BE-AIFA Inauguration Event: JAIF Deepens Its Partnerships in the European AI Ecosystem

On 16 September, stakeholders from industry, politics and research, including representatives of the JAIF consortium, came together in Brussels to celebrate the inauguration of the Belgian AI Factory Antenna BE-AIFA. In addition to the 19 European AI Factories, including JAIF, EuroHPC JU is strengthening the dynamic AI ecosystem through another strand in the dense European collaborative network: 13 AI Factory Antennas that complement existing services and extend access to AI-optimised supercomputing infrastructure across Europe. JAIF and the AI Factory LUMI will act as strategic partners for the Belgian Antenna.

BE-AIFA will provide access to computing power and high-quality data and contribute to the development of European capacity building in AI. It will focus in particular on societal sectors such as defence and security, health, biotechnology and life sciences, manufacturing, robotics and process control, space and aeronautics, as well as the digital transformation of public services.

Breaking Ground for Advanced European AI Infrastructure

The first half of the event focused primarily on the political implications of AI in Europe and the resulting considerations for a pan-European strategy. Following speeches by Belgian politicians Matthias Diependaele, Minister-President of the Government of Flanders, and Boris Dilliès, Minister-President of the Brussels-Capital Region, the contributions focused on the connections between AI Factories and Antennas, as well as on local needs for European AI computing resources. This first part of the event concluded with a panel featuring JAIF Executive Board member and Director of the Jülich Supercomputing Centre Thomas Lippert and LUMI AI Factory Director Pekka Manninen, who introduced both AI Factories.

The second half of the day was dedicated to the practical impact of AI Factories. In addition to talks on user experiences and business opportunities in AI, the guests learned more about the portfolio and structure of the Belgian AI Factory Antenna. Two political contributions – by Pierre-Yves Jeholet, Vice-President and Minister of the Economy, Industry, Employment, Training, Research and Digital Affairs in Wallonia, and Vanessa Matz, Minister for Public Action and Modernisation, responsible for Digital Affairs and Science Policy – underscored the importance of further advancing AI infrastructure in Belgium and Europe. For JAIF, this official inauguration is more than a kick-off: it marks a further deepening of the existing collaborations with the Belgian Antenna and the LUMI AI Factory.

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