Find out more about our speaker line up below. Speakers are listed in alphabetical order by last name.
Izabela is a policy advisor with long-standing professional relations within the cyber and technology community. She brings many years of experience serving in expert groups of Polish and international public institutions as well as business organisations, including the Council for Digitization at the Ministry of Digital Affairs (2016–2025), the Security and Defence Council under the National Development Council (2021–2025), DIGITAL EUROPE (2020–2022), and the Global Future Council on Cybersecurity at the World Economic Forum (2019–2022).
In 2020–2022, she represented Poland in the NATO Advisory Group on Emerging and Disruptive Technologies, where she co-created the concept of NATO’s DARPA, later named DIANA (Defence Accelerator for the North Atlantic). In recognition of her role in the Group and her efforts to strengthen Poland’s international position, she was awarded the Bene Merito Badge of Honor by the Minister of Foreign Affairs. In 2025, she received the Silver Cross of Merit from President Andrzej Duda for her work in cybersecurity and national defence.
In 2017, she was listed among the 100 Eastern Europe’s Emerging Technology Stars by the Financial Times & New Europe 100. She was ranked among the “50 Leading European Women in Cybersecurity” by SC Media (2019). In 2019, she co-initiated Women4Cyber within the European Cyber Security Organisation (ECSO). In 2025, she was honoured by CEFCYS – Cercle des Femmes de la CyberSécurité, with the support of the Cyber Command of the Ministry of the Interior (COMCYBER-MI), in the category “Women in Cybersecurity in Defense and Security – WORLD.”
She is as a member of the Supervisory Board of Asseco Data Systems S.A. and ComCERT S.A., as well as an active member of Cyber LEGION, national cybersecurity programme led by the Cyberspace Defence Component Command (DKWOC) of the Polish Ministry of National Defence. Previously, she served as Chair of the Kosciuszko Institute (2010–2021), one of Poland’s leading think tanks, where she co-founded the European Cybersecurity Forum – CYBERSEC, a major cybersecurity conference in Central and Eastern Europe.
She is a political scientist, a graduate of the Jagiellonian University in Kraków, and the author of numerous reports, publications, and analyses on EU policy, international relations, cybersecurity, and dual-use technologies, including studies commissioned by the European Commission.
Maria Luís Albuquerque, Commissioner for Financial Services and the Savings and Investments Union, European Commission Maria Luís Albuquerque is the European Commissioner for Financial Services and the Savings and Investments Union at the European Commission. With extensive experience in finance and public policy, she previously served as Portugal’s Minister of Finance, where she oversaw the country’s fiscal policies, financial sector, and economic development cooperation. Prior to this, she also served as Portugal’s Deputy Minister for Treasury, where she was responsible for the privatisation process of major state-owned enterprises. She also held various key positions in the public sector, including Head of Issuing and Markets at the Portuguese Treasury and Debt Management Agency. Beyond her government roles, Maria Luís has held senior positions in the private financial sector, including serving on the Supervisory Board and Audit, Risk, and Nomination Committees of Morgan Stanley Europe Holding and as a Non-Executive Director at Arrow Global Group Plc. She was also a member of the European Commission’s High-Level Forum on Capital Markets Union, focusing on improving retail investor participation. Maria Luís holds a BA in Economics from the Universidade Lusíada de Lisboa and a Master’s degree in Monetary and Financial Economics from the Universidade de Lisboa.
Jeffrey Apeldoorn is the VP Missions ESA/EU at ICEYE and is responsible for ICEYE’s Missions sales for ESA/EU.
Previously, Jeffrey was ICEYE’s Head of Government Solutions for Europe leading the Solutions sales across EMEA. Before joining ICEYE, Jeffrey held various leadership roles in space companies in Europe and the USA, working with ESA and NASA. Notably he worked for over 10 years for OHB in Europe and at Astrobotic in the USA.
Jeffrey is a board member of the European Association of Remote Sensing Companies (EARSC) and is the ICEYE representative on ESA’s New Space Advisory Board.
Peter Arlett is Head of the Data Analytics and Methods Taskforce at the European Medicines Agency. In this role he leads on operations and transformation on clinical evidence at the EMA including clinical trials, real world evidence, safety reporting and data science including AI. He is Chair of the EMA Data Board, Co-Chair of the HMA-EMA Network Data Steering Group, Co-chair of the EMA AI Coordination Group, Co-chair of the Vaccine Monitoring Platform Steering Group, and Member of the ACT EU Steering Group. Prior to taking up this role in 2020, he held leadership roles within the EMA in the areas of pharmacovigilance, epidemiology, and risk management.
Prior to starting at EMA in 2008, Peter worked on new legislation and international collaboration for the European Commission, was the UK delegate to the European Committee for Human Medicinal Products, and was an assessor and manager at the UK’s MHRA. He has a medical degree from University College London, and began his career as a hospital physician in Oxford and London.
In addition to his role at EMA, Peter is Honorary Professor at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. He is also a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh and of the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Medicines of London.
Cecilia Bonefeld-Dahl, Director General, DIGITALEUROPE Cecilia Bonefeld-Dahl is Director-General of DIGITALEUROPE, the leading digital technology industry association representing over 35,000 digital companies in Europe.
She is a member of the Board of Directors of Gaia-X, of the European Commission’s Industrial Forum, and of the B20 Digital Transformation Taskforce. She is also a member of the Stakeholder Cybersecurity Certification Group of ENISA (the European Union Agency for Cybersecurity) and of NATO’s high-level Advisory Group for Emerging and Disruptive Technologies, as well as a board member of the European Commission’s Digital Skills and Jobs Coalition and the European Parliament-led European Internet Forum, and a member of the supervisory board of EIT Digital.
Formerly, Cecilia Bonefeld-Dahl was a member of the European Commission’s High Level Expert Group on Artificial Intelligence, and of the High-level Strategy Group on Industrial Technologies in charge of identifying Key Enabling Technologies.
She was an Executive Board Member of the Royal Danish Export Council and Chair of the Export Grant Committee under the Danish Foreign Ministry. She also served as Executive Board member in DIGITALEUROPE, and as a member of the association’s high level Digital Advisory Council.
Cecilia Bonefeld-Dahl has served as Board Member of the Danish Chamber of Commerce and was President of the Board of the Danish ICT association (ITB), where she led the development of policy positions on issues such as business digitalisation, ICT security, disruptive business models, telecoms and education.
Cecilia Bonefeld-Dahl has more than 25 years of experience in the ICT industry. She previously held international positions at IBM and Oracle as well as with SMEs, building businesses across Europe and China and founding the cloud provider GlobeIT. She has deep insights into the digitalisation of business and society and the data-driven economy, and is regularly invited to deliver keynote speeches on these issues at high-level events across the world.
Hendrik Bourgeois is Senior Vice President, Government Affairs for Mastercard.
With more than two decades of experience at the intersection of business, law and policy, Hendrik represents Mastercard with European governments, EU institutions, and public stakeholders on a wide variety of issues, promoting Mastercard´s growth and investment strategy in Europe.
Nadia Calviño is the President of the European Investment Bank Group since January 1st, 2024. She served as First Vice President of Spain and Minister for Economy and Digitalization (2018-2023), and as Chair of the International Monetary and Financial Committee (IMFC) of the IMF (2022-2023). Before joining the Spanish government, Mrs. Calviño had a 12-year tenure at the European Commission as Deputy Director General for Competition, Deputy Director General for Financial Services, and Director General for the EU Budget. She holds degrees in Economics (1991) and Law (2001).
As Chief Government Strategy Officer, Jeff Campbell leads Cisco’s government relations worldwide. He manages a team that spans six continents and is charged with advancing issues that support Cisco’s robust corporate and technology policy agenda. This includes conferring with world leaders, important legislators, critical regulators, and industry stakeholders to shape public policies that foster innovation and emerging digital technologies, promote broadband adoption, and protect global competitiveness.
Since joining Cisco in 2001, Jeff’s deep expertise and background in telecommunication and internet regulation, intellectual property law, energy regulation, and international trade have helped advance the company’s many priorities. During his tenure, he has successfully advocated for policies that enable the future of wireless technologies and 5G, improve the digitization of education and rural communities, dedicate billions of dollars to expand broadband infrastructure across America, and reduce barriers to digital trade, among others.
Passionate about bridging the “digital divide” and powering a more inclusive future, Jeff represents Cisco on the Board of Directors for the California Emerging Technologies Fund, which works to accelerate the deployment of broadband in unserved and underserved communities. He also sits on the Board of Directors for the Telecommunications Industry Association.
Prior to Cisco, Jeff headed the Washington, D.C. government affairs office of Compaq Computer and began his career as a telecommunications regulatory attorney for the international law firm Squire, Sanders & Dempsey.
Jeff holds a Bachelor of Arts in History from Yale University and a J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center.
Vsevolod Chentsov has held key roles such as Attache, Secretary, and Counselor, demonstrating expertise in legal matters, treaty negotiations, and European affairs. Notable achievements include representing Ukraine in ICJ cases and serving as Ambassador to the Kingdom of the Netherlands and Head of Mission to the European Union.
Lt Gen Seán Clancy has 37 years’ service in the Irish Defence Forces. He is the first Airman in the Irish State to serve as Chief of Staff, having previously served as Deputy Chief of Staff (Support) and General Officer Commanding Irish Air Corps and Director of Military Aviation. Lt Gen Clancy joined the Irish Defence Forces in 1984 as a cadet and commenced his flight training in 1986. He has flown both fixed and rotary wing aircraft and has accumulated nearly 5,000 flight hours. He is a qualified type and instrument-rating examiner, a qualified flight simulator instructor and he last held type, instrument and NVG ratings on the AW139. Lt Gen Clancy has been a driver of change and a champion for innovation within the Defence Forces. He played a central role in the development of the Ireland’s first Emergency Aeromedical Service established in 2012. He has been a strong advocate for Leadership and was the co-author of the Defence Forces Leadership Doctrine published in 2016. He also led the team who developed the current vision and values-based strategy for the Defence Forces post the publication of the White Paper on Defence. Lt Gen Clancy served in appointments including Squadron Commander, Wing Commander, Senior Staff Officer Operations, Senior Staff Officer Personnel, Chief of Air Staff Support in Air Corps Headquarters, Director of Strategic Planning Branch and Deputy Chief of Staff (Support) in Defence Forces Headquarters. Prior to promotion to Deputy Chief of Staff (Support) he served as General Officer Commanding, Irish Air Corps and Director of Military Aviation. Lt Gen Clancy has spent a considerable period of his career as a Search and Rescue pilot and was the Commander of the crew who received the Marine Medal for Meritorious Service in 2002. Lt Gen Clancy has served for a year with the European Union Force in Bosnia as the Military Advisor to the Force Commander and spent two years as air advisor to the permanent element of SHIRBRIG, the UN standby Brigade. He holds a Bachelor of Science Degree from Trinity College, Dublin and a Masters in Military Leadership and Defence Studies from the National University of Ireland, Maynooth. He is a graduate of the Defence Forces Command and Staff College where he was the recipient of the Lt Gen Tadgh O’Neill Award. In 2017 he completed a Diploma in Advanced Management Performance with Smurfit Business School.
Merete Clausen was appointed EIF Deputy Chief Executive as of 16 January 2025. With a distinguished career spanning over three decades, Merete Clausen has held key leadership positions within the European Commission, contributing significantly to EU investment and economic policy, and legal affairs.
From 2022 onwards, she served as Director for Investment at the Directorate General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship, and SMEs (DG GROW), overseeing strategic investment initiatives.
Prior to this, Merete Clausen played a pivotal role in economic and financial policymaking, holding various Head of Unit positions in DG ECFIN, where she managed initiatives focusing on financing for innovation, competitiveness, and collaboration with international financial institutions. Earlier in her career, she was a member of the European Commission’s Legal Service, specialising in budgetary, taxation, and customs matters.
Before joining the European Commission, Merete Clausen built a strong legal foundation as a lawyer-linguist at the European Court of Justice and practiced EU and competition law in a leading law firm in Denmark.
She began her legal career as an assistant attorney-at-law at Kammeradvokaten, the Legal Adviser to the Danish Government. She has a Master’s Degree in Law from the University of Aarhus.
Since June 2025, Raimonds Čudars has been serving as Latvia’s Minister of Smart Administration and Regional Development, where he is responsible for driving digital transformation, advancing e-governance, coordinating regional development, and overseeing environmental protection. His mandate includes introducing a one-stop approach for the delivery of state and municipal services, as well as ensuring the adoption of modern, efficient information and communication technologies across the public sector.
His key priorities are to expand secure, user-friendly, and globally competitive digital solutions nationwide, while strengthening Latvia’s artificial intelligence ecosystem to support business, education, and public administration. He also places particular emphasis on promoting digital literacy, so that all citizens can fully benefit from technological progress.
Raimonds Čudars was elected to the 14th Saeima, where he chaired the Parliamentary Inquiry Commission. As a lawyer and politician, he has built a broad career in both national and municipal administration. Previously, he held the position of Minister of Climate and Energy (2022–2023) and was Chairman of the Salaspils District Council from 2009 to 2022.
Valdis Dombrovskis is a Latvian politician serving as European Commissioner for Economy and Productivity, and Commissioner for Implementation and Simplification. He previously served as Executive Vice President of the European Commission for An Economy that Works for People (2019-2024), European Commissioner for Trade (2020-2024). European Commissioner for Financial Stability, Financial Services and Capital Markets Union (2016-2020) and Prime Minister of Latvia from 2009 to 2014.
Dombrovskis served as Minister for Finance of Latvia from 2002 to 2004. He then served as a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) for the New Era Party from 2004 to 2009. He became the Prime Minister of Latvia in 2009, serving until his resignation in 2014. He was Vice-President of the European Commission for the Euro and Social Dialogue from 2014 to 2019. Following the resignation of Lord Jonathan Hill, Dombrovskis served as European Commissioner for Financial Stability, Financial Services and the Capital Markets Union from 2016 to 2020. Following the resignation of Phil Hogan, it was announced that he would take over the portfolio for Trade.
Alberto Di Felice is Policy and Legal Counsel at DIGITALEUROPE.
He works across policy teams to forecast and analyse new legislation. He has a particular focus on priority files, and is in charge of ensuring quality across all of the association’s policy deliverables and thought leadership. In addition, he supports the projects team to strengthen synergies between policy and projects workstreams. Alberto also acts as DIGITALEUROPE’s data protection and antitrust compliance officer.
Prior to this position, Alberto headed the association’s work on cybersecurity, AI, data policy and privacy, telecoms, and consumer policy. Alberto joined DIGITALEUROPE in February 2018, having previously spent seven years at Qualcomm, a world leader in mobile technologies. His work there cut across EU technology policy areas such as privacy, telecoms regulation and the impact of digital on innovation and business models, including verticals such as connected cars and mobile health.
Alberto is a Certified Information Privacy Professional (CIPP/E). He holds degrees in law and European studies from the universities of Teramo and Trento in Italy as well as a masters in diplomacy from the Institute for International Political Studies in Milan.
Jean Charles Ellermann-Kingombe is Assistant Secretary General for Cyber and Digital Transformation. In this capacity, he is the Secretary General’s primary advisor on maintaining NATO’s innovative edge, and on all issues relating to technological challenges, cyber defence and hybrid threats and their far-reaching implications for Alliance security.
Sabine Erlinghagen is the CEO of Siemens’ global grid software. As a passionate advocate for the energy transition, she is widely recognized as a trailblazer in grid digitalization, deeply committed to creating positive economic and environmental impact. Sabine pursues the transformative vision for autonomous grids to accelerate the energy transition – addressing the challenge of integrating millions of Distributed Energy Resources and the urgency to scale grid capacity with speed and flexibility. Prior to her role in Siemensshe held various management positions in the energy sector and in software businesses. She holds a PhD from ETH Zurich (Switzerland).
Mykhailo Fedorov was born in 1991 in Vasylivka, Zaporizhzhia Oblast, Ukraine.
In 2014, he graduated from Zaporizhzhia National University, Faculty of Sociology and Management, obtaining a full higher education. He also completed the Higher Political School, the Educational School for NATO Representatives in Ukraine, and the Digital Transformation Strategy program at Yale School of Management.
2015–2019: Founder and Chief Executive Officer of SMMSTUDIO.
In 2018, he was Director of Operations at the SUPERHUMANS project.
Since May 2019, he has served as a non-staff adviser to the President of Ukraine on digital affairs.
In 2019, he was elected a Member of Parliament of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine (9th convocation).
On 29 August 2019, he was appointed Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine — Minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine.
On 21 March 2023, he was appointed Vice Prime Minister for Innovation, Education, Science, and Technology Development — Minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine.
From 17 July 2025 to 13 January 2026, he served as First Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine — Minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine.
On 14 January 2026, upon the nomination of the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, he was appointed Minister of Defence of Ukraine.
Una Fitzpatrick is a Dublin City University STEM graduate with a master’s in management from Smurfit Business School. She has spent the last 20 years working in the knowledge economy, specifically the last ten years being spent with Technology Ireland. Una was appointed Director of Technology Ireland in June 2018.
Technology Ireland, a trade association within Ibec, is the largest and most influential tech sector representative group in Ireland. Una served as an executive board member of Digital Europe from 2020-2024, she is currently vice chair of the Digital Europe Cloud working group and is on the Board of Directors of FIT Ltd (Fastrack into Technology).
Una sits on the advisory board of the UCD Centre for Digital Policy and is a member of several Government working groups and forums such as the National Counter Disinformation Strategy working group.
Una has extensive lobbying experience both at National and European levels.
Niamh is EMEA Director for Infrastructure Public Policy at Amazon Web Services (AWS); the cloud computing division of Amazon.com, where she leads a team of infrastructure, energy and sustainability policy specialists focused on delivery across our 11 EMEA data centre regions. Niamh also acts as Country Lead for AWS in Ireland. Niamh joined Amazon in 2018, as Head of Public Policy for Ireland. Prior to that she worked in a number of roles in politics and policy including as co-founder and Director of Women for Election, an organisation she founded; CEO of Drinkaware, and Research and Policy Analyst at the Children’s Rights Alliance in Dublin. Niamh started her working life as a researcher at Fianna Fail, an Irish political party, before moving to London as researcher for Demos, a leading UK think tank, where she co-authored a series of influential reports.
Niamh holds a BA in European Studies from Trinity College Dublin, a Masters Degree in Politics from the London School of Economics and an Executive MBA from the UCD Michael Smurfit Graduate School of Business. She was a Governor of the Rotunda Maternity Hospital 2019-2024; and Board Member at Women for Election 2014-2014.
Valerian Giesz is Co-Founder and CEO of Quandela. He holds PhD in solid-state technologies and quantum optics from the Université Paris-Saclay and a engineering degree from the Institut d’Optique. He participated to the development of efficient source of indistinguishable photons in the group of Prof. Pascale Senellart at the Center for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (C2N). His work was rewarded with two thesis prizes: the EDOM thesis prize of the University of Paris-Sud and the Dim-NanoK thesis prize in the valorization category. Prior to founding Quandela, he trained in entrepreneurship via the HEC Challenge + course. In 2019, he participated in the foundation of the French Tech Paris-Saclay start-up community labelled by the Mission French Tech, which he co-chair up to 2022.
Pieter Haeck is a Senior Technology Reporter at POLITICO Europe.
He focuses on artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies, such as advanced chips and quantum technology. At POLITICO, he covers the geopolitics surrounding technology, which remains a central focus point.
Previously, Pieter worked at the Belgian business newspaper De Tijd, covering technology, and was part of an exchange program at the Dutch financial daily Het Financieele Dagblad.
Pieter studied at KU Leuven and holds a master’s in international politics and public economy. He was awarded the Citi Journalistic Excellence Award in 2018.
Karel Havlíček has served as the First Deputy Prime Minister of the Czech Republic and the Minister of Industry and Trade since December 2025. He is also the Chairman of the Government Council for Research, Development and Innovation and the First Vice-Chair of the ANO political movement.
In the previous parliamentary term, he served as the movement’s Shadow Prime Minister and as a Deputy Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies. Earlier, he was the Minister of Industry and Trade (2019–2021) and concurrently the Minister of Transport (2020–2021).
He graduated from the Czech Technical University in Prague and from the Prague International Business School affiliated with the Manchester Metropolitan University. He completed his doctoral studies at the University of Economics in Prague, where he was appointed Associate Professor at the Faculty of Finance and Accounting.
Between 2013 and 2019, he served as the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Association of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises and Crafts of the Czech Republic, where he drew upon his experience as CEO and co-owner of the SINDAT Group.
In terms of his academic engagement, he is affiliated with the University of Finance and Administration, where he led the Faculty of Economic Studies and established the Economics and Management study programme. He has written several publications and academic articles about small and medium-sized enterprises.
Minna Helle has been the CEO of Technology Industries of Finland (TIF) since November 2024. Technology Industries of Finland represents Finland’s largest industrial sector, with its industries accounting for slightly over half of the country’s exports.
Ms. Helle has been working at TIF since 2018 and has previously held multiple key responsibilities within the organization, including labor markets, skills development, innovation policy, as well as SME and entrepreneurship affairs.
Helle has had a long and distinguished career in Finnish societal affairs, lobbying, and high-stakes negotiations. She graduated as a lawyer in 1997 and began her career at the Union of Journalists in Finland and Akava (Confederation of Unions for Professional and Managerial Staff). She later held leadership positions in several labor market organizations before becoming Finland’s first female National Conciliator. In recognition of her pioneering work in communication, she was awarded the Communicator of the Year prize in 2017.
Helle serves on the boards of Orgalim (Europe’s Technology Industries), Ceemet (European Tech & Industry Employers), and the pension insurance company Elo.
Over 35 years Claudia has had leadership positions in technology and in business where she observed the digital transformation in healthcare.
It is her belief we should envision a world where technology and healthcare work as a seamless system to prevent, treat, manage, and even cure disease. As a technology leader in healthcare, Claudia looks for technology to deliver evidence-based therapeutic interventions driven by high quality software programs to improve patient outcomes.
Claudia believes that a key success factor for the digital health revolution to unlock its potential with society, is to ensure that it’s fully aligned with societal needs and expectations. It is paramount that patients, policymakers, healthcare professionals and industry work together to build a framework which protects people, ensures trust, and favors the development and uptake of digital innovation for better outcomes.
Over 35 years Claudia has had leadership positions in technology and in business where she observed the digital transformation in healthcare.
It is her belief we should envision a world where technology and healthcare work as a seamless system to prevent, treat, manage, and even cure disease. As a technology leader in healthcare, Claudia looks for technology to deliver evidence-based therapeutic interventions driven by high quality software programs to improve patient outcomes.
Claudia believes that a key success factor for the digital health revolution to unlock its potential with society, is to ensure that it’s fully aligned with societal needs and expectations. It is paramount that patients, policymakers, healthcare professionals and industry work together to build a framework which protects people, ensures trust, and favors the development and uptake of digital innovation for better outcomes.
Valeriya Ionan is an Advisor to the First Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine – Minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine on innovation, digitalization, and global partnerships. As former Deputy Minister, she led the creation of products within the Diia ecosystem, spearheaded key national projects such as Diia. Business and Diia. Education, and coordinated areas of EU integration, international relations and regional digital transformation.
Valeriya is the visionary behind Ukraine’s Global Innovation Strategy WINWIN, and projects such as CDTO Campus, Digital State UA, and GGTC Kyiv, part of the World Economic Forum’s C4IR Network. Recognized among the most promising future leaders by Mastercard Legacy, EYL40, Vogue Leaders, and UP100, Valeriya is also an ISF Fellow and was recently named to Sifted’s “100 Women in Tech in Europe 2025.” She believes that innovation is the driving force behind Ukraine’s economic growth, building on her extensive background in entrepreneurship, management, and marketing.
Dan Jørgensen is the European commissioner for energy and housing. He previously served in the Danish government as minister for development cooperation, minister for global climate policy, and minister for climate, energy, and utilities. He was for nearly a decade a member of the Danish parliament (Folketing), where he served as vice-chairman of the parliamentary group of the Social Democratic Party and as vice-chairman of the Danish delegation to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly. He was also a member of the European Parliament in the S&D Group.
Jørgensen holds a master’s degree in political science from Aarhus University. He pursued an academic career and lectured at several universities including the University of Copenhagen, Seattle University, Sciences Po, the Danish Institute for Study Abroad, and Aarhus University. He was also an adjunct professor at Aalborg University.
Robert Jozic leads the digital strategy as well as eco-system and new digital business model sections of the Schwarz Group
In addition Robert is the Managing Director of Schwarz Media, the international retail media business of the Schwarz Group (Lidl & Kaufland) since 2021.
He is a permanent member in the supervisory board of the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI) and Councile of AI experts both since 2017.
He started his career at an international strategy consultancy in 2001 and founded his own enterprise in 2005 for analytics and insights in the FMCG and retail industry.
He studied Computer Science and Business Administration.
Casper Klynge is Zscaler’s Vice President, Head of EMEA Government Partnerships. Casper leads the public policy work and the strategic relationships with governments, international & regional organizations and senior leaders across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. As part of the Global Government Partnership team, Casper is responsible for helping countries, organizations and critical infrastructure operators mitigate cybersecurity issues as well as promote data protection and digital sovereignty requirements.
Prior to joining Zscaler Casper was the Senior Vice President in the Danish Chamber of Commerce, responsible for several priority issues ranging from technology, digitalization, media, telecommunications, financial services to creative industries.
From 2020-2023 Casper was Microsoft’s Vice President for European Government Affairs with responsibility for government affairs, across the European continent, leading a team based in Brussels and in European capitals dealing with EU institutions, NATO, European governments, commercial partners and other key stakeholders. Casper reported to Microsoft’s Vice Chair and President and served on the senior leadership team of the Corporate, External and Legal Affairs Group.
Casper previously had a career in foreign affairs spanning several roles in the EU, NATO, and in government with geographical and operational experience from Europe, Africa, Asia and North America. His experience includes serving as Denmark’s (& the world’s first) Ambassador to the global tech industry (2017-2020), heading a diplomatic representation with a global mandate based in Silicon Valley, Europe, and Asia.
Casper was the Ambassador to Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Timor Leste & ASEAN (2014-2017), and the Ambassador to the Republic of Cyprus (2013-2014). In 2010-2011, Casper was the Senior Civilian Representative & Deputy Head of Mission of NATO’s Provincial Reconstruction Team in Helmand Province, Afghanistan. From 2003 he worked out of Brussels in various positions under the EU’s High Representative for Common Foreign and Security Policy setting up crisis management missions in Bosnia-Herzegovina, Georgia, Sudan (in support of the African Union’s military operation in Darfur) and Kosovo, followed by an appointment as Head of Mission of the EU’s civilian crisis management planning mission in Kosovo (2006-2008) charged with taking over the responsibilities of the UN Rule of Law mission. From 2008-2010 he led the Secretariat for the ’Africa Commission’ chaired by the Danish Prime Minister and comprising of eg. the President of Tanzania, the Managing Director of the World Bank as well as the chairperson of ECOWAS.
Casper holds a M.Sc. in Political Science, supplemented by an executive education from Stanford University. He is a 2009 Marshall Memorial Fellow and was in 2018 named among the World’s 100 most influential people in digital government. He is a member of the ECFR Council and serves on the Advisory Boards of Bluetown and Think Tank Europe. In 2021 he joined the GLOBSEC Future Security and Defense Council (FSDC) chaired by General John Allen, advising NATO on geopolitics as it developed its new Strategic Concept. He is a former member of the Danish Governments Digitalization Council, a board member of the Security Tech Space initiative and chairman of the board of the D-Seal – a cybersecurity certification scheme. From 2020-2022 he served on the Executive Board of Digital Europe in Brussels.
Mr. Juhan Lepassaar is the Executive Director of the EU Agency for Cybersecurity.
Mr Juhan Lepassaar took up his functions as the Executive Director of ENISA on 16 October 2019. He has more than 20 years of experience in working with and within the European Union. Prior to joining ENISA in 2019, he worked for six years in the European Commission, including as Head of Cabinet of Vice-President Andrus Ansip responsible for the Digital Single Market. In this capacity, he also led and coordinated the preparations and negotiations of the Cybersecurity Act.
Mr Lepassaar started his career in the EU affairs with the Estonian Government Office, leading for five years the national EU coordination system as the Director for EU affairs and EU adviser of the Prime Minister.
Nanna–Louise Wildfang Linde is Microsoft’s Vice President of European Government Affairs with responsibility for Microsoft’s government affairs and public policy work across Europe since September2022. Nanna–Louise leads a team of government affairs professionals tasked with strengthening Microsoft’s external relations with the EU institutions and governments across Europe and ensuring the company is a constructive partner in supporting policy makers in Europe achieve their goals and adapt smart legislation.
A competition lawyer by training, Nanna–Louise brings with her almost two decades of experience at Microsoft. Most recently, she has been leading Microsoft’s Corporate External & Legal Affairs team in 32 countries in Central and Eastern Europe, responsible for legal matters and relations with governments and other authorities. Prior to that, she was leading Government Affairs for Microsoft in Western Europe. Nanna–Louise and her teams have helped Microsoft build important partnerships with governments in Europe and position Microsoft as a trusted partner in the region, ranging from digitally preserving Greece’s cultural heritage as part of Microsoft’s AI for Cultural Heritage initiative to spearheading our efforts to support the Ukrainian Government, including through partnerships to strengthen cybersecurity and resilience.
Nanna–Louise is known to be a modern leader who empowers her team and facilitates cross country and cross group collaboration with a transparent and authentic approach.
Peter Lodahl (PL) is professor in quantum physics and technology at the Niels Bohr Institute. He is the Director of the Danish National Research Foundation Center of Excellence Hybrid Quantum Networks (Hy-Q) and the Novo Nordisk Foundation center for Solid State Quantum Simulators. He is also the Founder and Chief Quantum Officer of the start-up company Sparrow Quantum that commercializes deterministic photon-emitter interfaces and today employs >50 FTEs and has successfully launched several unique quantum chip products and full plug-and-play photon source solutions. PL received a PhD in quantum physics in 2000 from University of Copenhagen and subsequently held postdoc positions at Caltech and University of Twente. He was the first to demonstrate that light emission can be fully controlled by the use of intricate photonic nanostructures. This fundamental principle ultimately enables a full deterministic quantum interface between light and matter, which PL subsequently has exploited after founding his own research group in Denmark in 2005. His group develops fundamentally new quantum hardware for the emergent field of quantum-information science such as: deterministic single-photon sources, spin-photon interfaces, and photonic quantum gates. The application areas include photonic quantum computers, quantum repeaters, and quantum key distribution towards the ultimate vision of a quantum internet.
PL is the recipient of the ERC consolidator grant (2010), ERC advanced grant (2015), ERC Synergy grant (2025), the EliteForsk Award (2016), Queen Margrethe II’s Research Award (2022), and the Into Innovation Award (2025). He has published >170 publications in leading scientific journals, given >200 invited colloquia and conference talks, holds >10 patents on photonic quantum technology, and has founded the quantum-tech start-up company Sparrow Quantum. PL has educated >35 Ph.D. students and >40 postdocs and many of them today hold highly influential positons in industry and academia. He is an elected member of the Royal Danish Academy of Sciences and Letters (2016) and Optica Fellow (2021).
Mauro Macchi is Accenture’s CEO for Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA), and a member of Accenture’s Global Executive Leadership Team, which he joined in September 2021. He is also the Chairman of Accenture Italy since September 1, 2023. Prior to his current CEO EMEA role, he was the Market Unit Lead of the ICEG region, which includes Italy, Central Europe and Greece, and CEO of Accenture Italy, since September 1, 2021. During this period, Macchi has played a central role in the ICEG region’s double-digit growth, which has excelled in implementing reinvention programs for leading companies in the public and private sectors. Along his nearly 30-year career at Accenture, he has gained in-depth knowledge of major international markets, leading several Merger & Acquisition and Sales & Distribution projects, mainly for the banking sector. He has also held cross-industry management responsibility roles at the European level. Previously, Macchi was Head of Financial Services for Europe and ICEG, responsible for the delivery and quality of services provided by Accenture to all banking and insurance clients in the region, and Senior Managing Director of Accenture Strategy for Banking globally, responsible for improving the competitive advantages of major companies within the industry. He has been a member of the Board of Directors of Fondazione Italiana Accenture for the past nine years. He holds a bachelor’s degree in economics and a master’s degree in business administration from the University of California Irvine Graduate School of Management.
Bartek Madej serves as Head of Digital Health International and Europe IT at Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS), a global biopharmaceutical company committed to discovering, developing, and delivering innovative medicines that help patients prevail over serious diseases. In this role, he leads transformational change by advancing digital health technologies to enhance patient experience and outcomes, while shaping a future‑ready healthcare ecosystem powered by data, digital, and AI. His work is deeply aligned with BMS’s mission to expand access, elevate quality of care, and enable more personalized patient journeys. Prior to joining BMS, Bartek held senior leadership roles in Digital and Innovation within leading life sciences organizations in Switzerland.
Mr Marsella oversees the implementation of the European Health Data Space Regulation, the implementation of the Health Technology Assessment Regulation, DG SANTE’s work on health system modernisation as well as the EU4Health Programme. Prior to his current position, Mr Marsella held various roles within the European Commission, including Head of Unit for “eHealth, Well-Being, Ageing” and Head of Unit for “Learning, Multilingualism, Accessibility” at the European Commission’s Directorate General for Communications Networks, Content and Technology (DG CONNECT).
Eva Maydell is a Member of the European Parliament and sits within the largest EU political group, the European People’s Party. Recently re-elected for a third term, she is a member of the Parliament’s Industry Committee, Economic Affairs Committee, and Deputy Spokesperson for her political group on industry related matters.
Maydell was one of the lead negotiators on the EU’s Chips Act and Artificial Intelligence Act. Her policy priorities include innovation and the use of new technologies to support European competitiveness and fostering cooperation among global likeminded partners in the tech and democracy space. She is also Vice President of the European Parliament’s delegation for relations with the United States.
Maydell is a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader, a Board Member for the World Economic Forum’s Digital Europe program, and a member of the WEF Global Future Council of Europe. She is also the co-founder of the Council on the Future, partnered with the Munich Security Conference.
Maydell has been awarded the European Parliament’s MEP of the Year Award twice. She has been included in FT’s own ‘New Europe 100′ ranking of CEE’s emerging change-makers and European Forbes’ 30 Under 30 list. Maydell has also been featured in POLITICO’s 40 most influential MEPs, “POLITICO 28” the list of people who shape Europe, and POLITICO’s 2018 Women who shape Brussels.
Victor Negrescu is Vice-President of the European Parliament, currently serving his third term as a Member of the European Parliament. He is member of the Committees on Budgets, Public Health and Legal Affairs, as well as of the European Parliament Delegations for relations with the United States, Australia and New Zealand. As Vice-President, he oversees transparency, the fight against corruption, relations with the Republic of Moldova, the Panel for the Future of Science and Technology (STOA), and relations with the social partners.
Since first being elected in 2014, he has held several key roles, including Quaestor of the European Parliament, Vice-Chair of the Committee on Culture and Education, and the European Parliament’s chief negotiator for the 2025 EU budget. He co-chairs the first Intergroup dedicated to education and skills, which he initiated. He has promoted major initiatives such as allocating 10% of the National Recovery and Resilience Plans to education, the “Shaping Digital Education Policy” report, and measures to support young people and digital skills.
He is the MEP with the highest number of pilot projects, having secured over EUR 100 million for education, digitalisation, health and culture, including programmes for rural schools. He was named “MEP of the Year” for the Digital Agenda and launched the “Romanian Digital Day” event in Brussels.
In Romania, he served as Minister for European Affairs, coordinating preparations for the Presidency of the Council of the EU, and as Vice-Rector of the National University of Political Studies and Public Administration. Holding a PhD in International Relations and with experience across academia, the public sector and the private sector, Victor Negrescu is recognised as an active promoter of Romania’s modernisation and of its relationship with the European Union.
Renate Nikolay is Deputy Director-General in the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Communication Networks, Content and Technology (DG CONNECT). In that role, she oversees the enforcement of the digital rulebook for platforms (Digital Services Act and Digital Markets Act), the policies on digital connectivity, data, media and audiovisual as well as international and interinstitutional relations.
Between 2014 and 2022, she was Head of Cabinet of Vĕra Jourová in her roles as Commissioner for Justice and Consumers and as Vice-President for Values and Transparency.
Prior to that Renate Nikolay was Head of Unit in DG JUST and served as member in the Cabinets of Cathy Ashton and Peter Mandelson.
Renate Nikolay started her career in the European Commission in 2003 in DG Trade after having worked as a diplomat at the German Permanent Representation to the EU in Brussels and at the Federal Economics Ministry in Berlin.
Renate Nikolay has a law degree from the Free University of Berlin (Erstes und Zweites Staatsexamen) and a Master of Laws as Fulbright Scholar from Washington, DC. She also participated in an Erasmus exchange with Grenoble/France.
Liisa-Ly Pakosta was born on 3 September 1969 in Tallinn. She is in a non-marital partnership and a mother of five. Pakosta joined the Eesti 200 political party in 2023. She has previously been a member of the Pro Patria and Res Publica Union political party (2000–2015).
Liisa-Ly Pakosta graduated from the University of Tartu in 1993 with a degree in history and from Tallinn University in 2021 with a master’s degree in law. She has started her doctoral studies in law at the University of Tartu in 2022.
In 2023 L.-L. Pakosta was awarded the Commander Cross of the Swedish Royal Order of the Polar Star.
Member of the Supervisory Board of the Estonian Open Air Museum in 2013–2015, Member of the Supervisory Board of the Estonian Anti-Doping and Sports Ethics Foundation since 2019.
Her hobbies are crafting, culture, working out, and pets.
Alexandros Paterakis holds a degree in Computer Engineering and Mathematics from the University of La Verne.
He started his career as a Network Engineer and subsequently held positions of responsibility as a senior IT consultant, such as Head of the Consulting Services at MicroAge, Management Consultant at Arthur Andersen (current Accenture) in the UK, and later in Greece.
In 2003 he served as IT Director at Tellas Telecommunications and in 2008 he joined Vodafone where he held the position of CIO.
He was then recruited by Etihad Etisalat (Mobily), at Saudi Arabia, where he served as President of Infotech Mobility India Pvt Ltd before retiring in 2016 as CIO, where he was actively involved in the promotion of transformation in information and communication technologies (ICT).
Since 2016 he has provided consulting services focusing on digital strategy. Since 2018 he has held the position of CIO at AXIATA Celcom, a telecommunications provider in Malaysia.
Ray Pinto is currently the Senior Director for Vertical Strategy and Business Development for DIGITALEUROPE.
Ray brings to DIGITALEUROPE over 25 years of government affairs and communications experience in Brussels and across the EU. Ray is responsible for the digital transformation strategy working closely with our members and key stakeholders to advance important work on areas impacting vertical industries such as data, cybersecurity, data protection, international trade, AI and emerging technologies, and skills development. He leads a team that plays a central role in growing the membership to include important European verticals including defence, healthcare and the public sector, financial services, manufacturing, and transport.
Previously, he worked at Microsoft responsible for coordinating policy efforts towards governments across the EU on socio-economic issues and strategies to build stronger relations.
Ray holds citizenship with both Canada and France and is a graduate of McGill University in Political Science.
André Rogaczewski is co-founder of Netcompany in 2000 and CEO. He is a Danish citizen and born in 1968. André is chairman of DI Digital (Danish ICT and Electronics Federation), and a member of the Danish Government Digitisation Council (Digitaliseringsrådet). He is a board member of Aalborg University (AAU) and holds a M.Sc. Computer Science from AAU.
Jaume Sanpera, Sateliot’s CEO, is a seasoned executive with nearly 30 years of experience in the telecommunications industry. A prominent figure in Spanish technological entrepreneurship, he has founded multiple successful companies, including Eurona, the first telecom satellite operator in Europe listed on the stock market in 2010, and Ambientum, a leader in Spain’s environmental sector. His ventures have gained a wide international presence, solidifying his reputation as an expert in telecommunications.
Jaume’s achievements have earned him recognition in the media and forums, where he shares insights on innovation and leadership, further establishing his influence in the industry.
Audrey is Vice-President Government Affairs at Qualcomm. Her main activities focus on Technology, Innovation, Competition and Geopolitics in Europe. She oversees strategic public policy files and advocacy efforts at the European Commission, the European Parliament, the Council of the European Union. Audrey is the Global lead for the Digital Markets Act and its worldwide influence. She is former Vice-Chair of the Amcham EU Intellectual Property Rights Committee and is the Chairwoman of the European Internet Forum earlier this year.
Audrey joined Qualcomm in 2014 after having worked in the public and private sectors for over 12 years and returned to Qualcomm in mid-2020 after leading the European Commission team at Google. Initially working for the French government’s European Affairs Service, advising the Prime Minister’s office, the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Culture and Communication, Audrey led the Government Affairs team of BlackBerry in Brussels for 5 years. She holds postgraduate degrees in European and International Law from La Sorbonne, and in International Relations from the University of Pantheon-Assas, Paris. She also completed the Executive Management Acceleration Program of INSEAD.
Audrey is based out of Brussels, and had previously lived in Toronto, Paris, Fort-de-France, Abidjan, and Djibouti. Audrey has a ten-year-old daughter and enjoys spending time with her English bulldogs, her Pomanese and her cat. She is a big fan of photography, martial arts and Pilates.
Dr. Kristina Sinemus is a professor of public affairs and political communication at Quadriga University Berlin. In January 2019, she was appointed as the first Hessian Minister for Digital Strategy and Development in MP Bouffier’s cabinet, established the ministry, and has since headed Germany’s first ministry of its kind. In MP Boris Rhein’s cabinet, she has continued to serve as Minister for Digitalization and Innovation since 2024, making her Germany’s longest-serving digital minister.
Since 2000, Dr. Sinemus has been vice president of the “Hesse-Wisconsin Association,” where she is responsible for economic relations. Since 2020, she has headed the “Hesse Wisconsin” friendship association. Since 2004, she has been a member of the plenary assembly of the Darmstadt Rhine-Main-Neckar Chamber of Industry and Commerce and chair of the location marketing committee. From 2009, Sinemus was vice president of the Darmstadt Chamber of Industry and Commerce, and in 2014 she was elected one of the first Chamber of Industry and Commerce presidents in Germany. She is also on the board of the German Chamber of Industry and Commerce, a member of the advisory board of the Frankfurt Rhine-Main Marketing Initiative, a member of the board of trustees of ENTEGA AG, and a member of the DGPuK.
She is also a member of the ZDF Television Advisory Board, a supervisory board member of the AI Quality and Testing Hub, a deputy member of the administrative board of Helaba, a supervisory board member of FIZ (Frankfurt Innovation Center), and chair of the board of House of Digital Information.
Since 1998, she has also been managing partner of genius science and dialogue GmbH. Since 1993, Dr. Sinemus has worked as a freelance strategy consultant at the interface of communication and science/technology for clients such as Hoechst AG, Verband der deutschen Ölmühlen e.V., BMBF, Wella AG, the European Union, Zoetis Tiergesundheit, and WWF.
Since November 2025, Despina Spanou is the Deputy Director General in charge of the Directorate for Cybersecurity and Trust in the Directorate-General for Communications Networks, Content and Technology (DG CONNECT) of the European Commission.
She was previously the Head of the Cabinet of the Vice-President of the European Commission, Margaritis Schinas (2019-2024). In this capacity she coordinated the Vice-President’s work on security, migration and asylum, health, skills, education, culture and sports. She also coordinated the Vice-President’s EU Security Union work, ranging from counterterrorism, organised crime and cybersecurity to hybrid threats.
Prior to that, she was Director for Digital Society, Trust and Cybersecurity at the Director-General of the Directorate-General for Communications Network, Content and Technology (DG CONNECT) of the European Commission. Ms. Spanou was responsible for the European Union’s cybersecurity policy and law, served as a member of the management board of ENISA, and of the Steering Board of the Computer Emergency Response Team for the EU Institutions (CERT-EU).
She is a founding member of the Women4Cyber initiative and advocate for the need for more cybersecurity experts in Europe. She also teaches EU Cybersecurity policy at Harvard Kennedy School.
In her 22 years in the European Commission, Ms Spanou has held a number of senior management positions in the areas of Health and Consumer Policy and served as Deputy Head of Cabinet for Commissioners Kyprianou and Vassiliou.
Before joining the European Commission, she practised EU competition and trade law with a US law firm for a number of years.
Despina Spanou is a member of the Athens Bar Association and holds a Ph.D. in European law from the University of Cambridge.
Peter is Head of Unit in DG CONNECT, where he is overseeing the EU telecoms policy and legal framework.
Before taking up the current position in 2023, he has been Deputy Director for Future Networks and Interim Executive Director setting up and running the 6G Smart Networks and Services Joint Undertaking.
Previously he was Head of Sector Spectrum Policy, penholder of the 2012 Roaming Regulation and the EU R&D programme manager for 4G mobile communications standards.
Before joining the European Commission in 2004 he has occupied several engineering and management positions in industry, academia and start-ups. He holds engineering and doctoral degrees from RWTH Aachen University, Germany.
Bruno Tobback is a Belgian politician and member of the European Parliament for Vooruit. He is a member of the Group of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats in the European Parliament. He began his career as a lawyer after obtaining a Master of Law and a Master of Social and Economic Law. His political career started as a provincial councilor. Since then, he has held important positions at both the Flemish and federal levels, such as parliamentary group leader in the Flemish Parliament, federal minister of Environment and Pensions and president of the social Democratic Party in Flanders (Vooruit). Currently, he is also a member of the city council of his hometown, Leuven.
Mirjam Storim is Head of Strategy & Technology Relations at Siemens Foundational Technologies since February 2025.
In this function she is responsible for the strategy of foundational technologies at Siemens; further on, driving the company’s activities in standardization and technical regulation as well as collaborating with universities, research institutions and startups and engaging with research & innovation policy makers.
Mirjam is holding mandates in several associations and institutes, such as being the chairwomen of the Executive Board Working Group Digital and Innovation Policy of ZVEI and the chairwoman of the Board of Trustees of the Fraunhofer Institute for Innovation and Systems Research.
After studying humanities and social sciences in Freiburg, Ioannina (Greece) and Munich and obtaining her doctorate, Mirjam initially worked as a strategy consultant at Mercer Management Consulting and as deputy managing director of the Eberhard von Kuenheim Foundation of BMW AG. After that, Mirjam served in several leadership functions at BMW Group, including the company’s trade policy positioning, strategic resource allocation and value creation as well as innovation strategy and scientific cooperation. She moved to Siemens in 2024, taking on the leadership role of Siemens Research & Innovation Ecosystems.
Pasi Toivanen is the Senior Vice President (SVP) Strategic Government & Industry Initiatives at Nokia, based in Finland. In this capacity, he leads Nokia’s engagement with major government bodies and industrial consortiums, acting as a primary bridge between public sector initiatives and technological innovation. His current primary focus is orchestrating Nokia’s and its ecosystem’s strategic approach to the EU’s AI Gigafactory initiative, spearheading multi-billion-euro collaborations to build world-class sites for AI-driven innovation in Europe.
Pasi brings a unique perspective to his current mandate, operating on the belief that ecosystem collaboration is the primary driver of AI competitiveness. His approach leverages years of experience scaling partnerships where technology meets business to ensure AI initiatives deliver security and long-term growth.
A recognized thought leader in driving ecosystem-led growth, Pasi previously served as the Head of Network Infrastructure (NI) Strategic Partnerships. He executed partner strategies working closely with technology providers, system integrators, and industrial partners. Pasi has been driving force behind Cloud RAN (now AI RAN) where success is hinged not on technology alone, but on creating an open ecosystem for innovation to flourish through strategic alliances. This partner-first, trust-based method underpins his approach to aligning cross-border government and industry consortiums.
Pasi’s career reflects a truly global perspective. Having joined Nokia in 1998, he has held various senior roles across program, portfolio, and partner divisions. Beyond Nokia, he held senior leadership roles at Juniper Networks and Ericsson, where he served as Global Head of IP Solutions and Global Head of Service Delivery. He has worked extensively across several countries, including China, Germany, and the United Kingdom.
In his spare time, Pasi has a passion for motorcycling and good wine, though he is careful not to pursue these interests simultaneously.
Karianne Oldernes Tung is a Norwegian Labour Party (Ap) politician from Stadsbygd in Trøndelag. On 16 October 2023, she took over as Minister of Digitalisation and Public Governance in Jonas Gahr Støre’s Government.
From 2013 to 2017, she was a member of the Storting for the Labour Party in Sør-Trøndelag. During this period, she was a member of the Standing Committee on Health and Care Services until June 2015, after which she served on the Standing Committee on Transport and Communications.
Prior to her appointment as Minister, she was CEO of the interest organisation Trondheim Tech Port.
Lieutenant General Michael Vetter has served as Director-General for Innovation and Cyber and Chief Information Officer at the German Ministry of Defence since October 2025. A Luftwaffe officer since 1982, he brings extensive experience across operational command, logistics, and strategic staff roles, including senior positions within the Joint Staff, Air Staff, and Bundeswehr Logistics structures, as well as deployment as Deputy Chief of Staff for Support in International Security Assistance Force Regional Command North in Afghanistan. In 2017, he became the first Vice Chief of the Bundeswehr Cyber and Information Domain Service and Chief of Staff of its headquarters.
Lieutenant General Vetter holds a Master’s degree in Economics from Bundeswehr University Munich and is a graduate of the German General Staff Officers Course, the Defence Resources Management Institute at the United States Naval Postgraduate School, and a member of the Royal College of Defence Studies in London.
Pilar del Castillo is an MEP for Spain’s Partido Popular party in the European People’s Party group. She is currently a member of the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy. She was elected into the European Parliament for the first time in 2004 and reelected in 2024. From 2019 to 2024, MEP Castillo has actively participated in several EU policy files, including the European Electronic Communications Code; the Telecoms Single Market Regulation; the Regulation on the Body of European Regulators in Electronic Communications (BEREC) and the report on Cloud Computing Strategy for Europe. She is also chair of the European Internet Foundation, vice-president of European Energy Forum (EEF) and member of the Transatlantic Policy Network (TPN). Before entering the European Parliament, she was the minister of education, culture and sport in the second government of José Maria Aznar in 2000 to 2004. In 1986, Castillo became assistant professor in constitutional law at Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia, and professor in political science and administration in 1994. She graduated in law in 1974 from Complutense University of Madrid (1983) and she holds a PhD from the same University.
Roberto Viola is Director General of DG CONNECT (Directorate General of Communication, Networks, Content and Technology) at the European Commission.
He was the Deputy Director-General of DG CONNECT, European Commission from 2012 to 2015.
Roberto Viola served as Chairman of the European Radio Spectrum Policy group (RSPG) from 2012 to 2013, as Deputy Chairman in 2011 and Chairman in 2010. He was a member of the BEREC Board (Body of European Telecom Regulators), and Chairman of the European Regulatory Group (ERG) in 2007.
He held the position of Secretary General in charge of managing AGCOM, from 2005 to 2012. Prior to this, he served as Director of Regulation Department and Technical Director in AGCOM from 1999 to 2004.
From 1985-1999 he served in various positions including as Head of Telecommunication and Broadcasting Satellite Services at the European Space Agency (ESA).
Roberto Viola holds a Doctorate in Electronic Engineering and a Masters in Business Administration (MBA).
As Executive Vice-President for Tech Sovereignty, Security and Democracy, Ms Henna Virkkunen is tasked with combatting the increasingly complex security threats facing the EU, whilst at the same time strengthening our external borders and our internal security. This goes hand in hand with her responsibility to ensure our freedoms, justice and democracy are strengthened too.
Furthermore, she is responsible for the Digital and Frontier Technologies portfolio. This entails leading Europe’s efforts in shaping a competitive, resilient and inclusive digital future and maintaining or attaining leadership in strategic digital technologies.
Prior to joining the European Commission Ms Virkkunen served as a Member of the European Parliament for over ten years. As a Member of the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy her work focused on digitalisation and frontier technologies.
Ms Virkkunen has held various ministerial positions in Finland, namely Minister of Transport and Local Government (2014), Minister of Public Administration and Local Government (2011-2014) as well as Minister of Education (2008-2011).
Peter Weckesser, President, DIGITALEUROPE and Chief Digital Officer, Schneider Electric Peter Weckesser is the Chief Digital Officer of Schneider Electric and a member of the Executive Committee since June 2020, when he joined the company.
Prior to working at Schneider, Peter served as the Digital Transformation Officer of Airbus’ Defence & Space division since 2017. Before joining Airbus, Peter had extensive experience as a Senior Executive at Siemens, most recently as the Chief Operating Officer of Siemens’ Product Lifecycle Management, leading the IoT and Digital Enterprise business and activities. He also held other executive-level positions with Siemens such as the CEO of Industry Services and CEO of Value Services.
Peter’s career began at Siemens where he worked in various roles in product management and development, including Director of Business Development in the United States. He holds a degree in physics as well as a PhD in Computer Science from the University of Karlsruhe, Germany. He currently resides in Germany.
Tom Wehmeier is Partner and Head of Research at Atomico, focusing on research to support the sourcing and evaluation of investment opportunities. Before joining Atomico in May 2013, he was a principal analyst and member of the management team at Informa Telecoms & Media, a specialist technology research firm. At Informa, Wehmeier led a global team of analysts and oversaw research and consulting activities for Europe, Latin America and the US. During his time there, he advised leading technology companies from across the world. He holds a First-Class B.Sc. (Econ) from Cardiff University.
Afşin Yurdakul is an award-winning journalist, news anchor, and moderator with over 15 years of professional experience. She has hosted prime-time daily news programs, reported on global affairs, and served as chief foreign editor at a leading private news network in Türkiye. Afşin has written about Türkiye and the Middle East for a range of publications, including The New York Times and TIME. She has moderated high-level international panel discussions for organizations such as the United Nations, the World Bank, and the World Economic Forum in Davos. Afşin was a Stigler Fellow at the University of Chicago and a Nieman Journalism Fellow at Harvard University. She holds an M.S. from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism in New York.
Afşin Yurdakul is an award-winning journalist, news anchor, and moderator with over 15 years of professional experience. She has hosted prime-time daily news programs, reported on global affairs, and served as chief foreign editor at a leading private news network in Türkiye. Afşin has written about Türkiye and the Middle East for a range of publications, including The New York Times and TIME. She has moderated high-level international panel discussions for organizations such as the United Nations, the World Bank, and the World Economic Forum in Davos. Afşin was a Stigler Fellow at the University of Chicago and a Nieman Journalism Fellow at Harvard University. She holds an M.S. from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism in New York.
Prior to joining DIGITALEUROPE, Raphaëlle worked as a Senior Consultant in the public affairs consultancy NOVE, where she managed accounts in both the tech and manufacturing sectors and provided advice on sustainability issues (chemicals, circular economy, ecodesign, etc.).
She previously worked at French law firms DS Avocats and Savin Martinet Associés, where she assisted clients in environmental and economic law, both for advice and litigation purposes.
Before that, she gained experience with ClientEarth, a non-profit environmental law organization based in Brussels and London, where she contributed to EU advocacy campaigns. She has also worked as an intern in several law firms and think-tanks such as Carnegie Europe and the Senlis Council.
Raphaëlle holds a Master 2 in European Union law (Université Paris 2 Panthéon-Assas) and is qualified as an attorney at the Paris bar.
Prior to joining DIGITALEUROPE, Raphaëlle worked as a Senior Consultant in the public affairs consultancy NOVE, where she managed accounts in both the tech and manufacturing sectors and provided advice on sustainability issues (chemicals, circular economy, ecodesign, etc.).
She previously worked at French law firms DS Avocats and Savin Martinet Associés, where she assisted clients in environmental and economic law, both for advice and litigation purposes.
Before that, she gained experience with ClientEarth, a non-profit environmental law organization based in Brussels and London, where she contributed to EU advocacy campaigns. She has also worked as an intern in several law firms and think-tanks such as Carnegie Europe and the Senlis Council.
Raphaëlle holds a Master 2 in European Union law (Université Paris 2 Panthéon-Assas) and is qualified as an attorney at the Paris bar.