Endian is joining the European research project SME 5.0. The project aims to develop a strategic guide on how small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Europe can do business in a smart, sustainable and people-oriented way. IT security has a key role to the program.
"Artificial intelligence takes decisions based on data. If IT criminals successfully manipulate this data, the whole concept of Artificial Intelligence is useless, or even dangerous," says Endian CEO Raphael Vallazza. "We are pleased that the research project recognizes this fundamental aspect of cybersecurity and assigns it the importance it should have."
Thanks to digital transformation, companies have more and more data at their disposal. SME 5.0 aims to determine how SMEs can use this data to establish smarter manufacturing with the help of AI and also master the sustainability transformation. The research project is funded by the EU's new HORIZON EUROPE framework program for research and innovation.
A total of 16 companies and research institutions worldwide are involved in the project. The international consortium aims to take SMEs in Europe, USA, South America, Africa, Asia and even Australia to the next level of Industry 5.0. The lead institution is the Free University of Bolzano with Professor Dr.-Ing. Erwin Rauch. "SME 5.0 will show small and medium-sized enterprises the potential and risks of using artificial intelligence on their way to resilience and sustainability," Rauch said.
The project will develop guidelines on how SMEs can protect themselves from cyberattacks when using AI. "Small and medium-sized enterprises form the backbone of the European economy and are therefore also an attractive target for IT criminals," says Raphael Vallazza. "At the same time, these companies often underestimate the need for IT security measures or do not pay enough attention to the issue. By participating in the project, together with excellent research institutions, we can help prepare SMEs for the challenges ahead."
Endian develops innovative cybersecurity solutions for the protection of IoT environments as well as the easy remote management of industrial infrastructure. In this context, the ENDIAN SECURE DIGITAL PLATFORM is a unique, fully integrated solution that enables machines and plants to be securely connected and at the same time protected against cyber attacks. In a further step, companies can integrate individual applications via the platform. In addition to networking and IT security, the ENDIAN SECURE DIGITAL PLATFORM offers an IoT-based management tool with fully comprehensive orchestration, which can be used to manage access and authorizations, for example.