The 2025 DIGITAL SME summit highlighted the need to strengthen Europe’s technological sovereignty and competitiveness by scaling homegrown, SME-driven solutions, reducing strategic dependencies and building a stronger European tech stack. A key milestone was the announcement of the Tech Sovereignty Catalogue, designed to help public authorities and businesses identify and adopt market-ready European technologies. Discussions also emphasised the importance of public–private partnerships, strategic procurement and a simpler, more harmonised regulatory framework to help European innovators grow and compete globally.
Programme
09:00 - 09:30
Breakfast & Registration
ROOM JDE62
09:30 - 09:45
Welcoming remarks
Oliver Grün
President (European DIGITAL SME Alliance & BITMi)
Sebastiano Toffaletti
Secretary General (European DIGITAL SME Alliance)
Emilie Prouzet
President INT Section, (European Economic and Social Committee)
ROOM JDE62
09:45 - 10:15
Unveiling the Tech Sovereignty Catalogue: A gateway to innovation made in Europe
Paul Timmers
Visiting Professor (KU Leuven)
ROOM JDE62
10:15 - 11:15
Beyond the Digital Package: How to attain European tech sovereignty and competitiveness?
Laura Balke
Head of Sector – Cloud Policy (DG CNECT, European Commission)
Oliver Grün
President (European DIGITAL SME Alliance & BITMi)
Matthias Ecke
Member of the European Parliament
Michał Kobosko
Member of the European Parliament
Ruth del Campo
General Director for Data (Ministry for Digital Transformation and Public Function - Spain)
FOYER 6
11:15 - 11:30
Networking & Coffee
ROOM JDE63
11:30 - 12:30
The Data Act and the Aftermarket: Ensuring Competition and Access for SMEs
Björn Juretzki
Head of Unit, Data Policy (DG CNECT, European Commission)
Damian Boeselager
Member of the European Parliament
Sylvia Gotzen
Secretary General (FIGIEFA)
Veronique Willems
Secretary General (SMEUnited)
Andrei Kelemen
CEO (Cluj IT) & Vice-President (European DIGITAL SME Alliance)
Inge Graef
Associate Professor for Competition Law (Tilburg University)
ROOM JDE62
11:30 - 12:30
Fostering cyber resilience for the 99%: Supporting SMEs to level up European cybersecurity
Christiane Kirketerp de Viron
Acting Director for Cybersecurity and Trust (DG CNECT, European Commission)
Pieter Byttebier
Head of International Policy & EU Affairs (Centre for Cybersecurity Belgium)
Joanna Świątkowska
Secretary General (ECSO)
Patricia Shields
CEO (Cyber Cert Labs)
Erlend Andreas Gjære
Co-founder & CEO (Secure Practice)
Alex Agius Saliba
Member of the European Parliament
Essay Competition Ceremony
ROOM JDE60
11:30 - 12:30
Europe’s Tech Sovereignty Showcase: A Demo Session with Leading Innovators
Opening keynote:
Robert Verwaayen
General Partner (Keen Venture Partners)
Katalin Kauzli
Co-founder & Business Development Director (Partnerhub)
Goran Golubović
Director (Egzakta Advisory)
Anthony Senter
CEO (Atomnia)
ROOM JDE63
ATRIUM 6
12:30 - 13:45
Networking Lunch
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ROOM JDE62
13:45 - 14:10
Keynote speech
followed by a Fireside Chat with Sebastiano Toffaletti
Ekaterina Zaharieva
Commissioner for Startups, Research and Innovation (European Commission)
ROOM JDE62
14:10 - 14:25
Keynote speech
Eléonore Simonet
Minister for the Middle Class, the Self-Employed, and SMEs (Belgian Federal Government)
14:25 - 14:35
Transition Break
14:25 - 15:15
Keynote speech
Followed by a Fireside Chat
Eléonore Simonet
Minister for the Middle Class, the Self-Employed, and SMEs (Belgian Federal Government)
ROOM JDE62
14:35 - 15:25
European tech leadership: How to unleash growth and innovation by homegrown SMEs and start-ups?
Kasia Toczko
Head of Communications (Simplito)
Jekaterina Novikova
Deputy Head of Unit (DG RTD, European Commission)
Sophie Dembinski
Head of Global Public Policy (Ecosia)
François Gobron
Senior Equity Fund Manager (Generali Investment)
Alexandra Geese
Member of the European Parliament
ROOM JDE63
14:35 - 15:25
How can a more flexible, inclusive, and transparent European standardisation system drive digital SMEs’ competitiveness?
Barbara Bonvissuto
Director of Ecosystems III (DG GROW, European Commission)
Jan Ellsberger
Director-General (ETSI)
Dario Sabella
CEO and co-founder, Head of R&D (Next G Cloud)
Alessandro Cillario
Co-CEO & Co-Founder (CUBBIT)
Andreea Gulacsi
Director, Policy & External Affairs (CEN and CENELEC)
Jon Echanove
Secretary General (SBS - Small Business Standards)
ROOM JDE60
14:35 - 15:25
Buy European – Boosting demand for homegrown innovation with Public Procurement
Heiko Pongratz
Board Member (Databund)
Viviana Demonte
Project Officer (Eurocities)
Philippe Van Damme
Deputy Director General (DG DIGIT, European Commission)
Victor De Laleu
Policy Officer (DG GROW, European Commission)
Pascal Belmin
VP Head of EU Aviation and Regulatory Affairs (Airbus Group)
FOYER 6
15:25 - 15:50
Networking & Coffee Break
SESSION 1
16:30 - 17:30
Mastering the path to the Green and Digital Transition
Roberto Stasi
Senior Loan Officer (European Investment Bank)
Miriam Koreen
Senior Counsellor on SMEs - Centre for Entrepreneurship, SMEs, Regions and Cities (OECD)
Mark Jordan
Chief Strategy Officer (Skillnet Ireland)
Idriss Brockmann-Serbis
CEO & Consultant for Sustainable Digital Transformation (NightlyCode GmbH)
Alessandro Gropelli
Director General (Connect Europe)
DIGITAL SME Awards – Green Category
SESSION 2
15:45 - 16:45
Fostering Digital Resilience in the Era of Economic Security
Matchmaking on EU funding opportunities
Session's opening
Isidro Laso Ballesteros
Senior Official (European Innovation Council)
Yasen Gyurov
Seconded National Expert - European Observatory on Infringements of Intellectual Property Rights (EUIPO)
16:45 - 17:00
Coffee Break
16:45 - 17:00
Keynote speech
Marietje Schaake
Fellow Institute for Human-Centered AI (Stanford University Cyber Policy Center)
ROOM JDE62
15:50 - 17:00
From AI to Tech Continent: What is needed for the future of digital competitiveness?
Frank Krüger
Head of Directorate Digital Policy (German Federal Ministry for Digital Transformation and State Modernization)
Kim van Sparrentak
Member of the European Parliament
Raphaël Auphan
COO (Proton)
Paul Timmers
Visiting Professor (KU Leuven)
Gaspard Demur
Deputy Head of Unit - AI Innovation & Coordination Policy (EU AI Office, European Commission)
ROOM JDE62
17:00- 17:20
Keynote speech
Henna Virkkunen
Executive Vice-President for Technological Sovereignty, Security and Democracy, European Commission
ROOM JDE62
17:20 - 17:30
Concluding remarks
Sebastiano Toffaletti
Secretary General (European DIGITAL SME Alliance)
17:30 - 18:00
Closing remarks
Henna Virkkunen
Executive Vice-President for Technological Sovereignty, Security and Democracy (European Commission)
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ATRIUM 6
17:30 - 19:00
Networking cocktail
DIGITAL SME awards ceremony
Sponsors & partners
2025 highlights
Officially announced at the Summit, the Tech Sovereignty Catalogue showcases market-ready solutions fully developed in Europe. It gives public authorities and businesses a concrete tool to identify sovereign alternatives and invest in technologies that reinforce Europe’s digital autonomy. As it expands, it becomes a catalyst for innovation and strategic procurement. Learn more.
Europe’s digital future depends on trust, transparency, and technological independence. To strengthen Europe’s digital sovereignty and showcase trusted European software providers, two new labels were presented at the DIGITAL SME summit and are now available for companies wishing to apply: Software Made in Europe and Software Hosted in Europe. Learn more.
Photo gallery
1000, Brussels
Belgium
