The event brought together leaders, policymakers, and experts from across the region to discuss the future of urban innovation, sustainability, and regional cooperation. Established as a premier regional platform for collaboration, the summit serves as a catalyst for fostering closer ties between local governments, encouraging dialogue, and developing joint solutions to shared challenges in areas such as economic growth, green transition, and digital transformation. With 73 cities from 12 countries participating, B40 is shaping the urban future of the Balkans through knowledge exchange, strategic partnerships, and forward-thinking initiatives.

Prof. Petrova-Antonova emphasized the impact of PPPs in urban development, highlighting their ability to bridge the gap between government limitations and private-sector innovation also pointing out key areas where AI-driven solutions can make a difference:

“One of the most impactful areas of collaboration is smart mobility, where AI-driven traffic management systems can reduce congestion and enhance public transport efficiency. In energy, smart grids developed through PPPs improve distribution and integrate renewable sources, making cities more sustainable.”

Additionally, Prof. Petrova-Antonova discussed how Artificial Intelligence is transforming urban development, making cities more efficient, sustainable, and resilient. GATE’s Sofia Urban Digital Twin serves as a prime example of how technology can enhance urban planning through data insights and predictive analytics.

GATE’s participation in B40 highlights the institute’s dedication to advancing data-driven urban innovation. Through its Digital Twin of Sofia pilot, GATE is pioneering AI-powered simulations that allow city planners to optimize urban development, enhance mobility solutions, and improve decision-making processes. Additionally, the institute is leading the way in establishing Bulgaria’s first Urban Data Space, a groundbreaking initiative designed to foster secure and efficient data sharing between public and private stakeholders, ensuring more transparent and effective governance.

A key highlight of the discussion was GATE’s upcoming participation in the Bulgarian Pavilion at Expo 2025 in Osaka. The ambassador expressed keen interest in the institute’s contributions and potential collaborations with Japanese academic and business institutions during the event. Both parties agreed on the importance of leveraging Expo 2025 as a platform to showcase technological advancements and establish new partnerships.

Beyond academia, the conversation extended to industry collaboration. The discussion underlined the significance of interdisciplinary cooperation in advancing research and commercializing innovative solutions.

The meeting was held in the spirit of the aspiration to strengthen Bulgarian-Japanese relations in the field of science, technology and business. GATE remains committed to international cooperation, driving innovation, and contributing to global scientific progress.

Georgi Petkov joined the discussion on the development of science and healthcare through technology.

The forum focused on the magnitude of the societal transformation brought about by the development of artificial intelligence, especially in terms of how knowledge is acquired and how people relate to technology in terms of adaptability, ways of working, conscious control over the machine and socialization of people with each other.

One of the key strengths of DataPACT is its real-world application, with seven use cases spanning healthcare, media, manufacturing, smart cities, and law enforcement. These cases will serve as testing grounds, demonstrating how compliance-driven AI solutions can work in practice.

GATE Institute is involved in the work package dedicated to the project use cases – sandbox, products, and services. As part of this effort, GATE is developing URBSPACE, a new service for Smart Cities that will assess compliance within Urban Data Spaces, ensuring that AI-driven urban solutions meet regulatory and ethical standards. By focusing on data interoperability, regulatory alignment, and ethical AI governance, GATE contributes to the creation of trustworthy and sustainable data ecosystems.

With a consortium of 18 partners from 16 countries, DataPACT brings together leading universities, research centers, SMEs, and industry players to create a robust and interoperable data ecosystem. The project’s mission goes beyond regulatory compliance—it is about building a trustworthy AI and data infrastructure that balances innovation, accountability, and sustainability.

A high-level panel discussion titled “Europe for Global Leadership in AI and Data – A Policy and Research Perspective” was participated in by the director of GATE, Prof. Sylvia Ilieva. During her address, GATE’s latest initiatives were highlighted, including the development of a regulatory sandbox that facilitates collaboration between regulators and developers. This sandbox is viewed as a crucial step towards shaping effective AI regulations and ensuring ethical practices in the deployment of AI technologies.

Additionally, an insightful presentation on the implementation of the AI Act was delivered by Ivo Emanuilov, Researcher in AI Law, Ethics & Regulation. Valuable perspectives on the regulatory landscape for AI in Europe were provided through his contributions during the session on “Data, AI, and Interoperability: Shaping the Regulatory Sandbox Ecosystem for Innovation.”

An engaging session on Generative AI for Data and Knowledge Engineering was moderated by Prof. Dessislava Petrova-Antonova, Research Lead at GATE, with support from notable projects such as enRichMyData, Dynabic-eu, HUMAINE, and INTEND. The complexities and challenges associated with generative AI were the focus of this session, with key issues like transparency and fairness in AI deployment discussed.

The recognition from BDVA is seen as a foundation for future collaborations and impactful projects that will contribute to sustainable development in Bulgaria and beyond.

With this award, BDVA honors hubs that support data-driven innovation and AI development across Europe. Each year, candidate hubs are evaluated based on criteria such as provision of high-tech infrastructure, scope and innovation of the services offered, participation in international projects, including coordination, and overall impact on the data ecosystem. Hubs are classified into five categories — start-up, bronze, silver, gold and platinum — depending on their degree of maturity and potential to drive innovation.

“The Silver i-Space award is a recognition of quality and trust that establishes GATE as a leading center for research excellence and innovation. It highlights our commitment to using data to solve complex problems and support informed decision-making in various application areas,” said Prof. Silvia Ilieva, Director of the Institute. “For us, this distinction is not only an achievement, it is a responsibility. We believe that the GATE Innovation Space (GATE i-Space) will support the implementation of projects with high social and economic impact that are aimed at addressing global societal challenges, support smart industries and contribute to sustainable development,” she added.

“Although GATE is a young organization, with your first application you have already achieved the medium, silver level of development of the Innovation Space. Continue to build on your achievements, we are waiting for you in the gold and platinum level,” emphasized Thomas Hahn, the president of the BDVA, when presenting the award.

GATE i-Space was created to support the development and implementation of high-tech solutions based on big data and artificial intelligence, and to provide resources and services to external users and third parties. It enables easy and rapid prototyping, validation and experimentation in real-world environments, demonstrating the value of technology and data in a variety of scenarios. It supports SMEs from traditional sectors for experimentation and demonstration, as well as innovative start-ups that use the data space for their development and pre-investment activities. The main services of GATE i-Space are based on a high-tech infrastructure, integrating a palette of software tools and a data platform that cover the entire life cycle of data (collection and structuring, processing, analysis and visualization) and three innovation laboratories – a city living laboratory, digital twins lab and visualization lab. Among the additional services are training programs to increase competence and expertise in the field of data, technical support and consulting for the development of new business models and data management, as well as initiatives for joint projects with business and public administration.

GATE i-Space aims to promote data-driven innovation in Bulgaria and Europe. It is also a major driving force in national and international initiatives related to the creation of data spaces in the field of mobility, healthcare and urban development.

With its Silver i-Space status, GATE i-Space cements its key role in realizing Europe’s data-driven digital future.