• The CITIC Foundation of Galicia will develop the technology, with the Galician Agency for Technological Modernization (AMTEGA) and the Galician Emergency Agency (AXEGA) involved in its deployment, alongside the collaboration of the Galician ICT Cluster.
• The project to transcribe emergency calls to 112 is one of the 12 initiatives selected for the first sandbox—a controlled testing environment to evaluate systems before their final implementation—associated with the European AI Act.
• Researcher Tiago Manuel Fernández Caramés and the center’s director, Manuel González Penedo, lead this project, which will enable further progress in integrating AI into essential services.

A Coruña, April 7, 2025.– The Galician project involving the CITIC at the University of A Coruña, which aims to improve the reliability of transcribing conversations with Galicia’s 112 emergency service and automatically recognize the language spoken, has been selected to take part in the first European artificial intelligence sandbox. This is a regulated testing space that allows for innovative technologies to be trialed under controlled conditions prior to widespread deployment. This mechanism, outlined in the European AI Act, ensures that these systems meet legal and safety requirements before being rolled out on a larger scale.

For this sandbox, the Ministry for Digital Transformation and Public Service, through the State Secretariat for Digitalization and Artificial Intelligence, selected twelve high-risk AI-based projects. This classification applies to areas such as access to essential public or private services, biometrics, employment, critical infrastructure, machinery, medical devices, and in vitro diagnostic products. The Xunta de Galicia is the only public administration involved in this process and is thus the first to participate in such a pilot initiative at the European level.

The Galician Foundation for Research in Information and Communication Technologies (FCITICG) will be responsible for developing the necessary technology in this project, led from the CITIC of the University of A Coruña by researcher Tiago Manuel Fernández Caramés and the center’s director, Manuel González Penedo. The Galician Emergency Agency (AXEGA) and the Agency for Technological Modernization of Galicia (AMTEGA) will participate in its rollout. The initiative will also involve the Galician ICT Cluster, which will help disseminate the acquired knowledge among Galician tech companies.

This project is capable of improving the transcription results of low-quality audio recordings. It adds English to a model that already understands Galician and Spanish, and also integrates an automatic language detection system. These recordings are used to verify information during emergencies and, if necessary, can also serve judicial purposes.

The director of CITIC at the University of A Coruña, Manuel González Penedo, emphasized that “having our project be the only Galician one selected among the twelve proposals at the national level is a reflection of how Galicia is at the forefront of implementing innovative AI-based solutions. At CITIC, we’ve been collaborating with public administrations for years, and this project strengthens our commitment to technological development aimed at benefiting society. This initiative, led by CITIC researcher Tiago Manuel Fernández Caramés and myself, will allow us to continue advancing the integration of AI into essential services. Moreover, it will serve as a foundation for defining best practices and the regulatory framework that will ensure its responsible and efficient use”.

For his part, Tiago Manuel Fernández Caramés highlighted the importance of the project: “Artificial intelligence is revolutionizing multiple sectors, and its application in the field of emergency services can make a crucial difference in how quickly and accurately critical situations are managed. Our work will allow the 112 transcription system to become more accurate, resilient, and adaptable, ensuring a more effective service for citizens”.

Meanwhile, the director of AMTEGA, Julián Cerviño, underlined the importance of this project for Galicia because “understanding how the Regulation will impact the development and rollout of AI systems is the main value of participating in this testing environment.” He noted that “this knowledge will also help the Xunta ensure the safe deployment of AI and, with the involvement of the ICT Cluster, reduce uncertainty for companies”.

Finally, Cerviño stated that participating in this initiative “keeps our region at the forefront of Europe’s leadership in developing ethical and safe artificial intelligence.” In this regard, he recalled that Galicia is the first European region to have a law that guarantees and provides mechanisms to uphold individuals’ rights regarding the use of AI by the Administration. It is also home to the first national AI oversight agency established within the European Union.