PHAROS AI Factory was featured at BEYOND 2026, the International Digital Technology & Innovation Exhibition, held from 17 to 19 June 2026 at the Metropolitan Expo in Athens, as part of GRNET’s participation in the Ministry of Digital Governance and Artificial Intelligence pavilion.
Throughout the three-day event, visitors had the opportunity to discover PHAROS and DAEDALUS supercomputer, its technological core, through audiovisual presentations and informational material, gaining insights into PHAROS’ vision, objectives and role in accelerating Artificial Intelligence innovation and supporting Greece’s digital transformation.
As part of the exhibition programme, Stefanos Kollias, Chairman of GRNET, Professor Emeritus at the National Technical University of Athens (NTUA) and Coordinator of PHAROS AI Factory, joined representatives from government, academia and industry in three discussions exploring Artificial Intelligence, digital health, digital infrastructure and Greece’s digital future. His participation included the sessions “Healing with Data: AI, Digital Infrastructure and the Future of Greek Healthcare” (17 June), “Digital Greece: The Next Steps and Challenges for the Country’s Digital Transformation” and “Computing for Greece: The National AI Infrastructure That Will Define the Next Decade” (both on 18 June).
Across the sessions, Professor Kollias highlighted the strategic role of PHAROS in shaping Greece’s national AI ecosystem and supporting the country’s digital transformation ambitions. He emphasized the importance of AI, High-Performance Computing (HPC) and advanced digital infrastructures in accelerating research and innovation, strengthening competitiveness, and enabling the development of trustworthy AI solutions for both the public and private sectors.
Dimitris Katsianis, Deputy Chairman of GRNET and Assistant Professor at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA), also participated in the session “Region of Central Macedonia: Strategic Partnerships with Government Bodies for Research and Innovation”, delivering the welcome remarks and highlighting the importance of collaboration between public bodies, academia and technology providers in advancing research and innovation.
During the same session, Panos Louridas, Director of GRNET’s Research & Development Directorate and Professor at the Department of Management Science and Technology of the Athens University of Economics and Business (AUEB), delivered the opening speech entitled “Manna from Heaven? GRNET’s Provision of Resources to the Greek Academic and Research Community” and moderated the thematic discussion “Nurturing Domestic AI”.
The discussion brought together Afrodite Sevasti, CEO of Pharos S.A. (Greek AI Factory), Vassilis Katsouros, Research Director at the Institute for Language and Speech Processing, Athena Research and Innovation Center, and Stelios Karozis, Researcher at the National Centre for Scientific Research “Demokritos” (NCSRD) and Deputy Technical Coordinator of PHAROS AI Factory, to explore how strategic partnerships between public organisations, academia, research institutions and technology providers can accelerate Artificial Intelligence, High-Performance Computing and cloud-enabled innovation. Particular emphasis was placed on the contribution of PHAROS and advanced digital infrastructures to accelerating AI innovation, supporting research excellence, fostering regional development and strengthening collaboration across the public, academic and industrial sectors.
Also, in the context of BEYOND Expo, PHAROS AI Factory and IT4LIA AI Factory as well as EuroCC Greece and EuroCC Italy, held a twinning and collaboration session. The session brought together Artemis Psarianou (GRNET), Nikos Bakas (GRNET), Stelios Karozis (NCSR) and Maria Venianaki (NCSR) from PHAROS, together with Eleonora Barelli from EuroCC Italy and IT4LIA. The meeting was constructive and gave both teams the opportunity to exchange ideas on future twinning activities, co-organised training opportunities and possible areas of collaboration. The discussion also helped identify shared interests and potential synergies for the next steps.
BEYOND 2026 provided a valuable platform for engaging with stakeholders from government, academia, research organisations, industry and the startup community, while showcasing the vision and objectives of PHAROS to a broad audience. As Greece continues to invest in Artificial Intelligence and advanced digital infrastructures, PHAROS is poised to play a central role in accelerating AI innovation, fostering collaboration and strengthening the country’s position within the European AI ecosystem.
Useful Links
