DeepMark, a start-up company working on development of invisible and permanent digital marks (watermarks) that can be embedded in images, audio, and video content without compromising quality has made successful application to EuroHPC JU Development call, thus gaining 4500 node hours to Leonardo Booster partition for a period of one year. NCC Montenegro supported this project application.
Provenance for synthetic media remains unsolved: most watermarks fail after routine processing, and especially under modern AI transforms. DeepMark advance a learning-based system that co-trains a neural embedder and detector through a differentiable signal chain that mimics real pipelines. Goals of the project are: (i) lower bit-error rates at equal perceptual quality; (ii) patchable watermarking so future embedders remain detectable by a single detector; and (iii) calibrated, segment-level detection for forensics and compliance. Access to A100 nodes and a parallel file system is required to tune multi-GPU scaling and remove I/O bottlenecks.
The Chamber of Commerce of Montenegro, together with partners from the MontEENegro consortium – including the Ministry of Regional Development and Cooperation with NGOs, the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, UoM, and the Business Start-up Centre Bar – organized regional conference FINNO 2025 – Digital. Green. Sustainable, taking place on October 15, 2025, in Budva. FINNO is a regional initiative dedicated to strengthening innovation, SME competitiveness, and access to European networks and funding, developed under the Enterprise Europe Network (EEN) framework.
This conference brought together key innovation ecosystem actors, policymakers, SMEs, start-up founders, researchers, business associations, and EEN partners across the Western Balkans and Europe. The program was opened by Mirsada Bošnjak, State Secretary at the Ministry of Regional-Investment Development and Cooperation with NGOs; Dr. Nina Drakić, President of the Chamber of Commerce of Montenegro; Muriel De Grande, Head of the Enterprise Europe Network programme at the European Commission; and Prof. Dr. Radoje Vujadinović, Dean of the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, University of Montenegro.
The first panel, “Digital Transformation of SMEs – Challenges and Solutions,” highlighted the impact of emerging technologies on digital capacities and competences, knowledge and technology transfer, digital entrepreneurship, and innovative business models. The NCC Montenegro representative presented the Centre’s service and training portfolio, sharing practical insights from cooperation with industry, SMEs, and start-ups on leveraging HPC and AI technologies to optimize business processes, develop innovative products, and enhance digital competitiveness.
Beyond the first panel, FINNO 2025 explores topics such as Innovation ecosystem strengthening, European project synergies, Green transition and the circular economy. Participants also had opportunities to engage in B2B meetings with regional and European partners, start-ups, innovation centres, and research organizations.
Through its participation, NCC Montenegro reinforce its role as one of the driver of digital acceleration and innovation, highlighting the potential of HPC and AI services and NCC support for SMEs, and contributing to smart and sustainable growth in Montenegro and the Western Balkans.
The jubilee 30th International Conference INFORMATION TECHNOLOGIES 2026 will be held from 24 to 28 February 2026 in Podgorica and Žabljak. The ceremonial academy on the occasion of the jubilee will be held in Podgorica on 24 February, and the working part of the conference will take place from 25 to 28 February in Žabljak. The Conference will feature lectures and round-table discussions on trends in the development of information and communication technologies worldwide, as well as current events in this field in Montenegro. In agreement with the Conference Organizing Committee, interested institutions may organize presentations of their scientific-research, professional, development, and production projects and achievements.
Clic on image to open IT2025 website
Authored papers submitted for presentation will be peer-reviewed and selected based on the complete paper. Papers should be prepared according to the instructions, which can be downloaded here: Instructions.doc.
Accepted papers written in English will be proposed for inclusion in IEEE Xplore, provided they meet the scope and quality requirements of IEEE Xplore, while other papers will be published in the IT conference proceedings.
Papers are submitted via Microsoft’s CMT system, which can be accessed through the “Paper submission” item in the menu. If you do not have an account on the Microsoft CMT system, you can create one via the same link.
We look forward to your support, suggestions and participation in the upcoming IT conference.
NCC Montenegro, in collaboration with the NCC Slovenia, organized a collaborative workshop and training AI Solutions from Innovative SMEs: Practical Examples and Lessons Learned on October 7, 2025 in Podgorica at University of Donja Gorica. The workshop focused on the opportunities and advantages of HPC and AI technologies in the business sector and best practices in the industry. Approximately 25 participants attended the workshop, including industry experts who deal daily with research and practical examples in the field of artificial intelligence based on HPC.
Tomi Ilijas, NCC Slovenia, Arctur
Tomi Ilijaš, representing Arctur and the NCC SLING initiative in Slovenia, discussed the emerging opportunities for SMEs within the HPC ecosystem. He introduced support structures aimed at making advanced computing more accessible to smaller businesses and highlighted case studies of SME innovation enabled by HPC services.
Presentation on lessons learned and new opportunities for the industry
Ilijaš highlighted two of Arctur’s valuable use cases, CLASSICA and LLMs4EU. These projects are powered by supercomputers and AI, enabling faster workflows and precise analysis. Use case in tourism LLMs4EU aims to reduce entry barriers for smaller, lesser-known tourist destinations and to break down language barriers, build personalized itineraries and incorporate gamification elements. Based on vertical LLM, designed for integration into existing or newly developed software. The main goal of the CLASSICA project – the use of AI technology for cancer classification in the operating theatre. Ilijaš presented the project activities and highlighted the importance of AI technology for image recognition and tissue classification.
NCC Monteengro moderated the discussion
The second part of the workshop focused on the FFplus call Innovative studies for SMEs. FFplus is a successor to previous Fortissimo projects (Fortissimo, Fortissimo-2, FF4EuroHPC; 2013-2023). Both, NCC Montenegro and NCC Slovenia representatives, explaines and announce to the Montenegrin SMEs the Innovative studies call which will be open in December 2025. This call will support European SMEs and Start-ups already active in the field of generative AI technology, which lack the necessary computational resources to scale up.
Representatives from NCC Montenegro
After the presentation, there were questions and answers sesion. During Q&A sesion representatives from SMEs shared their experiences and highlighted importance of cooperation with NCC Montenegro.
We had a good presence of SMEs interested in new EuroHPC and FFPlus callsGroup photo from the workshop
Infofest (Festival of IT Achievements) is a traditional international event in the field of information and communication technologies, organized in Montenegro since 1994.
The aim of Infofest is to bring together experts from academia, industry, and the public sector, as well as technology companies, IT enthusiasts, and the media — to exchange knowledge, present innovative solutions, and initiate discussions on current challenges and perspectives of digital transformation.
NCC Montenegro presenting activities and services offered
Over the years, Infofest has established a strong reputation as a festival that promotes the latest topics in the ICT sector, such as artificial intelligence, cloud computing, cybersecurity, digital transformation, regulation and ethics in technology, e-governance, and more. Infofest 2025 was held in Budva, from September 28 to October 1, 2025.
Dr Sandra Tinaj, NCC Montenegro, UDG
The National Competence Center for High Performance Computing – NCC Montenegro actively participated in Infofest 2025, presenting projects and services in the fields of supercomputing (HPC) and artificial intelligence (AI).
Dr Tomo Popovic, NCC Montenegro, UDG
Representatives of the University of Donja Gorica, Sandra Tinaj and Tomo Popović, together with Božo Krstajić from the University of Montenegro, delivered a presentation on the activities of NCC Montenegro, with a special focus on the services offered by the Center, as listed and described on the official platform.
Dr Bozo Krstajic, NCC Montenegro, ETF/UCG
During the event, bilateral meetings were held with representatives of IT companies and public sector institutions interested in collaboration and the implementation of HPC and AI solutions in their organizations.
Infofest was attended by the representatives from industry and academia (Montenegro and the region)
By participating in Infofest, NCC Montenegro further strengthens its role in the development of Montenegro’s digital economy and innovation ecosystem, connecting academia, researchers, and industry in a shared mission to advance knowledge and technological progress.
On October 1, NCC Montenegro had the pleasure of welcoming Konstantin Kolotov, CTO of DIGITAL FABRIC, a company active in the field of AI and advanced digital solutions and product strategies. The visit followed an initial introduction at the KOMPact event, where both sides identified shared interests and complementary strengths in leveraging AI solutions and HPC resources, particularly in the area of smart tourism.
During discussions at the NCC Montenegro offices, Mr Kolotov as a founder and a co-founder introduced portfolio of projects and start-ups, shaping innovative use for testing and scaling AI-enabled solutions:
HiGem.ai – a platform designed for travel destinations, to enhance destination management and visitor experience.
Trendcore.ai – a solution for the fashion industry focused on AI-driven visual content generation.
Both initiatives demonstrate how AI-powered platforms can foster business innovation. The conversation also addressed advanced computing requirements, EuroHPC system access opportunities, and the role of NCC Montenegro in providing support and guidance for future developments.
In addition, the visit opened dialogue on potential academic collaboration, with a focus on digital innovation and AI applications in tourism. Joint interest was expressed in co-developing research initiatives, pilot projects, and knowledge exchange activities.
Waldur serves as a digital platform in the EuroCC project, enabling seamless management of High-Performance Computing (HPC) and related services across various European nations. As an open-source multi-cloud marketplace, Waldur provides automation, billing, and a self-service environment—making it easier for users to access compute resources, deploy solutions, and manage projects. Its modular integration with industry-standard tools, allows national competence centers to offer tailored services that meet the rapidly evolving needs of research, academia, and industry.
NCC Montenegro, leveraging Waldur, has implemented public offerings of services through HPC Service Hub: Consultation services, an HPC-for-SME Assessment Tool, EuroHPC infrastructure access support and specialized training modules. These offerings empower local innovators, SMEs, and researchers by facilitating direct access to computational resources, expert guidance, and skill-building opportunities that foster the country’s digital transformation and integration into the broader European HPC ecosystem.
