The vision of the LMIC is to attract world-class companies and universities "to make Latvia the most competitive country in the EU for the development of AI applications" the release said.
The establishment of the Latvian AI Center was supported by the National Security Council in April this year.
It is expected that in its first five years, the LMIC could attract €500 million of investment in projects that will be developed in the LMIC. According to the EM estimates, five international projects could be implemented in cooperation with global companies during this period, introduce two to three artificial intelligence (AI)-based solutions in public administration each year, and increase the level of innovation in the country.
However, the release did not include details of the outlay required to attract the stated €500 million of investment in a release that was notably short on specifics.
"There is already an ecosystem for AI solutions in Latvia, but it is fragmented. There are initiatives in universities, companies (LMT, Tet, Tilde, etc.), public institutions, and a number of associations involved, but it is not a priority," Minister of Economy Viktors Valainis (Greens and Farmers Union) was quoted as saying.
The EM vision sees that the LMIC's tasks will include coordinating the AI ecosystem, administering state support in the field of AI, developing AI security and reliability capabilities and processes, providing infrastructure for new product development, piloting and implementing AI solutions in public administration, as well as international cooperation projects in the field of AI.
In order to move forward, the LMIC project still requires a considerable number of steps: approval of the LMIC concept by the Cabinet of Ministers, preparation of a legal framework, working with stakeholders to resolve conceptual issues such as data sharing, security mechanisms, etc. To this end, a stakeholders' meeting with the State Data Inspectorate and companies, including a representative of Meta, will take place at the Ministry of Economy on Wednesday, October 23.
Meta is considering setting up an artificial intelligence center of excellence in Latvia, the Minister of Economics Viktors Valainis had previously announced, though the company itself noted other potential locations were also being considered.
