EGN NEWS DESK
The tech race is on, and Europe is falling behind.
In seven of the eight essential applied sciences that may form the long run – from house tech to quantum computing – we lag different economies. Targets for giant information, synthetic intelligence (AI) and cloud adoption are slipping out of attain.
Our GDP progress has stagnated whereas others race forward. According to Banco Santander, if we had grown on the identical fee because the US since 2000 we’d have added 11 million jobs and created €300 billion in tax income. Instead, we’re 30% behind. As Mario Draghi famous, these two tendencies are linked; we aren’t aggressive as a result of we’ve not embraced digitalization.
We are overregulated. And we aren’t benefiting from our single market, with investments and incentives divided 27 methods.
We are overregulated. And we aren’t benefiting from our single market, with investments and incentives divided 27 methods.
But we should not hand over.
Europe trains 20% of the world’s AI expertise and nonetheless has main corporations in inexperienced tech, manufacturing, healthcare and extra, even when more and more they’re investing elsewhere.
We have what it takes to beat the percentages and win the tech race. Here are my three steps to succeed:
- Cut regulatory burden
At the beginning line, when European companies search for, they see hurdles that their rivals don’t have.
One difficulty is the amount of guidelines: previously 5 years alone, we’ve seen practically 50 new legal guidelines touching digital. DIGITALEUROPE members inform us that they’re spending 15% extra on compliance annually in contrast with 2019. That’s cash spent on legal professionals, not coders and innovators.
Another is the complexity: the principles on information sharing within the EU are dizzying for even the biggest corporations, by no means thoughts the smaller ones.
Certain cyber-attacks may need to be reported as many as 5 instances (probably extra) to completely different EU and nationwide authorities. More time spent on reporting is time that’s not spent fixing the difficulty.
The AI Act should even be mentioned. What began as a legislation to guard us from the worst doable abuses has expanded to probably embrace even washing machines and vacuum cleaners as ‘excessive threat.’ This was no one’s unique intent, and we should keep away from it earlier than it’s too late. Our industries can’t be crippled by unrealistic interpretations of our personal guidelines.
Let’s not additionally overlook that the simplest burden to take away is one which isn’t in place but. The European Commission ought to withdraw the AI legal responsibility directive and halt plans for a Digital Fairness Act. These points are already coated elsewhere, they only should be higher enforced. The new information union technique shouldn’t be about including extra guidelines, however making sense of what’s already there.
- Simplify the one market
Thirty years into our single market, solely 8% of European small and medium-sized enterprises commerce throughout borders. As Letta argued, that is largely as a result of inconsistent laws and complicated administrative necessities.
A European Business Code would supply companies with clear and constant guidelines for working throughout the EU. This ‘twenty eighth regime’ would simplify cross-border firm registration, taxation and transactions.
Take dual-use know-how, which was initially developed for business makes use of however may also be utilized to protection. European corporations have an edge in issues like superior connectivity, vitality and wind tech, and digital twins. Yet corporations are struggling to scale as a result of we’re nonetheless pondering nationally, so protection and different public funding is chopped into 27 items.
The prize is a big one — authorities contracts make up 14% of GDP. Common EU procurement with easy guidelines would assist big innovation on this space.
- Invest and incentivize
The EU is a world champion in laws. But that received’t win us the tech race.
The quantity we have to discover annually to compete with the very best stands at €800 billion. This is about corporations in Europe creating future applied sciences and companies of all types adopting them.
To begin, a minimum of 1 / 4 of the EU finances needs to be devoted to digital, not just for analysis and growth (R&D) however for deployment. Tech corporations are already good at R&D — however they want contracts.
The cash ought to concentrate on digital abilities, disruptive applied sciences and defending our essential infrastructure, which is more and more underneath assault.
Beyond authorities spending, we should mobilize the trillions in financial savings accounts and pension funds in Europe with widespread guidelines.
Finally, EU international locations ought to come collectively to coordinate tax incentives for companies investing in digitalization and demanding applied sciences in Europe.
Europe can
In her listening to, Executive Vice-President-designate Henna Virkkunen stated she would ask her workers to map the reporting burden on corporations on her first day in workplace. Our new gameplan particulars precisely that. It is stuffed with actionable concepts that may be put in place instantly.
Some will say it can’t be accomplished. Our message is that this: Europe can. Tough instances name for daring options. We want the Commission, member states and the European Parliament working collectively as one Europe.
In historical past no civilization has ever survived on imaginative and prescient and concepts alone. Only by creating worth can we maintain our values.
In historical past no civilization has ever survived on imaginative and prescient and concepts alone. Only by creating worth can we maintain our values.
The tech race began 25 years in the past and we’re already behind. We wouldn’t have one other decade to repair it: our financial system is in a droop, unicorns are leaving and battle is at our doorstep.
Europe could be a aggressive digital powerhouse. The time needs to be now.
