190^th Bergedorf Round Table

Hacking the System? Middle Powers and the Geopolitics of Technology

07 July 2026 in Berlin

Technological leadership is increasingly a determinant of geopolitical influence. Advances in areas such as artificial intelligence are shaping economic competitiveness, security dynamics and international cooperation.

Although competition between the United States and China dominates the global technology landscape, middle powers are key actors, retaining leverage through their roles in critical supply chains, technological and industrial chokepoints and global innovation networks. For Europe, strengthening innovation ecosystems, aligning industrial policy with strategic priorities, and shaping regulatory frameworks will be essential to sustaining economic resilience, sovereignty and political agency.

As technological change extends into security domains, including hybrid conflict and space, middle powers will need to adapt strategically to maintain influence.

At the 190^th Bergedorf Round Table in Berlin, participants discussed the role of middle powers in a global (technology) order increasingly shaped by great power competition, how they sustain competitiveness despite structural and resource constraints, forms of international coordination in the field of emerging technologies and the tension between technological openness and security.