CeADAR is Ireland’s National Centre for Applied AI, based at University College Dublin (UCD). Founded in 2012 and operating as the country’s national AI technology centre since 2013, CeADAR sits beneath much of what AI Dubliners covers. Many of the Dublin companies we follow have been incubated, accelerated, funded, or supported here. CeADAR is the invisible backbone of Dublin’s AI ecosystem.
Why Dublin? The National AI Backbone Built in Belfield
CeADAR is located at Nexus UCD, Block 9/10, on UCD’s Belfield campus in Clonskeagh. This base gives it a three-layer advantage: Ireland’s national AI mandate, a research-grade university campus, and a direct line to Enterprise Ireland and IDA Ireland. From this position, the centre supports more than 90 member companies.
CeADAR is also one of 30 European Digital Innovation Hubs (EDIH), an EU network providing AI and digital technology support to SMEs and public-sector organisations. As a result, it operates at both Irish and EU policy levels. Its Director of Innovation and Development is Dr. Ricardo Simon Carbajo.
Recent Milestones
CeADAR has stacked up significant developments over the past six months. In February 2026, UCD and Queen’s University Belfast signed an MoU establishing a partnership between Momentum One Zero (QUB) and CeADAR (UCD). This is the island’s first formal cross-border AI partnership, covering joint research, joint funding bids, and SME support.
In December 2025, Minister Peter Burke announced €5.7M in EDIH Phase 2 funding for CeADAR, running from 2026 to 2029. Around the same time, the European Commission awarded CeADAR a STEP Seal, a mark of excellence for strategic European technologies. Meanwhile, the EDIH team also won the 2026 NovaUCD Innovation Champion of the Year award.
The 2026 AI Ecosystem Accelerator, run jointly with NovaUCD, currently hosts 10 startups: AnotherTrip, Databuckets, Diotima, Envaira, Infralign.ai, MESO, Neuronourish, RunCommerce, Setanta Space, and Stormlands Mining. The programme began in April and concludes in October with an Investor Showcase.
What’s Next
CeADAR’s Phase 2 includes a new partnership with ICHEC (Irish Centre for High-End Computing — Ireland’s national HPC centre), giving startups and SMEs access to advanced compute. Through the cross-border partnership, joint applications will be submitted to UK, Irish, and EU funding programmes. As a result, the goal is to scale AI adoption across SMEs and the public sector.
Many of the Dublin companies AI Dubliners follows touch CeADAR somewhere in their story. The layer that started in Belfield is now extending across the whole island.
For more information:
