These wise words were delivered by HRH the Crown Prince during his opening remarks at the official inaugural ceremony of the first edition of Luxembourg’s new international tech pulse.

Nexus2050 is a four-day tech extravaganza with a focus during two days on a symposium (Wednesday 26-Thursday 27 June 2024), which had over 300 speakers and over 150 startups speaking on 6 stages, and a tech fair divided into districts: Finance District, PureTech District and Skills District, held at Luxexpo. Both the symposium and the exhibition were closed by a 900-guest seated dinner.

In addition to these two days, international delegations met in Luxembourg ahead of the symposium and by invitation of the Luxembourg Trade and Investment Offices from around the world (Tuesday 25 June 2024). Bus tours were organised the day after the event, to bring European tech students to visit satellite company SES and insurance company Foyer (Friday 28 June 2024). Together, the two companies sponsored 200 students’ tickets to the event in a unique talent attraction approach.

Nexus2050 aimed to provide international technology professionals, innovators and executive leaders a forum to connect and learn.

HRH the Crown Prince stated at the official opening ceremony: “Innovative investments in Space or Supercomputing have enabled the Grand Duchy to be perceived today not only as a significant financial center but also as a highly attractive place for tech companies. Indeed, we love to punch above our weight, and we are quite good at it. That also goes for tech conferences. Nexus2050 aims at blending ecological and digital transitions, fostering innovative solutions that drive sustainability while leveraging advanced technologies. An objective that resonates with our public policies.”

Iliana Ivanova, European Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth, said: “Innovation needs the right policy and regulatory environment to thrive. We are working on it at EU level. But innovation also needs interactions. I trust this event will allow many bright ideas and talents to come to the fore, inspired by the innovative and inclusive spirit that Luxembourg embodies."

During the inauguration of the event, Carlo Thelen, CEO - Director General of the Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce Luxembourg, highlighted the immense significance of the Nexus2050 trade fair as a new and promising technology event in Luxembourg. Thelen said: “This visionary event represents a pivotal opportunity for our dynamic country to solidify its position as a hub for innovation and technological advancement as well as to attract international delegations and thought leaders from across the globe. In times of major economic uncertainty and geopolitical instability where our companies, and mainly SMEs, face continuous challenges, it is crucial to foster environments that encourage growth and resilience, but also that underscore Luxembourg’s commitment to global cooperation and innovation. As ‘Global Partner’ of this first edition, the Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce believes that this new event in Luxembourg offers an invaluable exposure to technological excellence, providing entrepreneurs with interesting insights, tools and networks needed to thrive and compete on a global scale.”

Chief Alderman of the City of Luxembourg, Maurice Bauer stated: “We are particularly happy to sponsor a panel entirely dedicated to smart cities, focusing specifically on digital twins. This will allow us to gain insights into technologies and solutions that will help make our city more innovative and efficient, addressing the needs of both our citizens and the many daily visitors—over 100,000 commuters from our neighboring countries each day.”

For its first edition, Nexus2050 has chosen Ukraine as a Guest Country. The programme of panel discussions, keynotes and startup pitches have been developed in collaboration with the Luxembourg Ukraine Chamber of Commerce as well as with the Ukraine Embassy in Brussels, Seeds of Bravery and the Ukrainian Startup Fund.

Mr. Ihor Zhovkva, Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, said: “I’m pleased to note that Luxembourg is one of the first countries to provide technological and innovative support to Ukraine. Thus, the Luxembourg military satellite LUXEOSys is set to provide imaging capabilities to NATO partners by the end of 2025. The satellite will be launched into space by a rocket owned by billionaire Elon Musk’s SpaceX company, either towards the end of 2024 or the beginning of 2025.”,

“We’ve followed with great interest your initiation of negotiations regarding Ukraine’s accession to the European Union on Tuesday here in Luxembourg,” said Mike Koedinger, co-founder of Nexus2050. “We hope Nexus2050 has allowed you to make new connections, express your points of view, and showcase some of your best startups. This will not end the war, but we sincerely hope it will contribute to your efforts in one way or another.Together, let’s rebuild Ukraine.“

Winner of the Start Up Demo Arena contest: Codepresso – a HR SaaS for enterprises that transforms the entire digital skill talent management process - from candidate discovery, digital skill assessment, and post-hire upskilling - with quantitative skill proficiency data, represented by Senior Account Executive Saebyuk Lee from Seoul, South Korea. “150 startups that we have carefully selected to exhibit and pitch at Nexus2050 had pitched in front of a jury of venture capitalists during two days,” explained Kamel Amroune, co-founder of Nexus2050. “Congratulations to Codepresso, we’ll watch you carefully and follow your developments”.

Sophia, Hanson Robotics’ most advanced human-like robot, who personifies the dreams for the future of AI, spoke during the event. As a unique combination of science, engineering, and artistry, Sophia is simultaneously a human-crafted science fiction character depicting the future of AI and robotics, and a platform for advanced robotics and AI research.

The scenography was designed by Luxembourg based architecture company 2001 founded by Philippe Nathan.

The first edition of Nexus2050 has been supported by “premier institutional partners” EU Commission, Government of Luxembourg, City of Luxembourg, Luxinnovation and “global partner” Chamber of Commerce.

Nexus2050 was held at Luxexpo in Luxembourg City’s Kirchberg district and produced by the E.I.G. Nexus2050, co-founded by the tech marketing agency The Dots and independent media company Maison Moderne, publishers of Paperjam.