This Thursday, March 27, the AI-Cluster '3IA Côte d'Azur 2030' will be officially launched at the Inria center of Université Côte d'Azur in Valbonne. This moment will mark a key step for artificial intelligence research and innovation in France, with strong ambitions in terms of training, scientific attractiveness, and development.
On March 29, 2018, during the 'AI for Humanity' day, Emmanuel Macron announced the 'National Strategy for Artificial Intelligence' (SNIA), inspired by the Cedric Villani report, which among other things recommended the creation of a network of Interdisciplinary AI Institutes. 3IA Côte d'Azur, which is among these four institutes, is one of the nine laureates of the call for expressions of interest launched in 2023 and operated by the ANR: ‘AI-clusters, centers of excellence in research and training in artificial intelligence', and as such, is endowed with €20M over five years from France 2030. Labeled as an AI-Cluster last January, it will resize and expand its scope of action in the fields of research, innovation, education, and dissemination. This recognition highlights its scientific excellence and its leading role in the French and international AI ecosystem.
Each of the four institutes has its specificities. Coordinated by Université Côte d'Azur in partnership with the main higher education and AI research players in the region: CNRS, Inria, Inserm, EURECOM, SKEMA Business School, the Ecole de l'air et de l'espace, and Centrale Méditerranée, the 3IA Côte d'Azur institute specializes in health as well as smart and secure territories.
An Interdisciplinary Institute with International Visibility
The launch ceremony of this cluster will bring together consortium members, industrial players, researchers, and institutional representatives who will discover the roadmap of this ambitious initiative. Its goal: to strengthen the four historical research axes and extend them to new emerging themes while consolidating the AI ecosystem in the Southern Region. Among the commitments of the project:
- The installation of 33 academic chairs and the attraction of 5 international chairs;
- The hosting of 70 PhD students and postdoctoral researchers;
- The creation of 3 international research units;
- More than 20 new excellence programs to train 1,600 students per year;
- Two new industrial programs, the renewal of the AI engineering program (3IA TechPool), and the reinforcement of support for AI startups via the Start-It-Up program.
As the unique AI-cluster in the Southern Region, alongside the 8 other labeled establishments, it will actively contribute to the national strategy of scientific excellence aimed at making France a world leader in AI.