The initiative is led by CDP Venture Capital in partnership with Scientifica Venture Capital, an entrepreneurial partner specializing in technology transfer with a strong focus on transformative AI technologies.
Leading scientific advisers and academic partners will help steer the development of new deep tech companies in the strategic fields of AI and cybersecurity.

CDP Venture Capital announces the launch of SophIA, a new National Technology Transfer Hub dedicated entirely to artificial intelligence and cybersecurity. The initiative is designed to support the creation and growth of deep tech startups and turn scientific research into business ventures, strengthening Italy’s technological competitiveness.

Established in collaboration with Scientifica Venture Capital, the Hub has an initial allocation of €27.5 million from CDP Venture Capital’s Tech Transfer Fund and Artificial Intelligence Fund. It aims to support the creation and growth of more than 20 ventures at the proof-of-concept, pre-seed and seed stages over the next three years.

SophIA brings together public and private capital, combining CDP Venture Capital’s strategic vision with Scientifica Venture Capital’s entrepreneurial expertise. Its operating model is designed to bring frontier technologies to market and create industrial value from research, with the support and coordination of the scientific partners’ technology transfer offices. It offers a way to turn Italy’s scientific and intellectual assets into businesses, skilled jobs and lasting technological leadership. SophIA’s scientific partners are the University of Naples Federico II, Politecnico di Milano, the Italian Institute of Artificial Intelligence (AI4I), Fondazione Bruno Kessler and the Italian Institute of Technology (IIT). Agreements with corporate partners are also being finalized.

SophIA’s technology remit spans the full spectrum of artificial intelligence. Investments will range from foundation models, advanced architectures, training methods, multimodal models and decentralized approaches to intelligent agents for automation, interaction and cooperation between systems. Areas of application include industry, science and infrastructure, such as process automation and the design of materials and medicines. The Hub will also focus on autonomous and collaborative robotics, digital twins, space robotics, edge computing, emerging hardware (neuromorphic, analog and bio-inspired) and high-performance computing infrastructure, including cloud services and AI accelerators.

The Hub’s entrepreneurial partner is Scientifica Venture Capital, an Italian technology transfer specialist with an established portfolio of 21 active deep tech startups. Scientifica Venture Capital pursues a focused investment strategy built on identifying and developing science-intensive innovations with the potential to scale industrially. Its team brings expertise in AI, complex systems engineering, machine learning and business building to every stage of the investment process: technology sourcing, technical due diligence, execution at the proof-of-concept and seed stages, and strategic support after investment. By combining technical and entrepreneurial expertise, Scientifica Venture Capital helps research projects develop into sustainable, competitive businesses.

According to Grand View Research, the European AI market was worth approximately €61.1 billion in 2024 and is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 33.2% between 2025 and 2030. In Italy, the Artificial Intelligence Observatory at Politecnico di Milano estimates that the AI market reached €1.2 billion in 2024, up 58% from 2023. This expansion is being driven by public policies supporting innovation, growing industrial adoption of AI solutions and increasingly active academic and infrastructure networks. Italy also plays a prominent role in global scientific research: it ranks ninth worldwide for AI publications, with more than 40,000 papers published between 2018 and 2023. More than 200 university courses are offered across 50 institutions, and approximately 581 doctorates are awarded annually in related disciplines.stima di Grand View ResearchOsservatorio Artificial Intelligence del Politecnico di Milano

SophIA responds to two converging trends: Italy’s emergence as a scientific hub for artificial intelligence and the sector’s rapid growth across Europe and Italy, already evident in investment, industrial competitiveness and strategic policy.

“SophIA is a strategic part of our plan to strengthen technology transfer in Italy. It will help translate the country’s scientific expertise into market opportunities and speed the journey from innovation to commercialization in a field of growing importance. Investing at the frontier of AI and cybersecurity means supporting the competitiveness of the Italian economy while anticipating the trends and innovations that will shape the future. Becoming one of the first investors in the next wave of AI technologies is where the real added value lies: it will help secure a leading international position for Italy and create highly skilled jobs, giving Italian talent tangible opportunities to build careers at home,” said Claudia Pingue, Senior Partner and Head of the Technology Transfer Fund at CDP Venture Capital SGR.

“I believe Italy has the ability not only to adopt new technologies, but also to create them. With SophIA, we want to make AI a real driver of industrial development, turning research into competitive startups and strengthening Italy’s role in global innovation,” added Riccardo D’Alessandri, Managing Partner at Scientifica.

Giorgio Ventre, the Rector’s Delegate for SophIA at the University of Naples Federico II, said: “Artificial intelligence and cybersecurity are increasingly central to the innovation economy. Italy needs both the scientific expertise to master these technologies and the industrial capacity to realize their full potential. SophIA brings together venture capital and Italy’s leading research centers to increase the country’s ability to create highly specialized spin-offs serving businesses and the public sector. The University of Naples Federico II’s role as a scientific partner confirms Southern Italy’s ability to play a leading part in innovation.”

“Politecnico di Milano sees technology transfer as a strategic means of turning knowledge into tangible benefits for the country. As artificial intelligence profoundly reshapes industrial and social models, universities, researchers and investors must work together to guide innovation,” said Marco Bocciolone, the Rector’s Delegate for Technology Transfer at Politecnico di Milano. “Initiatives such as the SophIA Hub contribute to this goal by supporting the creation of new deep tech companies and strengthening technological competitiveness in Italy and Europe.”

“Technology transfer is one of the decisive steps in turning scientific excellence into industrial innovation and new businesses. Initiatives such as SophIA strengthen this process by creating a structured bridge between advanced research, technological development and the formation of deep tech companies. The Italian Institute of Artificial Intelligence (AI4I) is participating as part of a broader vision: connecting scientific expertise, computing infrastructure and engineering capabilities to support advanced applications and new ventures. Stronger dialogue among universities, research centers, investors and industry is now essential to consolidating Italy’s role in the next waves of AI technology,” said Fabio Pammolli, President of the Italian Institute of Artificial Intelligence (AI4I).

“For more than 30 years, Fondazione Bruno Kessler has been a leading center for AI research in Italy and internationally,” added Ferruccio Resta, President of Fondazione Bruno Kessler. “The decisive step now is to turn that excellence into impact. That means enabling researchers to translate scientific findings into market-ready technologies and new businesses. As a scientific partner of the AI Technology Transfer Hub, FBK will therefore further strengthen its technology transfer efforts through a structured process of scouting and selecting deep tech projects in AI and cybersecurity.”

“SophIA is an important step in strengthening Italy’s technology transfer ecosystem in fields that will shape competitiveness for decades to come. Artificial intelligence is more than an enabling technology: it will redefine how we design materials, develop medicines, build robots and protect both digital and physical infrastructure. IIT has adopted an ‘AI first’ approach in its strategic plan, and initiatives like this are essential. They accelerate the journey from frontier research to deep tech startups, creating industrial value, skilled jobs and new opportunities for our young researchers in Italy and across Europe,” concluded Giorgio Metta, Scientific Director of the Italian Institute of Technology.