For a long time, the conversation around technology has been dominated by software. Today, however, the next phase of deep tech is bringing the physical layer back to the centre of attention. Artificial intelligence, quantum technologies, advanced sensing and increasingly complex industrial systems all rely on the ability to design, build and industrialise hardware that can transform new ideas into reliable products.
This makes hardware more than a purely engineering matter. It is becoming a question of industrial competitiveness: who has control over the technologies, skills and supply chains needed to move from research to production, and how companies, institutions and research organisations can work together to make that transition possible.
This is the theme behind the third Weletech Talk, “Industry Hardware: the future of electronics for deep tech”, taking place at Eletech on 21 October. The discussion will focus on chips, microelectronics and new hardware architectures, while also looking at the wider ecosystem required to move these technologies out of laboratories and into industrial applications.
For Elemaster, this issue is directly linked to the evolution of its own role within industry.
Over time, the Group has moved beyond the model of a specialised electronics supplier, developing an approach in which design, engineering, manufacturing, testing and lifecycle expertise become part of the customer’s innovation process. The objective is to work increasingly alongside clients while technologies and products are still being defined.
Valentina Cogliati, CEO and President of Elemaster Group, will discuss this evolution from an entrepreneurial point of view. Her contribution will address how the Group has grown, why co-design and co-development have become increasingly important in high-value sectors, and how decisions to expand and integrate capabilities can be understood as part of a single industrial strategy.
This approach also means looking beyond the company’s own boundaries. Collaboration with customers, technology partners, research organisations and startups requires treating innovation less as a closed internal process and more as an ecosystem where different capabilities need to connect.
The conversation will then move beyond Elemaster. Roberto Siagri, founder of Eurotech and deep-tech entrepreneur, now leading the Italian quantum computing startup Rotonium, will bring the perspective of those building new technology businesses. His contribution will look at some of the frontiers currently reshaping computing and industry, including quantum technologies.
Giorgio Dell’Erba of Fondazione Chips-IT will focus on the semiconductor ecosystem and on the relationship between research, public policy and industrial development: from hardware designed for increasingly demanding algorithms and AI applications to the European framework created around the Chips Act.
Together, these perspectives approach the same underlying question from different angles: what is needed for advanced technology to become industrial capability, rather than remain technological potential?
The discussion will be moderated by Dario Colombo, Editorial Director of the ESTE publishing group.
Weletech Talk #3: Industry Hardware, the future of electronics for deep tech
21 October 2026 | 11:00-13:30
Eletech, Via Stoppani 13, Osnago (LC)
A light lunch and networking session will follow the talk.
Click here to register for Weletech Talk #3!