Portugal has launched Amalia, its first open‑source large language foundation model, developed by a consortium of universities with €5.5 million in EU recovery funds. The model — released with its training dataset and source code under an open licence — is intended as a base technology for institutions rather than a consumer product. Early applications include museum guides, Navy decision‑support, AI teaching assistants and digital public‑service aides, supported by access to supercomputers like Deucalion and MareNostrum 5.
Portugal Unveils Amalia — Its First Open‑Source Large Language Model to Strengthen AI Sovereignty
FILE PHOTO: Illustration shows AI (Artificial Intelligence) letters and robot hand miniature
Lisbon, July 1 — Portugal on Wednesday unveiled Amalia, the country’s first open‑source large language foundation model, developed by a consortium of Portuguese universities and research institutes with government backing.
Funded with €5.5 million from EU recovery funds (about $6.26 million), Amalia is designed not as a consumer chatbot but as a foundational technology that public institutions, companies, universities and researchers can adapt to build tailored AI applications.
Purpose and Early Uses
Initial planned applications include a virtual guide for Portugal’s museums, decision‑support systems for the Portuguese Navy, an AI teaching assistant to help plan lessons, and a digital aide to improve delivery of public services. These pilot projects aim to demonstrate how a locally produced model can boost productivity across sectors such as banking, insurance, telecommunications and industry.
Open Source, Local Control
Amalia’s training dataset and source code are being released under an open‑source licence so organisations can inspect, modify and deploy the model for local needs. The move is framed by Portuguese leaders as part of a broader push for strategic autonomy in AI.
“Europe's strategic autonomy is today, perhaps more than ever, tied to AI. This model will enable us to face the coming decades with greater sovereignty and less dependence,”
Prime Minister Luis Montenegro said at the launch, adding that the government will continue to invest heavily in the project.
Infrastructure and Collaboration
The project leverages Portugal’s investment in high‑performance computing and gains access to supercomputers including Deucalion and MareNostrum 5, supplying the processing power required to train and run large models. Amalia follows similar European efforts in countries such as France and Germany, where governments have supported homegrown companies and projects to offer alternatives to U.S. providers like OpenAI, Google and Anthropic.
Currency reference: ($1 = 0.8784 euros)
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