NEWS
On May 16, 2025, the Portuguese National Standardization Body – IPQ (Instituto Português da Qualidade) – officially launched NormIA, an AI-powered virtual assistant designed to support citizens and businesses in understanding and applying standards.
Norway is in the midst of a sweeping transformation in how it produces, distributes, and consumes energy. At the heart of this change is a national movement toward a fully electrified society—one where electricity is no longer limited to homes and some industrial applications but is becoming the foundation for transport, aquaculture, and other critical sectors. This evolution is not only central to meeting climate goals but also to fostering energy security, economic resilience, and technological leadership.
The High-Level Forum on European Standardization (HLF) pledged to enhance education and skills in standardization at its second meeting in November 2023. As part of this pledge, HLF participants agreed on a joint initiative to highlight national standardization representatives who are active at the international level.
The implementation of the AI Act depends on a strong foundation of European standards and best practices – developed collaboratively by industry, public authorities, consumer representatives, researchers, and other stakeholders.
In Austria, 4,860 experts from 2,880 nominating organizations are currently involved in standardization on a voluntary and unpaid basis. With 1,042 delegates at European level, Austria has a strong impact on the global standardization network and is actively involved in shaping standards. The new brand strategy of Austrian Standards reflects this attitude and self-image of the organization. The sharpened brand identity combines expertise, reliability and innovative strength.
The High-Level Forum on European Standardization (HLF) was set up by the European Commission in January 2023 to advise on strategic political matters in this field based on the EU Strategy on Standardization. The HLF aims to identify standardization priorities in support of EU policies and legislation and discuss horizontal issues, such as international leadership and education and skills, in a multi-stakeholder setting. Within the HLF, horizontal and topical workstreams have been launched to further the work in diverse areas.
On Tuesday, March 4, a meeting of the technical committee SIST/TC UMI, dedicated to Artificial Intelligence, was held at the Slovenian Institute for Standardization. Aleksander Velkavrh, a young Standardization Ambassador and a student at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, as well as Bojana Bogičević, a participant of the Autumn School of Standardization and also a student at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, joined the meeting. Both had the opportunity to learn about the process of reviewing and adopting standards at the national level.
Austrian Standards has partnered with the Serbian organization ‘Centar za digitalnu transformaciju’ (CDT), which translates as ‘Centre for Digital Transformation’. CDT is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia. The aim of the co-operation is to strengthen personal certification in the Balkan region through high-quality programmes and practical training.
As beverage containers and their caps regularly head the top 10 list of single-use plastic items found on beaches, the European Union has issued Directive 2019/904/EU on the reduction of the impact of certain plastic products on the environment.
In a bold move to support the burgeoning startup ecosystem, the Portuguese Standardization Body – Instituto Português da Qualidade (IPQ) – presents the standard NP 4595 ‘Approach to Quality Management and Innovation in Startups – Requirements and Guidelines’. This pioneering standard is the first of its kind, not only at a national level but also on the international stage, designed specifically to help startups stand out in an increasingly competitive market.