Accelerating AI Adoption in Europe

OpenAI and Allied for Startups have released the Hacktivate AI Report to promote widespread AI adoption across Europe and strengthen the competitiveness of the European Union (EU). This release comes ahead of the European Commission's planned unveiling of the Apply AI Strategy, which aims to encourage practical AI use in businesses and the public sector.

The report contains 20 ideas that emerged from a policy hackathon held in Brussels. The hackathon brought together 65 participants including EU institutions, national government representatives, large enterprises, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), startups, economists, and AI experts to design practical ways for Europe to lead in the AI field.

Key proposals include the following:

• Introducing an Individual AI Learning Account to strengthen individuals' professional expertise
• Building an AI Champions Network to encourage AI adoption among SMEs
• Creating a European GovAI Hub, a shared resource for the public sector
• Relentless Harmonisation of regulations to advance the digital single market

According to OpenAI's research, AI adoption is uneven across industries. IT and finance are leading adoption, while manufacturing has entered the digital transformation stage, but other industry sectors are still lagging behind, requiring tailored interventions.

OpenAI is providing free AI learning resources to over 2 million users through OpenAI Academy, and is collaborating with governments including Germany and Greece to support AI adoption in the public sector and education.