Mathias Döpfner

CEO & Chairman

Axel Springer SE

Artificial Intelligence

Entertainment & Creators Economy

Marketing & Advertising

About Me

Mathias Döpfner is a German journalist, book author, and the chairman, CEO and shareholder of Axel Springer SE (owner of POLITICO, INSIDER, MORNING BREW, BILD, WELT and ONET). He joined the company in 1998 as editor-in-chief of the German daily Welt and became CEO in 2002. Ever since, he has pushed the digital transformation of the company. Today, over 85 percent of the group’s revenues and 95 percent of profits come from its digital business. He is a member of the Board of Directors of Netflix and Warner Music Group, serves on the steering committee of Bilderberg conference, and holds an honorary office at the American Jewish Committee.

Hear My Insights

AI, Media and the Peril of Democracies

This year, as more than 2 billion voters around the globe head to the polls, the democratic process is under siege and freedom is in decline all over the world. The wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, and the threat of a potentially escalating conflict over Taiwan, all have one thing in common: The further weakening of democratic nations, with the United States and Europe as the main targets. One reason for this erosion is trade policies that allow for asymmetric standards that benefit non-democratic nations like China. At the same time, the rise of artificial intelligence and large language models further challenges the status of our somewhat fragile media industries. Join Mathias Döpfner as he discusses the profound impact of media, AI, and global conflicts on the future of democratic nations, why we should stop doing business with dictators, and why publishers should embrace AI as a technology.