The ENIAC JU project MERCURE is developing advanced semiconductor materials to provide functionality not available before with silicon-based micro- or nanoelectronics. It will enable future ambient intelligence systems to achieve autonomous and self-reconfigurable operations with real-time and efficient self-optimisation of performance. Key applications will include the future wireless communications market which will expand to higher frequencies as new applications and frequency bands are allocated. This will require an always-connected, multi-standard, multi-service communications environment.