CONNECT 2026 once again brought together the IPCEI ME/CT community to strengthen partnerships and showcase the latest advances across Europe's semiconductor ecosystem. Held in Dresden, Germany, alongside the Silicon Saxony Days, the event brought together around 100 representatives from industry, academia, research organisations and public authorities.
The morning programme opened with welcome remarks by Daniel Lukas, from the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy, followed by a keynote address by Manfred Horstmann, General Manager & Senior Vice President, GlobalFoundries Europe, highlighting the importance of close cooperation between public authorities and industry. Throughout the morning, participants also explored a dedicated poster exhibition, where they exchanged with company representatives, and project partners to find out more about the latest innovations developed within IPCEI ME/CT.
A Strong Synergy with Silicon Saxony Days
Organising CONNECT alongside the Silicon Saxony Days gathering 2000 persons was a great opportunity to merge two events serving the same European microelectronics community. As one of Europe's leading semiconductor conferences, Silicon Saxony Days attracts key industrial players, research organisations, start-ups and public stakeholders. Hosting CONNECT in parallel allowed IPCEI ME/CT participants to engage with this innovation ecosystem, increase the visibility of ongoing activities and strenghen new exchanges beyond the project's own network.
The Poster Exhibition: At the Heart of CONNECT 2026
One of the highlights of the event was the Poster Exhibition, which offered participants a global overview of the innovations currently being developed within the IPCEI ME/CT ecosystem by the different partners. More than a traditional scientific exhibition, it became a vibrant meeting point where researchers, engineers, industrial partners and policymakers exchanged ideas, discussed technical challenges and explored future collaboration opportunities.
The exhibition featured posters presented by leading European companies illustrating the diversity of technologies supported by IPCEI ME/CT.
The poster presented by Aumovio Romania and POLITEHNICA Bucharest demonstrated how academia and industry combine complementary expertise to accelerate innovation.
Below is the full list of posters showcased at the event :
| Organisation | Presented by | Title |
| National University of Science and Technology POLITEHNICA Bucharest; Aumovio Romania | Marius Enachescu | IPCEI Microelectronics - a success story of Aumovio Romania - University POLITEHNICA Bucharest collaboration |
| Infineon Technologies AG | Dr. Peter Lahl | Dedicated Frame Power Module for eTrucks |
| Openchip and Software Technologies S.L. | Giulia Coco | Openchip: accelerating EU Digital Sovereignty |
| Nokia Solutions and Networks GmbH & Co. KG | Harry Kaib | Chiptainability Strategy for a More Sustainable Microelectronics Future in Europe |
| Derivados del Fluor | Iñaki Bastida | Manufacture of Wet Chemicals for the Semiconductor Industry |
| Infineon Technologies Dresden AG & Co. KG | Jana Haensel | Reverse-Conducting IGBT Technologies for Automotive and Industrial Applications |
| Bizzcom s.r.o. | Jaroslav Dzuba | Memristor Technology Development |
| NXP Semiconductors Deutschland GmbH | Matthias Weiss | SENSE beyond sight - sensors for automotive mobility solutions |
| ams-OSRAM | Ralph Wirth | Highlights form IPCEI ME/CT “OptoSuRe” |
| Infineon | Martin mischitz | |
| WOOPTIX S.L. | Roberto Pangallo | Wavefront Phase Imaging for Extreme-Resolution, High-Throughput Metrology |
| Mycroft Mind | Adam Pesl | SkyEye: Edge AI Vision for Short-term PV Forecasting |
| rapidon Gmbh | Daniel Fleischer | HORIBA Integrated Thickness Measurement (ITM) for CMP |
| Infineon Technologies Dresden AG & Co. KG | Patrick Polakowski | Next generation SiC packages for ATV applications |
Looking Ahead
By bringing together IPCEI ME/CT partners alongside the Silicon Saxony Days, CONNECT 2026 created valuable opportunities to exchange, collaboration and visibility within Europe's semiconductor ecosystem. The event once again highlighted the strength of the IPCEI ME/CT community and the importance of connecting industry, academia, research organisations and public authorities.
The IPCEI ME/CT community now looks forward to its next milestones: the General Assembly in November 2026 and CONNECT 2027, where partners will come together once again to share progress, strengthen cooperation and showcase the latest developments across the program.