Transparency · Method

Methodology

Sourced. Citable. Verifiable.

How the figures come about, how we verify, and where the evidence comes from — so newsrooms can trace every statement back to its source.

Source-based · an as-of date on every figure
EVERY FIGURE WITH A SOURCE AND AN AS-OF DATEREF. GZ 52/7 · AS OF 06/2026
METHODOLOGYTHREE PRINCIPLES
How we calculate

Three principles.

Before every figure stands a rule. These three carry the entire data section of the series.

01

Source before claim

Every figure carries a source and an as-of date. What we cannot substantiate, we do not assert — and we mark estimates as such.

02

Outcome, not intent

We measure what has actually happened, not what was resolved. A law on paper is not force in effect; only enforcement counts.

03

Examples clearly marked

Model calculations carry the note “Illustrative figures”. Before going live we reconcile them against the printed edition.

What example figures mean

Some values — especially on the procedural level of the State-Duties Index — are calculated as examples in the book, not as a live survey. The calculation logic per duty is disclosed: deadline, actual value, source and as-of date. The example figures show the format; the live status follows with the publication of the Index and is reconciled against the printed edition before going live.

To report an error or prompt a correction: a note to the press office is enough. We correct transparently and with an as-of date.

METHODOLOGY · ORIGINHUMAN + MACHINE
How these books came about

The idea came from a human.

Conceived, directed and accountable by humans; written by the AI; edited by humans. Three volumes, three methods.

01

Freistaat · Diagnosis

A human-conceived historical analysis of recent decades — AI-assisted research and writing, checked through a multi-step verification process against hallucination, and finally edited by a human.

02

Überholt · Speed

The same workshop as a future projection: what happens if nothing changes? New here — after each chapter a clearly marked, raw verdict of the machine, kept distinct from the sourced analysis.

03

Bauplan · Solution

A strategy prompt run across three systems (OpenAI, Anthropic, Google) and synthesized into one version; the AI develops the solution data-driven — within explicit guardrails: lawful and constitution-compliant, international models, culturally connectable.

METHODOLOGY · AIMODEL · PROCESS · EVIDENCE
How the AI works

The machine writes,
humans decide.

The series is openly AI-written. Model, review process and evidence density are laid open here.

01

The models

Text and editing with ChatGPT (OpenAI) and Claude (Anthropic); the cover with Gemini (Google). The author is the openly declared AI persona Reinhard Brückner; the publisher Subversion Press is responsible under press law.

02

The process

AI draft, multi-step editing, a documented fact-check with a second review pass, human final approval. Where no solid source exists, that is marked rather than inventing one.

03

Evidence density

Every claim requiring proof carries a source and an as-of date — Freistaat 362, Überholt 260, Bauplan 427 footnotes.

04

Traceable, not objective

A machine is not objective. We claim traceability: one consistent, disclosed assessment standard, every statement verifiable — verifiable, not infallible.

→ EU AI Act disclosure
SOURCE LISTSELECTION · BY VOLUME
Where the evidence comes from

The sources,
laid open.

A curated selection of the central sources. The full source list is included with the volumes.

Volume 1 · Diagnosis
Central Register of Foreigners · BAMF (2022)As of 2022

Enforcement gap: around 12,900 of ~304,000 people obliged to leave were actually carried out.

Forsa survey on trust in governmentAutumn 2023

High trust in the federal government: around 15 percent.

Bundeswehr · materiel reportDecember 2022

Puma infantry fighting vehicle: 18 vehicles, 0 combat-ready.

International comparative survey on national pridemulti-year

Germany markedly below its neighboring countries.

Volume 3 · Blueprint & Index
KfW Municipal Panel · IMK projection2025

Municipal investment backlog of €215.7bn; projected to €350–450bn by 2035.

Federal budget / pension reportongoing

Federal pension burden on a path from €7.8bn to €25.4bn.

Defense budget2026

Personnel gap: around 184,000 active soldiers against a target strength of 460,000 (incl. reserve).

Judicial statistics of the public prosecutors' officesEnd of 2025

Over one million open proceedings for the first time.

Proof of feasibility · Models
Estonia · digital enforcementComparison

Criminal justice end-to-end digital — proceedings swift, without a backlog in the millions.

Italy · asset confiscationsince 1982

Around €20bn seized, over 43,000 properties.

Netherlands · Wnra2020

Around 500,000 employees moved into ordinary labor law.

Canada · Express Entryongoing

An immigration decision usually within six months.

AS OF 06/2026 · FIGURES FINAL-CHECKED BEFORE GOING LIVETo the evidence in the Knowledge hub →