Technology Program Seeks to Transform the Food Industry Through AI

With an investment of over $5.3 billion Chilean pesos over a five-year implementation period, the NOVA-IA project, led by DICTUC, UC Chile and CENIA, will drive a profound transformation in the Chilean food industry through the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) advanced solutions.

Chile is known around the world as a food powerhouse. However, structural challenges remain in productivity, sustainability, sophistication, and innovation capacity, which are exacerbated by the limited and fragmented adoption of advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence.

According to al Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI), the productive effects of AI in emerging markets could generate a GDP increase of between 3.0% and 3.5% over a ten-year horizon in a favorable scenario.

Although Chile ranks first in the Latin American AI Index, the adoption of these technologies across industries is still in its infancy, with only 5% of companies having fully integrated them, while 27% are using them on an experimental basis.

To address these challenges, the NOVA-IA project was created, which seeks to develop a portfolio of AI-based solutions that will improve processes, develop new products, recover waste, analyze consumer trends in real time, and strengthen strategic decision-making for companies.

The initiative involves an investment of more than $5.3 billion Chilean pesos over a five-year implementation period. NOVA-IA is co-financed by CORFO, with a contribution of 2.6 billion Chilean pesos, and brings together DICTUC, UC Chile, the National Center for Artificial Intelligence CENIA (as per its initials in Spanish), University of La Serena, and a group of companies, start-ups, and specialized centers in a technology consortium. Thus, they coordinate applied science and productive capacities to close significant gaps in productivity, sustainability, and innovation in one of the country's strategic sectors.

"The food sector is at a turning point. Artificial intelligence has gone from being an opportunity to becoming a requirement for global competitiveness. With NOVA-IA, we want Chile to lead this transformation in Latin America. A key aspect of this initiative is that the project portfolio was defined and built in conjunction with the partner companies, in order to provide concrete and scalable solutions," states Pedro Bouchon, faculty member from the Faculty of Engineering and project leader.

"The food sector is at a turning point. Artificial intelligence has gone from being an opportunity to becoming a requirement for global competitiveness" states Pedro Bouchon, faculty member from the Faculty of Engineering and project leader. (Photo credit: Pexels)

The R&D&I pillars

The NOVA-IA program will be deployed through three synergistic pillars of Research, Development, and Innovation (R&D&I), aimed at transforming data into value, waste into opportunities, and knowledge into prosperity for the country.

The first pillar, research, seeks to take the food industry from reactive models to predictive systems, through technologies such as digital twins and advanced optimization algorithms, increasing production efficiency and reducing waste.

The second, development, focuses on food upcycling, that is, transforming waste or by-products from the food industry into new foods or ingredients of higher quality, value, and utility, instead of discarding them. To this end, AI will be used to transform agro-industrial by-products into high value ingredients, promoting the circular economy and new chains of sustainable value.

The third, innovation, drives market intelligence by developing AI-based tools-including natural language processing-, which will enable us to anticipate consumer trends and accelerate the development of healthier, more personalized, and more sustainable foods.

With this comprehensive architecture, NOVA-IA aspires to equip the Chilean industry with an unprecedented capacity to innovate, compete, and project itself globally.

Research, Development, and Innovation (R&D&I) are the three pillars on which the NOVA-IA project is based on. (Photo courtesy of DICTUC)

Applied science and public-private collaboration

The project also includes a strong component of talent training, development of technological assets, and the creation of ethical and technical standards for a responsible use of AI in food production. Its approach will allow advancements to effectively reach the industry, converted into products, processes, and public goods.

For UC Chile, this agreement reinforces its role in promoting cutting-edge research and technology transfer. "This project reflects how excellence in research, when coordinated with the productive sector and with public support, can generate profound transformation and accelerate the country's technological sophistication. NOVA-IA will strengthen a strategic industry for Chile," highlights María Angélica Fellenberg, Vice President for Research and Graduate Studies.

Research, Development, and Innovation (R&D&I) are the three pillars on which the NOVA-IA project is based on. (Photo courtesy of DICTUC)

Transforming the food industry

NOVA-IA will be managed by DICTUC, which will assume strategic management, coordination with the productive sector, and the implementation of applied technology. The project will be developed through a technological consortium that will enable addressing historical gaps in productivity, sustainability, data management, development of new products, and operational efficiency, linking the real challenges of the industry with cutting-edge solutions generated by academia.

"Our commitment to this project is based on a deep conviction: applied engineering, when connected to the country's capabilities and focused on solving real challenges, can transform whole industries. With NOVA-IA, we not only seek to deploy cutting-edge technology, but also to build lasting capabilities that boost a more sustainable and competitive growth with a sense for the future for Chile," states Felipe Bahamondes, General Manager of DICTUC.

The consortium will begin its activities in the coming months and plans to build lasting capabilities so that the Chilean food industry can advance towards more efficient, sustainable, and innovative processes, generating greater added value and new opportunities for international expansion.