Salamanca City Council grants AIR Institute the use of the IoT and Artificial Intelligence Center

The mayor of Salamanca, Carlos García Carbayo, and Juan Manuel Corchado, president of the International Research Institute for Artificial Intelligence and Computer Science Foundation (AIR Institute), signed an agreement through which the city council cedes to the foundation the use of the municipal building of the Center for Internet of Things and Artificial Intelligence, located on Santiago Madrigal Street.

Specifically, it is the building built next to the Puente Ladrillo Integrated Municipal Center, energy efficient and with an area of more than 820 square meters, which will accommodate about 80 experts from AIR Institute, including doctors and engineers, who will lead, among other projects, the European Digital Innovation HUB (DIGIS 3).

The implementation of this building is part of the actions planned within the protocol signed between the Junta de Castilla y León, the Provincial Council, the City Council and the University of Salamanca, endowed with 67 million euros, to turn Salamanca and its area of influence into an economic engine linked to the knowledge industry, innovation, research and logistics.

After signing the agreement, the mayor of Salamanca recalled that DIGIS 3 is a regional project backed by an investment of 3.5 million euros to offer a broad portfolio of services for the digitization of some 1,400 companies and public entities throughout Castilla y León.

Boosting digitalization

DIGIS 3 will provide companies and entities in the nine provinces of the autonomous community with training, experimentation, support in the search for funding, among other services, to promote their competitiveness in Artificial Intelligence and Supercomputing, and in other support technologies in digitization, such as the Internet of Things, Big Data, Blockchain, Robotics or Cybersecurity.

The agreement for the transfer of the building is valid for 10 years, which may be extended under the terms provided for in the transfer agreement to be submitted to the Municipal Plenary, and in exchange for its use AIR Institute will advise the city council to promote the development of the city in information technologies, encourage the retention of talent, attract investments linked to these areas and facilitate the participation of the consistory in national and international projects, in line with the objectives of the foundation.

According to Juan Manuel Corchado, the transfer of this building will create a new space in Salamanca for the transfer, innovation and generation of talent, which will contribute to AIR Instituye becoming a nationally recognized technology center and will position the city as a benchmark in these areas.