Czech Republic boosts R&D cooperation with India in the field of artificial intelligence and hydrogen

Czech Republic boosts R&D; cooperation with India in the field of artificial intelligence and hydrogen

28.03.2023 / 07:31

Venue: Jaipur

The Ambassador of the Czech Republic to India Eliška Žigová made a three-day official visit to Jaipur in Rajasthan from 22nd to 24th March 2023 to strengthen scientific and research cooperation between the Czech Republic and India. The visit took place against the backdrop of the end of the academic year ceremony at NIMS University in the presence of a large group of Czech scientists from Czech Institute of Informatics, Robotics and Cybernetics (CIIRC) and university staff from the University of Science and Technology in Prague (VŠCHT).

The business trip included the laying of the foundation stone of the new Mařík Centre for Artificial Intelligence, Robotics and Cybernetics and the launch of a joint degree programme between VŠCHT and NIMS University. It is a great follow-up to the recent first official visit of the Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský to India in February 2023 that was focused on reinforcing the cooperation between the Czech Republic and India in innovation, research and development.

Czech-Indian scientific cooperation in science and research is moving to the next level thanks to the activities of leading Czech scientists. The Czech Institute for Informatics, Robotics and Cybernetics (CIIRC), prestigious research institute for the study of artificial intelligence, has established active cooperation with the private NIMS University in Jaipur, Rajasthan.

Construction of Marik Center of Artificial Intelligence, Robotics and Cybernetics

Its Chairman, Dr. B.S. Tomar, invited the founder of CIIRC Professor Vladimir Mařík to the launch of the new Mařík Centre for Artificial Intelligence, Robotics and Cybernetics. The Director of CIIRC Prof. Ondřej Velek accompanied Prof. Mařík. The CIIRC aims to deepen the international cooperation with India with new joint projects and exchange of students and researchers.

Foundation stone of new Marik Centre of AI, Robotics and Cybernetics

CIIRC were accompanied by the representatives of the University of Science and Technology in Prague (VŠCHT) including its Rector Professor Pavel Matějka and the Director and Chairman of the Board of the Czech-Polish company ORLEN UniCRE Jan Hájek. VŠCHT is ready to start a joint study programme in the field of hydrogen technology with NIMS University. ORLEN UniCRE aims to strengthen further the cooperation with its Indian partner to attract highly qualified and skilled workforce from India to the Czech Republic.

The number of Indian students at Czech universities is growing every year. There were only 356 in 2015 Indian students in the Czech Republic but almost 1500 Indian students enrolled in 2022, so the number has almost quadrupled in the last seven years. Indian students in the Czech Republic are increasingly interested in studying nature and technical subjects such as computer science, cybernetics and artificial intelligence.

The official visit of H.E. Eliška Žigová to Jaipur took place in the follow-up of the Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský´s first official visit to India in February 2023 that aimed to strengthen the cooperation between the Czech Republic and India in the field of innovation, science and research. H.E. Eliška Žigová together with Professor Vladimír Mařík received an honorary doctorate by the NIMS University.