The next wave will happen in the physical world. Italy and Europe can lead where creativity and industrial culture still matter: at the intersection of AI, products, manufacturing and materials.
The future of Made in Italy will depend on how effectively creative industries adopt AI.
How we can help
Identify high-impact AI opportunities
Build safe and scalable adoption roadmaps
Protect data, IP and company know-how
Integrate AI across workflows and teams
Where AI generates measurable value.
Augmented Organizations
AI to simplify operations, automate workflows and enhance productivity across teams and functions.
Customer Experience & Personal Commerce
More adaptive, personalized and intelligent relationships between brands and customers, online and in store.
Smart Manufacturing & Circular Supply Chains
AI for manufacturing efficiency, traceability, lifecycle management and circular operations across the value chain.
Design & Product Development
AI-assisted design, engineering and customization to accelerate creativity and sustainable innovation.
Concrete challenges, mapped
CHALLENGE
VERTICAL
TYPE
AREA OF IMPACT
Infinite product visuals from a digital twin
One high-quality twin → unlimited images for catalogue, e-commerce and campaigns, in any setting or light.
Fashion
Design
Quick Win
Customer Experience
AI-driven material selection
Identify the right material based on performance, cost, availability and sustainability, transforming the materials library into a decision-making engine.
Fashion
Design
AEC
Quick Win
Design & Product Development
Automated EPDs
Environmental Product Declarations across creation and maintenance — AI compiles, you validate.
Fashion
Design
AEC
Quick Win
Smart Manufacturing
Demand forecasting & inventory
Anticipate demand to cut overproduction, returns and unsold stock.
Fashion
Strategic BET
Smart Manufacturing
Augmented Product Development
AI agents supporting design, engineering and prototyping workflows, while preserving creativity and brand identity.
Design
Strategic BET
Augmented Organizations
Augmented Architectural Workflows
AI agents supporting architects from early-stage design to visualization, documentation and project coordination.
AEC
Strategic BET
Design & Product Development
One path, four steps
Not an isolated project, but a structured path, from your AI challenge to adoption in production. Designtech holds the relationship and the domain; method and execution scale with selected partners.
01 • Entry point
AI Challenge
You bring the challenge, we listen. A reverse pitch where the problem comes from you and we translate it into concrete opportunities.
Format
Dedicated session · at CoFactory or remote
➔
02 • Diagnosis
AI Readiness Assessment
We map where AI creates real value for you. A roadmap prioritized by impact and feasibility, with KPIs and quick wins.
Output
Readiness scorecard · 12-month roadmap
➔
03 • Guidance
Trusted Guidance
A domain expert guides adoption over time: prioritizing, tracking KPIs, and selecting the solutions and partners that fit you.
Mode
Ongoing · fractional, tailored
➔
04 • Delivery
Execution & Pilots
From roadmap to production. We implement use cases with selected technology partners, including the physical world of CoFactory.
Where
In production · with selected partners
An independent, trusted environment
As an independent innovation hub, Designtech creates a neutral space where companies, startups, institutions and technology partners collaborate, with no conflict of interest, and the domain of the creative industries at the centre. It's what makes the journey above trustworthy: the guidance is led by domain, not by the solution being sold.
Product Innovation
Space & Experience Design
Materials Research
Manufacturing Integration
Human-Centered Technologies
Building the skills for a more conscious AI adoption.
Designtech promotes capability building initiatives to support organizations in developing a more conscious, strategic and effective approach to AI, across teams, roles and industries.
Think Tanks
Focused sessions exploring the strategic and ethical implications of AI adoption with industry leaders and researchers.
Peer Learning
Collaborative formats where companies share real experiences, challenges and solutions in adopting AI at scale.
Workshops & Labs
Hands-on sessions designed to build practical AI literacy and strategic decision-making capabilities within organizations.
Research Activities
Designtech supports the activation of European and national grant-funded innovation projects involving AI.
Highlighted topics
Ethics
Intellectual Property
Data Protection
Sovereign AI
Token Costs
Infrastructure Sustainability
AI Innovation Days
Connecting industry, startups and technology partners.
Upcoming events
15 July 2026
Webinar
11.00 – 12.30 CET • Online
AI, Applied
AI explained by the people who use it every day across design-related industries, through concrete real-world applications and case studies. No theory, no hype—just what works, what doesn't, and why.
Registration opens soon
23 September 2026
In-person
TBD • Milan
Fashion & Design
Our first vertical Innovation Day, dedicated to AI in the fashion and design world. Full programme, speakers and cases revealed soon.
Registration opens soon
28 October 2026
In-person
TBD • Milan
Architecture & Construction
The second vertical Innovation Day, focused on AI across architecture, engineering and construction. Programme and speakers coming soon.
Registration opens soon
Companies
Pitch your AI challenge
Bring us a real problem. From diagnosis to roadmap to adoption, the four step journey starts here, guided by people who know your sector.
Have an AI solution for the creative industries? Join the network of AI solutions that power our adoption programmes and connect with qualified demand.
Bring your AI implementation expertise to the creative industries. Together, we design and deliver adoption pathways with domain knowledge at the core.
