Fifteen years putting the person at the centre with the RDI TIC Salut i Social Conference

The RDI TIC Salut i Social Conference celebrated its fifteenth edition in May, after fifteen years. Since the first event in Girona in 2010, more than 4,500 professionals from the healthcare, social, academic, and technological fields have participated in this forum for dialogue, contributing to the promotion of innovation and knowledge transfer in Catalonia.

Fifteen years of evolution and growth

The fifteenth edition, held in the auditorium of the Vic Convalescent Home, brought together eight assistive robotics solutions developed in Catalonia. It showcased technological applications used by professionals and users of health and social services.

The idea for this annual event originated in Girona in 2010 with the aim of connecting researchers, healthcare professionals, technology companies, and public officials. This initiative was described as “unprecedented” by some media outlets, as there was no space where research professionals, healthcare professionals from the technology sector, and business leaders could build real bridges between the systemic need for services and the market supply.

The first phase, held between 2010 and 2014 at the University of Girona’s Science and Technology Park, saw the development of this professional network with the goal of connecting the entire Catalan ecosystem and projecting it towards Europe. In this regard, the Pyrenees-Mediterranean Euroregion and Mobile World Capital Barcelona joined this internationalization effort. This vision culminated in the fifth edition (2014), with Jean-Pierre Blum—at that time an advisor to the Parliamentary Studies Group on Health and Digital Technology of the French National Assembly and a doctor of Medicine and Cellular Pharmacology—as an international speaker, and a delegation from Business Sweden that validated the idea of ​​going beyond the corporate world.

In his 2014 presentation, Jean-Pierre Blum already highlighted what has become one of the fundamental ideas of innovation in recent years: putting people at the center. He stated that “health is not the same as medicine; it is much more. I am optimistic and certain that we can change the situation if we set our minds to it, provided we focus on people.”

In 2016, a new phase began with the relocation and the addition of a new partner. The University of Vic – Central University of Catalonia, with Vic and Osona as the new venue, incorporated the social dimension. Digital technologies were no longer analyzed solely from a health perspective, but rather at their intersection with dependency, mental health, social services, and community well-being. The instrument for facilitating this debate was the TIC Salut i Social Chair, created jointly by the University and the Foundation.

The technology that has marked different editions

From that moment until the 2026 edition, the debate has focused on different technologies that have consolidated Blum’s idea:

• 2017: Sensors and smart homes for risk prediction.
  2018: Digital therapies, humanism, and technology.
  2019: Clinical applications, neurological rehabilitation, and training through virtual and augmented reality.
  2021: Artificial intelligence became the central focus and remains so to this day.
  2025: The digital well-being of professionals and the challenges of their practice.
  2026: Assistive robotics concluded the cycle of fifteen editions.

Fifteen years after its first edition, the RDI TIC Salut i Social Conference has adapted its format to the context of each moment, demonstrating its capacity and commitment to maintaining spaces for dialogue. The intuition of a digital future in 2010 has become a reality that is being built collaboratively 16 years later across the different areas of work within our ecosystem. This conference is constantly being reformulated to continue answering the same question: how can we help improve people’s lives through technological innovation?