Scientific co-operation between Portugal and China has been given a new boost with the creation of the China-Portugal Joint Laboratory on Artificial Intelligence and Public Health Technologies. The initiative, which aims to consolidate and leverage artificial intelligence technologies to improve public health management at a global scale, was formally presented on 5 March at a ceremony that brought together researchers and institutional representatives from both countries.
The new laboratory is a collaborative effort between o Instituto Superior Técnico, INESC-ID, Guangzhou Laboratory (GL), Guangzhou Medical University (GMU), and Macau University of Science and Technology (MUST). The Joint Laboratory aims to develop AI tech solutions for public health management, namely in the prevention diagnosis and response to health emergencies, as well as in the control of infectious and non-infectious diseases.
During the ceremony, Rogério Colaço, President of Técnico, highlighted the impact of this initiative on scientific and technological research: “International collaboration is key to tackling global challenges. The establishment of this Joint Laboratory represents a significant step forward in addressing global public health challenges”.
Arlindo Oliveira, a professor at Técnico and coordinator of the partnership, acknowledges both the challenges and the strengths of this collaboration: “Although this collaboration presents challenges related to language barriers and differing cultural and political perspectives, we have managed to establish a fruitful and mutually trusting relationship. This has already led to significant funding for research and development, with further projects expected to be approved in the near future.”
Following the formal proceedings, the academic Chinese partners visited the Institute for Systems and Robotics (ISR-Lisboa), where they were introduced to some of the advanced robotic technologies developed at the lab. These included iCub, one of the most complex humanoid robots in the world, designed to study human behaviour, and Vizzy, an interactive robot created to assist the elderly and hospitalized patients.
The works concluded with a visit to the Joint Laboratory at INESC-ID, which is meant to work under the five pillars Ana Teresa Freitas, Head of the Department of Computer Science and Engineering (DEI) and the Strategic Coordinator of the INESC-ID thematic line Life and Health Technology, detailed at the ceremony: “Safe people, safe projects, safe data, safe algorithms, safe outputs”.
Also present at the ceremony were Tai Kin Ip, Secretary for Finance of the Macau Government, Che Weng Keong, President of the Macau Science and Technology Development Fund (FDCT), Madalena Alves, President of the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT), reinforcing the institutional and scientific commitment of both nations in this partnership.
*This text was written in collaboration with Instituto de Engenharia de Sistemas e Computadores – Investigação e Desenvolvimento (INESC-ID)
