How Brussels wants to promote the use of artificial intelligence in industry
Today, AI is used by only 13% of European companies, mainly large companies active in services. One billion euros will be mobilised to support eleven sectors in particular, while 13 computer centres are under construction
from our correspondent Beda Romano
BRUSSELS - The European Commission has unveiled a new strategy dedicated to artificial intelligence. The aim is twofold: to promote the new tool not only in services, but also in industry, and to support research and development at Community level in an area in which, for the moment, American and Chinese competition is getting the better of them. Brussels has selected 11 sectors, from healthcare to robotics, to be helped with special efforts.
"I want the future of artificial intelligence to be realised in Europe," Commission President Ursula von der Leyen explained in a statement, recalling an action plan published in the spring. "The adoption of artificial intelligence must be increasingly encouraged. With the strategy we are presenting today, we want to help accelerate this process. We want to support a new mindset, called AI first, in all key areas."
The Commission has therefore identified a number of sectors that should in its intentions make increasing use of artificial intelligence: health care and pharmaceuticals, energy, mobility, manufacturing, construction, agribusiness, defence, communications, the public sector, the environment and culture. Vice-President of the EU executive Henna Virkkunen announced that Brussels intends to mobilise EUR 1 billion with this objective in mind (the money will come from existing programmes).
Concretely, the use of artificial intelligence will be promoted through the existing centres dedicated to digital innovation (in English, the European Digital Innovation Hubs) - in Italy there are 57 of them. Ms Virkkunen added: "We are building 13 computer centres for AI (factories in English, ed.) and we recently launched a call for expressions of interest for new gigafactories, also for AI. The call has attracted interest for investments of more than 230 billion euro.
MADE 4.0 is one of the competence centres created in Italy by the Ministry of Economic Development to accompany companies on the path to digital transition. In the European context, it is part of the network of centres dedicated to digital innovation (EDIH) that have the task of supporting productivity and competitiveness (90 per cent of MADE 4.0 customers are small and medium-sized enterprises). With the presented strategy, the EDIHs will also take on a role in promoting artificial intelligence.
