Innovation News
Arlindo Oliveira wins Galp and Engineering Academy Career Award
Arlindo Oliveira is the winner of the first edition of the “Career Award”, a joint initiative between Galp and the Academy of Engineering that honors outstanding personalities in the field of Engineering in Portugal.
A full professor at the Instituto Superior Técnico (IST), head of the Computer Engineering Department and president of INESC, Arlindo Oliveira has published five books and hundreds of scientific articles in the areas of artificial intelligence, algorithms, machine learning, bioinformatics and computer architecture.
The tribute took place in the Américo Amorim Auditorium, at Galp's headquarters, and included a special message from the President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, who highlighted the award winner's career: “He was a forerunner, a pioneer of Artificial Intelligence in our country. There was no national or European legislation yet and Professor Arlindo Oliveira was already anticipating, seeing and arriving first, adding to his ability to think the gift of teaching.”
The recipient, for his part, noted that the award recognizes the quality of national institutions in the field of engineering, both in academic training and research. “The fact that I was the recipient of the award is certainly due to the enthusiasm I have always nurtured and tried to convey for an area that is intellectually fascinating, economically relevant and socially impactful, a combination that reflects well the interests of the two organizations that confer the award,” said Arlindo Oliveira.
Worth €10,000, the award is given annually to personalities who contribute to the affirmation of Engineering in Portugal.
Sebastião Feyo de Azevedo, president of the jury and of the Academy of Engineering, notes that the choice reflects the purpose of the award: “It is a great pleasure for the Academy of Engineering that this Galp-Academia Career Award should be given for the first time to such a distinguished personality in Engineering, Science and Public Service in general, as is my colleague Arlindo Oliveira.”
Georgios Papadimitriou, Galp's Executive Director, also praised Arlindo Oliveira's exceptionality: “He is not only a brilliant academic, admired by his peers and students; he is a singular promoter of areas such as artificial intelligence and automatic learning, in a context where these themes have become central to the security and progress of Portugal and Europe.”
Eduardo Marçal Grilo, João Paulo Oliveira and Maria Rafaela Matos are some of the personalities who made up the jury for the 2024 Career Award.
Arlindo Oliveira was born in Angola. He graduated in Electrical and Computer Engineering from IST and did his PhD at the University of California at Berkeley in the same field. He was a member of the National Council for Science, Technology and Innovation, the Advisory Board of the European Parliament's Science and Technology Panel and is a member of the Board of Directors of Caixa Geral de Depósitos.
