Robots that are friendly to the elderly
and to make
workplaces safer
,
artificial intelligence to optimize the large amount of data generated by research
and make it usable for new discoveries in a virtuous circle,
more environmentally friendly materials
and discover the secrets of the RNA to
accelerate drug research
: these are just some of the frontier research in which the Italian Institute of Technology intends to invest around a billion in the next six years, with the 2024-2029 strategic plan presented in Genoa at the end of the 20th anniversary celebrations of the Iit.
Digitalisation
and the
strengthening of infrastructures are the conditions for achieving the objectives of the plan, which assigns
750 million
to research activity
,
250 of which to basic research
, the so-called
Blue
Sky Research
and
500 to the five
Flagship
programs
which they aim to develop technologies for sustainability, health, RNA, neuroscience and machines and 'teaching science to computers'.
The focus is also on projects for cultural heritage and the space economy, and on the 'Iit Global' program for the opening of new institute centers abroad.
All this, in the name of "an
increasingly pervasive artificial intelligence
", observed the scientific director of the IIT, Giorgio Metta, referring to the need to be able to
organize and make the vast amount of data produced by the 80 research lines usable in the best possible way. in the 15 IIT centers active in Italy
.
For example, "in materials science, artificial intelligence can be used to make simulations and predictions, accelerating the discovery of new solutions."
"Other applications - continued Metta - are useful for
studying the genome
: obtaining the genetic sequences is important for collecting the data, but then the data must be put in order".
The same goes for
neuroscience
, where models based on AI systems are used.
It is also possible
to simulate the interaction between a molecule and biological structures
to speed up the discovery of new drugs."
For Metta there is no doubt that, thanks to this approach "new ideas will be born. I see the possibility of making research more efficient thanks to these technologies, such as software and algorithms, which then find application in industrial fields. It is also an opportunity important from an economic point of view, considering the estimate according to which the use of AI is worth 18% of our GDP, leading to less waste and less CO2 production".
The future of robots is also being prepared: "We are trying to increase performance and applicability not only for industry, but for daily life, for example with
robots for rehabilitation
, to
support aging
or as a support for the
therapy of certain disorders ,
such as that of the autistic spectrum".
As for the
250 million allocated to basic research
, Metta observed: "Our mission is to create applications and technologies, but
we need to produce new ideas because innovation is born in a fertile and interdisciplinary environment
, open to frontier research."
Finally, Iit Global which has the objective "of connecting us with other important realities in the world".
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