SustAIn.brussels is the new European Digital Innovation Hub in Brussels. Its mission is to be the single point of access for companies to sustainable digital innovation with a focus on AI and other emerging technologies, hence creating a lever for a future-proof and sustainable economy for Brussels. Join us for the launch event on 23 May!
The industrial tissue of the Brussels-Capital Region consists of 99.7% of SMEs and has a high concentration of digital and service-oriented companies. Digital technology is the major driver of their innovations and will be essential to them when trying to build up a future-proof business. Nevertheless, these companies perform slightly below the European average on the uptake of artificial intelligence (AI) and finish third last in using ICT for environmental sustainability. This specific context justifies the launch of a European Digital Innovation Hub (EDIH) in Brussels.
Tackling today's challenges
The initiative will help companies to successfully apply digital technologies by matching their need with the right partners that can support them and help them tackle challenges such as:
- How to choose and test technology solutions?
- What skills do you need to acquire?
- What type of investments are needed and where can you find those?
- How do you establish local or international partnerships?
- How do you do this in a sustainable way, so that it positively impacts our society and environment?
Helping to improve
As five major actors in the Brussels digital ecosystem, Sirris, Agoria, ULB, VUB and BeCentral have joined forces to leverage the transition towards a future-proof and sustainable economy for Brussels, enabled by AI and other emerging digital technologies.
With the support of Innoviris and in line with the European Commission’s digital strategy “EDIH call”, the goal is to create a European digital innovation hub in Brussels and to position this hub as a single point of access to sustainable digital innovation in Brussels with a focus on AI and other emerging technologies.
The new hub will provide access to technical expertise and experimentation as well as the possibility to 'test before invest', in order to help companies improve their business/production processes, products, or services by implementing AI or other emerging technologies. It will also provide innovation services, such as financing advice, training and skills development that are needed to support innovation. Sustainability and environmental aspects are also taken into account, in a framework helping companies to positively contribute towards the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) (e.g.: lower energy consumption or low carbon emissions).
The hub will not only have a local impact, but also perform a European function, serving as a gateway to and from Europe to actively spot opportunities for Brussels stakeholders and vice versa; to collaborate as digital enablers for SDGs with other hubs across Europe.
Kick-off event
Do you and your company (based in Brussels) have digital ambitions and aim for sustainable impact? Then the SustAIn.brussels launching event is where you need to be! Join us at the launch event in the heart of Brussels at Becentral on 23 May 2023! Read more Read more in our agenda.
