News

The EDIH DIGI-SI consortium announces a call for digital innovations to participate in the Digital Innovation Challenge Competition, where we will select the best digital innovation! The winning digital innovation will receive active promotion both in the Slovenian market and in foreign markets through various European networks of DIGI-SI partners, and the finalists of the competition will receive a mentoring “pitching workshop” and a ticket to PODIM 2024, the most influential technology and start-up event in Europe. Competition process: first round of evaluation – selection of up to 10 finalists; participation of finalists in a “pitching” workshop; attendance of finalists at PODIM 2024 second round of evaluation at the DIGI-SI Community Days conference in the fall of 2024 – selection of the winner. Who can apply? The call is open only to Slovenian citizens over 18 years of age with the permission of the organization they work for, who have at least one of the following statuses: researcher/higher education teacher, student, SME (small or medium-sized enterprise), start-up. Additional information for proposers: the level of technological development of the proposed digital innovation must not be lower than 6 (TRL6). More about the levels of technological development here; the proposed digital innovation […]

On Thursday, December 14th, the second seminar Demystifying blockchain technology in business was held. At the seminar, the head of DIH UM and EDIH DIGI-SI, assoc. prof. dr. Muhamed Turkanović, who is also the founder and head of Blockchain Lab:UM within the Institute of Informatics at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Computer Science and Informatics of the University of Maribor, explained in more detail how blockchain technology works. The participants of the seminar learned about the possibilities of using this technology and advantages of its implementation in their business. They were also introduced to some examples of good practices and had the opportunity to ask the lecturer questions.

On Friday, November 10, 2023, the seminar Demystifying High Performance Computing in Tourism was held as part of EDIH DIGI-SI. Lecturer at the seminar, doc. dr. Domen Verber, head of the Laboratory for Real-Time Systems at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Computer Science and Informatics of the University of Maribor, presented how High-Performance Computing (HPC) can be used in various areas of the tourism industry and in creating a good experience for tourists. He presented an overview of HPC concepts, tools, and techniques, with a special emphasis on their use in tourism, examples of good practices and existing solutions in this area, and potential opportunities offered by HPC technology in the future. We regularly organize educational seminars on the topic of demystifying modern technologies. In case you want to learn more about technologies like artificial intelligence, high performance computing, cyber security, internet of things, big data, virtual/augmented reality, robotics and blockchain technology, follow the current seminars here.

On Tuesday, October 24, 2023, as part of EDIH DIGI-SI, we organized a seminar Demystifying IoT in agrifood: Digitization in support of precision agriculture. The seminar’s lecturer, a researcher from the Faculty of Agriculture and Life Sciences of the University of Maribor, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Jurij Rakun, first outlined the basic concepts of digitization and its connection with the Internet of Things (IoT) technologies to the participants, and then presented how IoT is connected to agriculture. The seminar also touched on the topics of sensor systems and robotics, and as always, it also included the presentation of good practices in the field. We regularly organize seminars on the topic of demystifying modern technologies. In case you want to learn more about technologies like artificial intelligence, high performance computing, cyber security, internet of things, big data, virtual/augmented reality, robotics and blockchain technology, follow the current seminars here.

On Friday, October 20, 2023, the event Supercomputers for super challenges of companies took place as Supercomputing centers in Slovenia opened their doors into the world of supercomputers. At the event, the participants first learned more about the SLING National Competence Center and the EuroCC 2 project, which were presented by Urša Vodopivec from Arnes. This was followed by the presentation of the HPC centers, namely the HPC center Arctur, the largest private center in Central and Eastern Europe, built primarily for the needs of companies, which was presented by the head of the center, Tristan Pahor, and the most powerful high-performance computer in Slovenia – HPC Vega, which was presented by Dejan Valh from the Institute of Information Science (IZUM). In the second part of the program, both speakers revealed to the participants how to access the use of high-performance computers, while Irena Ivanuš, operational coordinator of EDIH DIGI-SI, presented the possibilities of using HPC as part of the European Digital Innovation Hub DIGI-SI. The event was enriched by the presentation of dr. Jure Mencinger, specialist in the field of numerical simulations in Gorenje, who shared with the participants an example of good practice of using HPC technology in […]

In July, the University of Maribor was visited by a delegation within the framework of the GIZ DTC SKIIVE project, with the aim of acquiring knowledge and analysis of digital innovation hubs (DIHs), which focus on the sectors of Agriculture, Energy and ICT. The delegation consisted of representatives of GIZ (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit), SKIIVE (Strengthening Kenyan Intermediaries and Innovation Ecosystem), the Ministry of ICT of Kenya and the ACTS consortium. With the desire to establish an efficient and self-sufficient green DIH in Kenya, the delegation initially visited us at the headquarters of the DIH UM, the rectorate of the University of Maribor, where we, as the coordinator of the European Digital Innovation Hub DIGI-SI (EDIH DIGI-SI), presented them with the process of establishing , planning and operation of the hub. Head of DIH UM and EDIH DIGI-SI, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Muhamed Turkanović, thus presented the most important factors of the operation of this type of entity. After that, during the presentation of our guests, we looked for common points and opportunities for cooperation. EDIH DIGI-SI partner, Innovation Technology Cluster Murska Sobota, presented its organization and DIH Agrifood, as well as the AfriConEu project, aimed at networking European and […]

On Thursday, June 8, 2023, the first Demystifying seminar on blockchain took place on the topic of using blockchain in business in the fields of tourism, health, agri-food and manufacturing. At the seminar, the head of DIH UM and EDIH DIGI-SI, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Muhamed Turkanović, who is also the founder and head of Blockchain Lab:UM within the Institute of Informatics at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Computer Science and Informatics of the University of Maribor, explained in more detail how blockchain works and in which cases its introduction into business makes sense. The participants of the seminar also learned about examples of good practices of using blockchain in companies and organizations and had the opportunity to ask the lecturer questions in the last part of the seminar. We regularly organize seminars on the topic of demystifying modern technologies. In case you want to learn more about technologies like artificial intelligence, high performance computing, cyber security, internet of things, big data, virtual/augmented reality, robotics and blockchain technology, follow our current seminars here.

EDIH DIGI-SI will support 700 companies on their digital transformation journey worth €3,3 million! The partnership of seven experienced organisations in the EDIH DIGI-SI consortium provides support to companies, organisations and public institutions throughout the digitisation value chain in 4 core areas: agri-food, healthcare, manufacturing and tourism. The University of Maribor (coordinator), The Jožef Stefan Institute, ARCTUR, DIGITECH-SI-EAST, Technology Park Ljubljana, Digital Innovation Hub of Slovenia and DIH Agrifood, run by Innovation Technology Cluster Murska Sobota, have put together a web of services needed for a comprehensive digitalisation of operations, including planning, consultancy, training, testing equipment, laboratories and top experts. When in doubt about how to approach the digitisation process in a comprehensive way, it’s time for EDIH DIGI-SI! We invite you to the EDIH DIGI-SI Community Days on Friday 9th December 2022 at 9 am at the Minoritska cerkev, Vojašniški trg 2, Maribor. EDIH DIGI-SI starts its operations with ambitious plans, in the company of the best. Let’s meet, strengthen our collaborations, and find additional digitisation opportunities for the growth and development of your business. Hurry up with your applications, places are limited! The conference, where partners will present ways and services for effective digitisation of all segments of your […]

At the 59th regular session of the Government of the Republic of Slovenia in February last year, it was decided, based on the assessments of the interdepartmental expert commission of the Ministry of Public Administration and the Ministry of Economic Development and Technology, that the DIGI-SI consortium will also be proposed to the European Commission as the selected national candidate for EDIH (European Digital Innovation Hub). Thus, the consortium led by the University of Maribor began intensively preparing for the application at the European level. This year, the DIGI-SI Consortium, with all its efforts, achieved the set goal and gained the status of EDIH, i.e. the European Digital Innovation Hub, for which as many as 331 candidates applied. The DIGI-SI Consortium under the coordination of the University of Maribor, more specifically DIH UM, consists of six partners, namely, Jožef Stefan Institute, DIH Slovenia, Technology Park Ljubljana, Arctur, ITC – Innovation Technology Cluster Murska Sobota and TCS – Institute-Center of Slovenian Tool Cluster Celje. The establishment of EDIH is a plan of the European Commission within the Digital Europe Program with the aim of accelerating the digital breakthrough of the European Union and bringing digital technologies closer to businesses, citizens and […]

Did you know that Mariborski vodovod and the University of Maribor are cooperating within the AI REGIO project, in which they are monitoring the water consumption of the main water supplier of the Vzhodna Slovenija region with an experiment? The experiment is intended to detect possible water leakage from the pipe network with a modern sensor network system developed by Mariborski vodovod. Because the data obtained by the flow sensor is written to the database without proper reasoning, artificial intelligence will be used for this purpose. The experiment aims at three main goals: automatically estimate wet zones in the water pipe network using remote sensing data; compare the results with the water consumption of the network; build up AI based reasoning to detect water leakage using satellite remote sensing data and the ground data (source: AI REGIO Newsletter). For the purpose of monitoring water leakage, the advantages of water flow meters installed over the entire water supply network and the concept of estimating soil moisture using remote sensing data were used. Nevertheless, challenges have emerged in implementing this approach, namely the facts that water consumption is measured by flow meters; that water leakage can be detected using ratio between income […]

Everyone who is interested in participating in the Austrian-Slovenian HPC conference still has the opportunity to submit their contribution by March 13, 2022! The Austrian-Slovenian meeting HPC 2022 – ASHPC22 will take place at the Seeblickhotel Grundlsee (Austria) from 31 May to 2 June 2022, and those interested will have the opportunity to follow the event online, as the event will be hybrid! The ASHPC22 meeting will be preceded by a EuroHPC Access and Hands-On workshop on 31 May 2022 at the Seeblickhotel Grundlsee (Austria) to discuss the benefits of the new European HPC systems. The European High Performance Computing Joint Undertaking (EuroHPC JU) is currently building a world-class supercomputer ecosystem in Europe (consisting of five petascale and three predexascale systems). At the workshop we will be able to learn more about organizational decision-making, the application process and the end-user applications. ASHPC22 & EuroHPC Access and Hands-On workshop are organized by EuroCC Austria  – National Competence Centre for Supercomputing, Big Data and Artificial Intelligence, Austria and EuroCC Slovenia in cooperation with the Vienna Scientific Cluster (VSC), Austria; the Research Area Scientific Computing in Innsbruck, Austria; the Institute of Information Science in Maribor (IZUM), Slovenia and the Slovenian consortium for high-performance computing (SLING). You can find out more about the […]

Source: European Commission In recent years, the European Commission has been active in exploring research and funding needs related to blockchain and distributed ledger technologies (DLT). This is an attempt to take stock of ongoing and ready-to-start European projects and pilots related to blockchain and DLT across Europe. EU funded projects Regarding research and innovation, the Commission, in particular through the Horizon 2020 programme, has funded several EU projects in which blockchain and DLT contribute to the emergence of new paradigms of trust as well as societal, technical and infrastructural solutions.  An example of the Horizon 2020 funded projects is the European Blockchain Pre-Commercial Procurement (PCP) action, which received a total of 7 million euros funding from the EC. The Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) funds the deployment of the EU’s blockchain service infrastructure (EBSI), including the use cases agreed under the EU Blockchain Partnership (EBP). The EBP consists of 27 EU Member States, Norway and Liechtenstein. In 2019, the European Investment Fund (EIF) launched with the support of the European Commission, an AI and blockchain investment scheme to increase tech funding in Europe. EUR 100 million were made available to venture capitals supporting relevant technologies. The scheme was very successful […]

Source: Digital Europe Programme On 17 November 2021, following the adoption of the Work Programmes, the European Commission announced the first set of calls for proposals under the Digital Europe Programme, among which three calls on Advanced Digital Skills. The calls are open to businesses, organisations, public administrations from the EU Member States, and entities from other countries associated to the Digital Europe Programme. The three calls are the following: Specialised Masters and education programmes in key capacity areas: to support the design and delivery of specialised Master programmes and traineeships for the future experts in key areas, like data and AI, cybersecurity, quantum and HPC Advanced digital skills analysis: to support the rollout of initiatives for advanced digital skills development and design relevant and high-quality learning opportunities Preparatory actions for the data space for skills: to set up a true European data space and facilitate safe access to and storage of large datasets, with an energy efficient cloud infrastructure. Questions and answers about the 3 above mentioned calls can be found on the official Funding & Tender Portal. These pages will be regularly updated: Q&A for Specialised Masters and education programmes in key capacity areas (DIGITAL-2021-SKILLS-01-SPECIALISED) Q&A for Advanced digital skills analysis (DIGITAL-2021-SKILLS-01-ANALYSIS) Q&A for […]

We invite you to attend the ASHPC22 meeting, which will take place at the Seeblickhotel Grundlsee (Austria), 31 May – 2 June 2022, and online participation in the event will also be possible. Submission of abstracts for received lectures and posters for ASHPC22 is open. Submit summaries of your work and expertise in high-performance computing (HPC). Specifically, this may include HPC applications, HPC cluster research, systems engineering (storage, software, network, etc.), and any other HPC-related topic. Link to abstract submission: https://www.ashpc.at/abstract-submission. The deadline for submitting the abstract is January 16, 2022, and you will receive notification of acceptance by February 16, 2022. We look forward to your contributions! For more information and updates, visit: https://ashpc.at.

The annual conference of the EDIH nominated consortium DIGI-SI took place on Friday, where the partners presented the upcoming tenders, programs and best practices in the field of digitalization. Digitization and related technologies are increasingly shaping our lives, so their integration into the economy and public administration is becoming increasingly important. More and more industrial companies are looking to the concept of Industry 4.0 and service companies to digital transformation. The central idea of ​​digital transformation is to change business processes in organizations in such a way that they are as much as possible supported and automated with the help of digital technologies, which is even more pronounced in the current situation. In the field of digitalisation, the European Commission has set up a Digital Europe Program with a budget of € 7.6 billion to promote the digital transformation of European society. Representatives of the consortium presented the areas of digitalization of tourism, health, agriculture, smart manufacturing, artificial intelligence, cyber security and digital competencies and business models. However, they will not bypass the topic, which is very important for at least most companies, the presentation of upcoming tenders and programs, this co-financing of digital transformation projects. The audience addressed him. […]

The BOWI project is looking for the best solutions for DIH cooperation in the form of technology transfer experiments. During the experiments, it will connect established and developing DIH with SMEs that require concrete solutions for digitization. The business model, which is the core of DIH’s cooperation, will lay the foundation for the BOWI network. The BOWI project is in line with the European Commission’s Smart Anything Everywhere (SAE) initiative, which aims to support European companies in finding advanced digitization solutions and should be available to any company, regardless of its location. Key elements of the SAE initiative are digital innovation hubs (DIH) – all in one place for companies looking to improve their business or services with digital solutions. DIHs bring together companies that offer state-of-the-art solutions and take on the challenge of finding answers to complex problems. Within the project, 2 sets of experiments will be carried out to test and improve the business model of DIH cooperation. The first phase will include nodes from the project consortium, while the extended phase will include newly attracted DIHs to validate the findings of Phase 1. The confirmed and approved DIH cooperation solution will be used as the basis for […]

ADMA TranS4MErs: Advanced Manufacturing Assistance and Training for SME Transformation A project supporting the transformation of 1,000+ manufacturing SMEs to become ‘Factories of the Future’ embracing the ecological, digital, and societal challenges across Europe by 2025. The well-established technology centre Irish Manufacturing Research (IMR), will lead a new, 38 partner, EU funded research project, amplifying pan-European advanced manufacturing assistance and training for SMEs during the next three years. The ADMA TranS4MErs project will reinforce the competitiveness of manufacturing SMEs by providing fast, flexible, pan-European access to advanced manufacturing advice and expertise, as well as training, drawing on expertise contained within the consortium of partners representing all EU-27 member states. Lise-Ann Sheahan and Peter Purcell have led the coordination of a project valued at over €5.6 million from the European Commission through the Horizon 2020 innovation in small and medium-sized enterprises work programme, building on the effort of European Advanced Manufacturing (ADMA) Support Centre. “31 proposals were submitted to the Horizon 2020 INNOSUP-08-2020 call for proposals resulting in one winning bid, ADMA TranS4MErs, demonstrating how national investment in manufacturing research leverages success in international projects for the benefit of the Irish and European industry” Sean Burke, National Delegate and Contact Point, […]

As part of its presidency of the Council of the EU, the Ministry of Public Administration, together with the European Commission, organized a high-level conference on artificial intelligence, where we could listen to how we will live and tackle artificial intelligence in the future. Participants discussed the European Artificial Intelligence Package adopted in April this year. The package contains proposals and guidelines on how to develop, introduce and regulate the use of ethical and trustworthy artificial intelligence in Europe in a human-centered way, ensuring that it is built and used for the benefit of the individual and society striving for democratic values, the rule of law and human rights. In his opening address to the conference, Minister of Public Administration Boštjan Koritnik emphasized that the field of artificial intelligence is a priority of the Slovenian Presidency of the Council of the EU. “We want to stimulate discussions on how to properly regulate this area and support the future development of artificial intelligence in a sustainable way. We are dealing with a relatively unknown field and only broad participation in an open debate can lead us forward in understanding the possible effects of different decisions for the future. That is why […]

Digitization and related technologies are increasingly shaping our lives. They are changing the way we work, shop, communicate and spend our free time. With the role of technology in our daily lives, the integration of these into the economy and public administration is becoming increasingly important for the entire country. In business circles, more and more industrial companies are turning to the concept of Industry 4.0 and service companies to the digital transformation. The central idea of ​​digital transformation is to change business processes in organizations in such a way that they are as much as possible supported and automated with the help of digital technologies. The need to promote the digital and technological transformation of the economy became even clearer during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many companies in Slovenia have already started digitalizing their operations, but the number is still too low. According to the DESI (Digital Economy and Society Index), Slovenia is below the average of the European Union (EU) in 16th place, and has even fallen behind in recent years. Of the four areas assessed by DESI, Slovenia performed even worse in the use of Internet services, followed by the integration of digital technologies. For the EU, the […]

We got another project! It is an ADMA TranS4MErs project. ADMA TranS4MErs will accelerate the development of factories to become ‘Factories of the Future‘ which will meet ecological, digital and social challenges. This will be possible through a clever combination of different approaches such as the establishment of a community platform, development of toolboxes, virtual and physical training activities, assistance programs, tailored training content in all relevant technological areas and a range of different applications. All these services will support SMEs on the path of transformation. The consortium is equipped with all the necessary experience and expertise and has a wide geographical reach enables us to provide services either on the doorstep or on screen.

In cooperation with OPSI HUB Slovenije DIH UM organized a workshop focusing on good practices in the field of open data. A video is available for all those of you who missed it. The event which was held on the 31st of May was primarily directed towards all those who encounter open data issues in their research and seek advice on personal data protection as well as topics related to the GDPR. Watch the video: MSc Andrej Tomšič, the Deputy Information Commissioner, kicked-off the event with his presentation on the protection of personal data and the role of GDPR in the reuse of data. Following the presentation MSc Aleš Veršič from the Ministry of Public Administration talked about examples of good practice in the field of open data and dr. Monika Cvetkov from the Ljubljana Technology Park, introduced the participants to the Odeon and Deas projects. The workshop was also supported by doc. dr. Muhamed Turkanović, head of DIH UM and the DIGI-SI consortium, who delivered a welcome speech at the beginning of the event.

The Strategic Council for Digitalisation which acts as an advisory body to the Prime Minister has been established. It will prepare a framework proposal for the necessary systemic changes aiming to accelerate the digitalisation of the Slovenian economy within five months. At the correspondence session the Government was informed about the establishment and appointment of the Strategic Council for Digitalisation which acts as an advisory body to the Prime Minister. Its tasks which should be accomplished within five months include the preparation of a framework proposal of the necessary systemic changes to accelerate the digitalisation of the Slovenian economy, public sector, state administration and society as a whole; prepare opinions and proposals for the Prime Minister regarding the strategy for the development of artificial intelligence, cyber security and other areas of the world work; monitoring the implementation of strategies, plans and measures in the field of digitalization (Digital Slovenia, Public Administration Development Strategy …); global development of digital technologies and preparation of strategic guidelines; and to create proposals for the Prime Minister concerning concrete measures and legal acts in the field of digitalization. “We have set up a Strategic Council for Digitalization. In the past major changes were brought about […]

Although globalization has created many benefits for clients and producers alike it has also brought about new challenges. Prominent examples of bad practice which resonate with socially conscious customers include the exploitation of cheap labour and decreased transparency in food supply chains, with producers misusing various ‘fair trade’ brands and branding. A big part of the world has vowed to pursue the United Nations (UN) sustainability goals. Nowadays many technology companies are looking into potential solutions which could increase transparency in this area, with blockchain and artificial intelligence technologies seen as potential answers to this problem. While many have known blockchain primarily as the technology that enables the existence of cryptocurrencies which are in turn tightly connected to speculative investment schemes, the future holds new valuable applications ​​of blockchain. There are many indications that blockchain technology will revolutionize the sustainable production and sale of food as well. As part of Podim DX Leanne Kemp, CEO of Everledger and co-chair of the World Economic Forum on the future of manufacturing, will reveal how traceability, trust and new technologies are linked to sustainability goals. Read the whole article (Slovene) (The original article was published on the ProFinance.si webpage)

Supercomputer Vega was formally launched in Maribor. Constructed as part of the project “Upgrading national research infrastructures” (HPC RIVR) it was named after the mathematician Jurij Vega and is located in the premises of the Institute of Information Sciences Maribor (Izum). According to the Vice-Rector of the University of Maribor, Zoran Ren, it ranks Slovenia among the world’s superpowers in terms of computing power, and enables Slovenian and European scientists to make exceptional discoveries. According to the Vice-Rector of the University of Maribor, Zoran Ren, the Vega supercomputer which was officially launched in Maribor today ranks Slovenia among the world’s superpowers in terms of computing power and enables Slovenian and European scientists to make exceptional discoveries. Prime Minister Janez Janša highlighted the contribution of such systems to the search for covid-19 vaccines. The most powerful supercomputer in Slovenia to date is the result of the partnership between the project “Upgrading national research infrastructures” (HPC RIVR) and the European High Performance Computing Joint Undertaking (EuroHPC) initiative. It is located in the premises of the Institute of Information Sciences Maribor (Izum). According to the director of Izum, dr. Aleš Bošnjak, it is one of the most powerful supercomputers in Europe and the world. […]

To answer this question, we knocked on the door of science, and assistant professor dr. Nejc Novak and young researcher Anja Mauko from the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Maribor answered. With the help of supercomputers Nejc and Anja process vast quantities of data, a process which enables the development of new materials such as advanced cellular matter. In the future, we will be able to use these materials to improve car safety, the efficiency of medical devices and produce more comfortable clothing. For their work Nejc and Anja use the HPC RIVR supercomputer systems, which are financed by the European Regional Development Fund and MIZS.gov.si. ???????? With supercomputer systems such as the HPC RIVR, the European Union supports the development of innovative supercomputer technologies in order to improve the quality of life, promote scientific work, increase economic competitiveness and ensure Europe’s technological independence. Evrope.     FIND OUT MORE

HPC RIVR enables Slovenian researchers and industry to take advantage of the newest supercomputer technology, therefore, significantly increasing Slovenia’s competitiveness not only on international markets but in the scientific sphere as well. The equipment developed within the HPC RIVR adds Slovenia to the list of countries which have developed supercomputer technology. Unlike traditional HPC centres primarily dedicated to intensive computing, the HPC RIVR enables the processing of large datasets, fast exchange with other computing centres and computations using modern GPUs. With the formal event the project “Upgrade of national research infrastructures – HPC RIVR” which led to the development of a national supercomputer centre ,and resulted in the creation of the most powerful public supercomputer in Slovenia, is nearing completion. In his address prof. dr. Zdravko Kačič, the Chancellor of the University of Maribor, pointed out: ”Just as we were looking forward to the symbolic launch of the HPC RIVR prototype supercomputer a year and a half ago, we are now looking forward to the fact that the equipment developed in the HPC RIVR project firmly positioned Slovenia among countries with developed supercomputer technology, and within the Top500 among the top 100 largest supercomputers in the world… The all-Slovenian HPC […]

During this year’s Presidency of the Republic of Slovenia of the EU Council, the Ministry of Economic Development and Technology, SPIRIT Slovenia, the Digital Innovation Hub of Slovenia (DIH Slovenije) and the company BTC d.d. are preparing the project “Digital Exhibition Center – Technology for People”. Through DIH UM as the coordinator of the DIGI-SI consortium the University of Maribor has been invited to participate in the above-mentioned project, which will take place between 1 July 2021 and 31 December 2021 in BTC City Ljubljana. We would like to involve the wider university community and interested experts to participate in the shaping of the cooperation proposal. In the coming days, until Friday the 26th of March, DIH UM will be collecting proposals for events submitted by employees of the University of Maribor. In Annex 1 you can find general guidelines for designing a 6-month program of events. The thematic areas of the project include: AI, 5G and cyber security, Sustainable society and economy, Smart cities and communities, Digitization, Industry 4.0. in robotics. We ask all interested researchers to include information on the type of event and the extent to which it could be carried out (eg the organization of all […]

We invite you to attend the opening ceremony of the European Innovation Council, which will take place on Thursday, March 18, 2021 between 9: 30-11: 30. This will be followed with an EIC applicant’s day: Friday 19th of March 2021 (9.30 – 16.30 CET) to provide detailed presentations and Q&A on the main calls for proposals. Along with statements from Heads of States and EU institutions, the launch ceremony will feature short sessions focusing on the contribution of the EIC to Europe’s economic recovery and the role of technological breakthroughs in the pursuit of its strategic goals. The event will be webstreamed live on Youtube and no registration is necessary. More information on EIC can be found in the attached files (Factsheet, EIC Launch FAQ). A short summary of the benefits for researchers, businesses, investors and corporations is provided below. EIC – The third pillar of the Horizon Europe program for businesses, researchers, investors and corporations Within the Horizon Europe Strategic Plan The European Innovation Council is part of the third prillar which focuses on innovation initiatives.The EIC is a key novelty of Horizon Europe and represents the most ambitious innovation initiative that Europe has taken, with a budget of […]

At its 59th regular session, the Government of the Republic of Slovenia was informed about the selection of candidates who applied for the open call for European digital innovation hubs (EDIH). Based on the assessments of the interdepartmental expert commission of the Ministry of Public Administration and the Ministry of Economic Development and Technology, the DIGI-SI consortium was selected as one of the national candidates for EDIH which will proceed to the second phase of evaluation. Alongside DIH UM (coordinator) the DIGI-SI consortium consists of DIH Slovenia, the Jožef Štefan Institute, Technology Park Ljubljana, Arctur and DIH Agrifood. European Digital Innovation Hubs (EDIH) play a key role within the Digital Europe Program (DEP) proposed by The European Commission. EDIHs will function as a single point of contact that will help companies respond to different digital challenges and become more competitive. By providing access to technical expertise and experimentation as well as the possibility to “test before invest”, EDIHs help companies improve business/production processes, products, or services using digital technologies. They also provide innovation services, such as financing advice, training, and skills development that are needed for a successful digital transformation. Environmental issues are also taken into account, in particular with […]

In the first edition of AI REGIO news, you will can find out everything about the EDIH 2021 conference, the new AI4EU call, you can watch videos from the Connected Factories 2 cybersecurity workshop, and listen to an informative TED Talk on Machine Learning and Teamwork. Furthermore, the project partners are inviting you to visit the new AI REGIO project website. Spletna stran projekta Preberi novice

The Ministry of Public Administration is cooperating with the AI4SI initiative to assist in the preparation of a list of existing projects / solutions associated with the introduction of AI in Slovenia. The ministry would like to gain an overview of AI based solutions only; information on more general IT related projects are not being collected. In the list it is also possible to enter projects taking place in diverse fields  and it is not mandatory to be involved in the project itself to complete the entry. The AI4SI initiative has prepared an online form in which you can fill in. As the goal of the ministry is that the list also serves for the promotion of Slovenian AI solutions in international environments, please fill in the form in English. Fill in the questionnaire

In this year’s nternational Innovation Exhibition ARCA 2020 researchers from around the world presented more than 180 innovations applicable in diverse fields: from industry to the use in the everyday life. The innovations presented at the fair were developed by individual inventors, public sector and private research groups, acatemic and scientific institutions, as well as start-ups and other entrepreneurs The invention “Method and device for storing, inspection control and retrieval of data from a permanently immutable, distributed and decentralized storage” received a gold medal in the competition. The innovation  is a result of collaborative work among researchers/innovators of the Institute of Informatics UM FERI and RCUM doc. dr. Muhamed Turkanović, senior lecturer dr. Boštjan Kežmah, Blaž Podgorelec, doc. dr. Aida Kamišalić Latifić, M.Sc. Marjana Heričko and prof. dr. Marjan Heričko. Prof. dr. Aleš Hoblar also received a silver medal for the innovation “Decomposition of compound muscle action potentials”. Congratulations to all the innovators!

The central infrastructure of DIH UM is the HPC RIVR – a new supercomputer that will become one of the most important research tools in the new decade. At the end of 2019, we established our first HPC RIVR supercomputer, named Maister, which is the most powerful publicly owned supercomputer in Slovenia and the second most powerful in Slovenia in general (currently the most powerful supercomputer in Slovenia is only in the private company Arctur in Nova Gorica). Otherwise, Maister is just a prototype with which we at the University of Maribor are preparing to establish an actual HPC RIVR Vega supercomputer. We will establish this during 2020 and it will become by far the most powerful supercomputer in Slovenia, which will also be included in the list of the 100 most powerful computers in the world. With a capacity of 240 teraflops per second, Maister ranks second behind the Arctur supercomputer, which has a capacity of 340 teraflops per second. After upgrading the supercomputer center with HPC RIVR Vega, the capacity will be as much as 10,000 teraflops per second.     Zoran Ren, Vice-Rector for Research at the University of Maribor, explained that the new supercomputer places Slovenia […]

DIH UM, together with 40 partners from all over Europe will be implementing the DIH WORLD project (Accelerating the introduction and maturity of DIH in favor of the digitalisation of European SMEs), applied under H2020-EU program.2.1.1. – INDUSTRIAL LEADERSHIP – Leadership in enabling and industrial technologies – Information and Communication Technologies (ICT).   DIH-World aims to accelerate the uptake of advanced digital technologies by European manufacturing SMEs in all sectors and support them in building sustainable competitive advantages and reaching global markets strengthening the capacities of regional DIHs, particularly in underrepresented regions across Europe. As intermediaries of successful local SME digital transformation, DIH World, aims at providing DIHs, access to harmonised tools, well proven technologies, effective methodologies, sound knowledge, smart investment sources, rich training assets and overall a vibrant innovation environment. The final aim is to accelerate the matureness of DIHs and the development of their collaboration capabilities, and avoid a DIH divide due to lack of access to technologies, skills, networks, investment and infrastructures with special emphasis in underrepresented regions; so they can capitalise and leverage on the European DIHs Networks their resources and facilities for the benefit of their local SMEs. This will be achieved thanks to the: […]

At the annual event of the Knowledge and Technology Transfer Service of the University of Maribor, we solemnly signed a Cooperation Agreement with strategic partners DIH Agrifood and DIGITECH SI-EAST, with which we will in the future promote the digital transformation of the East Slovenian cohesion region.   The entire event was thematically colored in the color of digitalization and our leader, Dr. Muhamed Turkanović, also addressed the guests to promote digital transformation and consequently increase the growth of Slovenian companies.  

Together with renowned European organization ECORYS, we at DIH UM prepared a State of play Report on the situation in East cohesion region of Slovenija. The purpose of this report emphasized the advantages in the potential growth of the East cohesion region of Slovenija, which is covered by the Digital Innovation Hub of the University of Maribor. The report is available at the link below. State of play report – DIH University of Maribor

On 20 January 2019, with the decision of the Rector at University of Maribor, we officially established the Digital Innovation Hub UM (DIH UM), which will operate as a regional network of research and support institutions and industry. We will accelerate the digital transformation of Slovenia by using the most modern infrastructure and offering top digital technological innovations and services for industry. It acts as a single entry point for the Eastern Cohesion Region and helps the economy identify suitable partners who can help them in the digital transformation process.