The Finder World – „Why Complicate Things When They Can Be Smart?“
I made history—with 1,000 categories against data overload and AI hallucinations. As early as 1997, the concept of citythek.de was planned. Not as another expert playground, but as a reflection of the analog world with the Finder search engine, which was conceptually more advanced than today’s AI systems. It was based on my ten years of experience teaching adult illiterates (1985). My patent ES2374881T3 was the key: Instead of confronting users with overwhelming amounts of data or error-prone algorithms, I relied on assigning 1,000 precise categories. The Semantic Web, on the other hand, remained an ivory tower: RDF, DAML, OIL—these standards sounded like a secret language. Even tech enthusiasts despaired at the complexity.
Why this was better than anything that exists today:
- Each Finder (token) was assigned to one or more of the 1,000 categories. This reduced the error rate to a minimum—because the AI only searched within clearly defined categories.
- Users immediately saw the relevant categories and could select the correct one with a single click. The AI didn’t have to guess; it deliberately chose entries already stored in the corresponding category.
- Minimal content, maximum efficiency: Instead of sifting through endless amounts of data, the system worked with pre-structured, validated categories. The result? Faster answers, fewer errors, no distractions, and lower energy consumption.
The Counter-Model to the Gatekeepers
While Google and others send users through labyrinths of advertising and distractions—like a store that deliberately builds aisles at the entrance to hang more posters—I focused on directness and user control. My system didn’t need detours because it mirrored human logic from the start.
The Consequences: A Search Engine That Could Have Changed Europe
- No hallucinations, no data overload: Users found what they were looking for—without detours or manipulation.
- Value creation in Europe: Instead of giving data away to US corporations, the Finder technology could have created a European infrastructure—transparent, democratic, and fair in terms of value distribution.
- The foundation for getmysense: A social network that empowers users instead of spying on them (see 2012).
The Real World – „When Europe Slept Through the Future“
How the Semantic Web failed in reality—and why we’re still paying the price today. In 1999, everything could have been different. But instead of adopting my precise, user-friendly classification, the world trusted abstract theories and greed.
The three fatal mistakes of the digital economy:
- Complexity over simplicity: The Semantic Web failed due to its own overwhelming complexity. My 1,000 categories could have been the solution.
- Gatekeepers instead of user control: Google, Facebook, and others built their empires on distraction and data exploitation. My model would have shown: It’s possible without advertising labyrinths.
- No transfer of human structures: Even modern systems today struggle with hallucinations—because they lack clear categories. My 1999 approach was already ahead.
The consequences:
- Google & Co. dominate: Not because they are better, but because they trap users in their systems.
- Europe remains dependent: Instead of promoting Finder, US technologies were imported—and control over data and values was lost.
- The irony: Today, corporations desperately search for solutions for „trustworthy AI“—yet I already had it in 1999.
The GAP in 1999:
| Finder World | Reality |
|---|---|
| 1,000 categories—precise, fast, hallucination-free | Endless data—error-prone, manipulable |
| Users control the search | Algorithms control the users |
| Value creation in Europe | Data colonialism by Google and Amazon |
What remains? A question that persists to this day: Why did Europe opt for complexity when there was a simpler, better solution? (The answer follows—year by year, until 2045.)
A GAP has not yet emerged. Google and Amazon Germany were only founded in 1998.
GraTeach has become known beyond the region as a leadership academy with the Kamp-Lintfort basic conversations and the online magazine. Anyone interested in the many projects should explore the entire GraTeach.de timeline from 1990 to 2001, including the information behind the links.
