Europe must place technology, artificial intelligence and digital finance at the heart of its economic agenda, according to Eurogroup President and Greek Minister of National Economy and Finance Kyriakos Pierrakakis, who argued that these issues should become a permanent part of Eurozone finance ministers’ discussions in an interview with POLITICO.
At next week’s Eurogroup meeting, finance ministers are expected to discuss artificial intelligence and cybersecurity, while also adopting a joint declaration on digital finance. Pierrakakis said the economic challenges of a rapidly changing technological landscape require “a stable framework for political coordination” in areas that have traditionally fallen outside the Eurogroup’s remit.
He also announced plans to propose the creation of a dedicated Eurogroup workstream on artificial intelligence, technological innovation and technological sovereignty. He argued that Europe’s technology strategy is inseparable from its competitiveness, productivity and long-term economic resilience, stressing that the Eurozone needs a coherent approach to its technological choices, particularly at a time of constrained public finances and limited investment resources.
Pierrakakis maintained that Europe’s strategy should avoid both blindly replicating other innovation ecosystems and pursuing self-sufficiency across every area of technology. “Europe does not need to copy Silicon Valley,” he said. “It needs to stop exporting its best ideas and importing back the value they create.”
He added that technological sovereignty should be understood as a strategic objective rather than an attempt to isolate Europe from global technological developments. More broadly, Pierrakakis argued that the Eurogroup should evolve into a forum for regular strategic discussions on the structural issues increasingly shaping Europe’s economic future, including housing policy, European defence, energy security and critical raw materials.
Asked about the initiatives of the European Union’s six largest economies (E6) to advance the bloc’s investment agenda, Pierrakakis welcomed any effort that helps overcome political deadlock while reinforcing the EU’s formal decision-making processes.
Turning to Greece’s economic convergence with the rest of Europe, he acknowledged the country’s significant progress in recent years but stressed that sustaining strong growth will be essential if Greece is to continue narrowing the gap with the European average.
