A first look at 2022, with the CEO of Aidia

The first months of 2022 have been very intense for Aidia, which has seen a significant increase in requests for new collaborations. For this reason, we decided to sit down for a chat with CEO Riccardo Celli, to ask him for some more details and to take stock of the situation.

Here we are again for a chat, Riccardo, to talk about the first months of 2022. What can you tell us about the first quarter? How are things going for Aidia?

The year started off on the right foot: we closed several agreements with important companies at the regional and national level and various long-term partnerships are being initiated. Growth has also involved human resources: our team has grown by 40%, with the addition of several technicians and a designer.

We are expanding and taking time to reorganize, improve the brand image, and start some important projects, including the creation of proprietary products. We are also looking for a new space that best reflects us.

What do you think is the reason behind these results? What is Aidia’s secret?

There is no magic formula or single ingredient that alone can ensure growth. However, I believe that companies are always looking for partners with true innovative capacity, and we are a company that produces Custom AI Software: one of the most promising sectors for innovation and improvement at the moment. So yes, among our strengths, we certainly have our technological knowledge, highly innovative: with our skills and the right tools, we can guarantee our clients a significant competitive advantage. Moreover, we are very flexible and eager to work: we promptly respond to the client’s needs and thus manage to create very long-lasting trust relationships.

Steve Jobs said that the best things in business are not done by one person, but by a team. Do you think this is also part of Aidia’s strength, its team of engineers and developers? I know it’s a very prepared and close-knit group.

Undoubtedly! I always tell the guys: results are only achieved thanks to the people and the spirit they bring to the table. For this reason, you see, I want everyone at Aidia to feel part of the same “family,” and I think it already is a bit like that: the team’s spirit of collaboration, the desire to help each other, is noticeable as soon as you enter the office. I am very proud of it. It is essential because I truly believe that only by sharing and putting ideas together can we continue to improve and imagine radically new things.

Given the acceleration of the last few months, I imagine you had to recalibrate your plans for 2022. What are your goals for the coming months?

We want to lay the foundations to transform Aidia: from a start-up to a consolidated and structured company. This means tripling our turnover by the end of the year, improving the work environment and the Aidia brand, but also strengthening our team and our areas of interest.

From an operational point of view, we want to expand the Data Science division and accelerate our presence in the Big Data world. In the AI field, we are (and will continue in the coming months) investing significant resources in the development of innovative techniques to be applied in the industrial sector, especially in the Computer Vision sector. We do not want to settle and are always looking for that something extra to bring to our solutions.

Last question: you told me about your strengths, but I imagine you also had some difficulties in these very hectic months. What obstacles have you encountered? How have you or are you overcoming them?

There are many difficulties, especially when trying to grow at a significant pace.

At the moment, the most complicated one to solve is the selection, search, and training of personnel. As I told you, we focus a lot on the skills and abilities of our team, and this obviously leads to having to choose very carefully the profiles to be included in the company. Unfortunately, in Italy, to date, profiles specialized in AI and Machine Learning are scarce, and it is not easy to make up for this lack.