OC#9 2026

Topic (5th Open Call)

Topic (9th Open Call)

IoT Internet of Things

Javier Peris

Description of Activities

In this fellowship, the main priority focuses on helping organisations to drive innovation and technological transformation using the Centre of Excellence (CoE) as the best management mechanism in a context of a shortage of professional profiles with expertise in Artificial Intelligence and other disruptive technologies.

Fellow's country

Spain

Open Call Topics

Impact on SMEs (5th Open Call)

The main opportunity for SMEs is their incorporation to a future sectorial cluster type and other potential movements of knowledge collectivisation.

Impact on SMEs (8th Open Call)

European small organisations do not have the experts or economic resources to hire specialised AI consultants, so they must postpone the application of AI in their businesses. This generates a new delay in their innovation gap. The main opportunity for SMEs is their incorporation to a future sectorial cluster type, laboratory of a City Hall, and other potential movements of knowledge collectivisation. Creating a standard on how to constitute and manage an AI Center of Excellence enables European small companies to have a higher success rate in AI innovation initiatives, making them easier to realise and reducing risk.

Impact on SMEs (9th Open Call)

Create a standard reference model for AI productivity support and automation that helps ICT professionals, teams, and departments to be more productive, focused on value creation and with better time management .ill impulse SMEs and VSMEs competitiveness opportunities. Achieving high levels of performance in ICT areas will also allow SMEs to accelerate their digital transformation.

Impact on society (9th Open Call)

Currently there are no standards dedicated directly on helping ICT professionals organise their lives. This standard will help professionals to better organise their goals and work, which will improve work-life balance. As professionals improve their organisational and productivity skills in ICT areas, this improvement will spread to other areas of the company and to society in general.

Linkedin Profile

Open Call

Organisation type

CTN 71/SC 40 - Gestión de servicios de TI y Gobierno de TI

Organization

Business, Technology & Best Practices, S.L.

Organization website

S.L. Business&Co

Portrait Picture

Proposal Title (5th Open Call)

AI-CoE Phase II: Artificial Intelligence for Business powered by Center of Excellence. Model and TS

Proposal Title (8th Open Call)

AI-CoE Phase-III: Proof of Concept of the CoE Reference Model on Artificial Intelligence Adoption

Proposal Title (9th Open Call)

AIxPP: Artificial Intelligence framework to improve Professional Productivity. TS Standard

Role in SDO

chair

Standards Development Organisation

StandICT.eu Year

2026

Year

Topic (5th Open Call)

Topic (9th Open Call)

James Davenport

Description of Activities

There is currently no standard addressing the cybersecurity of AI systems. In ISO/IEC JTC1 SC27 WG4 27090 is under development; and I contribute directly to this work.

Fellow's country

United Kingdom

Open Call Topics

CEN-CENELEC JTC 21 ‘Artificial Intelligence’

Impact on SMEs (7th Open Call)

Many of these standards, e.g. Bias, impact society. In terms of SMEs, I have been closely associated with a software SME, and always ask myself how this SME would be impacted.

Impact on SMEs (9th Open Call)

Many of these standards, e.g. Bias, impact society. In terms of SMEs, I have been closely associated with a software SME, and always ask myself how this SME would be impacted. I am also sensitive to the views of one of my editors who is CTO of an Austrian SME.

Impact on society (4th Open Call)

The EU AI Act places high importance on cybersecurity of AI systems and products, but there is comparatively little work done on this, and none that has reached the level of mature standards. Hence it is important to develop these standards, and ensure that they reflect both the cybersecurity point of view and the specific difficulties of AI, as in the ETSI list , and possibly wider.

Impact on society (7th Open Call)

Europe has already seen many cybersecurity attacks, whether by hostile nation states or by criminal gangs, even before AI becomes widely deployed. The impact of these has already led to at least one death, as well as much damage and distress. As AI becomes more widely deployed, these risks will only grow, and need effective standards-driven mitigations. The impact of my work will be coherence between the developing European standards in ISO-IEC JTC/1 SC27 and the current international draft standards in the area of cybersecurity. In addition, I will feed in research from the cybersecurity community as it affects AI-specific attack methods.

Impact on society (9th Open Call)

Artificial Intelligence has numerous societal implications, particularly around implicit biases. Machine Learning learns from data which reflects the society we have (or had if the data is historic) rather than the society we believe we have, or wish we have. Hence my WG is working on a Bias standard, dealing operationally with detection and mitigation, to build on the excellent work does in ISO-IEC, to which I have contributed. Furthermore, I frequently give interviews with media (typically UK media) on AI. I have also spoken on AI standardisation at relevant subject-matter conferences (on Natural Language Processing and Symbolic Methods)

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Open Call

Organisation type

Organization

University of Bath

Organization website

University of Bath

Personal website

ORCID

Portrait Picture

Proposal Title (4th Open Call)

Artificial Intelligence and Cybersecurity Standardisation

Proposal Title (7th Open Call)

Artificial Intelligence Standardisation (including Cybersecurity)

Proposal Title (9th Open Call)

Artificial Intelligence Standardisation (Accuracy, Cybersecurity and other topics)

Role in SDO

Standards Development Organisation

StandICT.eu Year

2026

Year

Topic (4th Open Call)

Topic (7th Open Call)

Topic (9th Open Call)

Accessibility of ICT products and services

Annegrit Seyerlein-Klug

Description of Activities

Annegrit's priority is the Convenorship of CEN CENELEC JTC21 WG 5, the organisation and project support to work on the AI Act standardisation request for Cybersecurity. This includes a close collaboration with other groups within JTC 21, JTC 13, ISO IEC SC 42 and SC 27 to collect all information of existing and work under development. The main challenge is that JTC 21 and also our WG5 has a diverse structure of experts and knowledge, which makes the work, the effort and efficiency very difficult. In this case, the challenge in addition is the collaboration with other existing standardisation groups within JTC 21 as well as with JTC 13 for Cyber Resilience Act, with ETSI and their view, with ISO IEC SC 27 and SC 42.

Fellow's country

Germany

Open Call Topics

CEN-CENELEC JTC 21 ‘Artificial Intelligence’

Impact on SMEs (4th Open Call)

Contributing activity for a new work item NWIP within CEN CENELEC JTC 21 WG5 “Artificial Intelligence - Cybersecurity specifications for AI systems” and developing the standard on the basis of the gap report.

Impact on SMEs (7th Open Call)

A lot of European SME and/or European societies will be affected in the one or other way from AI-systems in the future in all areas of our living environment, from AI in medical devices, in personal equipment over autonomous driving until general purpose AI systems like chat gpt or Metaverse platforms. The challenge is to align the standards with the regulation but also with the needs of SME and European values. For this reason, the AI Act asked for standards, which CEN/CENELEC is developing.

Impact on SMEs (9th Open Call)

European SMEs , which are providing risk or high risk AI systems in the European market are effected by the AI Act and in that case also from the standard I work for and contribute: Cybersecurity Specifications for AI- Systems.

Impact on society (4th Open Call)

Cybersecurity is elementary for every digital asset and very important also for AI-Systems as a digital asset to be secure, safe, healthy and respecting fundamental rights.

Impact on society (7th Open Call)

The proposed activity aims to answer the official EU standardization request for the EU AI Act and specifically No. 8 Cybersecurity. Thrustworthy Metaverse solutions are based on trustworthy AI solutions. Trust and cybersecurity of AI and Metaverse can be ensured with well developed standards from cybersecurity and AI experts with business background. In case of the European Union harmonized standards as presumption of conformity to the EU Regulation are requested, in this case the request is for the AI Act and CRA as an essential fundament for a trustworthy and secure web 4.0 with virtual world and Metaverse with the specific EU focus on safety, fundamental rights, health and data protection.

Impact on society (9th Open Call)

The AI Act has the goal to avoid or mitigate negative impact on people and society regarding Fundamental Rights, Health and Safety. All harmonized standards for the AI Act support this goal and request of the AI Act including the standard for Cybersecurity specifications for AI Systems.

Linkedin Profile

Open Call

Organisation type

Organization

neurocat GmbH

Organization website

neurocat

Portrait Picture

Proposal Title (4th Open Call)

Convenorship for AI Act Standardization Request CEN CENELEC JTC 21 WG Cybersecurity

Proposal Title (7th Open Call)

Secure Metaverse by using EU harmonized standard for Cybersecurity for Artificial Intelligence

Proposal Title (9th Open Call)

Cybersecurity for AI Systems in Standardisation under the EU AI Act for a secure digital fundament

ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 27

Role in SDO

Standards Development Organisation

StandICT.eu Year

2026

Year

2025

Topic (4th Open Call)

Accessibility of ICT products and services

Topic (7th Open Call)

Topic (9th Open Call)

Peter Baumann

Description of Activities

My fellowship tackles the gap related to the insufficient models for achieving analysis-ready geo data.

Fellow's country

Germany

Open Call Topics

Big Data & Open data

Impact on SMEs (2nd Open Call)

SMEs benefit from these standards as they give guidance for implementation and allow products to be interoperable with the tools available in the market.

Impact on SMEs (7th Open Call)

Never before has there been a faster and cheaper way to obtain information about land, water, atmosphere, as well as human impact on it. In Europe, for example, the Copernicus satellite family provides the foundation for insight into our planet, together with long climate time series and further data, such as elevation models. For such Big Earth Data, spatio-temporal datacubes are an established cornerstone in OGC, ISO, and INSPIRE standardisation modelled as "coverages".
For robust, user-friendly, interoperable services, a technically sound coverage standards suite is indispensable. The ISO/OGC suite of coverage data and service model is instrumental for easy, interoperable handling, and a who’s who of primary open-source and proprietary geo tools support these standards. For example, the legal framework for a common European spatial data infrastructure, INSPIRE, has adopted CIS as its basis.
In summary, this work is of the highest practical relevance and visibility, with significant impact on geo data infrastructures and, ultimately, increased understanding of our planet and the impact we have on it, as well as everyday day-to-day use of insight from geo data.

Impact on SMEs (9th Open Call)

SMEs typically provide niche products which are accepted by the market only if they convey strong interoperability. The 19123-2 standard accomplishes this for images, image timeseries, and further Earth data. Spatio-temporal Earth data, as standardized with 19123-2, are instrumental for manifold purposes, such as environmental monitoring, disaster management, and many more.

Impact on society (2nd Open Call)

This standards work is of highest practical relevance and visibility, with significant impact on the interoperability of geo data infrastructures and, ultimately, increased understanding of our planet and the impact we have on it.

Impact on society (7th Open Call)

Better standards allow better tools and services, allowing us to gain a better understanding and insight into our planet. In particular, analysis of time series and fusion of multiple data sources, from in-situ to orbit, are critical enablers. The 19123-2 specification defines flexible, scalable, and interoperable ways of combining various spatio-temporal data sources into a standard picture; suitable tools may even provide dynamic services answering “any query, anytime”.

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Open Call

Organisation type

Organization

ISO standard editor, rasdaman GmbH

Organization website

rasdaman GmbH

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Proposal Title (2nd Open Call)

Enhanced Interoperability of Spatio-Temporal Datacubes

Proposal Title (7th Open Call)

Enhanced Interoperability of Big Geo Data

Proposal Title (9th Open Call)

Final Adoption of Big Earth Datacube standard

ISO 19123-2

Standards Development Organisation

ISO

StandICT.eu Year

2026

Year

Digitisation of European Industry

Topic (2nd Open Call)

Big Data & Open data

Topic (7th Open Call)

Topic (9th Open Call)

Data Economy

João Manuel Leitão Quintas

Description of Activities

My fellowship aims to contribute to ongoing efforts related to standardisation and European policy, advising on topics related mainly to Robotics and Autonomous Systems and Artificial Intelligence.

Fellow's country

Portugal

Open Call Topics

Impact on SMEs (2nd Open Call)

SMEs related to robotics and/or developing artificial agents with a certain degree of autonomy can be impacted by this contribution, as the standard being developed aims to bring added value for integration and interoperability in solutions based on robotic and autonomous systems.

Impact on SMEs (4th Open Call)

Impact on SMEs (8th Open Call)

Impact on SMEs (9th Open Call)

Impact on society (2nd Open Call)

Solutions integrating robotics and autonomous systems that adhere to the standard should result in more interoperable, intelligent, sustainable, and cost-effective technologies, enabling people. to carry out tasks related to personal assistance.

Impact on society (4th Open Call)

One of the direct impacts of my activity is widening the stakeholders' network that can also learn from the standard development and share domain-specific information that is relevant to implement use cases for the standard. It may be of particular interest to the TEF-Health European Project, which is establishing a test and experimentation facilities network across the EU, and I am part of the team and IPN which is leading the Portuguese node.

Impact on society (8th Open Call)

Impact on Society The activity aims to significantly contribute to the development and revision of standards, specifically the newly accepted IEEE P1955, which addresses 6G Empowering Robotics, and IEEE P1872.3, which extends IEEE 1872.2-2021 with specific domain ontologies and new concepts related to artificial intelligence, machine learning, and human-machine interaction. Additionally, it will promote the adoption of existing standards like IEEE 1872.2-2021. This activity will actively engage in the creation and revision of new standards, including developing resources, use cases, and technical documentation that facilitate the adoption and implementation of these standards across various healthcare and technology sectors.

Impact on society (9th Open Call)

This work is supporting the societal impact related to demographic change challenges. Solutions that may adhere to the standard should result in more interoperable, intelligent, sustainable and cost-effective technologies. Additionally, by leveraging the participation of EU experts in global outreach activities and the involvement in worldwide level initiatives contributes to position EU as a top player in the advances of ICT standardization.

Linkedin Profile

Open Call

Organisation type

Organization

Coordinator of RTD unit - Laboratory of Automatics and Systems, Instituto Pedro Nunes

Organization website

Instituto Pedro Nunes

Personal website

Github

Portrait Picture

Proposal Title (2nd Open Call)

Contribution to a new standard for autonomous robotic systems IEEE1872.3

Proposal Title (4th Open Call)

Contribution to new standard for autonomous robotic systems IEEE1872.3

Proposal Title (8th Open Call)

Standardization in Robotics and AI for Healthcare

Proposal Title (9th Open Call)

Extending and reinforcing commitments in Standardization for Robotics and AI for Healthcare

IEEE Standards

Role in SDO

Standards Development Organisation

IEEE

StandICT.eu Year

2026

Year

Topic (2nd Open Call)

Topic (4th Open Call)

Topic (9th Open Call)

Pierre-François Jullien

Description of Activities

There is a growing need for information about building services systems during the planning and design of buildings. The designers in building services must execute detailed calculations and simulations to ensure saving of energy and to satisfy hygienic and comfort criteria in heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and sanitary plants.

Fellow's country

France

Open Call Topics

Impact on SMEs (2nd Open Call)

This standard will permit the development of HVAC product catalogues that are not dedicated to a single manufacturer, but may include products from both large manufacturers and SMEs. Without such a standard, each manufacturer must develop its own, proprietary, product catalogue, which represents a cost that an SME manufacturer cannot afford.

Impact on SMEs (4th Open Call)

This standard will permit the development of HVAC product catalogues that are not dedicated to a single manufacturer but may include products from both large manufacturers or SMEs. Without such a standard, each manufacturer has to develop its own, proprietary, product catalogue, which represents a cost that an SME manufacturer cannot afford.

Impact on SMEs (9th Open Call)

The European construction sector (including the process of design) is mainly made up of SMEs and suffers from a strong segmentation. Such a fragmentation has deep consequences regarding the digitization of the construction industry: unlike the aeronautics or automotive industries, there aren't a few major leaders able to impose a collaborative platform on all project participants (Airbus or Boeing do this). CDEs are a tool for implementing collaborative processes, but the absence of a standardized framework is preventing their widespread use. This project aims at developing a CDE framework that could help overcome the difficulties generated by the fragmentation of this sector.

Impact on society (2nd Open Call)

EN ISO 16757-5 will also enable calculation software suppliers to integrate all BIM catalogues complying with the standard, with a single exchange format. This will enable software users to seamlessly browse products described in different product catalogue platforms.

Linkedin Profile

Open Call

OC#2 2026

OC#4 2026

OC#9 2026

Organisation type

CEN/TC 442 - Building Information Modelling (BIM)

Organization

CEO, Atalane

Portrait Picture

Proposal Title (2nd Open Call)

Contribute to prISO 16757-5

Proposal Title (4th Open Call)

Contribute to the Formal Draft of EN ISO 16757-5

Proposal Title (9th Open Call)

Contribute to PWI Common Data Environment (CDE) solution and workflow - Application framework

Role in SDO

Standards Development Organisation

CEN

ISO

StandICT.eu Year

2026

Year

Topic (2nd Open Call)

Topic (4th Open Call)

Topic (9th Open Call)

Lauriane Aufrant

Description of Activities

Overall, I am taking a more holistic view of the AI standardisation roadmap while pursuing in parallel my contributions to specific AI standards in SC 42 and JTC 21.

Fellow's country

France

Open Call Topics

CEN/CLC/JTC 21 - Artificial Intelligence

Impact on SMEs (2nd Open Call)

While it is feared that a large number of standards associated with the AI Act could create an excessive burden for SMEs to understand and implement the new requirements, on the other hand, if there remain gaps in the standards’ coverage of the AI landscape, this will create huge challenges for SMEs whose products sit precisely in such areas (inability to comply).

Impact on SMEs (4th Open Call)

There is growing concern regarding the impact of the upcoming AI Act on the activity of SMEs in that field. While it is feared that a large number of standards associated to the AI Act could create an excessive burden for SMEs to understand and implement the new requirements, on the other hand if there remain gaps in the standards’ coverage of the AI landscape, this will create huge challenges for SMEs whose products sit precisely in such areas (inability to comply). I have started to make increased efforts to reach out to SMEs and collect their views and needs in those regards, and I am leveraging those inputs throughout my contributions in the various standards as well as in coordination.

Impact on SMEs (6th Open Call)

There is growing concern regarding the impact of the upcoming AI Act on the activity of SMEs in that field. While it is feared that a large number of standards associated to the AI Act could create an excessive burden for SMEs to understand and implement the new requirements, on the other hand if there remain gaps in the standards’ coverage of the AI landscape, this will create huge challenges for SMEs whose products sit precisely in such areas. I have started to make increased efforts to reach out to SMEs and collect their views and needs in those regards, and I am leveraging those inputs throughout my contributions in the various standards as well as in coordination.
In parallel, and beyond the considerations for the AI Act, I am also including in my work continuous considerations for interoperability aspects, which appear to be key to enable easier entry into the market for European SMEs.

Impact on SMEs (9th Open Call)

Harmonised standards are the preferred way for SMEs to comply with regulations under the New Legislative Framework (as the AI Act is) as they enable easy compliance with legal certainty and avoiding the need to resort to costly third-party legal support. The work is therefore to be developed with SMEs as one of the important targets. Furthermore, in the particular case of the AI Act, there are extra requirements in the EC standardisation request to consider the needs of SMEs/startups, and the AI Act Article about the quality management system includes special provisions for adaption of the obligations to the specificities of SMEs. In that context, I have pushed, first through comments in ballot then in the working group during comment resolution, for initiating dedicated discussions in that standard on those specificities with key stakeholders, which has proved beneficial even if still limited by the overall under-representation of SMEs in the standardisation work.

Impact on society (2nd Open Call)

My work serves as support to the preservation of consumer rights, by enabling more transparency, comparability, and clarity on the actual performance of AI systems in the market.

Impact on society (4th Open Call)

My efforts are currently focused on answering the standardisation request that CEN-CENELEC JTC21 received from the European Commission in relation to the AI Act. As the target dates grow closer, it seems that the current pool of experts is not sufficient to answer the diverse needs expressed in the request. I have thus initiated reinforced outreach efforts, as well as onboarding sessions for new experts.

Impact on society (9th Open Call)

My work serves as support to the preservation of consumer rights, by enabling more transparency, comparability, and clarity on the actual performance of AI systems in the market. Its societal impact also encompasses ethical aspects of AI such as human agency, for which appropriate use of explainability methods is a key enabler. More generally, it benefits the society at large through its interplay with the upcoming AI Act that will impact daily lives in Europe.

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Open Call

Organisation type

Organization

NLP lead scientist for Defense and security applications, Inria

Organization website

Inria

Portrait Picture

Proposal Title (2nd Open Call)

Towards accurate, transparent, and explainable systems in AI and NLP, in support of the AI Act

Proposal Title (4th Open Call)

Supporting the AI Act with standards for trustworthy systems and datasets in AI and NLP

Proposal Title (6th Open Call)

R in ISO/IEC AWI 24970 on AI logging, in JTC 21’s work item JT021024 on AI Risk Management, JT021029 cybersecurity of AI systems, or JT021039 quality management system for regulatory purposes.

Proposal Title (9th Open Call)

Fast delivery of initial contents for a range of standards across the AI Act standardisation request

Role in SDO

moderator

Standards Development Organisation

StandICT.eu Year

2026

Year

Topic (2nd Open Call)

Topic (6th Open Call)

Topic (9th Open Call)

Gero Gschwendtner

Description of Activities

There is a strong emphasis on safety, accessibility, energy & environment and highly relevant for the future ISO/TC 178 activities are also focusing now to a strong extent on ICT.

Fellow's country

Austria

Open Call Topics

Impact on SMEs (3rd Open Call)

ISO/TC 178 has a liaison to:
- ELA European Lift Association
- SBS - Small Business Standards with EFESME (European Federation for Elevator Small and Medium-sized Enterprises aisbl) as an expert member for lifts.
Both associations are highly interested in this topic and with this liaison they participate actively at the ISO/TC 178 meetings as well as at the relevant WG meetings.
Chairing the meeting and giving them also relevant time in the meetings to talk and bring up their issues is essential for them; this is under my responsibility and highly considered within my leadership.

Impact on SMEs (4th Open Call)

Impact on SMEs (7th Open Call)

ISO/TC 178 maintains liaisons with:
The European Lift Association (ELA)
Small Business Standards (SBS), with EFESME (European Federation for Elevator Small and Medium-sized Enterprises aisbl) participating as an expert member for lifts.
Both organisations are deeply engaged in this field and actively contribute to ISO/TC 178 and its relevant working group (WG) meetings through these liaisons.

Impact on SMEs (9th Open Call)

ISO/TC 178 actively engages with European SMEs through formal liaisons with the European Lift Association (ELA) and SBS–Small Business Standards, where EFESME represents SME interests. Both organizations participate directly in ISO/TC 178 and working group meetings, especially on ICT-related topics.
As Chair, I ensure their input is given sufficient time and weight, allowing SMEs to raise concerns and contribute to shaping standards — even when this means balancing strong positions from larger companies. This inclusive governance ensures that standards reflect the realities of both major manufacturers and smaller industry players.

Impact on society (3rd Open Call)

Lifts, escalators and moving walks are essential elements for the transportation of society.
With this work safe access and accessibility for all is provided. Furthermore, this work encompasses energy efficiency and adherence to the United Nations’ sustainability goals namely 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, and 13 which are integral components of the standards.

Impact on society (4th Open Call)

Lifts, escalators and moving walks are essential elements for the transportation of society. With this work safe access and accessibility for all is provided. Furthermore, this work encompasses energy efficiency and adherence to the United Nations' sustainability goals namely 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, and 13 which are integral components of the standards.

Impact on society (7th Open Call)

Until 2022, the lift and escalator industry lacked dedicated ICT standards—aside from those addressing cybersecurity. Initially, the approach within ISO and CEN was to integrate all relevant topics directly into the core product standards, often referred to as the "product bible": ISO 8100-1/2 and ISO 8103-1. Notably, ISO 8103-1 was published at the end of 2024 as a new global escalator standard, mirroring the European EN 115-1 requirements. This marked a major milestone for the industry, as it was the first time that European safety standards for escalators and moving walks would be applied globally.

As the field evolved and specific topics became increasingly complex, supplementary standards were introduced to support and expand upon the core documents.

It soon became apparent that ICT, due to its rapid advancement, remained insufficiently covered. In response, a strategic initiative was launched to assess the situation, define a roadmap for the future, and close this gap. Developing new standards and technical specifications in this area is now a top priority (further details in the following chapters).

At the same time, the core product standards must continue to be maintained, with general ICT aspects gradually integrated into them.
Another major challenge faced by ISO/TC 178 and the global lift and escalator sector is the current dynamic in China. The country is rapidly developing its local standards, with significantly shorter release timelines and fewer stakeholders involved compared to the ISO and CEN processes. This highlights the critical need for SAC to remain actively engaged in ISO and to adopt ISO standards as national standards. To address this, additional partnerships have been formed, and regular exchange meetings are held to ensure the highest possible level of influence and alignment.

Impact on society (9th Open Call)

Lifts, escalators, and moving walks are vital for ensuring safe and efficient access to buildings. Globally, there are over 18 million lifts and escalators in operation, with nearly half located in Europe. Each year, more than 1 million new units are installed. Approximately 325 million passengers use lifts daily, while escalators and moving walks support over 10 billion rides every day.
In the coming decades, the population aged 65 and above is projected to grow by nearly 33%, with those over 80 doubling in number. As the global population ages, accessibility becomes increasingly critical. Multi-floor buildings will require vertical transportation systems, including lifts, escalators, stair lifts, and platform lifts, to accommodate the growing demand for accessible infrastructure.
As essential components of building functionality, lifts, escalators, and moving walks are classified as modes of transport. They ensure safe access for all and are designed for free and independent use by passengers. This underscores the importance of robust safety measures to protect users.
By establishing harmonized safety and performance standards, these efforts support the development of resilient, accessible, and low-impact urban environments that are better prepared for demographic and environmental change.

Linkedin Profile

Open Call

Organisation type

Organization

Prof. Mechanical Engineering (HTL St. Pölten) and Independent Consultant, Gschwendt

Organization website

HTL St. Pölten

Portrait Picture

Proposal Title (3rd Open Call)

Lifts and Escalators in Smart Cities

Proposal Title (4th Open Call)

Lifts and Escalators in Smart Cities

Proposal Title (7th Open Call)

Lifts and Escalators in Smart Cities

Proposal Title (9th Open Call)

Lifts and Escalators in Smart Cities

Role in SDO

chair

Standards Development Organisation

ISO

CEN

StandICT.eu Year

2026

Year

Topic (3rd Open Call)

Topic (4th Open Call)

Topic (7th Open Call)

Topic (9th Open Call)

Alojz Hudobivnik

Description of Activities

Standardisation work continues with the integration of new technologies, new insights, and new requirements of different verticals. It is very important that EU science, industry, and also users are well represented and engaged in this process.

Fellow's country

Slovenia

Open Call Topics

5G and Beyond (6G)

Impact on SMEs (9th Open Call)

Well-defined and globally standardized 5G ecosystem is important for operators and all suppliers of SW and HW components which gradually develops. Additionally, the EU Rolling Plan for ICT (2025) clearly defines the importance of 5G infrastructure for verticals and defines needed standardization actions.

Impact on society (9th Open Call)

The European Commission's Multi-Stakeholder Platform (MSP) on ICT standardisation has suggested that supportive measures be taken to enhance the involvement of EU-based experts in international standardization efforts, especially in new and innovative fields. Additionally, the platform recommends that standards organizations make information regarding ongoing and new development projects and work items readily accessible to the public. For standardisation activities pertaining to regulatory and policy matters, sufficient background information and assumptions should be provided. To ensure the seamless flow of information, personal presence during daily operations of Standard Development Organizations (SDOs) is crucial. In my capacity, I was able to meet these expectations when working within the ITU-T SG13's work area.

Linkedin Profile

Open Call

OC#3 2026

OC#9 2026

Organisation type

Organization

AH.TS Alojz Hudobivnik s.p.

Portrait Picture

Proposal Title (3rd Open Call)

ITU-T SG13 2024

Proposal Title (9th Open Call)

HA-ITU-T SG13 October-2025

Standards Development Organisation

ITU

StandICT.eu Year

2026

Year

Topic (3rd Open Call)

5G and Beyond (6G)

Topic (9th Open Call)

5G and Beyond (6G)

Elzbieta Andrukiewicz

Description of Activities

"Once the revision is done, we will disseminate it across the different stakeholders, and it will allow the community to learn the newest editions of widely recognised international standards that support the cybersecurity certification and technical aspects of the process of revision"

Fellow's country

Poland

Open Call Topics

Impact on SMEs (4th Open Call)

A unified approach to developing cybersecurity certification schemes and the possibility of reusing evaluation results produced under different certification schemes would be a dominant factor in decreasing the costs and workload needed for the certification of composite products or services. This could, at least partly, remove financial barriers for SMSs to enter the certification market.

Impact on society (4th Open Call)

The societal impact measured by increasing confidence in the certification as a powerful cybersecurity tool would be real.

Impact on society (6th Open Call)

The resulting study in the form of PWI 25543 is aimed at keeping the reference standards as the-state-of_the_art documents which cope with emerging and future technologies in cybersecurity certification.
The goal set up in the plan is strongly supported by sound standards with appropriate scope of application. In this way the assessments can be repeatable and comparable thus create the basis for wide recognition of results which usually appear as certificates respected by all EU Member States.

Impact on society (9th Open Call)

Gaining the customer confidence they are using secure and safe ICT products is the objective of security assessment. Considering technical complexity of cybersecurity evaluation these processes should rely on robust and mature standards. The customers and risk owners do not need to know all details of such evaluation, but they should have solid ground of trust in the results of evaluations usually expressed by the certificates.
Common Criteria provide highly sophisticated tools for gaining confidence in correct and sufficient implementations of security controls under the principles of the “cybersecurity-by-design-and-default” in the ICT products and the ground of their resilience in case of cyberattacks which could happen in the future.

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Organisation type

National Institute of Telecommunications

Organization

Project Leader, National Institute of Telecommunications

Organization website

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Proposal Title (3rd Open Call)

Revision of ISO/IEC 15408-1:2022

Proposal Title (4th Open Call)

Upgrading prEN 18037 to final stage

Proposal Title (6th Open Call)

revision of ISO/IEC 15408:2022 (all parts) and ISO/IEC 18045:2022

Proposal Title (9th Open Call)

Improving presentation and quality of Terminology for EN-ISO/IEC 15408 series and EN-ISO/IEC 18045

CEN/CLC/JTC 13 - Cybersecurity and Data Protection

Standards Development Organisation

StandICT.eu Year

2026

Year

Topic (3rd Open Call)

Topic (4th Open Call)

Topic (6th Open Call)

Topic (9th Open Call)

Enrico Panai

Description of Activities

With AI’s evolution, a growing need for AI ethicists to address ethical, social, and psychological queries is evident. One gap, however, lies in the absence of standardised competencies for these professionals, causing hesitation among organisations to embrace AI ethics.

Country

France

Fellow's country

France

Open Call Topics

Impact on SMEs (1st Open Call)

Establish requirements and ethical guidelines for AI nudging, particularly for vulnerable groups providing requirements, definitions and methodologies that safeguard individual free will, benefiting organisations, and consumers.

Impact on SMEs (2nd Open Call)

The work on ethics helps SME to apply guidelines or choose qualified professionals in the AI ethics field.

Impact on SMEs (4th Open Call)

The ethical standards initiatives are particularly important for SMEs, as they provide the necessary guidance to address the residual uncertainties surrounding AI implementation.

Impact on SMEs (6th Open Call)

The ethical standards initiatives are particularly important for SMEs, as they provide the necessary guidance to address the residual uncertainties surrounding AI implementation. By helping SMEs employ competent ethicists, choose the right tools, and upskill the ethical awareness of developers, these efforts ensure that smaller enterprises can foster responsible innovation.

Impact on SMEs (9th Open Call)

The AI Trustworthiness Framework plays a key role in enabling the effective implementation of the EU AI Act, setting essential standards that help organisations meet legal obligations. Ethical standards are particularly important for SMEs, providing clear guidance to navigate uncertainties in AI adoption. They foster responsible innovation by enabling SMEs to engage qualified ethicists, choose suitable tools, and strengthen ethical awareness. Also, sustainable AI initiatives equip organisations for forthcoming EU environmental requirements, advancing the development of energy-efficient, environmentally responsible AI systems to ensure future regulatory compliance.

Impact on society (1st Open Call)

Using distributed morality mechanisms on multi-agent systems, we aim to mitigate risks and assist the industry in fostering an ethical ecosystem, thereby facilitating the implementation of EU regulatory requirements.

Impact on society (2nd Open Call)

Establishing a uniform language, processes, and ethical methods to regulate their application is paramount to avert unintentional harm and protect vulnerable demographics.

Impact on society (4th Open Call)

The ongoing work on sustainable AI is preparing organizations for compliance with forthcoming EU regulations on environmental sustainability.
CEN CENELEC JTC21 AI WG4 Foundational and societal aspects
ISO/IEC JTC1 SC 42 AI WG3 Trustworthiness
AFNOR ethics committee on AI

Impact on society (6th Open Call)

The development of the AI Trustworthiness Framework is highly significant as it directly supports the implementation of the EU AI Act. This framework establishes essential standards that will enable organisations to meet the legal requirements of the Act. Furthermore, the ongoing work on sustainable AI is preparing organizations for compliance with forthcoming EU regulations on environmental sustainability. These initiatives focus on creating AI systems that are energy-efficient and environmentally responsible, ensuring that businesses are not only able to meet the new regulatory standards.

Impact on society (9th Open Call)

The different targeted standards have a different societal impact:
AI Trustworthiness Framework (prEN 18229): (Part 1 and Part 2) Establishes terminology, concepts, and requirements for AI trustworthiness, addressing five of the ten SRs. Facilitates AI Act compliance and meets varied stakeholder needs.
Environmentally Sustainable AI (JT021010): Cuts AI energy consumption—particularly in neural networks—through more efficient algorithms and pre-trained models, in line with EU climate neutrality targets.
Transparency Taxonomy of AI Systems (JT021022): Creates a structured framework to enhance transparency, accountability, and comparability across AI systems.
Upskilling on AI Ethics (JT021033) & Ethical Management Guidelines (JT021034): Provide tools and guidance to embed ethical and social considerations throughout the AI lifecycle.
Sustainable AI – Guidelines and Metrics (JT021035): Defines KPIs to assess and minimise AI’s environmental impact, promoting sustainable practices.
Impact Assessment and Fundamental Rights (JT021026): Identifies and mitigates risks to fundamental rights, ensuring AI systems align with EU values.
Risk Management in Critical Digital Infrastructure (pending): Delivers tailored methodologies, use cases, and hazard taxonomies to manage AI risks in critical systems, complementing prEN AI Risk Management.
AI-Enhanced Nudging (JT021003): Addresses ethical risks of AI-driven nudges, safeguarding vulnerable groups and preserving public trust.
Competence Requirements for AI Ethicists (JT021019): Defines core skills and knowledge for AI ethicists to ensure effective ethical integration in AI systems.

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