France 

On September 2020, E. Macron hosted a “French Tech” event at the Elysée Palace, inviting the French start-up industry’s key players. The President took the opportunity to detail a new aspect of the Recovery Plan the Government has launched on September 4th, unlocking €100 billion in total, of which €7 billion allocated to the digital sector.

This plan’s first axis is the digital transformation in France, which will receive €2,3 billion, of which €1,7 billion will be allocated to the digital transition of the State and the French territories. A second axis is developing the French start-up ecosystem and perennating the rise of unicorns, with €3,7 billion, to keep France’s positioning as one of the first innovative European countries. The French government is going to contribute to the digital transformation of small and medium companies with a €385 million investment as well.

 Australia 

Australian government explores blockchain by funding two relative programs: the first project is for regtech startup competitions, and the other involves two pilot projects that aim to reduce the cost of regulatory compliance. Funding for the programs is coming from the A$800 million ($618 million) Digital Business Plan set by Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison six months ago. A$11.4 million ($9 million) is allocated to the first project. It aims to enable startups to pitch ideas and, if successful, develop trials and potentially commercialize a blockchain-based regulatory solution. The committee is identifying startups in Australia that might be interested in the program and will create four different challenge areas for them. The SMEs will propose a plan on how to address the challenge. Some will be awarded a grant of A$100,000 ($77,300) to develop a feasibility study for their solution. The program targets one of the core aspects of the National Roadmap: to support startups.

 Italy 

The Italian government of Mario Draghi, which took office in February, is revising a national Recovery and Resilience Plan (RRP) that would entitle it to some 206 billion euros by 2026 from an EU program to help nations hardest hit by the novel coronavirus.

Two sources close to the matter told Reuters Rome planned to raise the amount spent on broadband, 5G, and satellite infrastructure to 6.7 billion euros from 4.2 billion euros earmarked in January by the previous government. The total funds for boosting digitalization amount to some 49 billion euros, up from a previous 46.3 billion euros, including investments in public administration and grants for small and medium-sized companies, one of the sources added on condition of anonymity.

 Brazil 

Startup program Gov.br from The Ministry of Economy will accelerate delivery of digital transformation projects. The idea is to digitize 100% of federal public services to save resources and simplify the life of Brazilians. Startup Gov.br teams are distributed in all ministries. In the Ministry of Economy, in the Ministry of Citizenship, in the Ministry of Health, in the Ministry of Education and in many others that will be prioritized in the next cycles of innovation and project selection.

Brazil now has guidelines established by the federal government to guide public policies in the development and use of artificial intelligence. This is the Brazilian Artificial Intelligence Strategy (EBIA), produced by the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovations. The document draws attention to the concern to establish ethical principles and respect for human rights and diversity in artificial intelligence, which is explained in several of the proposed actions (we highlight some below). In addition, the government is committed to applying AI resources to at least 12 federal public services by 2022 and to establishing an artificial intelligence observatory in Brazil.