Photonics21 engaged with representatives of the European Commission in Brussels to discuss the future of photonics in Europe.
A delegation from Photonics21 visited Brussels to exchange views with representatives of the European Commission on the future of photonics in Europe.
During the visit, we met with Silvia Bartolini, Expert Member of Cabinet of Executive Vice-President Henna Virkkunen, and Kilian Gross, Director for Enabling and Emerging Technologies. The discussions highlighted the strong momentum of the photonics sector, which is proving to be one of Europe’s most dynamic industries. With a compound annual growth rate of 7%, photonics is expanding around five times faster than the global industry average.
Particularly strong growth is being observed in key application areas such as Industry 4.0, Environment, Agro-Food, Defence, and Space. These developments underline the strategic importance of photonics as a core deep-tech technology, essential for strengthening Europe’s competitiveness and technological sovereignty.
Photonics21 would like to sincerely thank our European Commission counterparts for the open, insightful, and fruitful discussions, as well as for their time and engagement.