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Thank you for having me today. This is the first official event during Denmark’s Presidency of the Council of Ministers.
I find it fitting that it all begins right here with you. Because digital investment, critical technology and the global technology race are some of the most important issues in Europe right now.
And they will play an important role throughout Denmark’s presidency – also in relation to the next Framework Programme for Research and Innovation.
We expect the programme to go by the familiar name: Horizon Europe.
And what is on Europe’s horizon in the years to come?
No matter how optimistic you may be about technology in general, the recent developments in the world have made it clear that Europe has to become more technologically independent.
Technological development and digitalisation have revolutionised our society. There can be no doubts about that.
Digital technology has created tremendous flexibility in our working lives and in our daily routines. AI is reshaping our productivity and changing how we write, how we learn and how we think. People across the globe have gained the ability to communicate and connect. Information, opinions and ideas can flow freely across borders, languages and social divides.
But there is another side of the coin.
Closed algorithms determine which voices are heard and which are effectively censored. The darkest anti-democratic forces in our societies have gained new opportunities to organise, radicalise and recruit.
And most importantly: A very small group of individuals and companies now control the information-based infrastructure all over the western world.
These are people who are neither based in Europe nor democratically elected, but who have significant influence over our communication security, economy, and the content of public discourse.
And sadly, it has become clear in recent months that we cannot trust these companies to be neutral in today’s political climate.
Building our own system
As I know my colleague mentioned earlier today, only 4 of the world's 50 largest technology companies are European. In fact, the key driver of the productivity gap between the EU and the United States is digital technology.
This is a key point in Mario Draghi's report on European competitiveness.
The technological and digital train has been speeding ahead all over the globe since the 90s. But Europe is still standing on the platform, hesitant to board that train.
We need to do something about that.
However, it is not a good strategy to mindlessly chase the technology train.
Instead we need to focus on building our own tracks and designing our own system. Taking control of our own critical technologies. Europe still has an opportunity to capitalise on future waves of digital innovation.
This will require investments, greater willingness to take risks and more research and innovation. It will be a significant undertaking.
But I believe it is as possible as it is necessary.
Since World War II, we have built a continent founded on values such as freedom, peace, trade, the rule of law and human rights.
These values must be protected — especially in an uncertain world. And our technology must support those values.
We can look to South Korea as an example of what happens when ambitious policies and strategical investments go hand in hand.
Since the 90s, South Korean public institutions have in large scale used local digital services. There have been enormous public investments in technology too.
And now 40 years later, South Korea is a global leader in technology.
A majority of Koreans primarily use Korean digital solutions. Korean search engines, Korean social media. E-mail, fin-tech, shopping platforms. They all vastly outperform their American counterparts.
And as a result, South Korean tech companies generate millions of jobs and wealth all over the region.
I am not saying we can – or should – copy and paste the South Korean model in Europe.
But the South Korean case is an important reminder that there is another way.
There are alternatives to foreign tech giants who trade user data for platforms and services.
We can choose a different path, and now is the time to do so.
A European path
It is time to find our own European path.
Ultimately, it’s about being able to stand on our own. Not because we want to turn our back on the world, but because we want to stand stronger in it.
And that will require hard work.
Europe is privileged. We have some of the world’s most talented researchers and innovators. There is an abundance of ideas across our continent.
The unique and uncertain situation we are in right now has opened doors that were previously closed.
We are now seeing politicians – both here in Denmark and across Europe – pull out their blue EU flags from the drawer.
We are seeing an enormous willingness to cooperate and invest within the EU.
We are witnessing a European awakening among citizens. With less EU scepticism and consumer movements that want to buy not just locally, but European.
Now is the time to prove that we can do it. We need to invest strategically in the technologies of the future: quantum technology, artificial intelligence, biotechnology and space technology.
We need to turn promising fundamental research into real commercial value.
This means prioritising basic research and curiosity-driven science.
Universities play a crucial role in this. Both as academic institutions and in the value chain from research to business.
It is on university campuses ground-breaking ideas are born. It is where talents are shaped. And it is often where the foundation is laid for the entrepreneurs of the future.
Ultimately, it is research and innovation that will carry Europe into the future.
Non-negotiable values
But academic freedom and international research collaboration are increasingly affected by great power interests and political control.
We see this in China, where the state controls what is researched in various areas. Where academic freedom often gives way to ideological conformity.
Unfortunately, we also see it in the United States where political tensions and culture wars interfere with universities’ freedom to research and teach.
That is why it is so important that we do not take academic freedom for granted.
We must safeguard the values that form the basis for free research and free education. It is the foundation of scientific integrity and public trust. I also believe it is a competitive advantage.
Europe is an attractive place for some of the world’s brightest minds, because we stand firm and do not compromise when it comes to our principles and values.
When we invest in European research, it comes with a shared vision for what research should be: Free, independent and enlightening for society.
Alan Turing, the pioneering British computer scientist wrote – and I quote:
“We can only see a short distance ahead, but we can see plenty there that needs to be done.”
He wrote this in his 1950 paper on artificial intelligence, and it is still true 75 years later. We do not know what the future holds. Especially, when it comes to technological development.
But what I do know is that there is plenty of work to do. Not least during Denmark’s Presidency.
For the next 6 months, we will work resolutely to strengthen Europe’s competitiveness and technological innovation while safeguarding the ideals of research.
Thank you to all of you for your participation today. Thank you to the speakers.
I hope you all have a great evening here in Aalborg. And that you will join again tomorrow for day 2 of the conference that is going to be all about Horizon Europe.
Thank you.