The results of President Nikos Christodoulides’ contacts in the United States in April 2025, aimed at promoting Cyprus as an investment destination, were presented on Friday during a press conference by Deputy Minister to the President Irene Piki, Deputy Minister of Research, Innovation and Digital Policy Nicodemos Damianou, and Chief Scientist for Research, Innovation and Technology, Demetris Skourides.
During the press conference, it was noted that the meetings held in New York and San Francisco form part of the Government’s broader strategy to strengthen international outreach and to establish Cyprus as a reliable and competitive investment destination.
It was emphasised that these were not contacts limited to statements of intent, but meetings followed by systematic work, technical consultations and concrete policy decisions, which are already delivering tangible and substantive results. These efforts have led to the development of strategic partnerships of international significance, primarily in the fields of technology and innovation.
Special reference was made to the strategic partnership with American technology giant NVIDIA. As part of this partnership, Cyprus will soon acquire an upgraded national High-Performance Computing (HPC) infrastructure through a supercomputer, addressing an existing and critical gap in the country’s national computing capabilities, it was noted.
As highlighted, this development is of decisive importance for the advancement of innovation, particularly at a time when artificial intelligence is evolving at a rapid pace and requires strong, modern infrastructure and technological autonomy. The infrastructure will be accessible to the entire ecosystem and is expected to enter full operational use in June 2026.
Another significant development mentioned is the decision by Plug and Play to establish operations in Cyprus through the creation of an Innovation Center, a decision that emerged from the meetings in the United States and the follow-up contacts. Its activity in Cyprus aims to support startup and innovative enterprises, strengthen corporate and intrapreneurial innovation, connect research with the market, and provide access to international networks, expertise and markets.
Within the context of the US contacts, concrete collaborations with Columbia University were also initiated and are already yielding results. The contribution of Professor John Kymissis and his team will be instrumental in shaping the Future Founders Academy programme of the Research and Innovation Foundation (RIF), which targets young people up to three years after obtaining a university degree. It provides grants of up to €25,000. The programme will be implemented in a hybrid format and will include entrepreneurship training, support for the development of a minimum viable product, and preparation for engagement with investors, with the first activity scheduled for 17 January 2026.
At the same time, the Cyprus University of Technology, in cooperation with the Columbia School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, has drafted an agreement for a 4+1 dual degree programme, providing for the award of a postgraduate degree from Columbia and an undergraduate degree from the Cyprus University of Technology, strengthening the international dimension of higher education in Cyprus.
In the field of education and artificial intelligence, reference was made to the introduction in Cyprus’ schools of the international Experience AI programme, developed by Google DeepMind and the Raspberry Pi Foundation, as well as to advanced discussions with OpenAI regarding the pilot use of ChatGPT Education in Technical Schools. It was stressed that the objective is the proper and safe integration of artificial intelligence into the learning process, with training provided to both teachers and students.
CNA/TNE/EAN/EPH/2026
ENDS, CYPRUS NEWS AGENCY
