As part of the 20th NATO Emergency Management Exercise “BULGARIA 2025”, the GATE Institute at Sofia University hosted a special demonstration day for high-level officials on September 9, showcasing live new technologies for crisis preparedness and response.
The event was held under the auspices of the Euro-Atlantic Disaster Response Coordination Centre (EADRCC) and the Ministry of Interior of the Republic of Bulgaria and brought together experts from 29 Allies and 19 Partner countries, representatives of the European Union, regional and international organizations.
The GATE Strategic Session began with a welcome address by Prof. Silvia Ilieva, Director of the GATE Institute, who highlighted the importance of innovation and cross-sectoral cooperation in strengthening the resilience of societies.
“GATE was created to transform data and artificial intelligence into practical tools that serve people, strengthen institutions and make our shared infrastructure more resilient. We are the first Center of Excellence in Big Data and Artificial Intelligence in Eastern Europe and we have built this mission on scientific excellence, applied innovation and talent development,” said Prof. Ilieva.
The guests attended a series of demonstrations showing how science and technology can save lives. GATE researchers presented a model for predicting the risks of high temperatures in urban environments, which simulates the impact of extreme temperatures on the population and public health in real time. The platform developed by researchers in the Smart Government research area, which is based on new methods for countering disinformation and protecting the information space, was also shown.
Bulgarian companies from the innovation ecosystem also participated in the demonstrations: Neuromorphica, the first Bulgarian company to win the NATO Defence Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic (NATO DIANA) challenge, demonstrated sensor networks for early anomaly detection. Sfera Technologies presented automated damage assessment tools that accelerate rescue operations. The audience also saw how Identrics and Sensika track the development of online rumors, allowing institutions to react before disinformation turns into a crisis. The NATO Center of Excellence for Crisis Management and Disaster Response demonstrated its concept for a networked command system.
The exercise “BULGARIA 2025” strengthened cooperation between civil and military structures, tested new technologies and demonstrated how host country capacities – such as those of GATE – are essential for international crisis response and innovation. Through DIANA, GATE supports two-way innovation by providing start-ups with and innovators the tools to test and validate technologies with applications in both civilian and defense contexts.