Portuguese Innovation: Insights from Axians' Director on Boosting Creativity
**Accelerating AI and Digitalization in Portugal: A Collaborative Effort**
Portugal is making significant strides in its pursuit of becoming a leading digital and AI hub, with a growing focus on AI-driven technologies and a strategic approach to infrastructure development.
### The Importance of a Practical Sense
Pedro Faustino, a prominent figure in the tech industry, emphasizes the importance of a practical sense in driving innovation, particularly in the context of artificial intelligence (AI). He believes that a practical and urgent approach could serve as an essential accelerator for Portugal's digital transformation.
### AI and Digitalization in Portugal: A Collaborative Effort
The success of Portugal's digital transformation hinges on the collaboration between businesses, the state, and universities. Faustino advocates for a coordinated approach, which would involve ensuring supportive public policies, such as predictable access to electrical grids and streamlined licensing for technological and energy infrastructure.
Universities play a crucial role in providing a skilled workforce, particularly with a strong base of ICT specialists and STEM graduates. The aggregated market rate in Portugal over the last five years is around 4%, indicating a growing business environment.
### Axians' Role in Portugal's Digital Transformation
Axians, a brand of Vinci Energies, has been present in Portugal for eight years and acts in areas such as 'cloud', 'data centers', AI consulting, cybersecurity, data analytics, among others. Axians has solutions that range from contactless ticketing to more integrated mobility models implemented in seven operators in the Metropolitan Area of Lisbon.
### The Need for an AI and Digitalization Agency
Faustino finds the idea of a specific agency for artificial intelligence and digitalization in Portugal interesting. He proposes the idea of a specific agency or entity for AI and digitalization, and mentions that the digital agency is expected to be advanced. However, he stresses that it would not be practical for the agency to execute everything, but sees value in aggregating thought and providing strategic guidance.
### The Future of AI in Portugal
AI requires data, data centers, communications, and cybersecurity. Portugal is already making progress in these areas, with rapid growth in data centers, a focus on creating modern, resilient, and sustainable infrastructure, and a growing skilled workforce.
The proposed €1.6 billion AI gigafactory in Sines aims to focus on AI algorithm training and cloud services exports by 2030. This project is expected to generate significant revenue, primarily through exports.
Faustino stresses the need for speed in innovation efforts, as AI is transversal to all sectors of the economy and society. He believes that having an agency that facilitates Portugal's potential in technological innovation is important, especially given Europe's urgency to become a leader in this field.
The manager of Axians gives a positive balance to the business in Portugal, which is growing above the market, in a harmonious way. This growth is expected to continue, with estimates suggesting that AI could increase Portugal's GDP by €18-22 billion over the next decade.
Sources: 1. [Portugal's AI Gigafactory Could Generate €1.6 Billion by 2030](https://www.portugalresident.com/portugals-ai-gigafactory-could-generate-e1-6-billion-by-2030/) 2. [Portugal's AI and Data Centers: A Strategic Approach](https://www.computerweekly.com/feature/Portugal-s-AI-and-data-centres-a-strategic-approach) 3. [AI in Portugal: Opportunities and Challenges](https://www.researchgate.net/publication/346132951_AI_in_Portugal_Opportunities_and_Challenges)
- "In light of Portugal's focus on AI and digitalization, Faustino suggests the establishment of a specific agency for artificial intelligence and digitalization, which could help accelerate Portugal's technological innovation and make it a European leader in this field,"
- "Axians, with its strong presence in cloud, data centers, AI consulting, cybersecurity, and data analytics, is playing a significant role in Portugal's burgeoning tech sector, which is showing steady growth in the French finance and business sectors,"
