Appointment of the Board of Directors of AI² – Agency for Research and Innovation

At its meeting on April 23, 2026, the Council of Ministers approved the composition of the Board of Directors of the Agency for Research and Innovation, E. P. E. (^AI2).

João Francisco Cordeiro de Oliveira Barros, a full professor at the University of Porto, will serve as president of^AI2. The Board of Directors also includes two vice-presidents: Maria Teresa Amado Pinto Correia, full professor at the University of Évora, responsible for research, and Maria das Dores Barroso Moura Oliveira, executive director of Business and member of the Board of UPTEC – Science and Technology Park of the University of Porto, who will oversee innovation. The management body also includes two executive members: António Bob Moura Santos, until now a member of the Board of Directors of the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT), and Luís António Diniz Fernandes de Morais Sarmento, founder and executive director of Inductiva Research Labs.

Until the merger and dissolution of the FCT are finalized, the Board of Directors will remain in office, ensuring continuity in management and the normal continuation of ongoing activities.

^{AI2 –} the Agency for Research and Innovation^– was established as part of the reform of the Ministry of Education, Science, and Innovation (MECI), pursuant to DecreeNo. 132/2025 of December 24, resulting from the merger of the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) and the National Innovation Agency (ANI), with the aim of strengthening the link between scientific research and innovation in Portugal.