Accelerates digitalization in startups, SMBs and the public sector by being a hub that connects knowledge, testing and capital across sectors along the Norwegian coastline.

Together, we create a better digital and sustainable future.

This is the second gathering in Mandal organized by EDIH Oceanapolis. The first meeting was about inspiration; this event it was a workshop, and the day was exploratory and exciting. The possibilities is in thinking outside the box. Twenty-five enthusiastic individuals attended the workshop, shedding light on and inspiring a new culture - a data-driven culture. Modeling new business areas is also essential in exploring new opportunities. Which other partners can we connect with, and how can we strengthen our market position - or possibly expand our market? The engagement was good, inspiring continuation. EDIH Oceanopolis brought along Øyvind Mydland from EDIH Oceanopolis, Christian Nordbach from MIL Grimstad, and Ellen Nordgård-Hansen from Norce.

The role of AI in stimulating innovation, identifying the right moments to deploy AI, and the potential challenges and opportunities associated with embracing AI-driven innovation is at the outmost importance At the AI for Innovation event; EDIH Oceanopolis, togheter with Pedab used the event to let Vidar Svensen from IBM talk about using the right AI tools to fuel meaningful innovation safely. Additionally, Rune Skår and Herman Jangsett Mostein from Visit gave an insightful glimpse into how AI is revolutionizing efficiency in journalistic research with their presentation on «Djinn». Following that, Vitesh Aggarwal, Manager of Advanced Core Services at Lyse tele showcased how Lyse and ICE works with internal processes and development paths on AI within Lyse's mobile business. The event culminated in a stimulating panel discussion moderated by Alvaro Fernandez-Quilez, an Associate Professor in AI at the University of Stavanger. The panel explored the rationale behind utilizing AI for innovation, while also addressing potential concerns and limitations.

The meeting took place at Innovation Norway. The project in which the clusters and EDIHs participate is funded through the Norwegian EEA project funds for Romania. The organization that organizes Ukrainian clusters via Teams and the Ukraine-Norway Chamber of Commerce also participated in the meeting. Several potential follow-ups for trilateral cooperation were discussed. Following the joint meeting, EDIH Oceanopolis, represented by Anne Grete Ellingsen, had a meeting with Ema Modoran, who leads the Romanian EDIH EHUB, to discuss common project opportunities.

Every year in the ancient city of Delphi, Delphi Economic Forum gathers top leaders from across sectors in an effort to spark dialogue, inspire change, and transform conversation into action. EDIH Oceanopolis will be present at this important conference to present and talk about to main topics: Fisheries and aquaculture. Today, fisheries and aquaculture are the main sources of food from the ocean. Fisheries: In recent years, fisheries have stagnated due to fish stock limitations, overfishing ... With the warming of the ocean comes geographical changes in water chemistry, microbiome, currents, altered migration of species and temporal miss matches within the food web and rising tides will impact fish stocks by altering estuarian nurseries and coastal freshwater systems. In order to secure sustainable fisheries in a changing world, increased transparency and cross-sectorial data sharing will be essential to monitor the trends and changes in fish populations and be able to adapt policy and management accordingly. At the EDIH Oceanopolis, we are working with suppliers and fisheries companies to implement more comprehensive digital documentation of the catches (species and sizes). Further, digital technologies are merging to implement smart catching to minimize bycatches. This data, when linked to Geopositioning and climate data, will improve the accuracy of our models, awareness and management. Aquaculture: While fisheries remain an important component to global food supply from the ocean, aquaculture continues to grow and surpass fisheries. In some parts of the sector, there is an emerging reduction in the growth due to its environmental impacts and fish mortalities due to parasites and diseases with increasing occurrences of other threats such as Harmful Algae Blooms (HAB), string jellyfish, and emerging new diseases associated with climate change. For aquaculture production to grow with the changing ocean and to protect the environment, the sector is developing a number of new productions systems and strategies that reduce environmental impacts and are more resilient to climate change and increase circularity in the production. EDIH Oceanopolis and NORCE work to increase the uptake of digitalization in aquaculture from making the systems more efficient, improving fish welfare and optimizing energy use. The emerging technologies will contribute to coastal environmental monitoring and improving regional biodiversity.

What significance does this theme hold for EDIH Oceanopolis, and what role do we play? Artificial intelligence is an incredible tool that challenges us in ways we never imagined. The technology enables both the private and public sectors to take significant leaps forward, whether it's in decision-making, automation and efficiency, product and service development, or creating new forms of customer interaction and experiences. Our role is to help businesses think differently, even radically differently, and establish concrete digital roadmaps and plans for how to embrace innovative technology and realize its benefits, including using digital technology for the green transition. We will also assist in risk mitigation by offering technology testing and qualification before investment. Artificial intelligence, with Generative AI at the forefront, is arguably the most important technology of our time. How will AI change society, and what significance will it have for businesses? In Norway and internationally, artificial intelligence will test the democratic foundation and established social norms, laws, and regulations. Ethical dilemmas, privacy, cybersecurity & fraud, and, notably, artificial intelligence trained to influence opinion and reinforce discrimination and inequalities are among the growing portfolio of challenges that society must try to solve. In this context, the battle for access to data – the fuel for artificial intelligence – is constantly increasing. Large digital platforms are developing power positions that themselves represent a societal challenge. For businesses, it's not a question of whether to adopt digital technology and AI – it's a question of where and how. At Arendalsuka in 2023, we addressed the challenge of a two-tiered business landscape in Norway – the digitalized and those lagging behind and at risk of losing in the competition. The transformation will exert pressure on many jobs, and new competency needs will emerge. The transformation of businesses and the public sector requires the transformation of employees, new structures and systems, and, importantly, breaking out of silos. If the challenges are not taken seriously and the digital transformation is not approached with a holistic business perspective, many companies may lose in the competition, and many people may end up outside of the workforce. Why does EDIH Oceanopolis become a Strategic Partner in Techpoint? Techpoint and EDIH Oceanopolis share a common societal mission – to showcase the potential of new digital technology and inspire its utilization. In addition, EDIH Oceanopolis will help those inspired by Techpoint to take the next steps with artificial intelligence, robotics, and big data. What are we most looking forward to at this year's Techpoint? To be inspired, meet many exciting people, and, most importantly, showcase what EDIH Oceanopolis can contribute to digital transformation. We're coming with something really exciting, so stay tuned.

Digital Innovation Hub Oceanopolis is a national digital innovation hub that assists businesses in upgrading business models, processes, products, services, and customer relationships using innovative digital technologies. The goal is to unlock the potential for increased productivity and growth. As part of a consortium with eight partners, our project-based European Digital Innovation Hub (EDIH) is the starting point for success in a digital world. Our societal mission is funded by the EU, national and regional authorities, as well as supportive stakeholders. We work nationally and have well-defined deliverables. We are now seeking immediate recruitment for two project-based digital experts in part-time positions within the EDIH, with enthusiasm for helping businesses with digitalization and digital transformation.

The companies present got to meet the Mechatronics Innovation Lab robot dog Spot. All was done to showcase what new technology can bring to the digital shift. The event also provided startups and SME´s the chance to win NOK 300.000 from EDIH Oceanopolis. The winner was Energy Manager AS. We look forward to working closely with them and other SME’s in the coming months and years.

The event gathered more than 20 participants from small and medium-sized enterprises, academia, the public sector, and organizations. After receiving expertise from entities such as Innovation Norway, the Directorate for Digitalization, Stavanger Municipality, and Norce, the participants engaged in brainstorming sessions to explore opportunities for further collaboration in various areas. "This event is a prime example of how EDIH Oceanopolis brings together environments that can foster excellent digital initiatives and capacity building. We are very pleased with the interest and see a significant need for organizing gatherings that can inspire and create successful digitalization projects," said Stig Marthinsen, CEO of EDIH Oceanopolis. EDIH plays a crucial role in the EU's strategy to promote digital transformation and innovation across different sectors. EDIHs are specifically designed to support small and medium-sized enterprises in adopting and integrating digital technologies to enhance competitiveness and drive faster economic growth. Norway has two such EDIHs, with EDIH Oceanopolis being one of them. Several key speakers shared their expertise during the seminar, including: Edel Bertine Dirdal & Kerstin Solholm from Innovation Norway: Provided insights into Horizon Europe and the EIC Accelerator for small and medium-sized enterprises. The EIC Accelerator is a scheme for innovative SMEs with international ambitions and significant growth potential. The program offers funding, coaching, and accelerator services. It consists of grants of up to 2.5 million euros and the possibility of equity of up to 15 million euros. The EIC Accelerator is managed by an innovation council, the European Innovation Council (EIC), which is part of the EU's Horizon Europe framework program. There is fierce competition for the funding offered by the EIC, so to have a chance of success, the project must have high innovation, a strong dedicated team, and the innovation must contribute to addressing one or more of the UN's Sustainable Development Goals. Innovation Norway is the national contact point for the scheme and can assist in the application process and preparations for pitching to a jury. Jens Otto Skåra from Stavanger Municipality: Shared valuable insights into the municipality's digital initiatives and presented concrete solutions the municipality had developed in the use of data. Alexander Klein from the Directorate for Digitalization & Ingrid Wik from Innovation Norway: Presented the EU's digitalization program Digital Europe. DIGITAL is the EU's investment and capacity-building program for digital transformation and the use of digital technologies.

The Norwegian government allocates 20 million Norwegian kroner for co-financing and follow-up of our two major Norwegian projects related to the EU's Digital Europe research program. "The funding from the Norwegian government enables a targeted effort to assist Norwegian businesses and the public sector in harnessing productivity gains and ensuring green transformation through the use of enabling digital technology. This includes raising digital competence within small and medium-sized enterprises in need of advancements in digitalization," says Stig Marthinsen, Managing Director at EDIH Oceanopolis. For everyone involved in EDIH Oceanopolis, this represents a significant difference in the work we have already initiated, and we are grateful for the recognition and support we are now receiving from the Norwegian government. "I am proud that two Norwegian networks are positioning themselves alongside the most innovative in all of Europe. This is crucial for the digital and green transformation we are set to undergo in the coming years. It will contribute to enhancing digital competence throughout the entire Norwegian business sector. The two approved networks are Nemonoor, which aims to enhance the business sector's AI competence, and DIH Oceanopolis, which will assist businesses working with the coast and oceans in digital transformation," says our new Minister of Digitalization, Karianne Tung. Photo: Ole Magnus Kinapel Read the entire article from NRK here: https://www.nrk.no/nyheter/gir-20-millioner-til-kunstig-intelligens-og-digitalisering-1.16659688

After several exciting debates and lectures, we look ahead with new friends, partners, and important perspectives. Throughout the week, we took a closer look at a digital Norway - where the business world is lagging behind. Even though the public sector in Norway has taken steps to digitize products and services, Norwegian small and medium-sized enterprises have not been part of this journey. In the debate, Liv Dingsør, the CEO of Digital Norway, posed the question of whether we are harnessing the power of a forward-thinking digital Europe? She shared the stage with State Secretary Gunn Karin Gjul, Acting CEO of NORCE Thor Arne Håverstad, Head of Technology Policy at Abelia Jo Eikeland Roald, Trym Skeie from Skagerak Capital. The panel was moderated by Anne-Grete Ellingsen, who serves as project manager at DIH Oceanopolis.  Arendalsuka's journey continued to discuss digital lives, touching on important discussions about how technologies can be useful tools while also amplifying inequality, vulnerability, and alienation. The panel addressed challenges and possible solutions, including the handling and securing of personal and user data, how technology is changing societal and urban development, and how information flow in digital media affects participation and democracy. Participants included Gilda Seddighi from Norce, Rune Støstad from the Parliament, Atle Spilde from Microsoft, Torgeir Andrew Waterhouse from OTTE AS, and Leonora Onarheim from UiA. Now, we are ready to assist with digitization through our ongoing EDIH program and have many exciting things lined up for the coming autumn. So, stay tuned to our channels and join us on this journey.