The 1^st Cyprus Technology Summit was successfully organised by BOUSSIAS Cyprus with the event being placing under the auspices of The Cyprus Institute, which supports such innovative initiatives. The event was held at Hilton Nicosia on Thursday, 4^th of May, 2023. The 1st Cyprus Technology Summit was the first event of its kind in Cyprus with a focus on sharing knowledge, the exchange of ideas and an open dialogue with the most influential people shaping the future of the country.

 

CyI President Prof. Stavros Malas noted in his welcoming speech that technological achievements and improvements need and require first of all science and in particular, excellence in science, highlighting that this is the vital role in The Cyprus Institute’s mission. “When we talk about technological achievements, we talk about growth, progress and the impact of progress. However, the technological achievements of the 20^th century have brought in some negative results that we need to address such as climate change. We are living in an era, where the very fast and negative impact of climate change needs to be addressed by scientists. We need to move fast into green economy utilising the knowhow from the technological achievements”, he stated.

 

Prof. Despina Serghides, in her lecture “Developing Smart, Sustainable Cities”, noted that reformation of transportation is necessary to tackle high CO2 emissions and to achieve sustainable transport at an urban level (over 25% CO2 reduction). A mini network system with solar energy is 100% self-sufficient for buildings after renovation, contributing to the development of Sustainable Cities and therefore contributing to the Climate Change Mitigation, as proposed in the recently developed case-study for Limassol.

 

Summit participants focused on issues of digital transformation, artificial intelligence, cyber security, eBanking and Smart Cities and the goal was to highlight and illustrate the most important trends of the new era, while focusing on their actual applications to the future of society and to economic growth. There was discussion of Cyprus’ digital transformation over the recent years and plans for further goals, including challenges still lying ahead. There was also discussion on Cyprus’ potential to emerge as a technology and innovation hub in the Mediterranean.