Krzysztof Gawkowski, a deputy prime minister and minister of digital affairs, made the announcement on Friday at the signing of a letter of intent to establish an Artificial Intelligence Fund.

He described the fund as “a strong foundation for the Polish economy, which small and medium-sized entrepreneurs will be able to benefit from.”

Gawkowski also drew attention to the construction of an AI “factory” set to cost some €46 million. The facility will serve as a hub for co-creating, testing and utilizing AI systems.

He also mentioned the Polish government’s involvement in the building of the Polish Large Language Model (PLLuM). This will be an AI chatbot akin to Chat GPT but specifically in Polish and designed to deal with the complexity of the language. It will be free to use and open to the public.

Defense Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz underscored the important role of the AI project both for the public and military.

“I would like as much of this billion zlotys as possible to go for dual use, because then it is useful for the army and for the general public,” he said.

Kosiniak-Kamysz also referred to social fears regarding AI. He said that the fear of losing jobs was present during the industrial revolution.

He acknowledged, however, that “unbridled artificial intelligence, which we do not control, can be dangerous."

Kosiniak-Kamysz described the signing of the letter of intent as “a very important day for a safe and economic Poland. There is no future for either without artificial intelligence (...) This is something that can determine Poland's competitive advantage, its security and economic development.”