Horizon Ceuta 2026 brings together more than 50 executives and confirms the transformation of the autonomous city, with online gambling, artificial intelligence, and data centers as major engines for the future.
Ceuta has once again placed itself on the national map of innovation with the celebration of Horizon Ceuta 2026, a meeting that gathered more than 50 executives from companies across different sectors of the Spanish market to learn firsthand about the economic, technological, and business potential of the autonomous city.
The event, promoted by Computing and the Ceuta Chamber of Commerce, served as a showcase for a transformation that is no longer just a promise, but a reality: Ceuta is building a solid, competitive digital ecosystem with an international vocation, supported by an especially active public-private collaboration and a highly attractive tax framework for companies.
One of the great differentiating elements of this evolution has been online gambling, a sector that has acted as the spearhead of the new Ceutian economy. After years marked by the impact of the temporary border closure during the pandemic and the elimination of the commercial customs office with Morocco, the city has successfully reinvented itself and moved toward high-value-added activities, such as online gambling, artificial intelligence, and critical technological infrastructures.
During the forum, Nicola Cecchi, Regional Minister of Tourism, Commerce, Employment, and Sports of Ceuta, highlighted the "moment of transformation" that the city is experiencing, with strategic projects such as the new Templus data center in the Port, whose inauguration is scheduled for September, and the Chair of Artificial Intelligence and Emerging Technologies for Wellbeing, developed alongside the University of Granada.
Cecchi also underscored the privileged geographical position of Ceuta and the political will to support talent and attract projects capable of generating quality employment. This vision reinforces the city's role as a technological bridge between Europe and Africa, offering European legal certainty and a strategic location that is difficult to replicate.
The Regional Minister of Finance, Economic Transformation, and Digital Transition, Kissy Chandiramani, recalled that the collapse of cross-border trade forced Ceuta to respond with speed and ambition. That situation turned into an opportunity to create a digital ecosystem that already directly employs 1,200 people and has contributed to the city breaking records in Social Security affiliation numbers.
The tax framework was another highlight of the event. Alberto García Varela, partner in charge of the Tax Policy area at EY Spain, explained incentives such as the 60% bonus on personal income tax (IRPF) for workers, 50% on corporate tax, and reductions in Social Security contributions. He also valued Ceuta's administrative agility and its ability to facilitate public-private relationships.
For his part, José Ramón Olmedo, Project Director at Procesa, detailed the city's strategy surrounding the green, blue, and digital economy. Among the initiatives presented, he highlighted the QR code developed with EY to calculate tax savings for companies, the promotion of Ceuta Open Future, which has already supported 32 startups, and the Odisea project, conceived as the first high-tech and talent incubator oriented toward tourism and blue technology.
Horizon Ceuta 2026 leaves a very favorable conclusion for the autonomous city: Ceuta has gone from being an economy conditioned by its border to becoming an emerging technological pole, with the capacity to attract investment, talent, and innovative companies. Online gambling paved the way, and now artificial intelligence, data centers, and new digital infrastructures consolidate a strategy that looks decisively toward the future.
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