Turin hosts landmark Africa-Europe AI collaboration event
Date: 2026-03-14
By: Nana Appiah Acquaye
The
city of Turin today hosted “Shaping AI Futures Across Africa and Europe,” a
high-profile event bringing together African AI innovators and leaders from
Italian and European industry and innovation sectors. The gathering provided a
platform for pitching, collaboration, and matchmaking, with over 200
participants exploring operational pathways for sustainable AI infrastructure,
climate and energy solutions, education, and skills development.
The
event, held at the United Nations Campus at the International Training Centre
of the ILO (ITCILO), was organized in partnership with the AI Hub for
Sustainable Development, the Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy, the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, UNDP, the City of
Turin, and other industry and innovation partners. It aligned with the
Italy-Africa Mattei Plan and the EU-Italy cooperation framework, emphasizing
operational collaboration between African startups and European industrial
ecosystems.
Since
its launch in June 2025, the AI Hub for Sustainable Development has mobilized
1.5 million GPU hours through CINECA, allocated USD 3 million in cloud credits
from Microsoft and AWS, and supported more than 50 startups across healthcare,
agriculture, energy, and multilingual AI in over 40 African languages.
Participants included Africa Compute Fund, AI Grid SOL, Armstrong, Chestify AI
Labs, Deepleaf, Hasab AI, Rydlr Cloud Services, and Africa Climate & Energy
Nexus.
Senator
Adolfo Urso, Italy’s Minister of Enterprises and Made in Italy, highlighted the
event as a model for operational Africa-Europe AI collaboration. Dr. Eva Spina,
Chair of the AI Hub for Sustainable Development, emphasized the importance of
equitable partnerships and practical pathways for scaling innovation.
Representatives from the European Commission and the City of Turin also
underscored the role of responsible and sustainable AI development in fostering
industrial, scientific, and entrepreneurial partnerships.
The
Turin event builds on the Nairobi AI Forum and the AI Impact Summit in Delhi,
which set in motion initiatives such as the AI 10 Billion Initiative and the
100 AI Diffusion Pathways by 2030. The AI Hub aims to expand infrastructure
access to over 200 innovators, engage more than 15,000 startups, partner with
60 private sector entities, and deploy AI systems in 30 African languages
across 29 countries by 2028.
