Innovate Europe Foundation: Reorientation of the IE.F as an independent voice for Europe's technological sovereignty– Jonas Andrulis succeeds Ralph Dommermuth as Chairman of the Foundation Board
New policy paper on the value creation potential of generative AI for Europe published
The Internet Economy Foundation (IE.F) is now operating under the new name Innovate Europe Foundation. The strategic realignment of one of Europe's leading independent think tanks reflects the changing priorities of the European technology and start-up ecosystem and aims to strengthen Europe's competitiveness and innovative power.
The reorientation is also accompanied by a change in leadership: the founders of IE.F, Ralph Dommermuth (CEO, United Internet AG) and Friedbert Pflüger, are stepping down from their operational roles as Chairman of the Council and Chairman of the Foundation Board after more than eight successful years.
“We have achieved a lot with IE.F in recent years. It's worth standing up for the interests of the tech industry and advocating for its development. In Jonas Andrulis, IE.F has found a worthy successor to chair its Foundation Board, who will continue the success story with a new direction. I wish him every success,” said Dommermuth.
“After more than eight years of successful cooperation, it was very important to me that IE.F's reputation and standing as an independent and honest voice in Europe continues with the reorientation and that it remains committed to the interests of the European tech industry. I would like to thank Ralph Dommermuth, the advisory board and the IE.F management team for their constructive and cooperative partnership and wish the Innovate Europe Foundation continued prosperity,” said Pflüger.
Jonas Andrulis, founder and CEO of Aleph Alpha, succeeds Ralph Dommermuth as the new Chairman of the Foundation Board. “The IE.F has made a name for itself in Berlin, Brussels and Paris with its well-founded content and policy-oriented work. I have been following its activities for some time now and value it as an important voice in European technology policy. When I was approached with the idea of leading this established think tank, which is committed to a strong and successful European technology industry, I didn't have to think twice. Europe has many bright minds, a multitude of strong research ecosystems and innovative ideas. These need to be better synchronized in order to make targeted use of the immense value creation potential that is spread across many corners of Europe. I will do my utmost to achieve this and would like to thank Ralph Dommermuth and Friedbert Pflüger for their support in tackling this with the Innovate Europe Foundation,” Andrulis explained.
Achim Weiß, CEO of Ionos, is also a new member of the Foundation Board, while René Obermann**, Managing Partner Europe at Warburg Pincus and Chairman of the Supervisory Board at Airbus, will remain on the Board.
“The future of Europe depends largely on whether we reduce our dependencies in key technology areas such as cloud, AI and deep tech in general, and specifically in the defense sector,” explains Obermann. “Firstly, to defend our freedom and secondly, to ensure sustainable growth and prosperity. This requires a new pact between business, science and politics, which we want to promote in the IE.F.”
Achim Weiß says: “Europe has made great strides in the last decade, producing hundreds of technology unicorns, a thriving venture capital industry and numerous global market leaders. Nevertheless, our potential is far from exhausted. With the reorientation of the IE.F, we will align its activities on a pan-European scale and join forces, especially with regard to sovereignty measures in the digital infrastructure. I look forward to tackling this task together with Jonas Andrulis and René Obermann,” added Weiß. Klaus Hommels (Lakestar Advisors), Robert Gentz (Zalando) and Paul-Bernhard Kallen (Burda Media) are leaving the Foundation Board.
The Advisory Board is currently being put together with well-known personalities from the European tech ecosystem and we are pleased to announce the first members: Francesco Bonfiglio, Esben Gadsbøll, Dr. Anna Herrhausen, Andreas Klinger, Arnaud Muller, Verena Pausder and Johannes Reck.
As Managing Director, Clark Parsons will continue to steer the fortunes of IE.F in this strategic reorientation. “Since its foundation in 2016, IE.F has been committed to strengthening Germany and Europe in the digital (internet) economy. Supported by leading figures from the German start-up and innovation ecosystem, the foundation has made significant progress. This is also and above all thanks to the two founders of the foundation, Ralph Dommermuth and Friedbert Pflüger, whom I would particularly like to thank for their great work,” said Parsons.
“However, given the growing dominance of technology giants from the US and China, we have seen the need to broaden the substantive and geopolitical focus and address IE.F's efforts in the area of digital sovereignty on a pan-European basis. The Draghi Report, with its focus on investment in innovation, and the announcement of an EU Commissioner for Startups show us that we are on the right track,” added Parsons. ”The IE.F will make a strong commitment to this throughout Europe and sees it as an ongoing and sustainable task. “We are going for a sprint, but we are also prepared for a marathon, because it is about fundamental issues and attitudes,” added Parsons.
“Against this backdrop, we are delighted to have gained Jonas Andrulis, one of Europe's leading AI pioneers, as Chairman of the IE.F, who will be supported in this role by Achim Weiß and René Obermann. We are looking forward to working together and are publishing the new Policy Paper “Beyond the hype: How generative AI generates real added value for Europe “, the first milestone,” explained Parsons at the launch.
IE.F presents policy paper with clear recommendations for politics and businesses
The policy paper sheds light on how Europe can strengthen its position in the global technology sector and provides clear recommendations for action for politics and business. Europe's underestimated strengths lie in its data, which is not (yet) systematically processed, and in the domain-specific expertise of its companies. If it succeeds in leveraging these two potentials, the EU can play to its strengths and become a serious AI player.
In light of the fact that the technology has not (yet) revolutionized the everyday life of companies and authorities despite the justified hype, an honest stocktaking is presented. The policy paper shows which framework conditions need to be met so that the enormous potential of generative AI can finally be fully utilized.
In the more than eight years of its existence, the Internet Economy Foundation has set numerous digital policy milestones and strengthened Europe's sovereignty. With its strategic reorientation, the Innovate Europe Foundation is preparing to set further milestones and consolidate Europe's digital sovereignty in the long term. This was agreed by all stakeholders at the launch event. The starting signal has been given. As part of this strategic reorientation, the IE.F is striving to involve a representative group of personalities and experts from all over Europe in order to substantially strengthen European competitiveness on the basis of democratic principles. The IE.F will work consistently to achieve this.
About the IE.F
The IE.F was initiated and founded in 2016 as the Internet Economy Foundation by a circle of leading minds in the technology ecosystem in order to sustainably strengthen Europe's global competitiveness. The foundation acts as a think tank, forum and dialog partner for the concerns of the German and European digital and innovation ecosystem. In order to better represent the broad basis of Europe's technological strengths and opportunities, we realigned our content and personnel in 2024 and renamed ourselves the Innovate Europe Foundation.