Towards a Common Understanding of the Biointelligence Concept

After the introduction of the term 'biointelligence' in the context of production science about five years ago, different understandings have evolved that impede a comprehensive implementation of the concept. As a result of the dissent about the definition and its theoretical position in science, neither a congruent method of scientific knowledge retrieval exists nor a collection of methodological foundations for the development and management of biointelligent systems. This paper thus reviews how the conceptual understanding of the term has evolved and how perspectives on the topic have changed in recent years. It adopts a two-track research approach consisting of a systematic literature review on recent biointelligence publications as well as a survey with 69 participants in established biointelligence networks. The paper is intended to provide an impetus for definition efforts in different scientific disciplines and standardization initiatives in order to ensure a smooth transfer to industries.