CGEE Director participates in Senate hearing on the Brazilian Artificial Intelligence Plan (PBIA)

On that occasion, Caetano Penna highlighted the Center's contributions to the Brazilian Artificial Intelligence Plan and the importance of integrating research, innovation, and public policies for the advancement of AI in the country.

Luara Baggi (ASCOM/MCTI)

Photo: Luara Baggi (ASCOM/MCTI)

The director of the Center for Management and Strategic Studies (CGEE), Caetano Penna, participated today (22) in an interactive public hearing of the Science and Technology Committee (CCT) of the Federal Senate, dedicated to discussing the initiatives of the Brazilian Artificial Intelligence Plan (PBIA). The meeting focused on evaluating the public policy aimed at developing artificial intelligence (AI) in the country and its impacts on the well-being of the population. Representatives from the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (MCTI), the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Education (MEC) and the National Bank for Economic and Social Development (BNDES) also participated.

During the hearing, Penna presented the topic "The Brazilian Ecosystem of Science, Technology and Innovation in Artificial Intelligence: Challenges, Opportunities and the Actions of PBIA", highlighting the contributions of CGEE and the Observatory of Digital Technologies (OTD), which works on the development of indicator panels, bibliometric and scientometric analyses, studies and technical reports, monitoring of public policies and mapping of laboratories and research institutions in AI.

The observatory's most recent study presents a detailed analysis of the national artificial intelligence ecosystem and is available on the website otd.cgee.org.br.

Penna highlighted that the PBIA consolidates a trajectory of advancements that includes the Brazilian Artificial Intelligence Strategy (EBIA), launched in 2021, which resulted in the creation of 11 applied AI research centers, with two more under implementation. These centers work on developing solutions in strategic areas such as health, agriculture, industry, cybersecurity, and smart cities.

According to the director, the PBIA sought to improve and simplify the structure of Ebia. The strategy was already under review by CGEE when the new plan began to be developed, which allowed for the identification of bottlenecks and the proposal of improvements in a more integrated way. The PBIA reduced the number of thematic axes from nine to five and incorporated an interministerial governance framework aimed at strengthening the integration between public policies, research, and innovation.

“The PBIA consolidates fundamental principles such as ethics, social well-being, and the positive impacts of artificial intelligence on citizens' lives, in addition to providing a budgetary commitment of R$ 23.03 billion until 2028,” Penna highlighted.

In presenting an overview of the Brazilian AI ecosystem, the director pointed out that the country ranks 15th globally in scientific production in the field, with a focus on applied research in health, energy, and sustainability. Brazil accounts for 1.6% of global production and leads Latin America, with 46% of regional production.

Penna highlighted the need to strengthen technology transfer mechanisms between universities and companies, in order to transform scientific knowledge into innovation and concrete results for society.

"The role of universities is to generate knowledge. Innovation should occur in companies, but for that, we need effective instruments for technology transfer, with shared intellectual property and adequate incentives," he stated.

The strategic potential of the healthcare sector for the advancement of AI in the country was also highlighted, as it combines consolidated scientific capacity, public funding, and the possibility of using the purchasing power of the Brazilian public health system (SUS) as an instrument to promote innovation.

At the end of his presentation, the director emphasized that the effective implementation of PBIA is essential to consolidate a long-term vision in artificial intelligence.

"For this trajectory to materialize, we need to transform research into commercial applications and structure an infrastructure capable of leveraging the country's technological development," he concluded.

The complete recording of the public hearing is available on the Senate TV channel on YouTube.