On 21 May 2026, the European Commission hosted a high-level roundtable in Brussels to discuss the second position paper developed under the Virtual Worlds Partnership, titled “XR Chips & Components Pilot Line”.
Organised under the umbrella of the Virtual Worlds Partnership, the event brought together stakeholders from European industry, academia, and research and technological organisations (RTOs) to examine key priorities in the development of semiconductors and hardware components for virtual worlds.
The Virtual Worlds Partnership, aims at advancing Europe’s leadership in immersive and eXtended Reality and virtual worlds technologies. It is a public-private partnership between the European Commission and the Virtual Worlds Association under Horizon Europe that connects industry, academia, and research organizations to fund innovation, develop skills, and create common standards. The initiative aims to make virtual worlds open, trustworthy, interoperable, and beneficial for all sectors, for example from manufacturing to education, healthcare or public services
Virtual worlds are immersive, interactive environments underpinned by 3D and extended reality (XR) technologies, characterised by varying degrees of persistence. They enable seamless human-machine interaction and the real-time integration of physical and digital environments across a diverse range of applications and devices, including head mounted displays, tablets, smartphones and smart glasses.
The position paper on “XR Chips & Components Pilot-libe” by the Virtual Worlds Association outlines the required foundational concepts and technological advances in hardware components driving virtual worlds. It emphasises their potential to revolutionise key industries such as manufacturing and automation, entertainment, education, healthcare, commerce or defence.
During the roundtable, participants exchanged views and experiences and engaged in strategic discussions on topics such as the integration of advanced hardware components, intereroperability and the acceleration of European-made semiconductors.
There was broad consensus that Europe stands at a historic technological inflection point, with XR devices expected to become ubiquitous across professional and consumer markets, for example through smart glasses. With existing technological expertise and a skilled talent pool, Europe is well-positioned to lead, provided it strengthens strategic autonomy in XR chips and components. However, the accelerating global investments in XR hardware, requires decisive actions to address existing technological gaps and supply chain vulnerabilities.
Participants also stressed that the window for intervention is narrowing and that Europe must act swiftly and cohesively. There is a need of deepened collaboration between XR hardware developers and manufacturers, research institutions and standardisation bodies, and the European Commission and Member States.
Through strategic collaboration, Europe can position itself as a global leader in virtual worlds, ensuring that citizens and businesses across the EU can fully benefit from their strategic, social and economic potential of virtual worlds.
Read more about the EU's Web 4.0 and Virtual Worlds Strategy.