FAQ'S

Aina Challenge

Challenge competition for the development of demonstrators using AI resources developed with the Aina Project

22 of the submitted projects will be awarded with a total amount of €1M and will start their project.

Registration open until January 30, 2025

What is it?

Challenge competition for the development of demonstrators using AI tools in Catalan.

Development of “beta tests” and demonstrators using the resources of Aina Kit

Organizations with experience in the field of artificial intelligence (AI) and/or language technologies (LT).

22 projects addressing the following challenges: - AI/LT services in Catalan - Control and monitoring of AI/LT - Development of open resources

Cash prizes, as well as training and access to relevant networks

Challenges

For this competition, we are looking for the development of demonstrators that address these challenges

CHALLENGE
#1

The "beta testing" and development of demonstrators (mitjançant l'ús d'Aina Kit) of serveis or AI/TL applications in Catalan.

Elaboration and validation of a work plan for the development of an AI/TL demonstrator with the Aina Kit in a real environment, operational in a maximum of 6 months. The demonstrator will take place in a functional and autonomous environment with guaranteed availability for 24 months. It will also take time to present a validation report (beta testing) with several suggestions and design a validation plan for the BSC-CNS, executed in an autonomous and coordinated manner.

Learn more
CHALLENGE
#2

The "beta testing" and development of demonstrators (using the Aina Kit) of systems for monitoring, control and/or alignment in the models and AI/TL applications in Catalonia.

Elaboration and validation of a work plan for the development of a system demonstrator for monitoring, control and/or alignment in the use of AI/TL models and applications in Catalan with the Aina Kit. The demonstrator will be operational in a maximum of 6 months. It will be located in a functional environment that allows the BSC-CNS to operate autonomously for 24 months. It will also take time to present a validation report (beta testing) with the best proposals and design a validation plan for the BSC-CNS, which will be executed in an autonomous and coordinated manner.

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CHALLENGE
#3

Contribute to building the open resource ecosystem of the Aina project to help scale, adapt and make AI/TL more robust in Catalonia.

Develop and validate a plan to contribute to the open ecosystem of the Aina project with AI/TL models, data or integrations, available in a maximum of 6 months. It will also take time to present an operational concept test, document the contribution to integrate it into the Aina repository, prepare a validation report and design a valid dissemination plan for the BSC-CNS.

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Contest phases

Until April 24, 2025

1. Registration

Proposals must be submitted through the form on this website.

April 2025 - May 2025

2. Selection

The Selection Committee will review all applications and select the 22 winning organizations.

June 2025

3. Awarding and Formalization

The characteristics of the demonstrator will be negotiated for each awarded organization.

July - December 2025

4. Acceleration

The selected organizations will have a maximum of 6 months to develop and validate their solution with the Aina project technical team.

End of December 2025

4. Demo Day

Presentation of the acceleration results.

News

Fins a 85 propostes per a desenvolupar IA en català

Success in the Aina Challenge call to accelerate AI projects in Catalan

Up to 85 proposals received to develop concept tests with AI in Catalan More than 50 companies have submitted projects to the call, of which 22 will be selected for development The field of health, information, administration and Catalan in education are some of the most important areas More than

What does the acceleration consist of?

Creation of a roadmap with project tracking milestones.

Access to resources (Aina Kit, community Discord, direct contact with the main AI hyperscalers).

Monthly team meetings (via videoconference) to validate milestone achievement with BSC.

Resolution of technical doubts through people designated by the BSC-CNS.

Awarding

A first invoice corresponding to 20% of the agreement in the project plan and objectives.

A second invoice corresponding to 60% of the development of each project.

A final invoice corresponding to 20% upon the final delivery of the project.

€ 50,000

From €33,000 to €50,000 per winning project, depending on the challenge.

€ 15,000

Services and other benefits.

6 months

Acceleration program

What is Aina and Aina Kit?

The Aina project, within the framework of the Catalonia.ai Strategy, seeks to promote the use of Catalan in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Language Technologies (TL) to advance the digitalization of public administration and Catalan companies, facilitating its access to the European digital market and preserving the Catalan language. The project, led by the Digital Policies Secretariat of the Generalitat of Catalonia, is developed in collaboration with the Barcelona Supercomputing Center (BSC), combining efforts to strengthen linguistic technology and artificial intelligence in Catalonia.

Aina Kit is the compilation of documentation and open resources that the Aina project makes available to companies developing AI/TL products and services.

AREAS OF INTEREST OF AINA AI/TL
AI/TL infrastructure

Infrastructure Applications in Catalan through advanced AI/TL infrastructure.

Benefits for companies

Technology base for companies in the sector to provide added value.

Efficient Public Administration

Smart services for a more efficient and accessible administration.

Return of Human Talent

Facilitation of the inclusion of Catalan SMEs in the European digital market.

SMEs in the European Digital Market

Stimulation of the AI/TL sector to attract back talent trained in Catalonia.

Aina Challenge Collaborators

In this project will collaborate:

Present your idea to us.

Application open until January 31

Frequently asked questions

Doubt resolution session

On March 31, 2025, we held a meeting for the resolution of technical and administrative doubts regarding Aina Challenge. You can find the video of the session here.

Comments regarding the video:

In the video it is said that a company in a JV (UTE) can also apply individually. This is incorrect. If a company applies in a JV, it CANNOT apply individually.
In the video it is not clear whether a company can be awarded several proposals. We finally confirm that a company can submit to several lots with different proposals and can be awarded more than one proposal.

Is the AinaChallenge.cat website the final place to register the proposals I may submit?

No. The AinaChallenge.cat platform is an environment for assistance and support in the procurement process.

The proposals to be submitted must ultimately be registered on the official public procurement platform.

To access the public procurement platform for this call, go to: https://contrataciondelestado.es/wps/poc?uri=deeplink:detalle_licitacion&idEvl=t1kCey2Tbf8%2B1TMyIiZmzw%3D%3D

You can follow the specific manual to donate your registration to the state contracting platform: Link to PDF document

In case of doubts, you can also contact info@ainachallenge.cat

Must the demonstrator development use resources from the Aina Kit?

Yes, it is mandatory to use resources generated within the Aina Project. The Aina Kit is the space where you can find them. You can access it through: projecteaina.cat/ainakit
We recommend checking the AinaTech space to keep up to date with the technical aspects of the Project, available resources, and publications.

Will we be able to access technical support from Aina?

During the proposal construction process, you may submit questions via info@ainachallenge.cat. During the development of the demonstrator, there will be planned opportunities to interact with the Aina technical team.

Which entities can apply?

All organizations that can demonstrate a proposal suitable to the challenges posed may apply. Each challenge will have specific requirements.
Both individuals and legal entities, Spanish or foreign, who meet the required solvency, may apply, with no requirement for a minimum technical team. Each company must have, throughout the project, at least one majority partner, founder or employee with executive responsibility who will act as the Project Coordinator.
(See section 11. PARTICIPANTS IN THE COMPETITION)

Incompatibilities

People with conflicts of interest, such as jury members, drafters of the tender specifications, or people with family or professional ties to them, cannot participate in the competition, in order to ensure equal treatment and fair competition.
(See section 12. INCOMPATIBILITIES AND DUTY TO ABSTAIN)

How can economic solvency be demonstrated?

Annual turnover will be proven with officially filed annual accounts. Entrepreneurs not registered in the Commercial Registry will prove it with legalized books. For professional services, economic solvency may also be demonstrated with a civil liability insurance valid until the end of the offer period and for an amount equal to or greater than the contract value. It will be necessary to commit to renewing it throughout the execution. This requirement is considered fulfilled if a binding commitment to contract the insurance is submitted, effective within ten business days if awarded.
(See section 13. ECONOMIC AND FINANCIAL SOLVENCY)

How can technical solvency be demonstrated?

To demonstrate experience, a list of the main services similar to those of the contract carried out in the last three years must be presented, indicating amounts, dates and recipients. The year with the most activity must have reached at least 70% of the average annual contract value. Experience must be accredited with official certificates or client statements. Similar services will be considered those with the same first 3 digits of the CPV code (Common Procurement Vocabulary) and that are related to digital solutions or language technologies and artificial intelligence. This requirement ensures that the company has sufficient capacity and experience, without excessively restricting access to the tender.
(See section 11.4 – B)

In which cases must a JV be formed?

A JV must be formed if the various JV partners will contribute value to the project. A declaration of commitment to form this JV must be submitted using the Annex III template.
In case of forming a JV, each company may not apply individually.
(See Annex III)

Are there alternatives to forming a JV?

The alternative is to have letters of support and make payments between companies as appropriate.

Can a single company submit more than one proposal to the same lot or to different lots?

Yes, a single company may submit more than one proposal to the same challenge or lot. And it may also submit various proposals to different lots or challenges. In short, a single company may submit more than one proposal to the challenges it considers.
In such cases, Envelope 2 must include both documents (generic information and lot-specific information), adding an additional proposal number. For example:
Proposal 1 – Lot 1:
 DocumentGenericInformation-Lot1-Proposal1
 SpecificDocumentation-Lot1-Proposal1
Proposal 2 – Lot 1:
 DocumentGenericInformation-Lot1-Proposal2
 SpecificDocumentation-Lot1-Proposal2
Proposal 1 – Lot 2:
 DocumentGenericInformation-Lot2-Proposal1
 SpecificDocumentation-Lot2-Proposal1
(See 7. DIVISION INTO LOTS [article 99 LCSP])

Can a single company be awarded more than one lot?

Yes, a single company may submit more than one proposal to the same challenge or lot. And it may also submit various proposals to different lots or challenges. In short, a single company may submit more than one proposal to the challenges it considers.
In such cases, Envelope 2 must include both documents (generic information and lot-specific information), adding an additional proposal number. For example:
Proposal 1 – Lot 1:
 DocumentGenericInformation-Lot1-Proposal1
 SpecificDocumentation-Lot1-Proposal1
Proposal 2 – Lot 1:
 DocumentGenericInformation-Lot1-Proposal2
 SpecificDocumentation-Lot1-Proposal2
Proposal 1 – Lot 2:
 DocumentGenericInformation-Lot2-Proposal1
 SpecificDocumentation-Lot2-Proposal1
(See 7. DIVISION INTO LOTS [article 99 LCSP])

Must the proposal include the infrastructure?

Yes, the budget submitted must include infrastructure costs for a 24-month availability. During these 24 months, the demonstrator must be available but not in operation. If BSC requires it, it must be able to be activated temporarily.
In the proposal, costs should be calculated using each company’s standard prices. Later, they can be optimized with prices that Do It Now may offer.
(See indirect costs per lot in section 5. BASE TENDER BUDGET AND ANNUALITIES)

Will there be access to BSC’s high-performance computing (HPC) services?

No. For this competition, as part of the prize, advantageous conditions will be offered for the use of AI services (model inference, fine tuning, MLOps, etc.) from the main cloud providers, through Do It Now.

How can DoItNow help me?
  • Single Point of Contact with Cloud Vendors and facilitation of access to hyperscalers through their agreements.

     

  • Technical support and systems optimization: L3 remote assistance, team coordination, technical meetings and software adjustments to improve HPC and AI services performance.

     

  • Interaction and documentation: Proactive communication with users, support for administrative and technical documentation, and suggestions for improvements and best practices.

     

  • AI management and deployment: Installation and maintenance of AI models, performance analysis and efficient management of AI resources.
What parameters will be taken into account in the evaluation?

  • What parameters will be taken into account in the evaluation?
    Various criteria will be considered, some general for all challenges and others specific to each challenge type. We recommend visiting the details of each challenge to learn about specific aspects and reading the technical specifications to understand the rest of the criteria.
    (See Section 18. EVALUATION OF PROPOSALS)

How will I receive my monetary prize?

Three milestones will be established throughout the acceleration process, from the award to the demo day. Completion of each milestone will allow the issuing of a new invoice. These invoices will be distributed as 20% at the start, 60% midway through the project, and 20% upon completion.
(See Section 22. PAYMENT OF CONTRACT PRICE)

If the final product is scalable and applicable to other contexts, is the intellectual property held by the creating company, BSC-CNS or shared?

Intellectual property will always belong to the creating company. BSC-CNS reserves the right to free and non-exclusive use of the results of the demonstrators for research and training activities. (See Section 22. INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS)

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