European Union: European Commission released Competitiveness Compass

On 29 January 2025, the European Commission issued the Competitiveness Compass, which provides a framework to guide Europe’s competitiveness in the global market. The Compass aims to drive technological advancements and address economic challenges. In particular, the Commission stated that it will introduce initiatives such as “AI Gigafactories”, “Apply AI”, and “EU Cloud and AI Development Act” to promote industrial AI development. Additionally, a comprehensive EU Start-up and Scale-up Strategy will be proposed to address regulatory barriers hindering the growth of new businesses. A Quantum Strategy and Act are also planned to align EU and national quantum programmes, strengthening Europe’s position in technologies essential for digital encryption and defence. To support this agenda, competition policy reforms will be pursued to enable companies to scale globally while ensuring fair competition in the Single Market. This includes revising merger guidelines, enforcing the Digital Markets Act, promoting technology dissemination through clearer licensing rules and proposing a “Digital Networks Act.”