  Present day physics rests on two main pillars: General relativity and quantum
field theory. We discuss the deep and at the same time problematic interplay
between these two theories. Based on an argument by Doplicher, Fredenhagen, and
Roberts, we propose a possible universality property for noncommutative quantum
field theory in the sense that any theory of quantum gravity should involve
quantum field theories on noncommutative space-times as a special limit. We
propose a mathematical framework to investigate such a universality property
and start the discussion of its mathematical properties. The question of its
connection to string theory could be a starting point for a new perspective on
string theory.
