Elettra 2.0 will be a fourth generation storage ring light source replacing the existing Elettra synchrotron. This article illustrates design strategies, physical investigations and technical choices to meet multiple and sometimes conflicting requirements. These include to make Elettra 2.0 a fully transversely coherent source up to 0.5 keV-photon energy, diversify the type of experiments through a very broad range of photon energies, from infrared to hard x-rays, maximize the number of photon beamlines in excess of 2-times the machine periodicity, and be able to produce picosecond-long light pulses at MHz repetition rate without interference to the standard multi-bunch operation. Most recent advancements in beam physics, technical systems and installation plan are reported with some detail.