Spare a moment to think about the device you're using to listen to this episode. Is it a smartphone,

a tablet, or your personal computer? You're probably surfing the internet and playing this

podcast on a sophisticated app. You may even be wearing wireless headphones. If you're walking

down the street, we guarantee you'll see plenty of cars passing by, electric, hybrid, or simply

diesel. If you're at home,

you're surrounded by objects that make your life easier and more enjoyable, a fridge, a stove,

a coffee machine, or a simple toothbrush. Wherever you look, you'll see innovation at play.

Before we continue, Vic, let's stop for a moment. So why do we talk about innovation in an EU-related podcast?

Well, because innovation does not stop with smart dishwashers.

As we will emerge from the pandemic, innovation will be key for the success of our digital and our green agenda.

And we all know Europe is a powerhouse in science.

Our New Horizon Research Program is the largest ever.

But we also face a big paradox.

We Europeans are excellent in making science with money, but we're not so good in making money out of science.

This is Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, speaking at the European Innovation Council launch ceremony in March 2021.

Okay, I see. The point is, innovation is needed to fight pandemics, to transition to a more

sustainable economy and to channel the power of digitalization.

That's right. Innovation can enable plenty of things and can even give entire industries and

even nations a first mover advantage that translates into economic gains.

But of course, all of this provided that we translate innovative ideas into concrete applications

that are actually useful.

Indeed. And the EU has its own ambitious plans to stimulate innovation. According to

...