SOCIAL IMPACT & ETHICS

Scaling up Smart Technologies for Healthcare: Navigating the TRL Evolution from Functional Materials to 3D Models.
The integration of cutting-edge biotechnology and advanced materials is driving an unprecedented evolution in modern healthcare strategies, pushing innovations from early-stage laboratory research toward market-ready industrial and clinical solutions. Current technological challenges require not only the development of novel materials but also a systemic vision that enables scalability and integration into complex devices for diagnostics, targeted therapies, and advanced disease modeling. Smart technologies, including functional materials, engineered interfaces, responsive systems, and additive manufacturing, represent the core of this transformation. Through the use of micro- and nanotechnologies, it is now possible to design precise interactions with biological environments, overcoming the bottlenecks that often hinder technology transfer. This symposium will explore the evolutionary path of enabling technologies for health, analyzing how materials science and engineering are adapting to meet the reliability and standardization requirements necessary for industry. Particular attention will be devoted to the integration of these technologies with advanced 3D human models, such as in vitro systems, engineered tissues, and organ-on-chip platforms. As these tools evolve from laboratory prototypes to validated platforms, they are becoming essential assets for drug screening and precision medicine. Crucially, this evolution is driving a shift towards more ethical research frameworks, providing robust alternatives to animal testing and accelerating the clinical translation of research advances.
By bringing together researchers, engineers, and industry professionals, this symposium aims to provide a multidisciplinary overview of the technological challenges involved in bridging the gap between proof-of-concept and real-world implementation