SEMIC conference 2023 recap: Navigating ‘Interoperable Europe in the age of AI’

On Wednesday, October 18th, the Semantic Interoperability (SEMIC) conference took place in Madrid, Spain. The event was hosted by the European Commission, in collaboration with the newly inaugurated Spanish Presidency of the Council of the European Union. This year’s edition revolved around the theme 'Interoperable Europe in the Age of AI'. A diverse gathering of professionals from the public, private, and academic sectors convened to exchange knowledge and engage in various discussions throughout the day.

Under the banner of 'Interoperable Europe in the Age of AI', the conference provided a platform for in-depth discussions on recent advancements and the synergy between interoperability, semantics, and artificial intelligence. Several sessions were dedicated to exploring AI, reliable and qualitative data, the concept of law as a code, the linkage of data spaces, and the automation of public services. Additionally, the event included the unveiling of the latest developments regarding the Interoperable Europe Act Commission Proposal.

One of the speakers was Franck Noël, director for Data, Information and Knowledge Management services of the Publications Office of the European Union. At the conference, Franck Noël explained that the Publications Office is embracing artificial intelligence and interoperability topics. Lately, the office has invested in chatbot technologies to provide a natural language interface to increase services’ accessibility and a more intuitive information access. Noël addressed that the way information can be accessed, is rapidly changing. Keeping in mind the risks that come along with AI, he emphasized that, as a public services provider, the Publications Office must be very clear about how AI is used to ensure trustworthy services for all stakeholders. Noël concluded his presentation by addressing that currently, the biggest challenge lies in finding the right balance in AI technologies and human supervision.

For data.europa.eu, participating to events such as the SEMIC conference is instrumental in two different ways. Firstly, the conference’s stage is one more channel through which the initiative meets its audience, and can extend it further, to citizens and businesses that may not have yet had the opportunity to learn about open data. Secondly, it is an opportunity to connect with representatives of other EU programmes and officers, to ideate formulas to work together and create more value for Europe.

If you are interested in Franck Noël’s presentation, please find the recording here.

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