MARCUS REMMERS
Chief Technology Officer at Royal DSM

Just ask Kodak, Blockbuster and Nokia: digital technology is reshaping commercial landscapes beyond recognition and can disrupt even the most established of industries. And where B2C goes, B2B usually follows. Technological advances in markets such as biotechnology (including CRISPR, DNA synthesis, and robotics), nutrition (take genomics, personalized nutrition and wearable sensors for example), and materials (think of computational modelling, lab automation, and 3D printing) are already driving companies to develop stronger innovation strategies and step up their digital efforts, as well as capitalizing on sustainability opportunities.

The chemicals industry, by contrast, has more difficulties in seizing the opportunities of digitization at scale. Nevertheless, the need for disruptive innovations from the chemical industry has never been greater. With climate change, resource depletion, and other key issues profoundly changing the world around us, the need for chemicals businesses to reinvent themselves, drive circularity, and reduce emissions is now imperative. In fact, the industry as a whole is at a critical ...