The "New Industrial Ambition for Europe" summit aims to galvanise policymakers and industry leaders to implement key reforms that will bolster European technological leadership and economic prosperity.
Senior European political figures, including Henna Virkkunen, European Commission executive vice president for tech sovereignty, and Enrico Letta, former Italian Prime Minister, join the summit to discuss strategies to enact the recommendations of the Draghi and Letta reports, both of which outline pathways for revitalising Europe’s global competitiveness.
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Addressing Europe’s digital divide
The Draghi Report, published in September 2024, calls for actions to stimulate innovation, attract investment, and reduce market fragmentation. Similarly, Enrico Letta’s April 2024 report emphasised the urgent need for advanced connectivity infrastructure and a unified digital strategy.
The summit coincides with a stark reality: Europe’s technology sector lags behind the U.S. and China, with European R&D investment trailing by €450 billion annually.
Börje Ekholm, president and CEO of Ericsson, underscored the urgency, stating: “Companies like Ericsson already invest disproportionally more in R&D in Europe.
“If other regions continue to race ahead, this model cannot survive. The EU must implement the Draghi and Letta Report recommendations to enable the technology sector to play its part in delivering future European prosperity.”
Nokia’s CEO, Pekka Lundmark, echoed that sentiment: “European competitiveness already has one foot in the morgue... Europe must create an environment in which businesses want to invest, especially in technologies such as AI, cloud, and advanced connectivity. This cannot be a decade-long endeavour. Europe must act right now.”
The summit also highlights the importance of secure and trusted networks, which are essential for digitalisation and economic resilience.
Leaders stress the need to fully implement the 5G Security Toolbox across all telecom technologies and adopt reforms to support market consolidation, reduce regulatory burdens, and incentivise investment.
Christian Klein, CEO of SAP, emphasised the broader implications: “New technologies will bring growth and higher productivity for Europe. That is why we need to act and drive digitalisation across all sectors,” he said.
This summit marks the first collaborative effort by Nokia and Ericsson to present a unified industrial vision for Europe, with both highlighting the importance of urgent reforms for the European telecoms landscape.
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