Many of the smart, connected, autonomous devices driving the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) are created by small, agile companies. They often face acute problems with access to finance and acquiring skilled staff, and their “deep tech” innovations can have long lead times to get to market. The economists at the European Investment Bank and the European Patent Office have teamed up for the first time to investigate the particular challenges faced by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in this sector. Debora Revoltella and Yann Ménière explain their findings, comparing Europe with the US. They also discuss solutions than could help the boom in digital technologies seen in e.g. manufacturing, AI, transport, healthcare and clean energy.

Moderator: Jeremy Philpott, Communications Manager, EPO

Guests: Debora Revoltella, EIB Chief Economist, and Yann Ménière, EPO Chief Economist

See epo.org/trends-deeptechSMEs