Catalan digital transformation projects receive €30m in Next Generation funding

Funds will go towards projects in artificial intelligence, assistance robotics, and female digital entrepreneurship

A 'cobot' collaborative robotic using artificial intelligence, developed by DFactory Barcelona
A 'cobot' collaborative robotic using artificial intelligence, developed by DFactory Barcelona / Jordi Bataller
Cillian Shields

Cillian Shields | @pile_of_eggs | Barcelona

January 8, 2024 06:09 PM

February 5, 2024 10:47 AM

Three Catalan projects have been chosen to receive a total of €29.3 million from Europe's Next Generation funding program. 

The projects Network of AI Hubs, Intelligent Digital Health, and TechFabLab have been chosen after being put forward by the digital policies office of the Department of Business and Work.

They form part of the Retech program which seeks to foster initiatives aimed at digital transformation and specialization.

The Network of AI Hubs, which also has the participation of the Valencian Country and the Balearic Islands, received €16.6 million of the funds, and seeks to be a continental reference through training and programs to develop and give visibility to the products, services and tools of this technology. Likewise, it seeks to attract the private sector and enhance public-private collaboration.

Intelligent Digital Health aims to accelerate the digital transformation in the field of healthcare robotics and sensorization, to allow for the design of better products and services for companies in the health sector. This proposal received €3.7 million of the funding, and has participation from the Valencian Country and Murcia.

TechFabLab have been given €9 million of the funding. This group wants to promote women working in the field of IT and communications, and "in technical and managerial positions." The group aims to promote women's access to this field and development within it, while giving visibility to female talent and encouraging female leadership and digital entrepreneurship. It is a joint project which is also worked on by Navarra, Cantabria, Aragon, the Valencian Country and La Rioja.