The first annual panel discussion "The State of the AI Industry in Serbia" at Science Technology Park Belgrade

The panelists that spoke about the role of our Institute, the potentials of our country, and the major stakeholders in the development and implementation of AI, industrial readiness for creative solutions, and youth education were:

• Prof. Dr. Dubravko Ćulibrk, PhD - Director of the Institute;
• Jelena Slivka, PhD - Professor at the Faculty of Technical Sciences, University of Novi Sad;
• Stefan Badža - Advisor in the Prime Minister's Cabinet in the Government of the Republic of Serbia;
• Miša Miletić - Cloud & AI Solution Manager at Huawei.

Serbian AI Society and Wonderland AI Summit had a panel discussion in November at Science Technology Park Belgrade. Jovan Stojanović, co-founder of the startup Anari AI and Wonderland AI, moderated the discussion with the guests.

"Our market is young in terms of artificial intelligence growth, and Huawei is undertaking extensive education and market assistance," said Miša Miletić, Cloud & AI Solution Manager at Huawei. In collaboration with faculty, Huawei and other significant firms are developing laboratories and courses for the use of artificial intelligence.

Stefan Badža, Adviser in the Prime Minister's Office of the Republic of Serbia, emphasizes the necessity of implementing the National Strategy for the Development of Artificial Intelligence and placing Serbia as a regional leader in the field of artificial intelligence.

"It is unique to this field in that it was identified early enough, first by the economy, then by the state, as a big potential, and Serbia can promote itself as a producer of certain new products, ideas, and solutions, rather than merely as an outsourcing destination," Badža says.

One of the aims of long-term professional growth is to have at least 500 students complete master's courses in artificial intelligence in the next years. For the time being, there are seven courses that will be critical for the development of future workers in the field of artificial intelligence.

It is obvious that the workforce is developing through business development centers and working in the economy on innovative solutions that originate from the startup sector.

"Students' interest is expanding, as evidenced by diploma and master's theses in which students participate in artificial intelligence projects requiring non-standard solutions," says Jelena Slivka, PhD, professor at Novi Sad's Faculty of Technical Sciences.

The most significant obstacle to the industry's quicker development is a lack of personnel with experience in the creation and implementation of AI projects. As a result, the Institute for Artificial Intelligence of Serbia's primary mission is to enhance the link between the economy and the academic community in order to develop an economy based on knowledge and innovation.

"Our priority is to hire talented people, to have a great base, and to offer them with decent working circumstances. For the time being, the Institute is still determining the best strategy to promote entrepreneurs and how to address intellectual property rights ", emphasizes Dubravko Ćulibrk, PhD, Director of the Institute.

A recording of the panel discussion is available at the link.