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City Hall establishes strategic partnerships in artificial intelligence at Rio Innovation Week
Published on 14/08/2025 - 17:57 | Updated on 14/08/2025 - 18:13
Rio Innovation Week is being held at Pier Mauá - Marcelo Piu/City of Rio On Thursday (August 14), on the third day of Rio Innovation Week, Rio de Janeiro City Hall signed partnerships to develop three artificial intelligence initiatives. Rio will be the first city in Latin America to receive the NVIDIA AI City label. The North American multinational will install a supercomputer at Porto Maravalley. In partnership with the Brazilian Agency for Industrial Development (ABDI) and PUC-Rio, the Rio.IA – Carioca Artificial Intelligence Hub program was launched, also at Porto Maravalley. Mayor Eduardo Paes also signed a memorandum of understanding with the North American technology multinational Oracle and Elea Data Centers to advance Rio AI City.
"We've signed with the world's largest chipmaker, a coveted company. We'll buy NVIDIA equipment and computing power. We have a major provider of computing power, Oracle. New developments will come; we're talking to other major companies in this field, and everyone will want to come to Rio. We'll be the capital of artificial intelligence in Brazil," stated Eduardo Paes.
Through the Municipal Secretariat of Science, Technology, and Innovation (SMTC), Rio de Janeiro City Hall signed a memorandum of understanding with the American company NVIDIA, a global leader in AI solutions, to install a supercomputer at Porto Maravalley. The agreement marks the beginning of a collaboration aimed at creating artificial intelligence with a Carioca identity. The supercomputer will be used by universities, research centers, laboratories, and private companies to develop AI-based solutions for the city. This initiative consolidates the project to build a new artificial intelligence model, using the language of Rio de Janeiro.
"It's an honor for NVIDIA to contribute its expertise to the market. With this vision and investment, Rio de Janeiro is the first AI City in Latin America recognized by NVIDIA, following our successes in California, New York, and Mississippi," said Marcio Aguiar, director of NVIDIA's Enterprise division for Latin America.
Launch of the Rio.IA program
Also through the SMCT, the City of Rio launched the Rio.IA program – the Rio de Janeiro Artificial Intelligence Hub. The partnership with ABDI, a subsidiary of the Ministry of Development, Industry, Commerce, and Services, and PUC-Rio focuses on finding artificial intelligence solutions for Nova Indústria Brasil, the federal government's industrial program. The goal is to position the city of Rio as a provider of artificial intelligence for the sector. ABDI will finance the project through an agreement with PUC-Rio, which will be responsible for its implementation, with support from the SMCT.
"For us at ABDI, it's a great pleasure to be able to foster innovation in this partnership with the City Hall at Porto Maravalley, and to cooperate with this revolution taking place in Rio," said ABDI President Ricardo Cappelli.
Rio.IA will be simultaneously a reference center, a physical space, and a collaboration network for the development of companies, startups, and technological solutions. ABDI, in partnership with industry and SMCT, will identify challenges and obstacles that can be overcome with the use of artificial intelligence. The Rio.IA center will offer structure, mentoring, and services for companies and startups to develop solutions to these problems. The project aims to solve industry issues, promote the development of artificial intelligence technologies in Rio de Janeiro, and support the growth of small businesses in the sector.
"These are important milestones for the city. This partnership with NVIDIA will make Rio the first AI City in Latin America. This is a crucial partnership in which the company will provide equipment to train models and develop advanced artificial intelligence solutions for the city in the areas of security and disaster prevention. And we will create an innovation hub for industry, where Rio will position itself as a provider of artificial intelligence services for the New Industry Brazil," said Tatiana Roque, Municipal Secretary of Science, Technology, and Innovation.
Memorandum of Understanding with Oracle Brazil and Elea Data Centers
Mayor Eduardo Paes also signed a memorandum of understanding with Oracle Brazil and Elea Data Centers to advance the Rio AI City project. The agreement, signed through the Municipal Secretariat for Economic Development (SMDE), is another step toward transforming the Metropolitan Center in Barra da Tijuca into the largest data center hub in Latin America and one of the ten largest in the world, with investments of approximately US$65 billion. The planned area for the data center hub will have an initial capacity of 1,8 GW by 2027 and could reach 3,2 GW by 2032, with a clean energy source and unprecedented infrastructure in Brazil.
"With Rio AI City, we reinforce Oracle's commitment to providing Brazil and Latin America with cutting-edge artificial intelligence technology and data center infrastructure. We want to support companies and institutions to innovate faster, with secure, scalable, and sustainable solutions," said Alexandre Maioral, president of Oracle Brazil.
"With this partnership, we take a decisive step toward achieving our goal. Rio AI City is a project born with robust infrastructure, clean energy, and high connectivity, ready to attract talent and businesses that will shape the next digital era. Brazil, and especially Rio de Janeiro, now has the opportunity to be at the center of this global transformation movement," said Alessandro Lombardi, president and founder of Elea Data Centers.
The Municipal Secretary of Economic Development, Osmar Lima, highlighted that this is another step towards the consolidation of Rio AI City.
"We're bringing everyone who wants to participate in this hub. And Oracle, as a major company, is joining Rio's effort to establish itself as a data center hub."
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