In this issue of Evolve – dedicated to the motto "Inspire Innovation" – MAIRE's ambition to transform itself into an AI-Driven Enterprise takes shape through the strategic vision of its Chief Information Officer, Michele Mariella. In a recent interview with Industria Italiana magazine, Mariella explains how at the heart of this evolution is an investment of more than €1 billion over the next ten years to boost technological innovation, with a focus on energy transition, digitalization, and the circular economy. 

The goal, Mariella emphasizes, is to «develop an AI agent orchestration system» capable of transcending the logic of individual copilots to achieve intelligent, coordinated collaboration between digital agents. The project integrates solutions such as digital twins, predictive supply chains, GenAI, and the extensive use of data, in collaboration with technology partners such as SAP and Microsoft. «The present and the future depend on our ability to be an AI-driven enterprise, » reiterates the CIO, who is leading a structural transformation of the Group's entire IT and production system. 

A key pillar of this transformation is NextPlant, the proprietary digital platform designed to support the creation of natively digital, sustainable, and highly efficient industrial plants. NextPlant integrates tools for plant design, procurement, construction, and management. The goal is to accompany every phase of a plant's life cycle, ensuring traceability, cost reduction, and a drastic decrease in carbon footprint. «New plants must be designed to minimize environmental impact throughout their entire life cycle, from initial design to decommissioning, » explains Mariella. 

Alongside NextPlant, MAIRE is building an integrated digital ecosystem that serves as the foundation for developing generative artificial intelligence solutions. This environment not only automates complex tasks, such as document control—already reduced by 80% in terms of effort—but also extracts strategic value from the data generated daily at every stage of the project. It is a true digital network that connects departments, systems, and people, making the flow of information more fluid, rapid, and intelligent.

Another key innovation is the digital twin, a dynamic digital replica that enables real-time simulation, monitoring, and optimization of construction and operational processes. «It's a digital projection that evolves alongside the actual plant, » explains Mariella. Used in both the commissioning and operational phases, the digital twin helps detect discrepancies between the theoretical model and reality, correct them quickly, and improve energy ma- nagement and ef"ciency. MAIRE also applies a servitization approach: data collected in the "eld is used to conti- nuously update the services offered, improving the customer experience and the reliability of the plants. 

Within this digital framework, the supply chain also plays a strategic role. With over 100 terabytes of data handled per project and thousands of global suppliers, MAIRE has adopted digitalized supply chain management through SAP—in particular with SAP Ariba for purchase to pay and negotiations—supported by internally developed tools for material management and document management. Predictive analytics now makes it possible to anticipate delays, optimize procurement, and monitor supplier performance in terms of safety, sustainability, and financial strength. «The digitization of the supply chain allows us to be responsive even in complex scenarios, such as geopolitical crises or logistical closures, while maintaining efficiency and competitiveness, » says Mariella. 

The path is clear: integrate artificial intelligence in an ethical and comprehensive way, empowering people and improving the productivity of the entire organization. It is with this in mind that the "Humans in the Loop" program was created, combining human expertise and machine learning to ensure adaptability, accuracy, and governance. The final step? A system capable of orchestrating intelligent agents that operate in natural language and can act sequentially or in parallel, following flexible and dynamic logic. «This approach closes the gap between humans and machines and enables an AI that truly understands the business context, » Mariella concludes. A powerful vision, one that fully reflects the meaning of the motto "Inspire Innovation".