Thursday, September 17, 2026 - 17:30
- At the second edition of GALIA TECH, Igape Director Covadonga Toca highlighted that Galicia is starting from an advanced position, with a business community and innovation ecosystem already incorporating artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies into their activities
- She underlined that the challenge is to ensure that knowledge, technology and talent are translated into new products, business activity, growth and employment
- She also highlighted the role of DATAlife and digital innovation hubs in connecting technological capabilities with businesses’ real needs and helping innovation reach SMEs as well
- Santiago de Compostela, 17 September 2026
- The Director of Igape, Covadonga Toca, took part today in the opening of the second edition of GALIA TECH, organised by DATAlife, where she highlighted the progress artificial intelligence is making within Galicia’s business community.
- In this regard, she noted that, whereas the first edition focused on the opportunities offered by this technology, this year’s event provides an opportunity to learn about real-world experiences and use cases, showing how AI is being adopted by businesses and helping to transform their operations.
- During her address, Toca stressed that “Galicia is already innovating” and has companies incorporating new technologies, universities and knowledge centres developing them, start-ups with advanced solutions, and established business sectors finding new opportunities in innovation to continue growing and competing. “We are not starting from scratch. We are starting from an advanced position,” she said, emphasising that the challenge now is to ensure that this knowledge and technology reach an increasing number of companies and translate into competitiveness, growth and employment.
- In this context, the Director of Igape argued for the need to “industrialise innovation”: in other words, to ensure that the knowledge, technology and talent available in Galicia are increasingly translated into business activity. This involves bringing innovation to factories and SMEs, transforming processes, developing new products and generating business opportunities, while also helping innovative Galician companies to grow, gain scale and compete in other markets. In this respect, Toca highlighted the opportunity to connect the strength of Galicia’s established sectors with an increasingly powerful technology and innovation ecosystem.
- Finally, she also highlighted Igape’s collaboration with DATAlife and GALIA TECH’s role as a meeting point for knowledge, technology and business, particularly in helping SMEs identify and adopt the solutions that genuinely add value to their operations. The Director stressed that “innovation is not a destination but a long-term journey”, and advocated continued progress so that the potential of AI and new technologies as a whole reaches more businesses and translates into greater economic activity and competitiveness for Galicia.
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