Areas of research and innovation in sectors fundamental to scientific research, economy and wellfare of society (such as health and the environment) are increasingly dependent on one hand on the availability of Big Data and Data Analytics and on the other hand on methodologies and technologies that can exploit, in a sort of "Computing Continuum", computing resources ranging from supercomputing infrastructures, data centers, cloud / fog, up to edge computing and many-on-chip systems core, intelligent micro-sensors, the Internet of things and remote sensing systems.

To seize these opportunities, in addition to the fundamental aspects of managing Big Data and Data Science, it is necessary to face the challenges posed by the data volume, its variety and heterogeneity, the frequency with which the data must be processed, the need to work with quality data, data security as well as the need for new enabling electronic technologies for data management and intelligent sensors for sensing the world.

In this context, the research challenges concern single photon photodetectors (SPADs) with on-chip processing, intelligent low-consumption sensors for LIDAR / 3D applications, innovative high-stability inertial sensors (accelerometers and gyroscopes), systems of nuclear particle detection and identification for fundamental and applied physics, X-ray and gamma-ray sensors with on-chip signal processing and Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) sensors.