AI and Advanced Manufacturing in Slovenia: a National Blueprint for Industry 5.0
Slovenia, one of the Vanguard Initiative European industrial regions, is a small and highly developed Central European country distinguished by its strong industrial tradition and advanced position in digital and deep technologies, including Artificial Intelligence (AI) and robotics. Slovenia's industry is highly export-oriented, with exports constituting a large portion of the economy and focusing primarily on the European Union market. The country's manufacturing sector holds a substantial share of the Gross Domestic Product, making Slovenia the third most industrialized EU member state. The nation is strategically aligning its research, innovation, and economic policies to foster a human-centric, sustainable, and resilient manufacturing sector, in line with the European vision of Industry 5.0.
National AI and Robotics Foundation
Slovenia possesses a well-established base in advanced industrial technologies:
Robotics density: Slovenia is one of the leaders in robotics within Central and Eastern Europe. Its robot density is high, with 183 installed robots per 10,000 workers, significantly exceeding the European average (123) and the US figure (111).
Sectoral leadership: The automotive industry is particularly robotized, with Slovenia ranking 7th globally for its share of robots per 10,000 employees.
AI use in industry: Approximately 20% of Slovenian manufacturing companies currently use at least one type of AI-based software solution in their processes. The most frequently adopted use case for AI-enabled software is Quality Control. Other areas of application include management of production processes, maintenance of machinery, and internal logistics.
Investment: The national AI strategy, the National Programme on Artificial Intelligence (NpAI, 2021-2026), foresees investments of €112 million for the development and use of AI.
Slovenian Sustainable Smart Specialisation Strategy (S5)
The Slovenian Smart Specialisation Strategy (S4), which has been updated to the Slovenian Sustainable Smart Specialisation Strategy (S5), is the key national policy framework for strengthening the innovation ecosystem and guiding economic transformation.
The S5 identifies national strategic development priorities, focusing on niches supported by a comprehensive policy mix. It is a foundational requirement for Slovenia to access EU Cohesion Policy funding under the objective of "A Smarter Europe". It promotes a new model of cooperation through Strategic Research and Innovation Partnerships (SRIPs), which function as innovation clusters in different domains (Smart Cities and Communities, Smart Buildings and Home with the Wood Chain, Factories of the Future, Health – Medicine, Sustainable Mobility, Sustainable Food, Materials as End Products, Transition to a Circular Economy, Sustainable Tourism, ICT).
AI REDGIO 5.0 partner KC STV (Competence Centre for Advanced Control Technologies) is a beneficiary of SRIP Factories of the Future, where it is leading advanced industrial control technology as one of the key technologies in SRIP’s ecosystem.
The strategic objective of S5 is the Green Transition, which is defined as an innovative, low-carbon, digital, and knowledge-based transformation of the economy and society. The strategy explicitly puts the twin transition(green and digital) and the use of deep tech (advanced technologies like AI) at the core of its agenda. While the national AI strategy is implemented horizontally, Industry 4.0 is one of the six key sectors identified as the most promising for the application of AI, alongside health, language technologies, and the public sector.
Key Enablers for AI Excellence
Slovenia's advanced position is supported by a strong foundation of research institutions and European networks:
Outstanding Research Institutions for AI
Slovenia has a long history of AI research dating back to 1972. Key institutions include:
Jožef Stefan Institute (JSI): The country's leading scientific research institute, which houses three departments dedicated to AI, engaging over 150 researchers. It is partner of AI REDGIO 5.0.
IRCAI (International Research Center for Artificial Intelligence): Hosted at JSI under the auspices of UNESCO, IRCAI is an internationally recognised center dedicated to promoting open, ethical, and sustainable AI development.
University of Ljubljana (UL): The Faculty of Computer and Information Science (FRI) is a leading educational and research institution where AI is the strongest research field, supported by five active laboratories. The University is partner of AI REDGIO 5.0.
Other key players include the National Institute of Chemistry and various faculties at the University of Maribor.
Role of Slovenian European Digital Innovation Hubs (EDIHs)
European Digital Innovation Hubs (EDIHs) act as one-stop shops to help businesses and public sector organizations accelerate their digital transformation, with a strong focus on AI adoption.
SRC-EDIH: This EDIH supports the digital transformation of manufacturing companies and public organisations, focusing on five key technologies, including Artificial Intelligence and Robotics. It provides knowledge transfer, training on AI/machine learning, and access to the infrastructure needed to test new technologies and support Industry 4.0 objectives.
Digital Innovation Hub Slovenia (DIHS): A national non-profit institute that acts as an upgraded national platform, supporting SMEs with knowledge, technology expertise, experimental environments, and professional support for digital competence development.
Outstanding Results and Future Development
Slovenia is actively building the infrastructure to cement its role as a regional and European leader in AI:
Slovenian AI Factory (SLAIF): Slovenia secured the opportunity to establish one of Europe's new AI Factories, supported by a next-generation high-performance supercomputer, by being ranked first among all applicants in the EuroHPC AI Factory call.
Impact on Industry: The SLAIF infrastructure is a strategic enabler for AI-driven R&D, facilitating industrial optimization, supply chain simulation, and smart manufacturing applications.
Slovenia is cooperating with the AI Factory in Bologna, Italy, through a partnership in a major European initiative to boost Artificial Intelligence (AI) and High-Performance Computing (HPC). It is collaborating partner of IT4LIA AI Factory Consortium, investing €5 million in the project, which will go toward upgrading the AI-optimized supercomputing infrastructure in Bologna.
Industry 5.0 Leadership: Slovenia is uniquely positioned to integrate AI, blockchain, supercomputing, and other technologies to advance into Industry 5.0, which champions human-centric, sustainable, and resilient industrial systems.
Language Technologies: Slovenian researchers are developing a generative Large Language Model (known as GaMS/PoVeJMo) for the Slovenian language. This open-source model is intended for various types of use, including integration in medicine and industry, ensuring that a small language retains its place in the digital future.
Slovenia’s experience shows how a small, highly industrialized country can successfully align advanced manufacturing and Artificial Intelligence with the European vision of Industry 5.0. By combining strong industrial capabilities, long-standing excellence in AI research, targeted public investment, and coordinated policy frameworks, Slovenia has built a resilient, human-centric, and future-oriented industrial ecosystem. With world-class research institutions, active innovation clusters, powerful digital infrastructure, and a clear commitment to the green and digital twin transition, the country is well positioned to lead the next phase of industrial transformation and to serve as a reference model for sustainable and inclusive industrial innovation in Europe.
AI REDGIO 5.0 Slovenian partners: KC STV - Competence Centre for Advanced Control Technologies, Jožef Stefan Institute, POLYCOM, University of Ljubljana