The European centre, the EuroHPC Joint Undertaking, has awarded an Icelandic collaborative project a grant of over 700 million ISK to establish a centre in Iceland for artificial intelligence (AI) and High-Performance Computing (HPC). Almannarómur leads the project in collaboration with the University of Iceland, Reykjavík University, the University of Iceland Science Park, the Icelandic Meteorological Office, and the Árni Magnússon Institute for Icelandic Studies.
The centre will provide access to computational power, AI software, datasets, and expert consultation for developing, training, and testing new AI solutions. The support is intended for parties with projects at the development stage; bridging the operational gap until they are ready for general deployment.
"This marks a milestone, and everyone who has contributed deserves great praise. Once again, we see the power of the Icelandic science and innovation community, resulting in this substantial grant. Here, we are taking a major step into a future where Icelanders will fully participate in the AI revolution and can seize the opportunities it presents," says Logi Einarsson, Minister of Culture, Innovation and University Affairs.
The focus will specifically be on solutions in the fields of healthcare, climate and environmental research, renewable energy, manufacturing and engineering, and public administration, where language technology and the Icelandic language are the main focal points across the board. The centre will be based at the Almannarómur office in the University of Iceland Science Park in Gróska.
"We aim to make it easier for companies and institutions to experiment with the application of AI through easy and free access to computational power and expertise," says Lilja Dögg Jónsdóttir, Managing Director of Almannarómur. "Through the collaboration of these diverse institutions, we offer a broad knowledge base and excellent facilities that we are convinced will create opportunities and value for Icelandic society."
Connecting Iceland to one of Europe's most powerful supercomputers
The grant provides access to an extensive network of European AI Factories and is funded by the European Union's Horizon Europe programme. The Icelandic centre will be connected to the LUMI AI Factory in Finland, where one of Europe's most powerful supercomputers is located. The project aims to provide Icelandic start-ups, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs), and public institutions with direct access to the latest and best AI infrastructure and knowledge available in Europe. The project is supported by the Ministry of Culture, Innovation and University Affairs, and directly supports the implementation of the Action Plan for Artificial Intelligence 2025-2027, published by the Ministry of Culture, Innovation and University Affairs this summer. Special emphasis will be placed on responsible and trustworthy AI in accordance with European legislation in the field of AI and data protection.
Among the most qualified applicants
The total scope of the project is approximately 1.4 billion ISK. It is jointly funded, with the EuroHPC JU contributing half of the amount and the Icelandic collaborators providing the other half in the form of work, facilities, and project capital. The Icelandic application was evaluated as among the very best submitted to the fund, with a total of 13 projects across Europe receiving grants to establish regional centres connected to larger AI Factories such as LUMI.
LUMI has long been one of Europe's most powerful supercomputers. Still, its scope and the surrounding operational framework were recently expanded when it launched its service as an AI Factory, supported by the EuroHPC JU. More details about the services of the LUMI AI Factory can be found here.
Such AI Factories are being established across Europe as part of the EU’s broad AI strategy. The EuroHPC JU institution has now launched 19 AI Factories under the programme.
In addition to the AI Factories, the institution has now allocated grants for so-called AI Factory Antennas (National Centres), which serve as branches or connections for the AI Factories to other regions. The Icelandic centre will thus be Iceland's national centre (or AI Factory Antenna), which will connect to the LUMI AI Factory.
About the Project Collaborators
This extensive collaborative project involves six key institutions in Iceland, combining diverse expertise and robust existing infrastructure in AI and High-Performance Computing.
- Almannarómur acts as the project manager and coordinator, overseeing project management, information dissemination, and support for developing the AI ecosystem in Iceland. Almannarómur is also a founding member of the pan-Nordic AI centre, New Nordics AI, which strengthens Nordic cooperation and the responsible development of AI.
- The Árni Magnússon Institute is a leading research institution in language technology. It maintains the Icelandic Language Bank (Íslenski málbankinn), a public collection of Icelandic language data used for research and development of language technology solutions and Icelandic language models. The collaboration will support the use of Icelandic in the tech world by expanding and enhancing these datasets so they can be utilised even more effectively for developing Icelandic AI solutions. The Institute's language technology and AI experts also work on researching and measuring the Icelandic language capabilities of AI models and how to improve them.
- The University of Iceland (UI) is a leader in High-Performance Computing and has recently connected scientists, industry, and institutions that use HPC in research and innovation through the IHPC project. The University also plays a key role in education in the field of data science and has immense experience with large-scale European collaborative projects.
- Reykjavík University (RU) offers a Master's programme in Artificial Intelligence, emphasising an ethical approach to AI in line with European values. RU offers excellent and specialised facilities for research, development, and testing of AI solutions, e.g., for virtual reality, AI for robotics, and sleep research.
- The University of Iceland Science Park provides facilities for the project's headquarters in Gróska, bringing together innovation companies, start-ups, and research groups. A strong and vibrant AI operation will be hosted there around the project, with plans to establish an AI Campus during the project period.
- The Icelandic Meteorological Office is a leader in using AI in climate, natural hazard, and environmental research, partly through its participation in the Destination Earth project and as a member of the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF). This collaboration will build upon the expertise developed there to create more powerful and accurate computational models for environmental research.
Together, the project partners will build new harmonised infrastructure for Icelandic AI, boost domestic expertise in developing and training advanced AI solutions, and form better connections with leading experts in this field within Europe.