Lisbon, July 2, 2026 (Lusa) - The president of the Centre for Responsible AI and spokesperson for the consortium of the same name said, in an interview with Lusa, that the consortium has developed 18 products, with an estimated turnover of €39 million in 2027.
Within the framework of this artificial intelligence (AI) consortium under the RRP – Recovery and Resilience Plan, led by Sword Health, these 18 products have direct applications, according to the chief executive (CEO) of the non-profit association, Paulo Dimas, who adds that there is another product called Green Score, which relates to the energy efficiency of the models.
However, “in terms of products with direct applications, we are talking about around 18 products”, and the total investment up to 31 March “amounted to €66 million, distributed amongst the start-ups, research centres and some industry leaders”, the consortium’s spokesperson said.
According to the CEO, “more than €20 million of this €66 million came from private investment”, which highlights the significant private contribution alongside the RRP.
“There is more than €20 million; these start-ups, even the smallest ones, had to invest and therefore had to, ultimately, over this period, create economic value and naturally attract investment so that they could achieve 87%, ” he said.
Data for the end of June is still pending, but it is “natural that this [execution] figure will increase over the next quarter”, with the spokesperson anticipating “that it will exceed 90% execution”
The total investment stands at €77 million, with public funding of around €50 million.
Paulo Dimas gives an “extremely positive” assessment of the consortium and notes that the plan was to file 20 patents over three and a half years.
“25 patents were created, so that target was exceeded. This came as a surprise to us” and “of course, the main driver of innovation here is Sword Health”, which creates all this intellectual property, he said.
On several levels, “I believe we have a formula for Portugal’s future, for Europe’s future”, noting that the first principle is that products must have an impact, be exportable and create economic value.
“We are talking about an estimated €39 million in turnover in 2027” resulting from these products.
Therefore, “we are already seeing a return on this investment”, said the CEO of the Centre for Responsible AI.
This “is the key element: the creation of this economic value, to boost exports, and subsequently to increase salaries, which are also crucial for retaining talent”.
And why does talent choose to leave? “For three reasons,” he says, pointing out that salaries are not yet on a par with those offered abroad; secondly, there is the issue of providing stimulating challenges to encourage young people to stay in the country and work on global products; and thirdly, there is the question of knowledge.
“It is the crux of the matter that we are working at the cutting edge of artificial intelligence,” he stressed.
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