Dear colleagues, Next June a scientific event on advanced minimally invasive surgery will be held in Florence under the aegis of the CRSA (Clinical Robotic Surgery Association). Despite that label, the meeting will not only be focused on robotic surgery. The idea is rather to compare robotic and laparoscopic surgery, two techniques born from the same inspiration, that complement each other and have the same goal: to preserve the patient's wholeness, to improve the quality of care and to reduce the surgical invasivity as much as possible. The program of the meeting is planned in three surgical sessions about the more recent treatments of the upper digestive, colon-rectum and the HPB diseases. During a fourth session the aspects of training in minimally invasive surgery will be further discussed. Within the individual sessions some "special topics" will be discussed, focusing on specific scientific or technological subjects. The faculty includes expert speakers and renowned professionals from Italy, Europe, US and Asia. As already mentioned, the fundamental objective of the meeting is to create an integration between professionals who are interested in advanced minimally invasive surgery. Robotic and laparoscopic surgery techniques should not arise in opposition to each other, but rather develop common paths in clinical and scientific research, technological innovation and training. We believe in the quality of this project and its inspiring ideas, and we hope to see you in Florence.