At the official opening ceremony of the first edition of Nexus2050, Grand Duke Guillaume delivered a keynote speech. Nexus2050 is a four-day technology conference organized at Luxexpo, centered on a two-day symposium (26-27 June) with more than 300 speakers and more than 150 start-ups on six stages and a technology fair divided into several districts (finance, PureTech, skills). The symposium and exhibition closed with a dinner with 900 guests.
Activities and Demonstrations
– International delegations: Meeting on 25 June at the invitation of the Trade and Investment Offices of Luxembourg.
– Tours: Tours organised for European technology students on 28 June, sponsored by SES and Foyer.
Speech of the Grand Duke Heir
The Grand Duke stressed the importance of innovative investments in areas such as space and supercomputing, positioning Luxembourg as an attractive financial and technological centre. He highlighted the objective of Nexus2050 to combine the green and digital transitions to foster sustainable solutions.
Key Interventions
- Iliana Ivanova, European Commissioner. She stressed the need for an innovation-friendly policy and regulatory environment and the importance of interactions for ideas and talent to thrive.
- Carlo Thelen, Director-General of the Chamber of Commerce, who stressed the importance of Nexus2050 in strengthening Luxembourg’s position as a hub for technological innovation, particularly in times of economic and geopolitical uncertainty.
- Maurice Bauer, First Alderman of the City of Luxembourg. He expressed his satisfaction to sponsor a panel on smart cities, with a focus on digital twins to make the city more innovative and efficient.
Country invited: Ukraine
Ukraine was chosen as the guest country for this first edition. The Nexus2050 programme included roundtables, keynotes and pitches from Ukrainian start-ups, in collaboration with the Luxembourg-Ukraine Chamber of Commerce and the Ukrainian Embassy in Brussels.
Igor Zhovkva, Deputy Head of the Cabinet of the Ukrainian President. He expressed his gratitude for Luxembourg’s technological support to Ukraine, in particular with the military satellite LUXEOSys, to be launched by SpaceX.
- Mike Koedinger, Co-founder of Nexus2050, expressed his wish that Nexus2050 would contribute to Ukraine’s reconstruction efforts by establishing new links and presenting innovative start-ups.
- Start-Up Demo Arena competition. The winner, Codepresso, an HR SaaS from Seoul, turned talent management into digital skills, with Saebyuk Lee representing the company.
- Sophia, Hanson Robotics’ Advanced Human Robot, spoke at the event, embodying dreams for the future of AI and robotics.
Scenography and Institutional Support
The scenography was designed by Philippe Nathan. Nexus2050 was supported by the European Commission, the Government of Luxembourg, the City of Luxembourg, Luxinnovation and the Chamber of Commerce.
Nexus2050, produced by EIG Nexus2050, was co-founded by technology marketing agency The Dots and independent media company Maison Moderne.