EuroCC3 Presented at INFOFEST 2026 and Panel Session on EU Funds Held in Budva, Montenegro

The National Competence Centre Montenegro (NCC Montenegro), operating within the EuroCC3 project, was presented at INFOFEST 2026, the largest regional festival of information technology achievements, held from 27 to 30 September 2026 at Hotel Avala Resort & Villas in Budva, Montenegro, under the slogan “Human in the Loop”.

This year’s edition of the festival brought together several hundred participants from Montenegro and the region, including representatives of the technology and telecommunications industry, banking, energy, public administration, education, and the academic and media communities. Over three days, the programme addressed cyber resilience and new regulatory frameworks (NIS2, DORA), the role of the IT community in responding to natural disasters, digital infrastructure and energy, the labour market, the digital transformation of public services, education for a world shaped by artificial intelligence, child protection online, trust and security in the digital space, and the impact of AI on the media. The key message of INFOFEST 2026 was that while artificial intelligence is changing the rules, decisions and responsibility must remain with people.

The EuroCC3 project and the activities of NCC Montenegro were presented by Bojana Mališić, member of the EuroCC3 project team, as part of the INFOFEST Impact Forum, the festival’s special closing programme dedicated to projects, funding and impact. She outlined the role of the National Competence Centre Montenegro in building the national HPC and AI ecosystem, democratizing access to European supercomputing infrastructure, and supporting SMEs, academia, and public administration in adopting advanced digital technologies, including the opportunities available through the EuroHPC Joint Undertaking, which provides free access to world-class European supercomputing infrastructure and expertise.

Panel Session: Are We Ready for EU Funds?

As part of the INFOFEST Impact Forum, a panel session titled “Are We Ready for EU Funds? Building a National Ecosystem for Developing Competitive Projects” was organized, bringing together representatives of key national institutions, academia, and the innovation ecosystem: Marko Vukašinović (Ministry of Education, Science and Innovation), Bojan Vujović (Ministry of European Affairs), Branka Žižić (University of Montenegro, Office for Internationalization), Bojana Mališić (University of Donja Gorica, EuroCC3), and Valentina Radulović, MSc (Science and Technology Park of Montenegro, Director).

The panel addressed the readiness of Montenegrin institutions, universities, and companies to successfully apply for and implement projects funded through European Union programmes. The discussion focused on the need to build a connected national ecosystem in which public administration, the academic community, innovation infrastructure, and the business sector work together to develop competitive project proposals, strengthen capacities for project preparation and management, and establish strong international partnerships. Particular attention was given to the role of competence centres such as NCC Montenegro in connecting national stakeholders with European initiatives, providing access to advanced computing resources and expertise, and helping SMEs and research teams turn ideas into fundable, high-impact projects.

The panel session demonstrated that access to EU funds is not only a matter of individual project proposals, but of a coordinated national ecosystem — one in which competence centres, institutions, and the business community jointly create the conditions for Montenegro to make full use of European opportunities in research, innovation, and digital transformation.

FFplus Success Story Highlights HPC-Driven HR Innovation from Montenegro

The FFplus project has published its first Business Experiment Success Stories, presenting how European SMEs and start-ups are using High-Performance Computing (HPC) to address real business challenges and develop new products and services.

Among the featured examples is GenAI-HPC4WB – Transforming Business Culture and Hiring Through High-Performance Computing, implemented by Recrewty and DigitalSmart. The project used AI, machine learning and HPC to develop language technologies and HR tools adapted to the Western Balkans, with particular focus on Montenegrin, Serbian, Bosnian and Croatian.

A key part of the experiment involved training and evaluating advanced language models using the LEONARDO EuroHPC supercomputer at CINECA in Italy. The resulting solutions support tasks such as CV analysis, candidate matching, interview processing and psychometric assessment, while keeping human experts involved in final recruitment decisions.

The published FFplus Success Story highlights the practical business impact of the experiment, including significant reductions in recruitment screening time and the cost of AI-based candidate search.

For NCC Montenegro, this is also an important example of how local companies can benefit from the European HPC ecosystem. Through NCC support, companies can identify relevant funding opportunities, prepare HPC and AI use cases, and access European supercomputing resources for experimentation and development.

Read the full FFplus Success Story: HPC-Driven Human Resources Innovation for the Western Balkans:
https://www.ffplus-project.eu/en/success-stories/hpc-driven-human-resources-innovation-for-the-western-balkans/

Acknowledgements

The GenAI-HPC4WB Business Experiment received funding from the European High-Performance Computing Joint Undertaking (EuroHPC JU) under grant agreement No. 101163317. The JU receives support from the Digital Europe Programme.

We acknowledge the EuroHPC Joint Undertaking for awarding the project access to the LEONARDO EuroHPC supercomputer, hosted by CINECA, Italy, through a EuroHPC Development Access call.

HPC Montenegro at the Eastern European Machine Learning Summer School (EEML 2026) in Cetinje

NCC HPC Montenegro took part as a partner of the Eastern European Machine Learning Summer School (EEML 2026), held from 27 July to 1 August 2026 in Cetinje. The school brought together around 300 participants from across the European Union — roughly half of them from Eastern Europe — along with researchers and companies from Montenegro, making it one of the largest AI and machine learning gatherings in the region.

On Tuesday and Wednesday (28–29 July), HPC Montenegro hosted a booth where our team spent two full days talking with participants about high-performance computing (HPC) for AI and machine learning. These conversations connected us with representatives from industry and academia — both from Montenegro and from across Europe — and gave us the chance to understand their computing needs and show how HPC resources can support their work.

On Thursday, 30 July 2026, HPC Montenegro delivered a welcome talk to all participants. We presented the activities of NCC HPC Montenegro, traced the history of the EuroCC initiative through the EuroCC1, EuroCC2 and EuroCC4SEE projects, and reported on how researchers and organisations in Montenegro have been using EuroHPC access. We invited participants from Montenegro to collaborate with us and to request our services, and we helped participants from the wider region and other parts of the EU find and connect with the National Competence Centres (NCCs) in their own countries.

Our involvement in EEML 2026 reflects the twofold mission of NCC HPC Montenegro: providing training support to help build HPC and AI skills across the region, and engaging with industry to bring the benefits of high-performance computing to companies and the wider economy.

We are especially proud that several members of the HPC Montenegro team provided hands-on support and training to participants throughout EEML, helping them with practical work and with mastering machine learning tools and concepts. Alongside this, members of our team and students also took part as volunteers in the organisation of the school and in EEML activities.

You can find out more about the school at www.eeml.eu. To learn more about NCC HPC Montenegro, or to discuss collaboration and access to our services, get in touch with our team.

NCC HPC Montenegro featured at the meeting of the President of Montenegro with AI experts

Representatives of NCC HPC Montenegro attended a meeting of the President of Montenegro and the President’s Cabinet dedicated to the development of artificial intelligence, held on 28 July 2026 in Cetinje. Around ten AI experts from Montenegro took part. Among those present were the President of the Montenegrin Academy of Sciences and Arts (CANU), university representatives, members of the diaspora, representatives of the Montenegrin AI Association (MAIA), and representatives from industry. Participants exchanged views with the President and his associates on the directions for developing this field in the country.

The meeting also touched on the Master’s programme in Artificial Intelligence — the first programme of its kind in Montenegro, delivered with the support of NCC HPC Montenegro and the EuroCC projects. HPC Montenegro presented the goals and projects of the EuroCC initiative and the services offered by the NCC, with particular attention to supporting industry in accessing HPC resources. In the discussion on the need for data centres and HPC infrastructure in Montenegro, NCC HPC Montenegro was recognised as part of the platform for further steps in this area.

For NCC HPC Montenegro, this was an important opportunity to be presented at the highest level of public administration and to bring its capacities and results closer to decision-makers. We look forward to taking part in the further steps and activities aimed at strengthening the artificial intelligence ecosystem in Montenegro.

More about the meeting: the President of Montenegro’s Instagram and the post on X.

BSc Thesis: BabyFlow.AI – A Mobile Assistant for Early Parenthood Support

Marija Gardašević successfully defended her BSc thesis, “Application of Artificial Intelligence in the Development of a Mobile Assistant for Early Parenthood Support,” at the Faculty for Information Systems and Technologies, University of Donja Gorica. Supervised by Prof. Tomo Popović, the thesis resulted in BabyFlow.AI, a functional Flutter-based mobile prototype for recording and reviewing a baby’s daily routines, including sleep, feeding, mood, meals and basic health-related information. The prototype may be considered an early proof of concept for a future digital parenting-support product, subject to further user testing, integration of more advanced analytics and validation in cooperation with relevant professionals.

BSc candidate Marija Gardasevic

ABSTRACT – The thesis presents the development of BabyFlow.AI, a functional mobile application prototype designed to help parents organize and monitor a baby’s daily routine. The application combines modules for sleep, feeding, pumping, mood, meals, calming-noise sessions, vaccination records, growth tracking and relevant health-information resources, while storing user data locally on the device. Basic analytical insights are generated from user entries, and a separate demonstrative Python machine-learning model illustrates a simple data-processing and classification workflow. BabyFlow.AI is not intended for medical, clinical or diagnostic use, but represents a practical proof of concept that could support the future development of privacy-conscious digital services for parents and childcare providers.

BSc Thesis: AI and HPC for Cybersecurity of Connected Vehicles

Anđela Vuković successfully defended her BSc thesis, “Application of AI and HPC Technologies in the Cybersecurity of Connected Vehicles,” at the Faculty for Information Systems and Technologies, University of Donja Gorica. Supervised by Prof. Tomo Popović, with the support of Arnad Lekić, the thesis combines an analysis of automotive cybersecurity with a practical AI model for detecting anomalies in CAN communication. The developed demonstrator can be regarded as an early proof of concept for potential industrial applications, subject to further testing with real vehicle data and deployment-oriented validation.

BSc candidate Ms Andjela Vukovic

ABSTRACT – This thesis examines the application of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and High-Performance Computing (HPC) in the cybersecurity of connected vehicles. In addition to analysing contemporary cybersecurity risks, communication technologies and protection mechanisms, the thesis presents a practical implementation of an autoencoder model for detecting anomalous CAN messages. The experimental model demonstrated the potential of AI-based anomaly detection, while HPC is considered an important enabler for processing larger datasets, training more advanced models and simulating cyberattack scenarios. Although developed using simulated data, the implementation provides an initial proof of concept that could be extended and validated for use by automotive manufacturers, cybersecurity providers, testing laboratories and fleet operators.

HPC Montenegro Partners with EEML 2026 in Cetinje

HPC Montenegro is proud to partner with the Eastern European Machine Learning Summer School (EEML 2026), taking place from 27 July to 1 August 2026 in Cetinje, Montenegro. The event will bring together leading researchers, lecturers and participants from the international machine learning and artificial intelligence community.

Click on image for EEML webpage

Members of the HPC Montenegro team will participate in the organization and implementation of the summer school, together with colleagues from the University of Donja Gorica and the University of Montenegro who are also active members of the Montenegrin AI Association (MAIA).

HPC NCC Moneengro is a partner organization supporting EEML

HPC Montenegro will also host an information stand during the event, providing participants from academia, industry and the public sector with an opportunity to learn more about available high-performance computing resources, EuroHPC opportunities, training activities and support for the development of AI and HPC applications.