‘In Switzerland, people prefer to put their money in the bank’: Julia Biwer on risk culture, virtual start-ups and Basel’s unspoken dependence on its location

Headlines about PFAS are becoming increasingly frequent: this group of substances, which went unnoticed for a long time, is everywhere – even in food and in the bodies of humans and animals – and it is not simply going to disappear. Whilst environmental and consumer protection campaigners are pushing for a swift end to exposure, industry is searching for alternatives for key technologies. However, the path to a PFAS-free future is a generational project that will challenge business, research and society for decades to come. In an interview with SATW, Manfred Heuberger (Empa), Martin Scheringer (ETH Zurich) and Dominique Werner (Scienceindustries) explain what the biggest challenges are when dealing with PFAS.

In our day-to-day lives, we often rely on technology without giving it much thought. Standards establish common rules for this. When it comes to artificial intelligence, these rules are particularly important because they help determine safety, trust and market access.