On June 9–10, 2025, REMIT hosted a Town Hall and Debate Café at Luiss University in Rome, focusing on strategic technology governance in the context of global power competition.
The event brought together leading scholars and experts for three dynamic roundtables, each introduced by short, 5-minute interventions and followed by open discussions under Chatham House rules.
Roundtable 1: Technology Governance and Multilateralism
Chair: Flavia Lucenti (Luiss; REMIT)
Speakers explored the EU’s role in shaping digital and AI governance amid rising geopolitical tensions, with attention to global norms, diplomatic innovation, and diverging models between regions and sectors.
Panelists:
- Marta Cantero Gamito (EUI) “How do current geopolitical dynamics influence digital/AI governance, and what role does the EU play in it?”
- Natalia Chaban (University of Canterbury NZ) “Innovating Diplomacy: Technological Diplomacy of the EU in the Changing World”
- Teresa Coratella (ECFR) “Towards a definitive crisis of tech-multilateralism?”
- Anna Nadibaidze (University of Southern Denmark) “Global Governance of AI in the Military Domani: Law, Norms, and Ways Forward”
- Riccardo Nanni (CNRS) “Differences and Similarities in governing AI between the EU and China”
Roundtable 2: International Security and Cyber Threats
Chair: Raffaele Marchetti (Luiss; REMIT)
This session addressed the security implications of emerging technologies, from digital covert operations to quantum threats and information manipulation.
Panelists:
- Francesco Moro (University of Bologna) “Threat or opportunity: States’ perceptions of technological change in the contemporary global security environment”
- Niccolò Petrelli (University of Roma Tre) “Digital Covert Operations and Strategic Competition”
- Carolina Polito (Luiss University) “The Quantum Cyber Threat of Store Now and Decrypt Later, and The Global Competition over Quantum Technologies”
- Marielle Wijermars (Maastricht University) “Russian Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference (FIMI) as international security threat”
Roundtable 3: Economic Dimension and Competitiveness
Chair: Thomas Christiansen (Luiss; REMIT)
Discussions focused on how the EU can balance open strategic autonomy with economic and technological sovereignty in an increasingly competitive global market.
Panelists:
- Stefano De Luca (EPRS) “Strategic dependencies: Threats to EU sovereignty in communication infrastructure”
- Maria Savona (Luiss University) “How to reconcile the EU Open Strategic Autonomy with economic security and technological sovereignty? An open question”
- Arturo Varvelli (ECFR) “From Market Efficiency to Strategic Sovereignty: Reimagining Europe’s Technological Power”
