Summary As proposed in the Cloud and AI Development Act (CADA, COM(2026) 502 final — a draft regulation, not yet in force), an Experience and Acceleration Centre for AI ("Centre for AI") would be a regional hub that helps businesses and public bodies adopt AI and cloud technologies. Under Article 5(1), each Member State would have to establish Centres for AI, building on the European Digital Innovation Hubs set up under Article 16 of Regulation (EU) 2021/694. They would support the integration and scaling of AI use cases, accelerate adoption for SMEs, small mid-caps (SMCs) and public bodies, and provide skills, testing and provider-matching — while keeping substantial autonomy over how they operate.

Detail

CADA's Cloud and AI Leadership Initiatives include the Centres for AI as the delivery vehicle for AI uptake at regional and local level. They are not built from scratch: they evolve from existing infrastructure.

Establishment and foundation (Article 5(1))

Article 5(1) provides that "Each Member State shall establish Experience and Acceleration Centres for AI ('Centres for AI')." It adds that those Centres "shall build on the European digital innovation hubs established under Article 16 of Regulation (EU) 2021/694 and, where applicable, any successor entities established under Union law." So the existing European Digital Innovation Hub (EDIH) network would be refocused and built upon to serve as the backbone.

Objectives (Article 5(2))

Article 5(2) gives the Centres three objectives:

  1. support the integration and scaling-up of AI use cases in strategic industrial and public sectors;
  2. accelerate the broad adoption of cloud and AI technologies at regional and local level, notably for SMEs, SMCs and public sector bodies, in line with the "AI first" principle; and
  3. leverage relevant infrastructure to accelerate the development and fine-tuning of AI models and systems.

Tasks (Article 5(3))

Article 5(3) lists four tasks: (a) helping organisations accelerate digital transformation through access to AI technologies, including by connecting them with European providers of cloud and AI technologies; (b) ensuring or providing access to upskilling and reskilling schemes, in close collaboration with the AI Skills Academy; (c) facilitating the transfer of expertise across regions; and (d) supporting the scaling-up of spin-offs and start-ups from universities, incubators and accelerators by facilitating access to clients seeking specialised AI services.

Autonomy and network (Article 5(5)–(7))

Article 5(5) provides that Centres for AI "shall have substantial overall autonomy as regards their organisation, composition and working methods, in compliance with the objectives set out in this Regulation." Article 5(6) establishes a network of Centres to support collaboration and to provide specialised services across regions where skills or compute capacity are not available locally. Article 5(7) requires Member States and the Commission to cooperate with existing networks under other Union initiatives, including in semiconductors and data.

Implementing acts (Article 5(4))

Article 5(4) empowers the Commission to adopt implementing acts detailing the procedure for establishing Centres for AI, plus the participant-organisation profile, selection criteria and implementation of tasks and functions, under the examination procedure in Article 46(2). Because these acts are not yet drafted (CADA is a proposal), the precise rules on who may run a Centre and how to apply for its services would be settled later.

Why the EU is creating them

The recitals explain the rationale. Member States should establish Centres for AI "with a view to ensuring an appropriate coverage of their territory," and the Centres "need to act as regional and local accelerators for the uptake and deployment of AI, cloud computing and other advanced technologies." By providing expertise, testing, skills and innovation support, they are meant to reinforce the competitiveness and resilience of the Union's AI industrial base. The recitals also note the network "will collaborate closely with other initiatives supporting the uptake of AI," such as testing and experimentation facilities and AI factories, and will build on skills initiatives including the AI Skills Academy.

Where the Centres sit in CADA

At the level of CADA's objectives, the Centres deliver operational objective 8 (regional and local adoption), named in Article 3(2)(h) and detailed in Article 4(8)(a), which expressly promotes "the broad adoption of AI by private and public sector organisations, including SMEs and SMCs, through the network of Experience and Acceleration Centres for AI." They are also woven into national policy: Article 7(2)(b) requires national cloud and AI strategies to support the Centres "as entry points to the European AI innovation ecosystem." So a Centre is simultaneously a delivery vehicle for the Leadership Initiatives and a node in each Member State's national strategy.

What this means for you

For public-sector officers and administrators, a Centre for AI would be a practical resource for AI adoption and procurement. Most of Article 5 places obligations on Member States and the Commission, not on you directly.

  • A point of contact. Your local or national Centre for AI would help you identify European providers (Article 5(3)(a)), access testing and validation before large procurements, and clarify technical requirements.
  • Support for SMEs and innovation. The Centres support scaling of start-ups and spin-offs (Article 5(3)(d)), which can broaden your supplier base.
  • Skills and training. Article 5(3)(b) routes upskilling and reskilling through the Centres, in collaboration with the AI Skills Academy.
  • Cross-regional reach. Where local capacity is lacking, the network (Article 5(6)) can provide specialised services from other regions.

Common misconceptions

"Centres for AI are entirely new organisations." Article 5(1) states they "shall build on the European digital innovation hubs" — an evolution of the EDIH network, not necessarily new bodies from scratch.

"They only serve large corporations." Article 5(2) and (3) emphasise SMEs, SMCs, public sector bodies, start-ups and spin-offs.

"They dictate procurement decisions." They provide support, testing and provider connections; they do not make purchasing decisions. Procurement choices remain with the buyer, subject to the relevant procurement and sovereignty rules in CADA and EU procurement law.

"They replace national AI strategies." They are a delivery component. Article 7(2)(b) requires national strategies to support the Centres for AI as entry points to the ecosystem; the Centres implement parts of those strategies rather than replacing them.

Related

This is general information about a draft EU regulation, not legal advice.