EIT Digital opened Braga Satellite

Enhancing Portugal’s international collaboration in the digital domain. 

Supported by the Government of Portugal and hosted by the University of Minho, the EIT Digital Braga Satellite will contribute to achieving the Portuguese Government’s goals to fully integrate Portugal in the larger European innovation ecosystem, increase investment in R&D, enhance university-industry knowledge exchange, develop digital skills across the board, and promote Portugal’s offer to investors and talent. 

The Braga Satellite will serve all regions of Portugal, focusing on three core tasks:

• Engagement of industrial and knowledge partners from the Portuguese ecosystem in EIT Digital’s Focus Areas.
• Proactive scouting and coordination of impactful opportunities for collaborative innovation commercialisation by companies and universities across Portugal.
• Design, organisation and delivery of networking activities between the business and academic communities in Portugal and the EU-wide EIT Digital ecosystem in order to achieve mutual cooperation, programme alignment and commercial success.

The establishment of EIT Digital in Portugal represents a significant step towards our ultimate goal of doubling the Portuguese participation in EU related programs in the upcoming framework program for 2021-2027. This has been established in the context of ‘Portugal in Europe Research and Innovation Network – PERIN’ and under our Portugal INCoDe.2030 Initiative. Through EIT Digital, we must work collectively to strengthen knowledge production and diffusion. Together with our common efforts in Artificial Intelligence - ‘AI Portugal 2030’ - and Advanced Computing - ‘Advanced computing Portugal 2030’ - we should guarantee the qualification and specialisation of the labour force, to foster better jobs throughout all sectors of the economy.

Manuel Heitor, Portugal’s Minister for Science, Technology and Higher Education

About EIT Digital 

With an annual budget of EUR 100 million to drive Europe’s digital transformation, EIT Digital invests to accelerate the market uptake of research-based digital technologies, focusing on Europe’s strategic, societal challenges: Digital Cities, Digital Finance, Digital Industry, Digital Tech and Digital Wellbeing.

EIT Digital is one of eight Innovation Communities of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology. It has 10 Co-Location Centres across Europe and the Braga Satellite is the first to be opened in Portugal.

The new Braga Satellite will allow EIT Digital to deepen connections with the Portuguese innovation ecosystem and intensify our relationship with the Portuguese Private and Public Sectors. 

Willem Jonker, CEO EIT Digital 

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