Serbia Launches SAIFA AI Infrastructure Project
By Suad Seferi ·
Serbia has officially launched the SAIFA project, short for Serbian Artificial Intelligence Factory Antenna, a new initiative designed to connect the country more closely with Europe’s artificial intelligence and high-performance computing ecosystem. The project is coordinated by the School of Electrical Engineering at the University of Belgrade and supported through the EuroHPC Joint Undertaking. SAIFA is part of a wider European effort to expand access to advanced AI infrastructure, computing resources, data tools and expert support. Through this project, Serbia aims to strengthen its national AI capacity and provide researchers, startups, public institutions and companies with better access to the resources needed to develop and test artificial intelligence solutions. The project is important because modern AI development requires more than just software knowledge. Advanced AI systems often need large datasets, strong computing power, technical expertise, testing environments and cooperation between universities, industry and government. SAIFA is intended to become a bridge between Serbia’s local innovation ecosystem and the broader European AI network. By joining this network, Serbia is positioning itself not only as a user of artificial intelligence technologies, but also as a country that wants to participate in their development. The initiative could help domestic researchers and businesses work on more complex AI projects, including applications in healthcare, energy, agriculture, sustainability, culture and language technologies. The role of the University of Belgrade’s School of Electrical Engineering is especially significant. As coordinator, the faculty is expected to bring together academic expertise, technical infrastructure and cooperation with other institutions. This gives the project a strong research foundation and connects it with Serbia’s existing scientific and engineering community. SAIFA is also linked to Europe’s wider strategy of building AI Factories and AI Factory Antennas. These initiatives are meant to make advanced computing resources more accessible across the continent, especially for countries and organizations that may not have enough infrastructure on their own. For Serbia, this could mean easier access to European-level tools and knowledge without having to build everything independently from the beginning. The project could be particularly useful for startups and small companies. Many young AI businesses have ideas and technical talent but lack access to powerful computing resources or specialized support. If SAIFA succeeds, it could lower some of those barriers and make it easier for local teams to test, improve and deploy AI products. Public institutions may also benefit from the project. AI can support better public services, data analysis, planning and decision-making, but only if it is developed and used responsibly. A national AI hub could help institutions understand how to apply AI in a safer and more structured way. The launch of SAIFA comes at a time when Serbia is also preparing its first law on artificial intelligence. Together, these developments show that the country is working on two sides of the same challenge: building the infrastructure needed for AI innovation, while also preparing rules to manage the risks. For Serbia’s technology sector, the project represents a chance to move higher in the AI value chain. Instead of being seen mainly as a regional outsourcing or software services market, Serbia could strengthen its position as a place where more advanced AI research, testing and development can happen. The success of SAIFA will depend on how widely its services are used and whether it can create real cooperation between academia, industry, startups and the public sector. If the project becomes accessible and practical, it could become one of the central pillars of Serbia’s AI development in the coming years. In the broader regional context, SAIFA also gives Serbia a stronger role in Europe’s AI infrastructure map. As artificial intelligence becomes increasingly important for economic competitiveness, scientific research and public policy, projects like this could determine which countries are able to keep pace with technological change and which remain only consumers of foreign AI solutions.