Mobile World Congress is already underway in Barcelona: “We believe in technology as the engine of progress” | Catalonia | Spain

Surrounded by paintings by Antoni Tàpies, the centenary of his birth was celebrated in December, the Mobile World Congress (MWC) kicked off this Sunday with the traditional pre-congress meal, which begins this Monday until Thursday. it hopes to attract more than 95,000 visitors to the Fira de Barcelona sites in L’Hospitalet de Llobregat. Representatives from politics, business and the tech world, as well as entrepreneurs, gathered at the Antoni Tàpies Foundation to warm up for the congress, which took place in Barcelona 18 years ago, when the most innovative devices were devices such as Nokia mobile phones, and was held annually – except 2020 due to the pandemic – until it became a meeting in which mobile phones gave way to robotics, artificial intelligence or the 5G network. The trajectory of the MWC is also explained by attempts to bring the congress closer to citizens and position Barcelona as a center of innovation. “We believe in technology as the engine of progress,” Francesc Fajula, director of the Mobile World Capital Foundation, said at the luncheon.

The Minister of Digital Transformation and Public Services José Luis Escriva, the Mayor of Barcelona Jaume Colboni, the President of the Generalitat Pere Aragones and, at the last moment, also the MWC organizer John Hoffman, the visible face of the GSMA Mobile Industry Association. They all highlighted the leap forward that the Catalan capital has made in terms of innovation over these 18 years and the role that the mobile congress has played in this. “When we came to Barcelona, ​​this ecosystem didn’t exist,” Hoffman said. Fajula emphasized the “undeniable potential for the future that the city has” and chose the “humanistic use of technology” that helps address the ethical, social, economic and sustainability challenges that progress entails.

Colboni, who will take part in this edition of the congress for the first time as mayor, wanted to mark a point already left and a new beginning compared to previous years – despite the fact that he was in the government team in previous legislative assemblies -: “Barcelona, ​​he is back. “He came back to share and compete.” Colboni said the Catalan capital “is the place to stay if you have a technology project, if you want to study or if you want to invest,” and highlighted the role played by Mobile World Capital, which organized the event. the previous meeting of the congress was “to make Barcelona a real center of innovation.” “The goal is to create wealth and create value-added jobs, and we achieved that,” the mayor said.

In their speeches, both Escriva and Aragones mentioned the career of Antoni Tàpies. “He was a universal Barcelonan and that is the spirit that characterizes the MWC,” said the minister, who also called for a regulatory review of all technological advances that affect society: “We must reach a great consensus, decide together where we will place limits on this transformative technology.” Aragones quoted the artist’s phrase: “The world only develops if we push it” to highlight the transformative role of technology and the congress: “The promotion of the technology sector is a strategic commitment of the country, as is the reindustrialization of Catalonia, which must be digital. Today I can announce that for the first time, the Generalitat budget will allocate more than 1 billion euros to innovation, research and development,” the president said, despite the fact that he has not yet secured political support for the implementation of the 2024 plan. Accounts. .

You can follow EL PAÍS Catalunya at Facebook And Xor register here to receive our weekly newsletter