Iberdrola and Indra, among the receivers of 50 million in European funds for research in AI
A consortium coordinated by Iberdrola, in which Indra is also present, has been one of the main recipients of 50 million euros in European funds for research projects in Artificial Intelligence.
The consortium, which is made up of 20 entities in total, including several universities such as the Polytechnic University of Madrid, the University of Granada and the University of Salamanca and centres such as the Tecnalia Foundation, will receive 12.5 million euros to research "advanced intelligent technologies for sustainable energy transition". This is still a provisional resolution that can be appealed.
The call for 'R&D Missions in Artificial Intelligence' awards funds to long-term research projects presented by consortia made up of large companies, academic institutions and small and medium-sized enterprises.
The grants were awarded to projects with a three-year time horizon and budgets of between 10 and 20 million euros (although some awards have been for a lower amount) in which large companies could contribute up to 50% of the budget and SMEs 'at least' 20%.
Likewise, the aid intensity is up to 80% in the case of SMEs and 65% in the case of large companies in the industrial research phase, and 60% for smaller companies and 40% for large firms in the experimental development phase.
The 'AI for early diagnosis and treatment of diseases with high prevalence in ageing' project will receive the largest grant, 12.7 million euros, to be divided among its 16 members.
This project is coordinated by Altran Inonvación, known since October as the Capgemini Foundation, and has as partners the Barcelona Supercomputing Center and numerous academic and business institutions in Valencia, Aragon and Catalonia, as well as the Red Cross.
GMV is also coordinating a project to apply AI to the agricultural production value chain, which will receive 9.9 million euros and brings together 24 members, the most of the whole list.
The consortium includes Florette, Emergy and the universities of Seville and Salamanca.
Another project that has obtained a grant is 'DIPCAN (Digitalisation and integrated management of personalised medicine) with 7.5 million euros in aid for a programme coordinated by Eurofins Megalab and with the participation of two listed companies in BME Growth such as Atrys Health and Pangea Oncology, among others, for a total of seven units.
The creation of the 'Federated Artificial Intelligence Network to accelerate health research' will be the action with the smallest subsidy (€7.2 million).
This project is once again coordinated by GMV, the only company that repeats as coordinator, and among the 17 involved are the Complutense University, the Barcelona Supercomputing Center and PWC.
Among the rejected resolutions is one for the application of artificial intelligence in Red Eléctrica, coordinated by Izertis and with the electricity infrastructure manager itself among its members, as well as a green infrastructure project coordinated by Ferrovial.
The government envisages 100 million euros of investment by 2021 in these projects in its recovery plan, leaving 50 million euros still to be tendered.