In an interview published by La Stampa, AI4I President Fabio Pammolli reflects on the role of Artificial Intelligence in production processes, the need to strengthen STEM skills, and the tools required to support innovation-driven investment.
Published by La Stampa on 30 May 2026, an extensive interview with Fabio Pammolli, President of the Italian Institute of Artificial Intelligence (AI4I), explores some of the key issues shaping Europe’s future competitiveness: skills, human capital, investment and the adoption of Artificial Intelligence across industry.
The conversation starts from the Bank of Italy’s Annual Report and the growing relevance of AI within the real economy.
“We should not only use AI; we must understand how capable companies are of integrating it into their production processes,” Pammolli says. “Companies face both a challenge and an opportunity: if they succeed in integrating AI, they can scale their activities and leverage the data on which they have built their competitive advantage”.
From Experimentation to Industrial Deployment
According to Pammolli, Artificial Intelligence has moved beyond the experimental phase.
“From a technological standpoint, AI is now an engineering discipline, fully translated into solutions that companies can implement.” At the same time, he notes that the most advanced models still raise scientific questions that remain only partially understood.
SMEs and Access to Computing Infrastructure
Reflecting on Italy’s industrial structure, Pammolli highlights the central role of small and medium-sized enterprises.
“We need to make computing capacity and GPUs accessible to SMEs, because they are the real engine of industrial transformation.”
Education: More STEM Graduates, More Engineers and More Skills
For the President of AI4I, the first priority is human capital.
“Given the need for more qualified human capital and greater investment capacity, there are two tracks: education and investment.”
This requires action across the entire education pipeline, from schools and technical institutes to universities and lifelong learning.
“We need to intervene in school and university curricula and attract more talents, researchers and specialised technicians, including from abroad.”
Pammolli also stresses the importance of embedding computational and data-driven skills across a broader range of scientific disciplines.
“The number of engineering graduates is far too low compared with demand from sectors implementing AI. Universities, secondary schools and ITS institutes need to be infused with STEM skills.”
Investment and Financial Instruments
The second priority concerns investment capacity and access to capital.
“The reference point is the Draghi Report, namely the joint use of European and national resources.”
According to Pammolli, public intervention should focus on areas where markets alone cannot deliver, while private investment should be encouraged through mechanisms that lower the cost of capital.
Among the examples mentioned are InvestEU, the forthcoming Competitiveness Fund and SACE’s Archimede Guarantee scheme.
Europe and the Pace of Innovation
The interview also addresses Europe’s position in the global technological landscape.
“Technological transformations are accelerating enormously. The pace of politics and European institutions risks being too slow compared with the speed of innovation.”
Pammolli argues that Europe should make better use of synergies between national and EU programmes and deploy financial instruments more effectively to support AI development.
SUK: Supporting AI Adoption Across Industry
Among AI4I’s initiatives, Pammolli highlights SUK (System for User Knowledge), the platform designed to connect companies with AI solutions and providers.
“We analyse companies’ needs, help them understand their data and requirements, and identify the most suitable option”.
New Opportunities, New Skills
The interview concludes with a reflection on AI’s impact on work and employment.
“As with every major technological transformation, some professions and jobs will become obsolete, but new opportunities, activities and skills will emerge.”
For Pammolli, the priority is to prepare people, companies and institutions to govern this transformation through investment in skills, infrastructure and innovation capacity.
