ABOUT

Khalil Rouhana is the director for "Digital Industry" in DG CONNECT (Communications Networks, Content & Technology). The mission of the Directorate is to strengthen the competiveness and to ensure that any industry in any sector in Europe can make the best use of digital innovations to compete on a global scale, grow and create jobs. The directorate is responsible for the coordination of the European digitisation of industry strategy. It supports R&D&I in key digital industrial technologies including micro and nano-electronics, microsystems, photonics, robotics and AI, embedded software and cyber-physical systems as well as digital technologies for manufacturing spanning from simulation and design to process optimisation and Product life cycle management. It is responsible for the Public Private Partnerships in these fields including the Joint Technology Initiative ECSEL. 

The directorate also follows the legal issues regarding digitisation of industry such as liability and safety of autonomous systems as well as related societal implications notably on, transformation of work in industry. It also follows all the framework conditions for the development of digital and digitised industries including access to finance and SMEs growth. 

In his previous experiences in the Commission, he was the Director for "Digital content & Cognitive systems", the Head of Unit in charge of ICT research and Innovation strategy, and started as a project officer in the ESPRIT programme in the areas of High Performance Computing and Future and Emerging technologies. 

Before joining the Commission in 1992, he was for 5 years the director of an institute and school of engineering (Grande Ecole) in France.  He started his career as research and development engineer for the aeronautics industry, worked for the French University in Beirut and created also his own engineering company. He has a master degree in electrical and electronic engineering from "Ecole Supérieure d'Electricité" (Supelec, France).