The 2018 edition of the ICT Spring Europe attracted over 5,000 participants to Luxembourg to discuss digital and space innovation.

On 15 and 16 May 2018, more than 5,000 professionals took part in the ICT Spring. The event tackled the topics of digital financial technologies and space innovation. More than 120 international experts and guest speakers gathered at the European Convention Centre Luxembourg to share their knowledge, while more than 80 innovative companies and over 40 of startups presented their solutions during the two-day conference.

Prime Minister Xavier Bettel, who was also present, shared his views on the digital ambitions of the government: "I always look forward to this event and to seeing the country's buzzing ICT scene come together in one single place. Our small country knows how to open to others and make successful stories happen."

Pierre Gramegna, Minister of Finance, also attended the event and commented: "Luxembourg is a natural choice for FinTech companies: our country is rated AAA and we have the great ability to adapt the regulation, working hand in hand with the players active in the financial industry". During his presentation he also highlighted the creation at the end of 2015 of the Luxembourg House of FinTech (LHoFT) and the launch of the Infrachain initiative.

From the development of eSkills in Luxembourg, supported by the government, and the necessity to reinvent Customer Experience in order to answer the changing needs of clients, to the promises of Artificial Intelligence, local and international experts took the stage to share their best practices, latest findings and innovative solutions.

Likewise, FinTech was discussed by the guest speakers of ICT Spring. Partnerships and collaboration between traditional players and startups, cutting-edge financial services, innovation in payments and compliance – through GDPR, identity and RegTech – were notably addressed during the FinTech Summit.

Regarding space mining and exploration, the Space Forum once again brought national agencies (ESA, NASA, etc), private companies and startups together to discuss new infrastructure, satellite data management, IoT, mobility, but also Earth observation and disruptive technologies used in space.

A total of 46 startups attended, spoke and pitched at the event. On the first day of ICT Spring, the Pitch Your Startup contest also took place. Organised by Docler Holding, with the support of BIL, EY, LHoFT and Luxinnovation, the competition was won by Japanese startup Empath Inc. Sniffy and Mu Design were also recognised during the ceremony.

During the two days, participants also had to opportunity to discover the latest innovations in the fields of FinTech, ICT and Digital, with the presence of 80 exhibitors. Robert Pires, the former soccer player and World Champion with France in 1998, also attended the event.