• Published on 26 Jun 2018
• Events

ECSEL Symposium on Shaping Digital Innovation

On the 19th and 20th of June, the ECSEL Joint Undertaking held their Symposium on Shaping Digital Innovation.

A wide range of European and global stakeholders in the Electronics Components and Systems field, including Industry, Research and Financial Communities, European, National and Regional decision-makers and international partners gathered in Brussels for the second ECSEL JU Symposium.

Visionary keynotes on emerging trends and new perspectives in the digital sector where presented at the first half-day of the event. With a focus on “How the digital transformation will change our world” Mrs. Mariya Gabriel, European Commissioner for Digital Economy and Society stated at the ECSEL-JU Symposium how new Digital Europe programme and current investments in HPC, AI and Cyber Security all contribute to increasing European strategic capabilities in electronics. She continued:

“Currently, we don't have computing power in Europe, that would match our potential. I am personally dedicated to change that. Mastering digital technologies is essential for Europe, and ECSEL-JU is a key tool to reach that goal.”

Overall the focus of the conference was on the application of ECSEL research into different sectors including, Artificial Intelligence, e-Agri business, e-Logistics and Production 4.0. The second full day shifted to more strategic exchanges featuring high-profile keynote speeches and panel discussions, and cast light on the impact of the ECSEL JU funded projects on real life and business.

Roberto Viola, DG Connect Director General said “Smart factories, IoT devices or self-driving cars would not function without microelectronics. Progress & innovation in this field will decide whether digital transformation in Europe will be successful. ECSEL_JU plays an active role in shaping our future ECSEL Symposium”. He continued: "When looking at the evolution of ECSEL-JU and its future, we need to consider one basic thing - how to make sure that Europe is on the forefront of the digital revolution"

In the second panel session ECSEL JU towards Horizon Europe Sabine Herlitschka, Chair of ECSEL-JU Governing Board and CEO of Infineon Technologies Austria AG highlights: "Electronics Components and Systems will contribute over 50% of European GDP by 2020.” Jean-Luc Di Paola Galloni stressed that the value chain is very important. We must adapt to customers' needs and on the other side, we can also export our smart systems.”

Book of Projects

This event provided ECSEL funded projects to present their progress and results by showcasing the scientific and technological achievements, and their contributions to the programme.

The ECSEL JU Book of Projects volume 2, covering all ECSEL-JU projects from 2016 & 2017 was released at the ECSEL Symposium in Brussels. The Book features the newest 26 ECSEL JU projects, including 3 Lighthouse Initiatives, a number of articles on digital innovation, and more. You can read it here.