Catching Up or Leading? Europe's Tech Ambitions
From AI to women in engineering, prof. Orla Feely explains how collaboration, bold research investments, and inclusive practices can help Europe compete with the US and China in the global innovation race.
Out of the top 25 universities in EngiRank 2025 – impressive 20 are CESAER members. Please briefly introduce CESAER, and tell about the role it plays as a network of Europe's best universities of science and technology.
CESAER was founded in 1990 and today unites over 50 leading universities of science and technology across Europe, who work together to pool expertise and advocate for shared priorities with a trusted and credible voice. Given the importance of technology to EU competitiveness and resilience and the pace of change in technology, we believe that the voice of these universities in Europe is more important than ever. CESAER works to shape strategic policies that support the missions of our members and promote research, education, and innovation in science and technology as key drivers of Europe's future.
Over a year ago reports by Draghi and Heitor told us that Europe in advanced technologies lags behind both the US and China. Do you see any signs that something is being done to improve Europe's competitiveness?
The European Commission following the publication of these reports has mobilized with intent around the competitiveness agenda. The Competitiveness Compass was published in early 2025, and initiatives deriving from it include investments in AI and the 'Choose Europe' initiative to support mobile researchers from around the world to advance their careers in Europe. I believe, therefore, that steps are currently being taken to improve European competitiveness. The question is whether they are sufficiently ambitious and agile, given the speed of developments in technology, in competitor countries and in geopolitics.
What are the key challenges in building an innovative Europe?
There is no shortage of reports identifying these challenges. Commentators typically point to fragmentation of markets, regulatory barriers, shortage of venture funding and a cultural aversion to risk. There is also the danger that, with Europe having fallen behind other economies in key areas of innovation such as digital technology, feedback mechanisms will tend to grow this deficit, as talent and funding concentrate in those other economies and increase their competitive advantage.
"The question is whether they are sufficiently ambitious and agile, given the speed of developments in technology, in competitor countries and in geopolitics."
In this context, how important is financing of research by the EU budgetary framework, through Horizon and other programs? Are these funds sufficient for Europe to stand ground in competition with US and China?
It is extremely important that we have a well-resourced successor to Horizon Europe, including strong support for the European Research Council and the Marie Skłodowska Curie Actions, which have done so much to support the excellent fundamental research where so many ideas and innovations originate. While we would like to see more funding, the increased budget currently proposed, if combined with similar increases in national funding for research, can support European research to be internationally competitive.
To enhance its threatened security EU plans to make significant investments in the defense industry. What role should technical universities play in this process, and especially how to facilitate cooperation between university and the industry?
We know that leading-edge science and technology play pivotal roles in enhancing defence capabilities and societal protection, and so it follows that Europe's leading universities of science and technology can play a key role in advancing European defence in collaboration with industry. Some universities will choose to engage in this activity while others will choose to focus on civil applications of their research – this is a choice that falls within university autonomy. Enhanced funding mechanisms can support defence-related research, innovation and partnerships across Europe, particularly through the European Defence Fund, but we in CESAER are clear that this should not be at the expense of the budget for Horizon Europe and its successor, which should retain its civilian focus. Defence-related research also poses new challenges for universities in areas such as research security, and Universities will require enhanced and consistent European supports and structures as they navigate these challenges.
Prof. Feely, besides serving as president of CESAER, you are also President of University College Dublin. Tell us about your university and how does it deal with the challenges you spoke about in the wider European context.
UCD, the largest university in Ireland, is an ambitious, outward-facing research-intensive university that always seeks to make a difference. UCD has had an enormous impact on Ireland, from the foundation of our state around a century ago to the country's extraordinary economic transformation of recent decades, and we are now a very successful global university. Our partnerships across Europe are very important to us, as seen in our success in Horizon Europe and our active membership of CESAER and of the Una Europa European University Alliance, and we look forward to contributing actively to Ireland's EU Presidency in 2026 as the EU grapples with the challenges we have just discussed.
"We need careers in technology to be welcoming to women for reasons of fairness, competitiveness, and diversity."
Engineering, at least in the past, was considered as male occupation, now more and more young women attend technical universities. As a woman and the head of university can you comment on the place of women in technology?
This is a topic about which I am passionate, and to which I have devoted considerable energy over the course of my career. We need careers in technology to be welcoming to women for reasons of fairness, so that these extraordinary career opportunities are open to all; competitiveness, to ensure full access to talent in key industry sectors; and diversity, so that those creating the technologies that so influence our societies more closely represent as a whole societies.
Finally, how, do you think, artificial intelligence may change both engineering studies and engineering profession?
We are in the very early stages of this development. My expectation is that engineering ingenuity will be supported, but not supplanted, by artificial intelligence. I see evidence of this among our best engineering students, who are very proficient in their use of AI but also arrive very quickly at an understanding of what it cannot deliver for them. AI is a great example of a space where universities of science and technology can share experiences to improve our practices and to influence policy, and so CESAER is a great example of why we need networks like it!
Interviewed by: Anna Raczkowska
Prof. Orla Feely
President of CESAER & President of University College Dublin
She holds a BE degree from University College Dublin and MS and PhD degrees from the University of California, Berkeley. Her research is in the area of nonlinear circuits and systems; she has been awarded research grants and prizes from a number of national, international and industry sources. She served as Vice-President for Research, Innovation and Impact at UCD from 2014 to 2023.
Professor Feely is a Member of the Royal Irish Academy and a Fellow of the IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers), Engineers Ireland and the Irish Academy of Engineering. She is President of CESAER (the Conference of European Schools of Advanced Engineering Education and Research), and has previously served as President of Engineers Ireland, as Chair of the Irish Research Council, the EU Advisory Group on Marie Skłodowska Curie Actions and the IEEE Technical Committee on Nonlinear Circuits and Systems, and Deputy Chair of the Higher Education Authority in Ireland.
"Europe's future prosperity depends on our ability to cultivate, attract and retain the brightest talent in the cutting-edge science and technology that increasingly shape our societies. Universities of science and technology are key partners in this mission..." — Orla Feely, President of CESAER
CESAER (Conference of European Schools for Advanced Engineering Education and Research) is a European association of leading technical universities and engineering faculties. Founded in 1990, and headquartered in Leuven, Belgium, it brings together over 50 specialized universities from around 25 countries. Membership is by invitation only, requiring universities to meet strict criteria in research, education, and innovation, hold doctoral awarding powers, and be leaders in their region or country.
CESAER serves as a platform for collaboration, knowledge exchange, and advocacy, representing member universities to the European Union in areas such as the European Research Area (ERA) and the European Education Area (EEA). Its mission is to strengthen higher education, research, and technological innovation in Europe while promoting sustainable development, digital transformation, and societal impact.
CESAER members share best practices in university management, engineering education, research commercialization, infrastructure, and internationalization. Initiatives include joint doctoral programs, mobility for students and researchers, and collaborative EU projects such as Horizon Europe and European Research Council grants. Members also contribute to policy recommendations on topics like artificial intelligence, open science, and research security.
CESAER emphasizes the link between universities, industry, and society. It advocates for stronger knowledge transfer, innovation, and engagement with societal challenges such as renewable energy, circular economy, sustainable transport, and health technologies. Digitalization, AI, and Industry 4.0 are also priorities, with members developing AI algorithms, automation systems, IoT applications, cloud computing, and high-performance computing in ethical and safe ways.
While universities can choose to engage in defense-related research, CESAER stresses that EU civil research programs like Horizon Europe must retain their societal focus. The association supports dual-use technologies but opposes militarization of civilian programs, advocating for clear rules and separate frameworks for defense projects.
CESAER stands as one of Europe's leading networks of technical universities, fostering innovation, sustainability, and responsible science. By integrating research, education, and societal engagement, it ensures that European universities remain at the forefront of technological and social progress.