Russia unveils ‘Altai’ neuromorphic chip to challenge US in low-power AI and defence applications
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Poland's biggest e-commerce player Allegro said on June 1 it secured a PLN1bn (€236mn) Research and Development (R&D) financing facility from the European Investment Bank (EIB). The six-year facility will co-finance Allegro's strategic 2026-2030 plan to push its technological edge.
"This landmark facility will only accelerate Allegro's investments in advanced technologies to meet our strategic priorities. Crucially, it allows us to lead the digitalisation of e-commerce in Poland and beyond, as we grow our core marketplace and develop new growth engines," Allegro's CEO Marcin Kuśmierz said as quoted in a press release.
"Furthermore, this funding allows us not only to innovate, but also ensures we can protect our innovations, while advancing our technical design through new algorithms, model development, and system architectures," he added.
The EIB financing will cover nearly 40% of Allegro's projected investment in research, development, and innovation (RDI) over the coming years. Beyond optimising capital costs and extending the group's debt maturity into 2032-2033, the facility significantly increases Allegro's flexibility to pursue its planned technological advancements.
This first-time cooperation with Allegro for EIB marks the biggest corporate R&D programme backed in Poland by the EU’s development bank and will contribute to strengthening the bloc’s digital sovereignty.
"The EIB Group's attractive, customised financing expands Allegro's ability to pursue cutting-edge technological innovation, including in the field of AI, to consolidate its position in Poland, continue scaling in the region and thrive as a successful European platform for digital commerce. Focused on improved efficiency, R&D drives corporate innovation and lays the foundations for future growth," Marko Primorac, EIB vice-president responsible for Poland, added.
Key priorities to be financed thanks to this facility include: development and deployment of a reimagined marketplace, next-gen delivery and customer experience, AI-driven customer focus, AI hub for ML/LLM models and data mining as well as AI solutions governance and security, the company enumerated.
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