Samsung Innovation Campus trains Italy’s AI professionals

Samsung Innovation Campus Italy 2024 ended at the University of Pisa. Samsung Innovation Campus, a training program developed by Samsung Electronics with the aim of providing students with advanced digital and soft skills necessary to be competitive in a constantly changing job market, using new technological trends such as Artificial Intelligence and the Internet of Things.

Samsung Innovation Campus aims to accompany young people along the path of innovation, guiding them in new professional scenarios in the digital field. The new edition involved five universities distributed throughout the country, Italian excellence in STEM training: in addition to the University of Pisa, also the University of Genoa, the University of Roma Tre, the University of Studies "Gabriele D'Annunzio" Chieti - Pescara and Alma Mater Studiorum University of Bologna.

The course was integrated with the university courses already in progress and was attended by students enrolled in the second and third years of the three-year degree courses of the Departments of Computer Science, Physics and Mathematics, and Information Engineering. After an initial part of theoretical lessons, the students were asked to work on a project to put into practice what they had learned and immediately immerse themselves in a concrete experience, thus approaching the world of work.

Samsung, in collaboration with the University of Pisa, has made available the experience and skills of its professionals, working with university professors to help students acquire advanced digital skills on topics such as Artificial Intelligence and the Internet of Things applied to the consumer electronics market, Machine Learning and Cybersecurity, while at the same time enhancing their ideation, project management and problem-solving skills, the so-called transversal skills, or those skills that are relevant to become professionals prepared to face future challenges.

The winning project of the 2024 edition, developed by Samuele Bertucci, Matilde Petrucci, Manuel Antonio Pianini and Salvatore Bonanno, was a smart vase for hydroponic cultivation of aromatic herbs and microgreens, the sprouts of nutrient-rich edible plants. Hydroponics is a method of growing plants without soil by immersing the roots in a water-based nutrient solution. The project involved the students in the development of the prototype of the smart vase and the associated app, through which it is possible to manage the cultivation of plants by monitoring their vital functions, but also to automate the process of irrigation and administration of the nutrient solution, the basis of their sustenance.

“In recent years, companies are increasingly looking for professionals with a solid STEM background to tackle global challenges and develop cutting-edge solutions, especially in a historical moment like the current one in which new technologies such as generative AI are increasingly entering our lives in a disruptive way. On the other hand, we must not forget the value of soft skills that are essential to compete in a constantly evolving and changing scenario. With Samsung Innovation Campus, we work with universities precisely in this direction: we want to help give our young people the tools and skills necessary to tackle future challenges. We are very happy with this consolidated collaboration with the University of Pisa,” said Anastasia Buda, Corporate Citizenship & Internal Communication Manager of Samsung Electronics Italy.

"Samsung Innovation Campus is an excellent training ground for our students to acquire skills in new technologies and to face the challenges of the professional world,” said Professor Laura Elisa Marcucci at the University of Pisa. “We have extended the participation to students from the departments of Physics and Mathematics, as well as Computer Science and Information Engineering, and this has allowed us to create even more interdisciplinary working groups. I would like to thank Samsung Electronics on behalf of the University of Pisa."