{"id":2762,"date":"2026-05-05T10:20:52","date_gmt":"2026-05-05T08:20:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ric-gabrovo.com\/?p=2762"},"modified":"2026-05-05T10:20:52","modified_gmt":"2026-05-05T08:20:52","slug":"adi4smes-edih-for-north-central-bulgaria-april2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ric-gabrovo.com\/bg\/adi4smes-edih-for-north-central-bulgaria-april2026\/","title":{"rendered":"ADI4SMEs | EDIH for NORTH CENTRAL BULGARIA | APRIL2026"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>Not Just Numbers \u2014 Real Changes in People\u2019s Lives and Business<\/strong><br \/>\nEighteen months after the launch of the ADi4SMEs project, the EDIH for North Central Bulgaria is reporting results behind which lie stories of transformation \u2014 of citizens, organisations, and an entire regional economy.<\/p>\n<p>Digitalisation is not an end in itself. It is a tool with which small and medium enterprises become more competitive, public administrations serve citizens better, and the next generation of entrepreneurs gets a real chance for growth. Here is what EDIH ADi4SMEs has achieved so far \u2014 told not in terms of \u201ccompleted activities\u201d, but in real impact on people and organisations.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>more than <strong>130 000<\/strong> citizens from Gabrovo and Veliko Tarnovo are now using the AI assistants of their municipalities<\/li>\n<li><strong>131<\/strong> employees from organisations providing thousands of jobs in the region completed training in digitalisation and AI<\/li>\n<li>180 000 citizens can monitor air quality in real time at key locations through environmental digital twin<\/li>\n<li>worth <strong>\u20ac2.5 million<\/strong> service agreements signed with small and medium enterprises and public organisations from the region<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>AI for Citizens: Chatbots That Replace Queues<\/strong><br \/>\nIn Bulgaria, public service still means waiting, phone searching, and confusing websites. EDIH ADi4SMEs set out to change this with a concrete product: AI assistants for public administrations.<br \/>\nThe result: 2 fully operational assistants \u2014 for Gabrovo Municipality and Veliko Tarnovo Regional Administration \u2014 are now answering citizens\u2019 questions around the clock. More than 130,000 people live in these two larger administrative centres \u2014 all of them now have a digital assistant from their local authority.<br \/>\nA further 3 assistants are in development \u2014 for the municipalities of Lyaskovets, Gorna Oryakhovitsa, and Tryavna \u2014 and a further 8 such products are planned. This would make EDIH ADi4SMEs the coordinator of the largest network of AI assistants in public administration in Northern Bulgaria.<\/p>\n<p><em>When a citizen no longer has to wait on the phone or come to<\/em><br \/>\n<em>the counter to find out what documents they need \u2014 that is real digital transformation. <\/em><br \/>\n<em>ADi4SMEs Team, Regional Innovation Centre \u201cAmbitious Gabrovo\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>Clean Data for Dirty Air: The Digital Twin Network<\/strong><br \/>\nAir quality is a problem everyone talks about, but few know exactly when and where it is poor. EDIH addressed this with a network of IoT sensors, cloud data processing, and a real-time dashboard accessible from any smartphone.<br \/>\nEight locations are already operational \u2014 in schools and gymnasiums in Svishtov, Veliko Tarnovo, and Gorna Oryakhovitsa. Twelve new points are being installed. Contracts cover Veliko Tarnovo Regional Administration (fully complete), Gabrovo Municipality, and Tryavna Municipality. When the plan is fully implemented, hundreds of thousands of citizens from the North Central Region will have access to data previously available only to specialised laboratories.<\/p>\n<p><strong>The Trained Manager Is a Multiplier of Change<\/strong><br \/>\nA single digitalisation training does not transform an economy. But when the participants are decision-makers in companies with dozens or hundreds of employees, the effect multiplies. That is why EDIH ADi4SMEs focuses its training primarily on senior and middle management of SMEs.<br \/>\nEleven training sessions delivered. One hundred and thirty-one participants trained. Topics are concrete and applicable: introduction to artificial intelligence, AI ethics, practical automation tools, and cybersecurity for small businesses. The results do not end in the training room \u2014 they continue in the offices, workshops, and boardrooms of the companies where these people work.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Six Living Labs: Innovation Increasingly Accessible to Companies<\/strong><br \/>\nBefore ADi4SMEs, access to robotics, 3D printing, or materials testing equipment was a privilege reserved for large companies or universities. EDIH opened six laboratories where any company in the region can test technologies before investing in them.<br \/>\nThe AI in Manufacturing laboratory, digital twins, 3D printing, environmental monitoring, and the computer laboratory are already in operation. The laboratory for climate impact on materials is being equipped. What makes this unique: the equipment is not \u201cfrozen\u201d in cabinets \u2014 it works alongside real client tasks, making it a living infrastructure rather than a showpiece.<\/p>\n<p><strong>European Recognition: STEP Seal and Seal of Excellence<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>STEP Seal (Strategic Technologies for Europe Platform) and Seal of Excellence from the European Commission are two of the most prestigious quality distinctions in the European innovation ecosystem. The ADi4SMEs project proposal \u2014 \u201cAccelerated Digitalisation of Small and Medium Enterprises in the North Central Region\u201d \u2014 was evaluated as high quality in a highly competitive process by an international panel of independent experts. These distinctions place EDIH ADi4SMEs among the leading digital innovation hubs in Europe.<\/p>\n<p><strong>The Next Generation: Entrepreneurs with Ideas and Mentors<\/strong><br \/>\nThirty students from Razgrad gathered at the \u201cIdea for the Future\u201d hackathon in March 2026. The task: to solve a real problem using digital technologies. Most of them had never before seen what developing a technology product looks like from the inside. Over those two days \u2014 they succeeded.<br \/>\nIn parallel, an entrepreneurship programme is underway with 60 applicants, of whom 45 completed the training stage and 40 are in an active mentoring phase. The mentors are practising entrepreneurs and specialists from the region \u2014 not lecturers from a textbook, but people who have built a real business.<\/p>\n<p><strong>European Cooperation Network<\/strong><br \/>\nEDIH ADi4SMEs does not operate in isolation \u2014 it is part of the European digital network, working in closer collaboration with six European hubs specialised in complementary areas.<\/p>\n<p><strong>DENMARK<\/strong><br \/>\nAddSmart \u2014 Industry 4.0 for manufacturing SMEs<\/p>\n<p><strong>BULGARIA<\/strong><br \/>\nDIH Trakia \u2014 cybersecurity for business<\/p>\n<p><strong>ROMANIA<\/strong><br \/>\nDIH4Society \u2014 AI and cybersecurity for Cluj<\/p>\n<p><strong>ROMANIA<\/strong><br \/>\nEDIH-DIZ \u2014 digitalisation of manufacturing, healthcare, and the public sector<\/p>\n<p><strong>LITHUANIA<\/strong><br \/>\nEDIH Vilnius \u2014 supercomputing and AI<\/p>\n<p><strong>UKRAINE<\/strong><br \/>\nWIN2EDIH \u2014 AI, IoT, and automation for Ukrainian SMEs<\/p>\n<p>These partnerships are not just on paper. They mean that when our client needs specialised expertise in cybersecurity, supercomputing, or access to Scandinavian markets \u2014 EDIH ADi4SMEs has a direct line to people who can help.<\/p>\n<p><strong>What Comes Next<\/strong><br \/>\nThe ADi4SMEs project is in its first half. By the end of 2027, the following are planned: full deployment of the AI assistant network, completion of all digital twins, new cohorts of the entrepreneurship programme, and expansion of scope following the administrative restructuring of the region in 2026\/2027, which will include new municipalities in the North Central Region.<br \/>\nIf you manage an SME or public organisation in the region and want to find out how digitalisation can benefit you specifically \u2014 the door of EDIH is open.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-1892\" src=\"https:\/\/ric-gabrovo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Group-725-1.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"291\" height=\"93\" \/><\/p>\n<p><em>\u0422\u0430\u0437\u0438 \u043d\u043e\u0432\u0438\u043d\u0430 \u0435 \u0441\u044a\u0437\u0434\u0430\u0434\u0435\u043d\u0430 \u0441 \u0444\u0438\u043d\u0430\u043d\u0441\u043e\u0432\u0430\u0442\u0430 \u043f\u043e\u0434\u043a\u0440\u0435\u043f\u0430 \u043d\u0430 \u041f\u0440\u043e\u0433\u0440\u0430\u043c\u0430\u0442\u0430 \u201e\u0418\u0437\u0441\u043b\u0435\u0434\u0432\u0430\u043d\u0438\u044f, \u0438\u043d\u043e\u0432\u0430\u0446\u0438\u0438 \u0438 \u0434\u0438\u0433\u0438\u0442\u0430\u043b\u0438\u0437\u0430\u0446\u0438\u044f \u0437\u0430 \u0438\u043d\u0442\u0435\u043b\u0438\u0433\u0435\u043d\u0442\u043d\u0430 \u0442\u0440\u0430\u043d\u0441\u0444\u043e\u0440\u043c\u0430\u0446\u0438\u044f\u201c 2021-2027, \u0441\u044a\u0444\u0438\u043d\u0430\u043d\u0441\u0438\u0440\u0430\u043d\u0430 \u043e\u0442 \u0415\u0432\u0440\u043e\u043f\u0435\u0439\u0441\u043a\u0438\u044f \u0441\u044a\u044e\u0437 \u0447\u0440\u0435\u0437 \u0415\u0432\u0440\u043e\u043f\u0435\u0439\u0441\u043a\u0438\u044f \u0444\u043e\u043d\u0434 \u0437\u0430 \u0440\u0435\u0433\u0438\u043e\u043d\u0430\u043b\u043d\u043e \u0440\u0430\u0437\u0432\u0438\u0442\u0438\u0435 \u0432 \u0440\u0430\u043c\u043a\u0438\u0442\u0435 \u043d\u0430 \u043f\u0440\u043e\u0435\u043a\u0442 BG16RFPR002-1.002-0001-C01 \u201e\u0423\u0441\u043a\u043e\u0440\u0435\u043d\u0430 \u0434\u0438\u0433\u0438\u0442\u0430\u043b\u0438\u0437\u0430\u0446\u0438\u044f \u0437\u0430 \u041c\u0421\u041f \u0432 \u0426\u0435\u043d\u0442\u0440\u0430\u043b\u043d\u0438\u044f \u0440\u0435\u0433\u0438\u043e\u043d \u0447\u0440\u0435\u0437 \u0441\u044a\u0437\u0434\u0430\u0432\u0430\u043d\u0435 \u0438 \u0440\u0430\u0437\u0432\u0438\u0442\u0438\u0435 \u043d\u0430 EDIH\u201c. \u0420\u0435\u0433\u0438\u043e\u043d\u0430\u043b\u043d\u0438\u044f\u0442 \u0438\u043d\u043e\u0432\u0430\u0446\u0438\u043e\u043d\u0435\u043d \u0446\u0435\u043d\u0442\u044a\u0440 \u201e\u0410\u043c\u0431\u0438\u0446\u0438\u043e\u0437\u043d\u043e \u0413\u0430\u0431\u0440\u043e\u0432\u043e\u201c \u043d\u043e\u0441\u0438 \u043f\u044a\u043b\u043d\u0430 \u043e\u0442\u0433\u043e\u0432\u043e\u0440\u043d\u043e\u0441\u0442 \u0437\u0430 \u0441\u044a\u0434\u044a\u0440\u0436\u0430\u043d\u0438\u0435\u0442\u043e \u043d\u0430 \u0434\u043e\u043a\u0443\u043c\u0435\u043d\u0442\u0430 \u0438 \u043f\u0440\u0438 \u043d\u0438\u043a\u0430\u043a\u0432\u0438 \u043e\u0431\u0441\u0442\u043e\u044f\u0442\u0435\u043b\u0441\u0442\u0432\u0430 \u043d\u0435 \u043c\u043e\u0436\u0435 \u0434\u0430 \u0441\u0435 \u043f\u0440\u0438\u0435\u043c\u0430, \u0447\u0435 \u0442\u043e\u0437\u0438 \u0434\u043e\u043a\u0443\u043c\u0435\u043d\u0442 \u043e\u0442\u0440\u0430\u0437\u044f\u0432\u0430 \u043e\u0444\u0438\u0446\u0438\u0430\u043b\u043d\u0430\u0442\u0430 \u043f\u043e\u0437\u0438\u0446\u0438\u044f \u043d\u0430 \u0415\u0432\u0440\u043e\u043f\u0435\u0439\u0441\u043a\u0438\u044f \u0441\u044a\u044e\u0437 \u0438 \u0443\u043f\u0440\u0430\u0432\u043b\u044f\u0432\u0430\u0449\u0438\u044f \u043e\u0440\u0433\u0430\u043d.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-2052 alignleft\" src=\"https:\/\/ric-gabrovo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/pnidit-bg.png\" sizes=\"(max-width: 240px) 100vw, 240px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ric-gabrovo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/pnidit-bg.png 365w, https:\/\/ric-gabrovo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/pnidit-bg-300x77.png 300w\" alt=\"\" width=\"240\" height=\"62\" \/><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-2053 alignright\" src=\"https:\/\/ric-gabrovo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Co-Funded-By-the-EU-transparent-background.png\" sizes=\"(max-width: 273px) 100vw, 273px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ric-gabrovo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Co-Funded-By-the-EU-transparent-background.png 800w, https:\/\/ric-gabrovo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Co-Funded-By-the-EU-transparent-background-300x81.png 300w, https:\/\/ric-gabrovo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Co-Funded-By-the-EU-transparent-background-768x208.png 768w\" alt=\"\" width=\"273\" height=\"74\" \/><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Not Just Numbers \u2014 Real Changes in People\u2019s Lives and Business Eighteen months after the launch of the ADi4SMEs project, the EDIH for North Central Bulgaria is reporting results behind which lie stories of transformation \u2014 of citizens, organisations, and an entire regional economy. Digitalisation is not an end in itself. It is a tool [&hellip;]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":2073,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2762","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-adi4smes"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ric-gabrovo.com\/bg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2762","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ric-gabrovo.com\/bg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ric-gabrovo.com\/bg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ric-gabrovo.com\/bg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ric-gabrovo.com\/bg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2762"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/ric-gabrovo.com\/bg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2762\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2765,"href":"https:\/\/ric-gabrovo.com\/bg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2762\/revisions\/2765"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ric-gabrovo.com\/bg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2073"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ric-gabrovo.com\/bg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2762"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ric-gabrovo.com\/bg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2762"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ric-gabrovo.com\/bg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2762"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}