IVA Business Executives Council| Summer Session 2026

Global Outlook: Asia #4

In subverting the choice between accommodating the global AI industry and building AI independence, South Korea offers examples of creative possibilities in technology policy.

IVA's President: Some thoughts on the Self-confident China

IVA's President: Some thoughts on the EU's Approach to China

China’s new Five-Year Plan was naturally the focus of this year’s China Development Forum (CDF), which took place last week in Beijing. And there is no hyperbole in observing that business leaders and representatives of international organizations were welcomed by a prime minister brimming with confidence.

IVA's President: Some thoughts on Germany

IVAs President - Some thoughts on Surviving Chaos

2026 Hans Werthén Scholars

Eight young researchers and students resident in Sweden have been awarded this year's scholarships from the Hans Werthén Fund for study and research abroad. The scholarships are awarded with the aim of giving young academics the opportunity to develop in other countries and to return with new knowledge and experience that can benefit Sweden.

IVA's President: Some thoughts on Strategic Indispensability

What constitutes the EU's strategic capital and how can we leverage this in our new world? You don't have to be the biggest and strongest in the world to be influential or strategically relevant. It is enough to be strategic and smart.

IVA's President: The Government as the Lead Customer

Public procurement accounts for nearly one-fifth of Sweden’s economy, amounting to approximately 1,200 billion Swedish kronor per year. EU-wide, the corresponding share is 14 percent. Given its scale and the nature of the purchases, public procurement could serve as a powerful driver of technological development, innovation, and, consequently, growth in Sweden and Europe.

Report: Advanced manufacturing

Every lorry that rolls out of Gothenburg. Every fighter aircraft that takes off from Linköping. Every industrial robot assembled in Västerås. Advanced manufacturing is today one of Sweden’s most important assets – a world-class sector that employs hundreds of thousands of people and accounts for a significant share of Sweden’s export revenues. But international competition is intensifying. A new report from Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences shows what Sweden needs to do to maintain its lead in an increasingly competitive world.

What Sweden Can Learn from Ukraine’s Drone Industry

Sweden needs to reform its public procurement regulations and innovation system to better foster innovation and address future crises, according to a new study produced on behalf of IVA. The review examines how Ukraine has rapidly developed a dynamic drone industry in the midst of ongoing war.

Some thoughts on Economic Growth in Europe, or the Lack of It

The John and Margaretha Aspegren Scholarship

In 2004, the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences (IVA) established the John and Margaretha Aspegren Memorial Foundation to promote a better understanding between engineering sciences and the humanities.

Global Outlook: Asia #2

Technology has now globally gained a prominent place in national economic policymaking. Innovation is something to protect; access to technologies such as high-end chips is something to contest.

IVA's President: some thoughts on Greenhushing

At this time last year, the U.S. election campaign was in full swing. Joe Biden had stepped aside to make way for Kamala Harris as the Democratic candidate. Donald Trump had survived an assassination attempt and was now dominating the agenda. Trump was—and is—a force the whole world must reckon with.

IVA's President: some thoughts on the new, long-term EU budget

IVA’s President Sylvia Schwaag Serger reflects on the European Commission’s EUR 2 trillion budget proposal for 2028-2034 and its priorities in security, competitiveness, and innovation, as well as Sweden’s strength in rapid technology adoption.

IVA's President: some thoughts on Infrastructure Investments

One year from now, voters will go to the polls in Sweden. I look forward to the election campaign, and as a representative of the world's first academy of engineering sciences, I have a message for the political parties: think big! Think beyond a single term of office. What we need now are big ideas to build Sweden for the future.

IVA’s Gold Medal 2025: Daniel Stenberg

From Huddinge to the Moon. Through his work with open-source software, Daniel Stenberg has built a technological foundation that quite literally reaches into space. With curl, he has created a tool that has become an indispensable part of digital communication – not only on Earth, but also between our planet and other celestial bodies.

IVA's President: some thoughts on Sweden's Innovation Status

Two rankings recently confirmed Sweden’s distinction as an innovative country. Last week, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) published its Global Innovation Index 2025. In this ranking, Sweden stood fast in second place, maintaining the position it has held in recent years.

Opinion piece: EU’s peace project threatened by outdated research policy

Current research policy within the EU peace project excludes funding for technologies that can be used both for civilian and military purposes. However, the framework program was developed before the war in Ukraine and the rise of AI. Today’s technologies are cross-sectoral. Therefore, the expert group Esir proposes in a new report that the European Commission should change course, writes Sylvia Schwaag Serger, President of IVA and lead author of the report, in DN Debatt on July 6, 2025.