Organising the full technology development continuum from knowledge to market under FP10 and the ECF
Register Now ! 28 May 2026The INESC Brussels HUB Summer Meeting 2026 is the second major meeting in a series of annual policy dialogue events hosted by the INESC Brussels HUB in Brussels. Building on the Winter Meeting 2026 (Coimbra, January), which diagnosed governance fragmentation in Europe’s R&I system, the Summer Meeting turns the lens onto the technology development process itself: where does Europe’s technology stack break, and what would it take to fix it?
The meeting is anchored in the FP10–European Competitiveness Fund (ECF) continuum, the centrepiece of the next Multiannual Financial Framework (2028–2034), and asks a direct question: is the European capability system, from frontier research through demonstration, industrial integration, and market deployment, engineered for progression? Across four technology domains, the meeting brings together policymakers, researchers, RTOs, industry, and investors to diagnose where the stack breaks and what must change.
ADRA
IHI
EFFRA
MANUFUTUREBy invitation only · Chatham House Rules · ~25 senior participants
By invitation only · With Portugal’s minister for education, science and innovation
By invitation only
Mirroring FP10 and ECF policy windows – World Café methodology · ADRA, IHI, EFFRA and MANUFUTURE
Cross-domain rapporteur reports · action priorities · closing conclusions
27 May · 10:00 – 12:30 CEST · By invitation only · Chatham House Rules
The morning session convenes a select group of senior representatives from European R&I stakeholder organisations, alongside the five boards of INESC institutes, for a structured, dynamic exchange on the state of play for the FP10 and ECF debates and on how Europe’s full technology development continuum can be organised to convert research excellence into competitive capability. The session is co-moderated by Simon Pickard (Network Director, Science|Business) and Ricardo Migueis (Head of Office, INESC Brussels HUB).
Outcomes from this session feed directly into the closed-door Strategic Roundtable in the afternoon.
27 May · 14:00 – 17:30 CEST · By invitation only · Chatham House Rules
The afternoon session brings together senior participants for a closed-door Strategic Roundtable on Europe’s technology development continuum under FP10 and the ECF. Participants include the Portuguese Minister of Education, Science and Innovation; the Secretaries of State for Science and Innovation and for the Economy; senior officials from across the European Commission services with portfolios bearing on the FP10–ECF continuum; representatives of the Council Presidency, CoReper I and Member States; the Joint Research Centre; senior figures from European RTOs, universities, and industry; and the European R&I stakeholder community participating in the morning roundtable. Detailed proceedings are confidential and will inform the Summer Meeting Policy Brief, Where the Stack Breaks.
28 May · All sessions 09:00–13:00 simultaneously
Four parallel sessions using the same methodology: Firestarter Panel (09:15) → World Café (10:45) → Rapporteur Synthesis (12:15). All windows address the same five diagnostic questions. The World Café is a participatory discussion methodology where mixed groups rotate to identify shared conclusions and practical recommendations.
Co-organised with EFFRA and MANUFUTURE
W1 examines the technologies, infrastructures and instruments through which Europe is attempting to industrialise the clean transition: green hydrogen and its derivatives, industrial heat and process electrification, circular materials, energy storage at grid scale, and the cross-cutting question of how Europe converts its scientific leadership in clean technologies into sovereign industrial capability. The window takes as its starting point the observation that Europe holds world-class research positions across many clean-technology domains, with around a quarter of global clean-tech patents and a leading share of the world’s wind and heat-pump technology companies, but consistently struggles to convert these into competitive manufacturing at scale. It examines where, along the continuum from research and pilot-line through industrial demonstration to commercial deployment, the clean industrial stack most consistently breaks, and what the FP10 to ECF interface should do differently.
The window is co-organised with EFFRA (European Factories of the Future Research Association) and MANUFUTURE (the European Technology Platform for advanced manufacturing), the two institutional anchors of European manufacturing R&I.
What the World Café will examineFive discussion tables follow the firestarter presentations and address the common diagnostic template through the clean-industrial lens.
Maps where, along the continuum from research and pilot-line through industrial demonstration to commercial deployment, European clean-technology programmes most consistently fail to progress, with attention to the demonstration-to-deployment handover, the industrial scale-up question, and the regulatory and permitting environment.
Examines the systemic enablers — finance for first-of-a-kind plants, energy cost competitiveness, permitting frameworks, demand formation through public procurement and lead markets, technology infrastructure, critical raw materials supply, and skills — that determine whether clean technologies progress through the stack.
Identifies European clean-industrial successes and the structural conditions that made them possible, drawing on cases from offshore wind, green hydrogen, batteries, and circular manufacturing.
Translates the diagnosis into specific design recommendations for the Clean Transition policy window of the ECF, the Industrial Decarbonisation Bank, the Innovation Fund, and FP10 Pillar 2 clusters bearing on clean industry.
Surfaces concrete, programme-language-ready interventions, from “made in Europe” procurement criteria to fast-track permitting, dedicated technology infrastructure instruments, and carbon contracts for difference.
| Session Host | José Carlos Caldeira, Member of the Board, INESC TEC; Chairman, MANUFUTURE Implementation Support Group; Member of the Board, EFFRA |
| Session Co-Organisers | EFFRA (European Factories of the Future Research Association) and MANUFUTURE (European Technology Platform) |
| Moderator | José Carlos Caldeira, INESC TEC |
| Principal Rapporteur and Synthesis Lead | Américo Azevedo, INESC TEC |
| Firestarter F1 — Decarbonisation as industrial strategy | Kai Peters, VDMA (German Mechanical Engineering Industry Association) |
| Firestarter F2 — The demonstration gap | Maurizio Gattiglio, Chairman, MANUFUTURE High-Level Group; Chairman of the Supervisory Board, EIT Manufacturing |
| Firestarter F3 — Transformation of energy-intensive sectors | To be confirmed |
| Firestarter F4 — Technology infrastructure and the RTO role | Riikka Virkkunen, Professor of Practice, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland; Co-chair, Made in Europe Partnership |
| Firestarter F5 — Critical raw materials and circular manufacturing | To be confirmed |
Co-organised with ADRA
W2 examines where Europe’s digital and compute capability system breaks, from frontier AI and software research through the compute-intensive validation stages where models are trained and benchmarked, to the commercial scale-up where European deep-tech companies must compete with US and Chinese hyperscalers. The window addresses three interlocking dynamics: the access gap on large-scale compute infrastructure at competitive cost, the scale-up barrier created by 27 fragmented national digital markets, and the asymmetric regulatory compliance burden falling disproportionately on European SMEs and startups under the AI Act, Data Act and Cyber Resilience Act. The window also examines the value-chain dimension of compute sovereignty, including chip design, software stacks, and the talent base that underpins European AI competitiveness.
The window is co-organised with ADRA, the European public-private partnership for AI, data and robotics, which represents the operational backbone of Europe’s digital R&I community.
What the World Café will examineFive discussion tables follow the firestarter presentations and address the common diagnostic template through the digital and compute lens.
Maps where, along the continuum from frontier research to commercial scale, the European digital stack most consistently fails to progress, with attention to compute access at TRL 4–7, market fragmentation, and regulatory asymmetry.
Examines compute access rules, Series B+ patient capital, AI Act and Data Act compliance economics, digital procurement frameworks, and AI talent retention.
Identifies European digital successes and the structural conditions that enabled them, drawing on cases from semiconductor manufacturing, edge AI, fintech, and the platforms that have scaled in Europe.
Translates the diagnosis into specific design recommendations for the Digital Leadership policy window of the ECF, the design of ADRA 2.0, EuroHPC access rules for commercial validation workloads, and FP10 Pillar 2 clusters bearing on digital.
Surfaces concrete, programme-language-ready interventions, from compute access vouchers to procurement reform and AI talent instruments.
| Session Host | Inês Lynce, President, INESC ID; Chair, Management Committee, INESC Brussels HUB |
| Session Co-Organiser | Philip Piatkiewicz, Secretary General, ADRA |
| Moderator | Inês Lynce, President, INESC ID; Chair, Management Committee, INESC Brussels HUB |
| Principal Rapporteur and Synthesis Lead | Arlindo Oliveira, President of INESC Holding |
| Firestarter F1 — Compute sovereignty: Europe’s strategic position in the global compute race | Inessa Seifert, Senior Consultant, VDI/VDE Innovation + Technik (Berlin); Co-Chair, Edge AI Working Group, EPoSS |
| Firestarter F2 — AI and software research to product: where the translation fails | To be confirmed |
| Firestarter F3 — Digital infrastructure: what Europe is building and what it is missing | Ilias Iakovidis (DG Connect) |
| Firestarter F4 — The scale-up gap: why European deep-tech cannot get to market | Rasmus Rothe, Chairman of the Board, German AI Association; Founder & General Partner, Merantix Capital |
| Firestarter F5 — AI sovereignty and the talent imperative | Stefan Van Baelen, Senior Manager, Public Funding, IMEC |
Co-organised with IHI
W3 examines the European health innovation continuum, from biomedical research through clinical development to regulatory approval, reimbursement and patient access. The window takes as its starting point the observation that European health research is genuinely world-class at the frontier, but that the path from a validated scientific result to a deployed health intervention runs through clinical trial coordination, regulatory pathways, health technology assessment and reimbursement frameworks that often differ across Member States. The window also considers the structural questions that condition the entire stack: the convergence of AI, sensors and biodata that is transforming diagnostics and care; the manufacturing scale-up gap from clinical proof-of-concept to commercial production; and the absorptive capacity of healthcare systems that must ultimately deploy these innovations at scale.
The window is co-organised with the Innovative Health Initiative (IHI), the European public-private partnership operating at the interface between health research, regulators, payers and industry.
What the World Café will examineFive tables address the common diagnostic template through the health-innovation lens.
Maps where, along the continuum from biomedical research to patient deployment, the European health stack most consistently fails to progress, with attention to clinical trial coordination, regulatory science, health technology assessment, manufacturing scale-up, and healthcare system absorption.
Examines HTA process design (national versus EU), regulatory sandboxes for digital health and AI, hospital procurement frameworks, federated health data infrastructure, and the talent and skills base supporting European health R&I.
Identifies European health innovation successes and the structural conditions that made them possible, drawing on cases from COVID vaccine scale-up, federated data infrastructures (Finland, Estonia), and Nordic procurement models.
Translates the diagnosis into specific design recommendations for the Health and Biotechnology policy window of the ECF, the implementation of the EU HTA Regulation, the next phase of IHI, and the relationship between FP10 and the ECF for health innovation specifically.
Surfaces concrete, programme-language-ready interventions.
| Session Host | Niklas Blomberg, Executive Director, Innovative Health Initiative (IHI) |
| Session Co-Organiser | Niklas Blomberg, Executive Director, Innovative Health Initiative (IHI) |
| Moderator | Niklas Blomberg, Innovative Health Initiative (IHI) |
| Principal Rapporteur and Synthesis Lead | Paweł Świeboda, Founder and Director, NeuroCentury; Co-Founder, Brain Capital Alliance |
| Firestarter F1 — The innovation imperative: a new start for Europe’s health competitiveness | Ignacio Vallines, Head of Scientific Partnerships EMEA, Siemens Healthineers |
| Firestarter F2 — Technology convergence: how sensors, AI and biodata are transforming the health tech stack | Ana Teresa Freitas, Full Professor and Chair of the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Instituto Superior Técnico (Universidade de Lisboa); Coordinator of the “Life and Health Technology” thematic line, INESC ID; Head of Node, ELIXIR Portugal |
| Firestarter F3 — Healthcare in transition: innovation in a challenged system | Jacob Ravn, Head of Innovation, Aalborg University Hospital (Region Nordjylland, Denmark) |
| Firestarter F4 — Manufacturing for resilience: from clinical proof-of-concept to commercial reality | To be confirmed |
| Firestarter F5 — Health data infrastructure and digital sovereignty | To be confirmed |
Registration is available for Day 2 only. Day 1 is by invitation only.
Head of INESC Brussels HUB | Ricardo Migueis — ricardo.migueis@inesctec.pt
Research consistently fails to become competitive capability.
FP10–ECF instruments cover the full market continuum.
The continuum must be organised: silos and gaps persist.
Different domains reveal different stack dynamics.
Act differently for capability—not just research excellence.
Continuity in the analytical journey
How does Europe govern its R&I system?
Diagnosed vertical fragmentation and horizontal disconnection between R&I and sectoral transformation.
Key Trade-offs: Coordination vs. Flexibility • Excellence vs. Inclusion • Autonomy vs. Directionality
How does Europe build, scale, and deploy technology?
Shifts focus to the technology stack as a capability system with its own dynamics and failure modes.
The Core: Governance reform is necessary but not sufficient for the technology stack.
The meeting’s intellectual architecture
Horizontal enablers and blockers across all domains
Aligning with the four ECF policy windows
Shift the competitiveness discussion from isolated instruments to technology journeys across the full continuum.
Test the FP10–ECF relationship through concrete technology pathways, not abstract institutional design alone.
Bring together policymakers, RPOs, RTOs, industry, investors, and intermediaries around a shared analytical framework.
Four strategic windows delivering comparable, structured findings across domains.
All four windows use the same five-question diagnostic structure. Rapporteurs deliver an 8-minute plenary report addressing:
Where does the technology capability system break? At which stage and why?
What systemic enablers (finance, regulation, talent) obstruct progression?
What European successes exist? What conditions made them possible?
What is needed from FP10–ECF? What design features matter most?
What should Europe do differently to achieve higher competitiveness?
Synthesis document combining closed-door roundtable findings, public session insights, and cross-domain analysis from the four technology windows. Structured around the two axes and the five common questions. Target: publication within 1 month of the event.
Four domain-specific diagnostics mapping breakpoints, capability gaps, and recommended interventions onto the shared analytical grid. Standalone contributions to European and national R&I policy processes.
INESC-facing document translating findings into institutional action priorities for the five INESC institutes. Builds on Winter Meeting governance recommendations and Summer Meeting technology diagnostics.
The Summer Meeting 2026 will take place at the SQUARE Brussels Meeting Centre, a leading conference venue located in the heart of Brussels, at Mont des Arts. Known for hosting high-level European and international events, SQUARE combines modern infrastructure with institutional-grade services, offering state-of-the-art audiovisual and hybrid capabilities, flexible meeting spaces, and tailored on-site support. Its central location and integrated services provide an ideal setting for focused discussions, strategic exchanges, and meaningful collaboration among participants.
Register Now !Registration is available for Day 2 only. Day 1 is by invitation only.
