Author: Michael Mandamadiotis

On the 21st of November, 13:00 CET, Skills2Scale organized its first digital policy forum aimed to synergize efforts in deep tech and beyond 5G technologies with the regional innovation strategies outlined in RIS3. Our event brought together key stakeholders from the HEIs, KICs, and relevant government agencies and provided a great opportunity for dialogue and collaboration, resulting in concrete conclusions and recommendations. After an opening Keynote speech by Dimitris Dimitriadis, a discreet futurist of the European ecosystem, about the future of innovation in the deep tech field, a fireside chat took place between the event’s moderator and Business Development & Operations Manager at Envolve Entrepreneurship, Kostas Kissas, and Fofy Setaki, principal scientist and researcher in Cosmote. The content of the first two slots were new trends, advancements, implications of infrastructure, industry, today’s workforce and the role of universities in fostering deep tech ecosystems.

After these introductory sessions, the first panel discussion, with topic “Deep Tech & Beyond 5G: Challenges and Regional Opportunities” took place. The members of the panel were Vasileios Gongolidis, Head of Innovation Planning Division at the General Secretariat for Research and Innovation, Harilaos Koumaras, Head of Future Communications Networks Research Group (FRONT) and Researcher at the National Center for Scientific Research Demokritos, Akos Wetters, Co-founder of Kimitisik and discreet startup coach and mentor and Zoltan Palotai, Head of EU Projects at the Hungarian Innovation Agency. They all contributed to a very productive discussion which has a common narrative: transnational collaboration is crucial not only for successful research, but also for productive policy making.

Following, the next panel with topic: “Strategies for Integrating Deep Tech in RIS3” hosted Elli Diakanastasi, from Elevate Greece, Christina Skoubridou from Envolve Entrepreneurship and Ales Kocourek, Dean of the Faculty of Economics at the Technical University of Liberec. They conducted a very insightful discussion, leading to the common bond that policy making and education institutes must be adjusted to the market needs.

Last, but not least, Dimitris Mallas, a discreet journalist in the 5G field, with knowledge and connections with the entire European 5G ecosystem made his comments on the situation of Beyond 5G technologies, and how deep tech must be better instituted through policy making.

Overall, this policy forum was a great beginning in our Skills2Scale effort to influence policy making in the Deep Tech field, enhance collaborations, and to shape actionable policy recommendations in a concise and focused setting. The participation of people from various pillars of the ecosystem made the forum very interesting, since things from multiple dimensions and perspectives were heard.