EDIH North Netherlands launched at Hannover Messe 2023

Autonomous systems. This is what the Northern Netherlands is focusing on in the coming years. During the Hannover Messe, Secretary General of the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate (EZK) Sandor Gaastra launched the European Digital Innovation Hub Northern Netherlands (EDIH NN).

To encourage digitization in the regions, a network of EDIHs is being built across Europe. Each of these 200 hubs has its own theme and its own approach. Everywhere they are working on digital applications to meet the major societal challenges of today and tomorrow, as part of the Digital Europe Program.

The Netherlands has five such EDIHs, funded by the EU, the Ministry of Economic Affairs and the provinces. The themes developed there in programs are all industrial in nature. They build in good part on the already existing regional Smart Industry Hubs.

All want to contribute to the important transitions ahead for the Netherlands, such as those in agribusiness, health & life science, construction, energy, mobility and the factory of the future.

This is exactly what the EDIH NN is focusing on. The North Netherlands EDIH is a partnership of the NOM, the FME, the University of Groningen, the Hanzehogeschool, NHL Stenden and the front-line organizations of the provinces.

The theme in the Northern Netherlands is autonomous systems. And project manager Hans Praat is very happy about that. "Autonomous systems are becoming indispensable to go through the important transitions and offer many opportunities for the industry to start delivering new products and services."

The programs have been conceived and are now being further developed, the links with companies and knowledge institutions are being tightened. Entrepreneurs and developers are invited to test their ideas and inventions in the Northern Netherlands, in one of the many (living) test labs that are getting off the ground. EDIH NN wants to become the testing ground for autonomous systems and invites Europe to come and test and think along.

Exactly what that will all look like can be seen in a flashy video. Secretary General of EZK Sandor Gaastra launched the video this morning at the Top Dutch booth in the Holland Hightech Pavilion at the Hannover Messe, the world's largest technology industry fair. EDIH NN is the first Dutch EDIH to showcase itself there.