Data Spaces Symposium 2026: the core of European Data Spaces
BDVA has been strongly involved in the organisation of the 4th edition of the Data Spaces Symposium, taking place in Madrid, from 10-11 February, under the theme “Accelerating adoption. Increasing impact”.
The fourth edition of the Data Spaces Symposium (DSS) took place from 10-11 February 2026 in Madrid, Spain, under the theme “Accelerating adoption. Increasing impact” and attracted pioneering thinkers, innovators and organisations shaping a connected, data-driven future! The DSS was organised by the Data Spaces Support Centre together with BDVA, GAIA-X and IDSA under the tutelage of the Gaia-X Hub Spain.
This year’s event attracted more than 1000 registered participants and over two dynamic days, it delved into current priorities and emerging trends and directions for the data space community. The programme featured three parallel tracks, bringing up the voice of users, providers and innovators of the data space ecosystem to approach key themes under different lenses.
Key themes in 2026’s DSS included:
- Data Spaces as enablers of AI (data4AI): providing trustworthy data for future AI;
- Data Spaces as value creators and enablers of uniting economies and business opportunities;
- The interplay between data spaces, AI Factories and Data Labs;
- Relevance of standards and interoperability: advancing international harmonisation of data space technologies;
- Showcases of best practices and real-world impact: highlighting successful adoptions and market-ready solutions;
- The first European Data Spaces Awards ceremony;
BDVA has been strongly involved in the organisation of the event, considering that many of the themes and programme sessions are central to BDVA’s mission. BDVA has been facilitating the realisation of several sessions of the programme, including:
- Data Spaces as Key Enablers for AI
- How Data Spaces Help to Unlock Cultural, Media and Linguistic Resources
- Business models & financial viability in data spaces
- From insight to impact: incentives driving SME participation in data spaces
- Data labs and AI Factories
The BDVA community was also fully engaged, contributing to multiple sessions across the programme. In addition, several discussions with members and the overall community took place at BDVA’s booth — where conversations came with a snapshot moment, thanks to our fun Polaroid photo activities capturing smiles on the spot!!!
Launch of BDVA’s Data Labs Initiative
The event served as the perfect occasion so that BDVA could launch its Data Labs Initiative. BDVA, through its role as a member of the EuroHPC Joint Undertaking and its active engagement across Data Spaces, AI and data technologies, governance, trust and sectoral applications, operates at the intersection of AI Factories, data ecosystems and AI technologies. This positioning makes BDVA uniquely suited to coordinate and guide Data Labs-related activities in a coherent and cross-cutting manner. The BDVA Data Labs initiative – launched during the DSS 2026 – will deliver concrete outcomes, including ecosystem and services mapping, gap analysis and strategic recommendations, reference frameworks, guidance documents and policy inputs.
Opportunities to meet and engage with the DSSC community
DSS 2026, offered a great opportunity for the DSSC community to meet and engage! BDVA, as a DSSC consortium partner and lead in DSSC’s Network of Stakeholders, facilitated interactions with members of the DSSC Community of Practice (the CoP is comprised of representatives of the Common EU Data Spaces) and the DSSC Strategic Stakeholder Forum (the SSF is comprised of representatives of organisations with important expertise and experiences in data spaces). Several DSSC CoP and SSF members also took the stage throughout the event, enriching discussions with their expertise. Informal networking opportunities – including a dinner with SSF members on the evening of February 9th 2026 and group gatherings (including photo time!) in front of the DSSC booth and in meetings – further strengthened communication and reinforced the shared vision driving collaboration across the community!
The European Data Space Awards Ceremony
On the evening of 10 February, the winners of the first edition of the European Data Spaces Awards were announced, marking a significant milestone in recognising excellence and innovation across Europe’s rapidly evolving data spaces landscape. The ceremony took place at the Círculo de Bellas Artes in Madrid, in the context of the Data Spaces Symposium 2026. The event represented the first edition of these prizes, rewarding data spaces excellence and brought together leading industry stakeholders, SMEs, research organisations and policymakers.
The entire community had the chance to spotlight the achievements of six outstanding finalists and altogether to celebrate the winners of the two award categories: DjustConnect for Category 1: “Excellence in end-user engagement and financial sustainability” and sphin-X for Category 2: “Most innovative emerging data space”.
The ceremony highlighted the tangible progress made across Europe’s data space landscape and underscored the growing maturity and impact of the ecosystem. It celebrated excellence and innovation in European data spaces, underlining the power of collaboration and the transformative potential of data-driven ecosystems. The awards represent an important step in promoting best practice and fostering a strong, interconnected European data landscape.
The European Data Spaces Awards were organised by the Data Spaces Support Centre, with the support of the European Commission, to spotlight best-in-class initiatives and advance excellence in data sharing across Europe.