Young Sohn is a seasoned technology executive, investor, and entrepreneur. As former President and Chief Strategy Officer of Samsung Electronics, he drove strategic investments, global partnerships, and the growth of Samsung’s innovation ecosystem. Currently, as Chairman of Harman and Founding Partner at Walden Catalyst Ventures, Young Sohn bridges Silicon Valley, Asian, and European markets with a focus on deep-tech investments, semiconductors, AI, and platform technologies. He brings decades of experience in scaling global technology companies and fostering cross-continental innovation. 

In his keynote Young Sohn will share insights on how Europe can strengthen its competitive position in the global economy, drawing on his experience across the US, Asia, and Europe. The keynote will focus on investment strategies, scaling research, technology, and innovation, talent attraction, and navigating geopolitical challenges.

The panelists will explore how digitalisation and artificial intelligence can become a key driver for improving productivity and competitiveness in Europe. The discussion will focus on:

• How can digitalisation and AI deliver productivity gains in Europe’s industrial base?

• How can Europe translate its strengths in domain expertise into competitive advantages in digitalisation that strengthen the industrial base?

• How can research and innovation be translated into impactful industrial applications?

The purpose of this panel is to discuss the areas where Europe demonstrates technological leadership today and explore how these strengths can be maintained and expanded. The panel will address the role of research and innovation in securing Europe’s future competitiveness and examine priorities for selected emerging technologies (Life Sciences, Space Technologies, Quantum Technologies).

• How can research excellence be translated more effectively into industrial competitiveness and societal impact?

• What policies and financing mechanisms are needed to secure Europe’s position in global technology leadership?

• Should Europe concentrate resources on a few key technologies or maintain a strong (but not necessarily leading) role in a broader portfolio of key technologies?

• How can Europe ensure resilience and strategic autonomy in critical technologies while remaining globally connected?

Innovation does not only take place in national and supranational networks – regional innovation systems are particularly important for the competitiveness of Austria and Europe as business locations. Two high-ranking representatives from the highly innovative and competitive federal states of Upper Austria and Styria will address this aspect of competitiveness.

Enjoy a delicious break, visit our exhibition and connect with fellow attendees.

At the TU Austria Innovation Marathon, students and young researchers dive into a high-energy, 24-hour sprint where interdisciplinary teams tackle real-world industry challenges. Surrounded by peers from diverse professional backgrounds and accompanied by professional innovation coaches, participants experience first-hand what true collaboration and creativity can achieve in just one day. This session offers an inspiring and entertaining behind-the-scenes look at the ideas, breakthroughs, and teamwork that makes this year’s Innovation Marathon unforgettable.

Tech Sovereignty is a central European goal. The whole continent – the EU, individual states and regions – invests heavily in building digital infrastructure like AI Factories, Data Spaces, Gaia-X, Open Source etc. Those and further initiatives should support the European economy in becoming more sovereign and globally competitive.

Spin-offs, startups and scaleups play a crucial role for enabling Europe’s digital future. To be successful, they must develop digital products that fit the market and fulfill European expectations at the same time. How do existing companies deal with this challenge? How can digital business success in Europe look like? And what can (future) spin-offs and startups learn from their experience?

In this Special Event we aim to answer those questions and get to know the people pushing European innovation.

* Roland Sommer, Plattform Industrie 4.0

* Michael Wiesmüller, BMIMI

* Stefan Plank, TACEO

* Martin Kaltenboeck, Graphwise / Semantic Web Company

* Andreas Krimbacher, nexyo 

* Moderation: Michael Fälbl, Platform Industry 4.0 Austria

More speakers to follow.

Gaia-X Hub Austria

Plattform Industrie 4.0

How can Europe secure access to critical resources and build resilient industrial systems in a changing global environment to ensure long-term competitiveness? The panel will explore the role of relevant key research areas, innovation, and industrial transformation in addressing resource dependencies, fostering circular economy approaches.

• Which critical resources pose the greatest risk to Europe’s industrial base in the coming decades?

• What are the most relevant research fields and technologies to support resource security and independence?

• Which technologies deserve priority?

• How can Europe balance the need for global supply chain integration with the imperative of reducing strategic dependencies on single regions or countries?

• How can Europe manage the trade-offs between sustainability goals and the need for resource security, especially for critical raw materials?

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