Bureaucracy is often seen as the enemy of growth — slow, rigid, outdated. But at its core, it’s what keeps society fair and functioning. The problem? It’s still running on paper logic in a digital world.

In this episode, Ina Remers — founder of Rule Mapping and co-founder of Nebenan.de — unboxes how AI can reinvent bureaucracy: from endless paperwork to machine-readable rules that enable faster decisions, fairer systems, and real innovation.

She shows how Berlin can lead in modernizing governance, why bureaucracy isn’t broken but badly outdated, and what it takes to turn friction into flow for startups, policymakers, and society.

What you will learn

• Bureaucracy Reframed: Why rules are the backbone of fairness — and how AI can make them efficient instead of obstructive.
• Paper Logic vs. Digital World: The hidden gap that keeps innovation slow, and how rule mapping bridges it.
• Policy Meets Startup DNA: What founders can learn from agile cultures, and how governments can adopt them.
• Berlin’s Edge: Why the city is uniquely positioned to pioneer digital governance and attract global talent.
• From Fear to Function: How AI won’t steal public service jobs, but help fill the million-worker gap looming by 2030.

This episode is part of our Berlin Partner series spotlighting the city’s deep-tech and impact ecosystem.

1. Organ Donation Cards & Purpose [00:00 – 05:20]
   Ina begins with an organ donor card, symbolizing her lifelong focus on impact-driven work and purpose-led innovation.
2. Can AI Eliminate Bureaucracy? [08:28 – 12:52]
   Bureaucracy is fairness in rules — but outdated processes make it frustrating. AI can accelerate, but laws must first be structured to be machine-readable.
3. The Digital Gap [12:52 – 16:15]
   Our world is digitized, but laws and processes are centuries old, still built for paper. This mismatch creates inefficiency and costs.
4. AI & Human Connection [13:07 – 16:15]
   Why empathy, emotions, and real human contact can’t be replaced by digital tools — and how AI must be designed to strengthen, not replace, human connection.
5. Berlin as Deep-Tech Powerhouse [17:05 – 22:38]
   The city’s diversity, research, and startup culture make it ideal for scaling deep tech and impact ventures, but better marketing and scaling structures are needed.
6. Rule Mapping Explained [25:38 – 34:25]
   From laws written in free text to visualized, machine-readable rules: how Rule Mapping makes bureaucracy innovation-ready.
7. Innovation Bottlenecks [37:51 – 38:46]
   Examples like years-long approval for wind turbines show the urgency of reinventing systems for speed and clarity.
8. AI, Jobs & Public Services [1:17:30 – 1:20:23]
   Far from killing jobs, AI is essential to fill Germany’s looming shortage of 1 million public service workers by 2030.
9. Communities & Policy Shifts [56:01 – 1:02:10]
   From neighborhood WhatsApp groups to civil society initiatives, communities can spark real policy change when systems lag.
10. Rapid Fire [1:25:28 – 1:28:38]
    Biggest lesson: policymakers are human too.
    Biggest challenge: human and team dynamics.
    Biggest achievement: being able to work on meaningful topics daily.
    Advice: don’t go it alone — find your perfect match.
11. Final Jam [1:28:38 – End]
    Ina co-produces a soundtrack with Ain TheMachine, weaving her unique style into the rhythm of the show.

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