ADIA Lab’s European headquarter in Granada makes progress on its commitments

• ADIA Lab and the City of Granada have identified a potential location for the headquarters of ADIA Lab Europe in Granada

• ADIA Lab has launched five research programs and is organizing three international events in Granada

• The Government of Spain is committed to backing Spanish researchers collaborating with ADIA Lab

Granada, 3 April 2024. The Government of Spain, through the Ministry for Digital Transformation and Civil Service, the City of Granada, the University of Granada and ADIA Lab have today reasserted their commitment to building upon the progress made in 2023.

ADIA Lab and the City of Granada have identified a potential location for the headquarters of ADIA Lab Europe in Granada – The Antiguo Hospital de la Salud. ADIA Lab is in the process of assessing the concession for this building, which will be decided through a public tender. Transforming the former hospital into a research centre involves a substantial amount of planning, and ADIA Lab has engaged with the technicians to organise the necessary work. ADIA Lab remains committed to Granada, and if necessary, other alternatives in the city will be considered.

In 2024, ADIA Lab is organising three international events in Granada, in collaboration with the University of Granada: ADIA Lab’s Workshop on Climate Science in April, ADIA Lab’s Summer School on Trustworthy and Ethical AI in June, and ADIA Lab’s Summer School on Competitive Machine Learning. Spanish researchers are expected to participate in these events.

ADIA Lab has launched the five research programs detailed in its founding memorandum, connecting Spanish Universities and Research Centers (Granada, Salamanca, Santiago, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Jaume I) with major research centers from around the world, including the U.S. (Harvard, MIT, Stanford, Cornell), Canada (Toronto), Europe (ETH, University of Zurich, EDHEC), and the UAE (Khalifa University, MBZUAI). This has resulted in multiple peer-reviewed publications and presentations at international scientific conferences.

For the year 2024, the Spanish researchers collaborating in the aforementioned activities with ADIA Lab have received the required funds, and all activity remains on track. The Government of Spain remains committed to financially backing Spanish researchers collaborating with ADIA Lab, and to this end, it continues to be actively engaged with the relevant Universities and Research Centers.

It is important to note that ADIA Lab is fully funded by the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority. ADIA Lab has not received, and will not receive, any funding from any authority of Spain, whether national, regional or local. ADIA Lab contributes substantial funds and resources to its collaboration with Spain. Regardless of where it is ultimately located, the headquarters will be funded by ADIA Lab.

Commenting on the strong progress made to date, Mayte Ledo, Secretary of State for Digitalisation and Artificial Intelligence, on behalf of the Government of Spain, and Dr. Horst Simon, Director of ADIA Lab, said: “The Government of Spain, the City of Granada, the University of Granada and ADIA Lab are very pleased with the progress made thus far, and remain confident that this close collaboration will render great benefits to all parties involved.”