“From Artificial Intelligence to the Smart Factory”
Regional Innovation Center “Ambitious Gabrovo” is pleased to invite representatives of business, industry, the scientific community and institutions to the Open Day of the European Digital Innovation Hub (EDIH) for the North Central Region of Bulgaria (ADi4SMEs).
Date: November 18, 2026.
Location: “Science” Business Building, 5 Dunav Street, Gabrovo.
Registration: from 12:00 p.m.
Start of the official program: 12:30 p.m.
About the event
Digital transformation is now a concrete opportunity to increase the competitiveness, efficiency and sustainability of enterprises. The Open Day offers an opportunity to see how cutting-edge technologies, including artificial intelligence, machine vision and robotic systems, work in a real production environment. Participants will also learn about the support that EDIH provides to small and medium-sized enterprises.
Program
| Hour | Topic | Lecturers |
| 12:00 – 12:30 | Registration, coffee and professional contacts | |
| 12:30 – 12:45 | Opening and Welcome: EDIH – Where Business Meets Technology | Irena Rashkova, Chairwoman of the Management Board of the RIC “Ambitious Gabrovo” |
| 12:45 – 1:30 p.m. | Lecture: Artificial Intelligence in 2027 – what will change for business? | Alexander Angelov, artificial intelligence expert at the RIC |
| 13:30 – 13:50 | Presentation: What can EDIH do for your company? From idea to real technological solution | Svetoslav Mateev, expert from EDIH |
| 13:50 – 14:20 | Coffee break and professional contacts | |
| 14:20 – 15:20 | Demonstrations: ЕХНАТОН – The Smart Factory in Action; TechnoPro – Digitalization and Green Technologies | Representatives of ЕХНАТОН and TechnoPro |
| 15:20 – 15:40 | Presentation of success stories (Problem – Solution – Result) | Maxim Sadinov and Danitsa Yanakieva, experts at the RIC |
| 15:40 – 16:30 | Discussion panel: What prevents Bulgarian enterprises from becoming smart factories? | Moderators: Alexander Angelov and Svetoslav Mateev |
| 16:30 – 16:45 | Questions and Answers. Closing of the Open Day |
What you will see and learn
- How artificial intelligence recognizes defects that the human eye can miss, and how a decision is automatically made to separate unsuitable production.
- How the robot works as a colleague. A robotic cell for arranging, sorting, assembly and visual inspection will be demonstrated.
- How digitalization and green technologies reduce waste , increase flexibility in small and medium series, and shorten the time to launch a new product.
- Real-world examples of moving from a problem to a measurable result.
- Answers to key questions: how much does the first step towards automation cost, what can be automated first, how to measure return on investment, how to ensure cybersecurity, and how small businesses can afford these technologies.
Why participate?
The event provides an opportunity to get acquainted with working technological solutions on site and ask your questions directly to experts and practitioners. You will also have the opportunity to establish contacts with colleagues and potential partners. Participants will leave with a clear idea of what the real first steps towards the digital transformation of their enterprise are.
We invite you to be part of the conversation about the future of Bulgarian industry.
This news item has been created with the financial support of the Research, Innovation and Digitalization for Smart Transformation Program 2021-2027, co-financed by the European Union through the European Regional Development Fund under project BG16RFPR002-1.002-0001 -C01 “Accelerated digitalization for SMEs in the Central Region through the creation and development of EDIH.” The Regional Innovation Center “Ambitious Gabrovo” bears full responsibility for the content of the document and under no circumstances can it be assumed that this document reflects the official position of the European Union and the managing authority.
