This paper presents the challenges identified by NESSI to successfully integrate AI in the smart software systems required to advance the digital transformation of Europe.
We identify four primary research challenges: governance of self-adapting software; explainable AI;
appropriate data; and legal, ethical and societal challenges. We identify the need to re-engineer software technologies, and to address: software composability; software and data lifecycles; quality assurance; sociotechnical challenges; and dedicated hardware.

Software technologies must feature strongly in an ambitious shared and agreed AI research and innovation roadmap. We recommend dedicated research programmes in Horizon Europe to develop the core technologies and tools to support new sophisticated AI-based systems, and to introduce and validate the use of AI in sectorial research and innovation programmes. To compete with the USA and China, and to collaborate with them as equals, Europe should conduct ambitious research programs in all aspects of AI.

Europe’s ambition and investment in AI software research and innovation should be on par with the transformative potential of the technology.

Read the paper: NESSI – Software and AI – issue 1

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