DEDEP.eu returned from the EDIH Summit 2026 with a clear message: Europe’s AI challenge is no longer only about building technology, but about helping organisations adopt it, deploy it and benefit from it at scale.
Held on 9–10 June 2026 in Brussels, the Summit brought together the European Digital Innovation Hubs network, EU institutions, Member States, AI infrastructures and innovation actors to examine how Europe’s AI ecosystem works in practice. Its central focus was highly aligned with DEDEP.eu’s mission: how SMEs and public administrations can access the right infrastructure, receive trusted guidance and move from initial interest to meaningful AI adoption.
For DEDEP.eu, the Summit was particularly relevant because European Digital Innovation Hubs (EDIHs) are among the most important deployment-oriented actors funded under the Digital Europe Programme. EDIHs act as one-stop shops supporting companies and public-sector organisations in responding to digital challenges, accessing technical expertise, testing before investing, receiving training and connecting with innovation services.
From “who builds AI?” to “who uses AI well?”
A recurring theme throughout the Summit was the need to make Europe’s support structures work together more effectively. In the words of Commissioner Henna Virkkunen, EDIHs are Europe’s AI centres on the ground, working directly with the businesses that need AI most. The point was reinforced by discussions on the future of the EDIH network, including the upcoming European AI Innovation Month, taking place from 14 October to 17 November 2026, and the European Commission’s interest in hearing from EDIHs to inform the next evolution of the network.
One of the strongest messages came from Ulla Kruhse-Lehtonen, whose keynote focused on Europe’s AI adoption gap. Her intervention shifted the discussion from “who builds AI?” to “who uses AI well?”. Europe’s opportunity is not only in catching up with hyperscalers, but in enabling large-scale AI adoption across businesses, sectors and regions. Her AGENT methodology (Audit, Gauge, Engineer, Navigate, Track) offered a practical reminder that successful AI adoption starts with processes, workflows and value creation, not with technology for its own sake.
A DEDEP.eu workshop on AgriFood AI deployment pathways
Thanks to close collaboration with the EDIH Thematic Working Group AgriFood leads, DEDEP.eu actively contributed to the design, moderation and facilitation of the workshop “From AI Pilots to Market Deployment: Connecting AgriFood EDIHs, TEFs, AI Factories and Data Spaces”. The session explored how AgriFood EDIHs can support SMEs and public actors in moving from experimentation to validated, deployable and market-ready AI solutions.
The workshop was timely because it addressed one of the Summit’s most important questions: how can existing EU-funded support mechanisms, such as EDIHs, Testing and Experimentation Facilities (TEF), AI Factories and data spaces, be connected into clearer user pathways?
The session brought representatives of these mechanisms into the same room and invited them to work together on practical deployment challenges. Participants mapped where AI adoption journeys currently break down, what support mechanisms are missing, and how collaboration between EDIHs and other infrastructures could become more operational.
A warm thank you goes to the speakers and contributors who helped shape the session: Laura Clifford, National Contact Point for EDIH Ireland; Raffaele Giaffreda, Chief Innovation Scientist at FBK, agrifoodTEF Coordinator; Lucía Castro Díaz, Manager of AI Factory & EDIH DATALife; Rani Van Gompel, Stakeholder Manager at CEADS, ILVO; Hazel Peavoy; and Stephen Barnes from ENTIRE EDIH & Walton Institute.
The outcomes of the workshopwill also feed into a report for the European Commission, to be presented during Synergy Days in Ireland in October.
Bridging as the keyword for Europe’s AI deployment ecosystem
If one word captured the spirit of the Summit, it was bridging. The discussion around EDIH-TEF collaboration was especially relevant. During the Summit, the EDIH-TEF Collaboration High-Level Guidelines were presented, outlining practical collaboration cases and pathways between EDIHs and TEFs. While the community recognises that guidance and operational frameworks need to reach actors earlier and become easier to apply, it is clear that Europe’s AI support ecosystem is moving towards stronger interconnection.
This is highly relevant for DEDEP.eu. Dissemination and exploitation are about enabling results to move towards users, adopters and support infrastructures. The Summit confirmed that programme-level D&E support must increasingly focus on pathways, handovers and adoption conditions.
The DEDEP.eu team also used the Summit as a valuable networking opportunity, meeting a wide range of project representatives, exchanging contacts and identifying potential future collaborations. Several interviews were recorded and will be assessed as possible inputs for the DEDEP.eu Inspiring Stories, showcasing how Digital Europe Programme projects are working towards real-world uptake.
Event on Digital Health
The event offered an opportunity to promote the upcoming DEDEP.eu & CoordinaTEF thematic event on Digital Health, taking place on 7 July, continuing the conversation on how DIGITAL-funded initiatives can work together to accelerate deployment and impact.
The Summit showed that Europe’s AI ecosystem is rich, ambitious and increasingly deployment-oriented. The next challenge is making it easier to navigate. This is where DEDEP.eu will continue to contribute: helping Digital Europe Programme results become more visible, accessible and usable for the people and organisations that can turn them into impact.
