The main reason is actually to enable Czech businesses to benefit as much as possible from the unique expertise in artificial intelligence that exists at Czech universities today. We have a great tradition in AI research and AI science, but we also have a responsibility to help Czech society benefit from it, and the center we’re opening here today is actually a nice example of how universities in the Czech Republic, which have some unique qualities or unique expertise, could collaborate with Czech industry.
So, you believe that the Czech Republic’s competitiveness could, so to speak, help scientists make the Czech Republic more competitive in the field of artificial intelligence.
Michal Pěchouček, Rector of CTU
Well, on the contrary. Is it true that competitive Czech science in artificial intelligence can help Czech industry become competitive? Yes, that’s right. Unfortunately, there are actually no places in the world that are super competitive in the field of artificial intelligence that aren’t built around cutting-edge science in the field of artificial intelligence. And because we have cutting-edge science here in the Czech Republic, we have the ideal prerequisites to become a true think tank in the field of artificial intelligence, rather than just catching up with trends set by others.
Reporter,
You mentioned trends. One of the major trends in recent months—let’s say, since the beginning of this year—has been autonomous agents. It’s the next step in how they can be utilized—specifically, how artificial intelligence can be utilized. It’s also something that’s interesting from a research perspective, something that some scientists might now need to, let’s say, bridge. I know that some people are already working on it, but to bridge the gap and place greater emphasis on this particular area.
Michal Pěchouček, Rector of CTU
It’s interesting, then, that this massive trend in artificial intelligence today has a strong Czech footprint, because a center for autonomous agents was established at CTU in 2000. So I just want to say that we really do have this expertise and we’ve got some experience in this area. I am convinced that useful artificial intelligence is based on a combination of both large and small language models. These specialized agents, which actually work together, create a non-linear software ecosystem. Since we’ve been researching agents at CTU for many years, we have the ideal conditions to help Czech industry with the application of autonomous agents, both in the software sector and in manufacturing.
Reporter,
You’re also an expert in artificial intelligence. Do you also believe that it is precisely these smaller models—whether we’re talking about OpenCL, Cowork, or whatever comes next—that will have the greatest impact on the job market? Is this what could be the AI boom in the job market?
Michal Pěchouček, Rector of CTU
It’s actually difficult to define the job market in any unified way, because even if we say today that AI agents in software development are actually changing the job market the most, that’s still just a very small part of the job market as a whole. But I am convinced that various forms of artificial intelligence—whether they are small agents, large language models, or the next generation of AI—will have a completely transformative impact on the labor market. This is true in a positive sense, because people will be freed from work they may not want to do, but unfortunately also in a negative sense, because the demand for human workers will change. And today, for example, in the United States, we’re seeing unemployment among graduates of STEM fields, which is something we haven’t really seen here in 20 years. This is the first sign of that shift in the labor market.
Reporter,
Large language models—an area you just mentioned, and of course the largest ones. The players in the field remain the same. Is it still worth investing and trying to create, for example, a European language model? We know, of course, that Czech scientists are also involved in a project to create just such a European language model. Does it still make sense?
Michal Pěchouček, Rector of CTU
It is a meaningful endeavor for many reasons. First, to build technological resilience, we actually need to have key technologies in Europe, so from this geopolitical perspective, I consider it the right path. At the same time, from a scientific research standpoint—you’re correct in saying that Czech scientists are participating in this project? The project is coordinated by Czech scientists. Professor Hájič actually put the project together. There are 20 leading scientists in the field of large language models in Europe, representing over 20 leading research institutions—not scientists, but institutions—and Professor Hájič is leading it all. So I’m glad that the Czech Republic has a significant presence in these European language models.
Reporter,
If we look now at an area where CTU has a major presence, it is, of course, robots and robotic systems utilizing artificial intelligence. This is an area where Czech science should continue to build on what it does well, whether we’re talking about multi-drone systems, etc.
Michal Pěchouček, Rector of CTU
For CTU, for Czech science: In the field of AI, the spectrum is truly broad, ranging from language models to image recognition. While CTU truly ranks among the European leaders in areas ranging from robotic systems for dual-use technologies and defense applications to other key EIA fields, the most important aspect of artificial intelligence for CTU is undoubtedly the ability to apply AI in scientific work across the entire university. This is truly a major challenge we face, and we must create an environment that prepares scientists for the use of artificial intelligence.
Reporter,
If you had to explain very simply what this entails—whether it involves some kind of connection via agents or something similar, or how scientists might use artificial intelligence—how would you describe it?
Michal Pěchouček, Rector of the Czech Technical University in Prague
Today, scientists use artificial intelligence for many of their tasks, including software development. Many scientists write programs to test the properties of their algorithmic ideas, and through the use of artificial intelligence for testing hypotheses in many fields, we will see a major shift away from traditional laboratories—where people wear lab coats—toward the use of models that test scientific hypotheses in medicine, biochemistry—which is already commonplace today—all the way to the ability to competently process scientific literature. That means reading AI articles. I actually believe that in the future, we won’t be able to reach the final result without high-quality artificial intelligence. And that final result is the formulation of those results in the form of articles. Those will also be written using artificial intelligence. So I am convinced that artificial intelligence makes a lot of sense in all phases of a scientist’s creative work, and it is no trivial matter to prepare the scientific community for a world where we will actually want them to continue being the leaders and for those scientists—human scientists—to decide what research problems need to be solved.
Reporter,
Says CTU Rector Michal Pechouček Thank you for the interview.
Michal Pechouček, Rector of CTU
Thank you for the invitation.