Universities already have a great influence on society, and their role should not be underestimated. Nor should they be seen as standing outside society: everyone who teaches, researches, studies or works in administration is part of it. Academic research should focus on the challenges people face across the world, and European universities in particular should foreground the fact that Europe is part of a globalised world. Technology such as AI is a good example: it is often presented as a universal solution, yet technologies are always adopted differently in different contexts, and AI will likely affect societies in parts of Asia and Africa very differently than in Europe. Research problems must be approached from a global perspective — with 'we’ meaning a global academic community, not only researchers based in Europe.