From 23 to 27 May, a delegation from the EP’s Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO) Committee will visit the headquarters of several companies (Meta, Google, Apple and others) in Silicon Valley in the United States.

MEP Alex Agius Saliba was nominated by his political group, the Socialists and Democrats, as one of eight MEPs from the European Parliament to form part of this Delegation.

The trip will be coordinated by Parliament’s Internal Market Committee and its purpose is to look into the latest digital market developments in the United States and the EU, particularly opportunities and challenges in relation to the development and further use of e-commerce, Artificial lntelligence, consumer protection, online platforms and the sharing economy.

As part of the delegation, MEP Alex Agius Saliba will have the opportunity to experience first-hand and discuss with the U.S. tech giants, such as Google, META and Apple the digital economy, which is very dependent on US tech companies driving the agenda worldwide.

"The IMCO delegation to the Silicon Valley comes at a time of greater U.S. interest in anti-trust enforcement and more pressure over digital regulation. We have recently agreed on the new digital rules aimed at taking back digital control in Europe, preserving democracy, and asserting clear and transparent rules to maximize the benefits and mitigate the damage that is becoming increasingly apparent,” said MEP Alex Agius Saliba.

The delegation will visit the headquarters of Meta (Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp), and Google, as well as visits and meetings with Airbnb, eBay, PayPal, HP, Cloudflare, and Electronic Frontier Foundation.

“We will have a marathon of meetings running in the Silicon Valley, but it will be important for us to understand what makes that place so special. Having the possibility of a direct exchange also with local authorities, companies (big and small) and academic institutions could be of great value for the current discussions in the EU and will provide an excellent opportunity to learn more about current issues related to the ongoing digital single market files.” explained the MEP.

MEP Alex Agius Saliba also said that it would be even more important to discuss in person the Digital Markets Act and the Digital Services Act package, and other digital legislation in the pipeline, and hear the position of American companies, start-ups, and academia and government officials.