AI4INO funding opens new research phase for AIRi@UTCN
A RON 61.19 million project will equip AIRi@UTCN with advanced research infrastructure and bring university researchers and industry together to develop and test AI technologies.
The Technical University of Cluj-Napoca has signed the funding contract for AI4INO - Integrated Infrastructure for Research and Innovation in Artificial Intelligence, securing up to RON 58.38 million in non-reimbursable funding for research, innovation and technology transfer at AIRi@UTCN.
Funded through the North-West Regional Programme 2021-2027, AI4INO has a total eligible value of RON 61.19 million. Of this, RON 50.97 million is allocated to TUCN.
The project moves AIRi@UTCN into its next development phase. UTCN financed the institute’s physical infrastructure from its own resources. AI4INO will now add the computing capacity, laboratory equipment, research software and specialized technologies needed for advanced AI research.
For AIRi@UTCN, the project connects physical research infrastructure with the resources and industry partnerships required to develop, test and validate AI technologies at scale.
The investment includes high-performance computing infrastructure, high-speed networking, specialized AI workstations, laboratory equipment and research software. These resources will support work across the institute’s research areas, including autonomous systems, AI software and hardware, microelectronics, medical robotics and health, robotics and IoT, and cybersecurity and space.
Industry collaboration is built into the project. AIRi@UTCN researchers will work with private-sector partners on industrial research, experimental development, testing and validation, bringing academic expertise closer to real technological needs.
Companies involved in AI4INO include ZA Cloud, Hypermedia, Sitline Technology, Breadcrumbs Interactive, Megatitan, QUBHQ, Tech Wave Development, Cicada Technologies, VON Consulting, Digital Twin, Tvarita, Bitstone, Pixeldata, Cadran Technologies, Alfa Software, Start Business Serv&Consulting and Tehnofavorit.
The collaboration will support the development of AI-based technologies with potential applications across industry and society. It will also create opportunities to move research results more quickly from laboratory environments toward testing, validation and practical use.
Prof. Vasile Țopa, Rector of the Technical University of Cluj-Napoca, said:
We built this infrastructure through a major effort by TUCN, using our own resources, so that artificial intelligence could become one of the university’s strategic development directions. Through AI4INO, we are taking the next step: transforming the building into a state-of-the-art research infrastructure and a space where the university, companies and public administration can develop technologies with real impact together.
AI4INO will be implemented over 41 months, through Dec. 31, 2029. The first phase focuses on equipping and operationalizing the research infrastructure. The second will expand collaborative research between UTCN and the participating companies.
Beyond the investment in equipment, AI4INO is designed to strengthen AIRi@UTCN as a shared research and innovation environment. It will connect researchers, students, companies and public institutions around the development and responsible use of artificial intelligence.
The project also strengthens the institute’s capacity to participate in national and international research initiatives and to support interdisciplinary research that can move from scientific development to real-world application.
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