We are pleased to announce the release of the new Position Paper “From Chips to Healthcare Services”, a joint plea to accelerate Europe’s leadership and sovereignty in health-related semiconductor and digital technologies. This publication highlights the shared vision of the three industry associations to build a truly European healthcare innovation continuum, where breakthroughs in microelectronics directly translate into better care for citizens.
Driving a European healthcare innovation ecosystem
Experts from the AENEAS, INSIDE, and EPoSS industry associations have been working for a long time to identify the R&D&I efforts needed to address the major challenges facing health systems, which are under pressure due to ageing population, chronic diseases, and rising costs. The need to act and solve some key bottlenecks has been strongly highlighted during the discussions on the next Chips JU work programme. The overarching vision is to build a European healthcare ecosystem where innovation flows seamlessly from semiconductor laboratories to research, hospitals, homes, and community care, ensuring that every technological advance translates into better health outcomes for citizens.
Embedding technology and intelligence across healthcare
At the core of today’s digital healthcare transformation lies a seamless technological continuum, from silicon to software, and from embedded intelligence to distributed data infrastructures. Combined, these layers enable a transition from reactive to predictive, preventive and personalised healthcare, supporting the P4 model of medicine. For example, the convergence of a new generation of smart sensors, trusted data fusion, and AI-driven analytics is creating new opportunities for continuous health monitoring, early diagnostics, and post-care prevention. To unlock this potential at scale, key systemic challenges must be addressed, including biocompatibility, device calibration, energy efficiency, interoperability and data security and privacy. At the same time, the convergence of these technologies also empowers AI in medical imaging. For example, ECS innovations – from image sensors and compute platforms to AI accelerators – are crucial to next-generation imaging systems capable of real-time image reconstruction, diagnostic support, and treatment guidance. Embedded AI enhances diagnostic accuracy, improves workflow efficiency, and reduces clinician workload. Advances in ECS technologies, together with AI, are also enabling and driving innovations in laboratory equipment used for diagnosis and research. These instruments support more accurate and efficient diagnostic testing and investigations into the underlying causes of disease and infection, contributing to the selection of appropriate treatment plans for individual patients, the development of new treatments at the molecular scale, and the validation of medical techniques and equipment. Together, these dynamics illustrate a profound reconfiguration of how electronics and intelligence are embedded throughout healthcare.
From innovation to impact: scaling Europe’s healthcare continuum
Europe already possesses the fundamental building blocks to realise this continuum. The challenge now is not only to develop advanced technologies, but to ensure that innovation travels across the entire value chain from chip design to clinical service delivery, from laboratory research to everyday care, from scientific insight to measurable quality-of-life improvements. Technology alone is not enough: Europe must overcome fragmentation, scale innovation across borders and reinforce public trust, ensuring interoperability, scalability, inclusion, and cost efficiency. Devices, data, and services must communicate securely across borders; pilots must evolve into deployable solutions; citizens must be empowered participants in their own care; and technology must help health systems do more with fewer resources, without compromising fairness or quality.
Discover the full text of this Position Paper here.