CEO of chip machine manufacturer ASML addresses 700 entrepreneurs at the Handelsbeurs

More than 700 entrepreneurs went to the Antwerp Trade Fair on Wednesday for the ninth edition of Vooruitblik: the annual event of Voka – Chamber of Commerce Antwerp-Waasland. After INEOS boss Jim Ratcliffe last year, this time it was the turn of Peter Wennink, CEO of the Dutch chip machine manufacturer ASML. The company also has a branch in Leuven.

Veldhoven is home to the headquarters of one of the most successful and innovative companies in the world: ASML. More than 40,000 people work at the chip machine manufacturer, with the ambition to double that number in seven years.

In recent years, the Antwerp City Theater has formed the setting for Vooruitblik. But this year the Antwerp-Waasland Chamber once again settled in the Handelsbeurs. “For us, this is actually an appointment with history, because more than a century and a half ago, the Handelsbeurs was the cradle of the Antwerp Chamber of Commerce,” says managing director Luc Luwel.

Bart De Wever was allowed to introduce the keynote speaker. He pointed out the technological evolution that has been made since the industrial revolution. “Time and again we get used to innovations, after which they become indispensable. Unfortunately, today we do not live in an era where hardworking innovative companies such as ASML are valued. Europe has become too complacent. Do we want to remain relevant and not become the open-air museum of the world, we urgently need to change our approach. In Antwerp we have a port as a gateway to 450 million inhabitants and the presence of one of the most renowned knowledge centers in the world. By working together based on these strengths, we can improve the lives of our citizens continue to improve. But that also requires a government that embraces entrepreneurship.”

Peter Wennink reinforced this call for progressive policy in his keynote. One month after his retirement as CEO of the world’s market leader in chip machines, he spoke plainly about, among other things, the future of Europe as an economic superpower. “This Trade Fair reflects the innovative spirit that already existed here in the 16th century. Use this as a mirror for the future. Those who do not create value themselves must consume the value of others. This does not lead to revenues, but to costs. The European innovation industry needs European unity and protection with European measures.”