeinschaft für Wirtschaftliche Verwaltung (AWV)
  • Association of Internet Researchers (AoIR)
  • Deutsche Gesellschaft für Rechtsinformatik (DGRI)
  • International Institut of Administrative Sciences (IIAS)

  • Hütten Stipendium zur Teilnahme an der Academy of International Law
  • Studienförderung der Studienstiftung des deutschen Volkes
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