Czech Radiokomunikace (CRA) is expanding its leadership with a prominent figure in the local technology scene. Jan Kavalírek, who previously served as Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade and the first government plenipotentiary for artificial intelligence, is taking up the newly created position of Director for EU AI Affairs. His main task will be to coordinate the strategic project of the Czech AI Gigafactory (AIGF) and to oversee communication with the European Commission and commercial partners.
Kavalírek brings extensive experience from public administration and European diplomacy to CRA. During his tenure at the ministry, he drafted the Czech AI Act and pushed for simplification of bureaucracy within the European AI Act in the EU Council. He was also instrumental in the very idea of building the Czech AI Gigafactory, when CRA, under his leadership, applied to join the European initiative. In November 2025, he was awarded the AI Personality of the Year title for these activities.
“Jan Kavalírek has a deep knowledge of the European legislative environment and the specific negotiations concerning the AI Gigafactory. He is a person who knows this project from the very beginning. For CRA, his arrival is a natural step to ensure that project coordination takes place at the highest level,” said CRA CEO Miloš Mastník.
In addition to his new role at CRA, Kavalírek will retain his role as CEE Ambassador for Artificial Intelligence and New Technologies, to which he was appointed in January 2026. In this capacity, he represents the interests of the AI industry and research in the entire Central and Eastern European region under the auspices of the Confederation of Industry and Transport of the Czech Republic and other professional associations. The combination of both roles is intended to ensure the smooth implementation of the project, which Kavalírek describes as key to the technological sovereignty of the state.
“The AI Gigafactory project is a matter of strategic development for our state. From technical parameters to the legislative framework, I know it very well. I will do my utmost to contribute to our success as the Czech Republic with this project,” added Jan Kavalírek.
The infrastructural basis for these ambitions is the currently under construction data center Prague Gateway DC in the Prague-Zbraslav – Jíloviště area. With a total capacity of over 2,000 racks and a power input of 26 MW, this center is set to become one of the largest in the region. In future phases of the AI Gigafactory project's development, the power is expected to increase to 77 MW, which corresponds to the computing power of approximately 100,000 specialized H100 chips designed for training large AI models.
Czech Radiokomunikace currently operates a network of eight data centers in key cities including Prague, Brno, Ostrava, and Zlín. The new Gigafactory project is intended to move the existing infrastructure from common cloud services to high-performance computing (HPC) tasks and support the development of a local artificial intelligence ecosystem.