The great challenges and opportunities of the fourth industrial revolution

The fourth industrial revolution – that is, the one that is marked by the appearance of new technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, nanotechnology or the Internet of Things, among others – is a reality that is already radically transforming our way of conceiving life, to work and interact.

Thomas Osborne
Thomas Osborne
20 September 2022 Tuesday 01:44
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The great challenges and opportunities of the fourth industrial revolution

The fourth industrial revolution – that is, the one that is marked by the appearance of new technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, nanotechnology or the Internet of Things, among others – is a reality that is already radically transforming our way of conceiving life, to work and interact. At the same time, it is also substantially changing the way companies are organized and produced, creating endless new opportunities that we must know how to take advantage of.

In order to contribute to the advancement of the 4.0 economy, the Consorci de la Zona Franca de Barcelona (CZFB) is now promoting the third edition of Barcelona New Economy Week (BNEW), a benchmark event that, with just two editions, has already has become an unavoidable appointment with business innovation.

From October 3 to 6, the 17,000 square meters of the DFactory – a building located in the Zona Franca, considered the main node of industry 4.0 in southern Europe – will host the most important players in the new economy, thanks to a hybrid format, face-to-face and online.

During these days, as Blanca Sorigué, general director of the CZFB and BNEW, explains, it is expected to have "more than 12,000 attendees from more than 100 different countries, something that is now possible thanks to our new generation digital platform", which also ensures quality networking. 2,000 companies and 600 top-level speakers will participate in this event "who will present the keys to continue promoting the 4.0 economy, a process to which a transversal vision must be contributed."

This format of proven success has the mission of addressing the most current issues, exploring multiple aspects related to the vertiginous economic, technological and social transformations that we are experiencing. At BNEW, multiple panels encompassed in seven key areas for the new economy will be developed: Digital Industry, Real State, Mobility, Talent, Sustainability, Invest and Experience. The objective of all these activities is to contribute to generating new business opportunities, connecting worlds that, although they may seem different at first, are actually totally complementary.

BNEW Digital Industry, undoubtedly one of the most relevant verticals, will address issues such as the importance of humanization in digital, the possibilities offered by intelligent materials in the construction of the economy of the future or the so-called digital twins (that is, the replicas of physical objects, processes, or services that are used to perform simulations).

For its part, BNEW State will once again become the main meeting point for the real estate sector. Different topics will be addressed there under the following axes: macroeconomics, investment, residential, Commercial Real State, sustainability, Smart Cities and Proptech.

This is not all: BNEW Mobility will bring together the public and private sectors to offer the best solutions and the most innovative proposals in the field of mobility. To do this, issues such as electric mobility, micromobility or urban mobility in Smart Cities will be addressed.

With the aim of responding to the new training needs derived from the changes in consumption and production caused by this new industrial scenario, BTalent will deal with issues related to education, equality or the entrepreneurial and investor character in current times. .

The BNEW Sustainability panel will focus on finding solutions that private companies and public bodies can apply directly and responsibly, to ensure the future of our planet for future generations, in line with the Sustainable Development Goals set out in the 2030 Agenda During the event, specific measures will be proposed for their implementation in key sectors such as food or fashion.

One of the novelties for this edition is the BNEW Invest vertical, which was born with the intention of addressing new investment trends, and offering a precise perspective on the risks and opportunities in the economy that have emerged after the impact of the pandemic, both for large companies as well as for SMEs.

In the words of Pere Navarro, special delegate of the State in the CZFB, “Barcelona is one of the European cities with the greatest global projection, fully capable of leading the advance towards the new economy. That is why, from the CZFB, we have the obligation and the challenge to actively contribute to the transformation towards industry 4.0, promoting the exchange of talent between companies from all over the world, and at the same time giving relevance to our city that, in addition to Being a cradle of innovation, it treasures a great artistic, gastronomic and cultural heritage”.

This year the CZFB wants to give special prominence to the wide range of leisure and culture that can be found in Barcelona. For this reason, the vertical BNEW Experience will offer, during the four days at the DFactory, multiple activities, many of them technological and immersive, ranging from painting, sculpture or fashion exhibitions to culinary experiences.

In the latter, we can enjoy wine or chocolate tastings and showcookings by renowned chefs such as Nuria Gironés, from Ca l'Isidre; Paco Pérez, from the Miramar Restaurant; Hideki Matsuhisa, from Koy Shunca; and Romain Fornell, from Caelis.

All these unique experiences will be developed with the help of companies such as Damm, Fever-Tree, Barcelona Chocolate Factory, Bodega Miquel Jané, El Bandarra, Fliwer, Pintura Mural.Barcelona, ​​Boqueria 180, Penedès Designation of Origin, Xerigots, LAB Barcelona B , Art Workshop, Alisys or Innovae; and with the participation of artists such as Vito Thiel, Toni Ortiz, Antoni Areny or Igor Kucinic.

Once again, the BNEW Best Start-ups awards will be presented, which will recognize the work of the most disruptive emerging companies in each of the sectors present at the meeting. At this time, they already have 50 applications from emerging companies that are eligible to receive this prestigious award.

A committee of experts will assess the solutions presented by the companies based on the following criteria: the impact of their project on the industry, the capacity of the management teams, the valuable technological solutions that, in addition to being competitive, are sustainable, the potential for sustainable growth, the degree of innovation of the company and its influence on the economy and society.

All those interested in registering can do so on the BNEW website. Likewise, it is recommended to follow their Twitter and LinkedIn profiles to learn all the information about the different speakers, participating companies and latest news.