Leading technology companies, startups and scaleups, research centres, academic institutions, as well as AI thought leaders and pioneers, met at Beyond Expo 2024, held on 25-27 April 2024, in Thessaloniki, Greece. This year’s event, which focused on the artificial intelligence (AI) revolution and how it is transforming every aspect of our lives, exceeded expectations, more than doubling its total number of visitors, while increasing its trade visitors compared to last year.
The RURBANIVE project showcased its visionary approach at the event, spreading the word on Rural-Urban synergies emerging in an immersive innovation ecosystem to the visitors who joined us on this empowering quest for life improvement in rural communities through technology and social innovation.
With a nuanced understanding of contemporary challenges, RURBANIVE advocates for integrated solutions that bridge the gap between urban development and rural preservation. During the 3-day hybrid “exhibition-meets-summit” event, the project’s participation offered a platform to showcase transformative initiatives and foster meaningful dialogue, demonstrating how it takes advantage of the endless possibilities that immersive technologies have to offer and develops an innovative layer of XR innovations available to end-users across borders and specificities.
At the Beyond Expo, RURBANIVE captivated attendees with the unveiling of its groundbreaking Community Store of Rural-Urban Enablers, a visionary initiative poised to revolutionise the landscape of sustainable development. Through Rural-Urban immersiveness, this innovative platform serves as a nexus for experimentation and collaboration, fostering a dynamic ecosystem where urban and rural communities converge to co-create solutions for shared challenges.
The Community Store stands as a testament to RURBANIVE’s commitment to fostering holistic well-being economies in rural areas and provides a tangible manifestation of RURBANIVE’s novel Rural-Urban innovation framework. Interacting with a wider audience, RURBANIVE sparked dialogue and inspiration, inviting participants to envision a future where rural citizens are at the forefront of policy development.
With 275 direct and indirect exhibitors, 22 countries, 440 Greek and foreign speakers, B2B Matchmaking Events with over 200 participants, more than 500 business meetings, 5 conference venues with dozens of events, a Conference on Artificial Intelligence, the 11th Technology Forum, and many hundreds of B2B and B2G meetings, Beyond Expo is the ideal platform for international business leaders, pioneering thinkers, and all those active in consumer technologies.
BEYOND is being organised by TIF-HELEXPO, Be-Best, and Industry Disruptors Game Changers (IDGC), and the co-organisers comprise of the Ministry of Digital Governance, the Region of Central Macedonia, the Central Union of Municipalities of Greece (KEDE), and the Municipality of Thessaloniki. It is being held under the auspices of the Ministry of the Interior (Sector of Macedonia-Thrace), the Ministry of Tourism, and the ‘Kleisthenis’ Panhellenic Union of General Secretaries of Local Government.
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Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or Research Executive Agency. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.
