Draft:Artificial intelligence industry in Italy

The artificial intelligence industry in Italy is growing strongly and supports industrial development, in 2024 it reached a new record, reaching 1.2 billion euros with a growth of +58% compared to 2023.

History

Italy is among the world’s leaders in AI development from pioneering theoretical research and the formation of early research groups, to the modern era of generative AI and specialized industrial institutes.

The roots of AI research in Italy extend back to the 1970s, when Italian scholars began exploring automated reasoning, programming language semantics, and pattern recognition. Researchers such as those involved in early projects at the National Research Council and various universities laid the groundwork for a robust tradition in theoretical AI. These early contributions were instrumental in setting the stage for subsequent academic and industrial developments in the field.

During this period, the focus was predominantly on developing algorithms for automated theorem proving and building systems to reason about complex mathematical problems. This era witnessed the birth of methodologies that would later influence numerous AI subfields, from natural language processing (NLP) to robotics.

Institutional Milestones and Academic Contributions

A major turning point in the Italian AI landscape was the formation of the Italian Association for Artificial Intelligence (AIxIA) in 1988. Founded by visionary academics, including Luigia Carlucci Aiello, the association established a platform for collaboration between universities, research centers, and industry. Under Aiello’s leadership, AIIA played a critical role in promoting research, organizing national conferences, and fostering international partnerships that connected Italy’s AI community to global networks.

At the same time, professors like Roberto Navigli and numerous practitioners have contributed significantly to the advancement of AI in Italy. Navigli's work in multilingual NLP, including the creation of BabelNet, and his recent leadership of the Minerva project underscore the nation's academic excellence in AI.

From Theory to Practice: The Rise of Industrial AI

As Italy’s academic research matured, the government and industry began to recognize the strategic importance of AI for economic growth and competitiveness. Over the past decades, numerous national and European initiatives supported by funding from programs such as the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR) have spurred the transition from theoretical research to practical applications. Industrial sectors including manufacturing, banking, and healthcare increasingly embraced AI-driven automation, while research institutions collaborated with industrial partners to deploy cutting-edge solutions.

In recent years, Italy has also seen the establishment of specialized research centers and institutes aimed at bridging the gap between academic innovation and industrial application. These initiatives underscore a broader national commitment to integrating AI into the fabric of Italian industry.

The Emergence of Generative AI: Minerva AI

A landmark in Italy’s modern AI evolution is the development of Minerva AI. Developed by the Sapienza NLP research group at Sapienza University of Rome and led by Professor Roberto Navigli, Minerva represents the first family of large language models (LLMs) trained from scratch with a primary focus on the Italian language.

Minerva 7B: A Breakthrough in Italian Generative AI

The latest iteration, Minerva 7B, boasts 7 billion parameters and has been trained on an extensive corpus of over 1.5 trillion words. By leveraging advanced instruction tuning techniques, Minerva 7B is able to produce highly accurate, coherent, and contextually sensitive responses addressing common issues such as hallucinations and inappropriate content generation. This breakthrough not only highlights Italy’s growing technical prowess but also sets a benchmark for transparent, open-source AI development in the country. Minerva’s development, carried out within the FAIR (Future Artificial Intelligence Research) project in collaboration with CINECA and supported by supercomputing resources like the Leonardo (supercomputer), underscores a new era of AI innovation that aligns closely with Italy’s cultural and linguistic heritage.

Establishing the Italian Institute of Artificial Intelligence for Industry

In tandem with advances in generative AI, Italy is taking strategic steps to solidify its industrial competitiveness in AI. The recent establishment of the Istituto Italiano per l’Intelligenza Artificiale (AI4I) marks a significant milestone in this strategy. This dedicated institute aims to:

• Bridge the Gap Between Research and Industry: By fostering collaborations among academic institutions, research centers, and industrial enterprises, the institute seeks to accelerate the adoption of AI solutions in critical sectors.

• Promote Innovation and Talent Development: With an emphasis on training, technical assistance, and R&D support, the institute is poised to nurture the next generation of Italian AI experts.

• Enhance National Competitiveness: By streamlining industrial processes and embedding AI technologies into core business operations, the institute will contribute to broader economic growth and global leadership in AI.

This initiative is expected to serve as a hub for applied AI research, driving innovations that are tailored to the specific needs of Italian industry and public administration.

The evolution of the artificial intelligence industry in Italy, from its pioneering research roots in the 1970s, through the formation of influential institutions like AIxIA, to the modern breakthroughs embodied by Minerva AI and the establishment of industrial AI institutes, illustrates a dynamic and resilient pathway. Italy has not only contributed foundational research to the global AI community but is now emerging as a leader in the development of native, linguistically attuned generative models.

As Italy continues to invest in both academic excellence and industrial innovation, the establishment of dedicated bodies like the Italian Institute of Artificial Intelligence for Industry will play a pivotal role in ensuring that the nation remains at the forefront of technological transformation. This synergy between research and application promises a vibrant future where Italian AI not only reflects its rich cultural heritage but also drives forward a competitive, innovative economy.

Harnessing European Investment: The Role of InvestAI

Italy's AI industry stands to benefit significantly from the European InvestAI initiative, an ambitious plan unveiled at the recent AI Action Summit in Paris. InvestAI is a landmark effort by the European Commission to mobilize €200 billion for AI investments, with a crucial component being a dedicated €20 billion fund earmarked for building AI gigafactories. These gigafactories will serve as large-scale hubs for training advanced, complex AI models and will be equipped with cutting-edge computing power, including approximately 100,000 last-generation AI chips.

For Italy, this investment presents several major opportunities:

• Access to State-of-the-Art Infrastructure: Italian companies, research institutions, and start-ups can leverage the gigafactories’ immense computational resources, enabling them to train highly sophisticated language models and other AI systems.

• Enhanced Competitiveness and Collaboration: With InvestAI’s layered funding model where EU funds help de-risk private investments Italian firms can access capital more readily. This will bolster public–private partnerships and create a more dynamic AI ecosystem that spans from academic research to industrial applications.

• Alignment with National and Regional Initiatives: The Istituto Italiano per l’Intelligenza Artificiale (AI4I), based in Turin, is already recognized as a strategic asset by both Italy and the European Union. As the main recipient of InvestAI funds in Italy, AI4I will play a pivotal role in implementing these investments locally, fostering innovation in sectors like manufacturing, healthcare and aerospace.

Commission President Ursula von der Leyen emphasized that InvestAI is designed to democratize AI innovation throughout Europe by ensuring that even smaller companies have access to high-performance computing power. For Italy, this means not only keeping pace with global leaders but also harnessing European-scale investments to transform its AI industry and drive economic growth.

Together, InvestAI and Italy’s robust AI ecosystem promise to propel the nation into a leadership position within Europe’s dynamic AI landscape, ensuring that Italian innovations continue to shape the future of technology.

See also

• Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (CNR)
• CINECA
• Minerva AI (Sapienza University of Rome)
• Velvet AI (Almawave)
• Vitruvian-1 (ASC27)
• Istituto Italiano per l'Intelligenza Artificiale nell'Industria (AI4I)
• Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia (IIT)
• Agenzia per la Cybersicurezza Nazionale
• European High-Performance Computing Joint Undertaking
• Artificial Intelligence Act (AI Act)