Centre for Future Generations

CFG is an independent think-and-do tank created to help decision-makers anticipate and govern rapid technological change.

[Centre for Future Generations @CFG_ThinkTank]

We’ve decided to pause our activity on X indefinitely. To keep in touch, make sure to:

* subscribe to our email updates https://t.co/brs8HWJJy4
* follow us on LinkedIn https://t.co/TOViMKGjkZ
* follow us on YouTube https://t.co/jZtcyjWN9L

See you there!

[Centre for Future Generations @CFG_ThinkTank]

We’ve decided to pause our activity on X indefinitely. To keep in touch, make sure to:

* subscribe to our email updates https://t.co/Rq1yacOPIU
* follow us on LinkedIn https://t.co/2HShBXhbI0,
*follow us on YouTube https://t.co/uo0261WfoQ

See you there!

[Centre for Future Generations @CFG_ThinkTank]

At Think & Do 2025, CFG’s CEO @thomaslingard explained why Europe needs a new approach to technology and governance.

CFG's mission is to help European policymakers anticipate technological change rather than simply respond to it.

[Centre for Future Generations @CFG_ThinkTank]

https://t.co/zvr3G9aZq6

[Centre for Future Generations @CFG_ThinkTank]

Think & Do 2025 brought Europe’s policymakers, technologists, and thinkers together for a full day of conversations on how to shape the future of emerging tech.

Link to our event recap post below:

[Centre for Future Generations @CFG_ThinkTank]

https://t.co/zvr3G9aZq6

[Centre for Future Generations @CFG_ThinkTank]

Why isn’t Europe leading tech innovation?

At Think & Do 2025, @anubradford argued that “overregulation” is the wrong answer, and laid out four forces holding innovation back.

Link to the Think & Do wrap up article below:

[United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research @UNIDIR]

What risks do neurotechnologies pose in the digital age? 🌐

Join Dr Virginia Mahieu from @CFG_ThinkTank at the Innovations Dialogue 2025 #ID25 to learn more.

📍24 November, Geneva and online

🔗 Register: https://t.co/p5XFbA2Gb1

[Centre for Future Generations @CFG_ThinkTank]

That’s a wrap on #ThinkAndDo2025.

Strange times call for collective thinking. Today’s mix of debates, workshops, and reflection felt like the right way to face them.

Thank you to everyone who spoke, questioned, and listened.

We look forward to meeting you all again soon!

[Centre for Future Generations @CFG_ThinkTank]

@AnnSNielsen @leoquattrucci urged a focus on how Europe gets things done — hiring, funding, and institutions that can match the speed of change.
@bertmangil warned that values aren’t slogans; they show up in how we organise work and coordinate action.
#ThinkAndDo2025

[Centre for Future Generations @CFG_ThinkTank]

Final plenary:
Designing the Brussels Effect 2.0.
How can Europe lead in tech not just by regulation, but by example?
#ThinkAndDo2025

[Centre for Future Generations @CFG_ThinkTank]

@AnnSNielsen calls for economic realism:
Europe should invest in what it’s good at and scale it's companies through interoperability and open markets.
Sana Afouaiz reminded that inclusion drives innovation. Diverse teams design better products for everyone.
#ThinkAndDo2025

[Centre for Future Generations @CFG_ThinkTank]

Need a break? Check out the quiet room with an art exhibition featuring work from Louis-Paul Caron. #ThinkAndDo2025

[Centre for Future Generations @CFG_ThinkTank]

For CFG’s Climate Interventions team, the focus is on engaging and listening — building shared understanding before drawing lines.
Today’s exchanges showed that trust, accountability, and access to knowledge will decide how the world handles these tools.
#ThinkAndDo2025

[Centre for Future Generations @CFG_ThinkTank]

In the workshop “Who gets to dim the sun?” by our Climate interventions team, participants explored different scenarios about how future decisions on solar radiation modification could unfold, and what preparedness really means for Europe.
#ThinkAndDo2025

[Centre for Future Generations @CFG_ThinkTank]

The discussions surfaced familiar tensions:
* open research vs. control,
* precaution vs. preparedness,
* trust vs. verification.
Ideas drew from non-proliferation models, intl. law, and the challenge of governing tech moving faster than our institutions.
#ThinkAndDo2025

[Centre for Future Generations @CFG_ThinkTank]

From a European perspective, readiness means more than access to models.
It's about building fallback options, scientific niches, and agile governance that can move at the speed of the tech.
Or as one participant put it:
"get agile, or get left behind."
#ThinkAndDo2025

[Centre for Future Generations @CFG_ThinkTank]

Next up: breakout sessions, starting with AGI and geopolitics.
The sense is clear: AI is already reshaping defence and strategy. One question is around how Europe prepares for the next leap without fuelling an arms race.
#ThinkAndDo2025

[Centre for Future Generations @CFG_ThinkTank]

From a transatlantic view, AI is no longer narrow or niche.
Military alliances are planning for dual-use risks, adversarial applications, and the massive power demands of frontier systems, while trying to uphold democratic principles and interoperability.
#ThinkAndDo2025

[Centre for Future Generations @CFG_ThinkTank]

@robinwauters @mariafarrell Thomas Auger (opposition): Europe doesn’t need to trade values for growth.

The energy transition shows sovereignty and competitiveness can reinforce each other.

“Our model works when we build on our assets — single market, public procurement, and our values.”

#ThinkAndDo2025

[Centre for Future Generations @CFG_ThinkTank]

Now, on the the Oxford-style:

“This house believes that Europe cannot be both sovereign and competitive on technology.”

An Oxford-style clash moderated by Aaron Maniam — asking whether Europe must choose between its values and its edge.

#ThinkAndDo2025

[Centre for Future Generations @CFG_ThinkTank]

@robinwauters @mariafarrell pushes back: “We can be both.”

We need to foster competition, not just competitiveness.

More players across every tech layer means more resilience.

“Sovereignty isn’t isolationism. It’s how we stay European in a digital world.”

#ThinkAndDo2025