The Intelligence in the Word: A Year of Success in Language Technologies
CiTIUS ends a brilliant 2024 in the field with the Best Paper Award at the fortieth edition of the International Conference of the Spanish Society for Natural Language Processing (SEPLN)
The year that just went by will mark a milestone in the history of CiTIUS. The granting of various awards and recognitions in 2024, both on a national and international level, has highlighted a scientific leadership that continues to grow under the auspices of ambitious projects, with a prominent role in the field of linguistic technologies. With initiatives like the Project Nós or its extension through the ILENIA Project (focused on less attended or minorized languages), or even through other, a priori, less evident but equally transversal ones, like XAI4SOC (a project to develop natural language processing techniques to improve social well-being), the center connects artificial intelligence with areas such as health, finance, and education, reinforcing its commitment to social impact and innovation. This effort, throughout 2024, has translated into prestigious distinctions, which have placed the center at the forefront of research in this field. Among others, this is evidenced by two 'Best Paper Awards' for the best scientific contribution at two major international conferences; a well-known award in the research community, which values the meticulous work of colleagues and institutions participating in these meetings.
The latest addition to this streak of successes came with the article Open Generative Language Models for Galician. The work won the Best Paper Award at the XL Edition of the International Conference of the Spanish Society for Natural Language Processing (SEPLN), one of the most relevant annual meetings in the field of natural language processing (NLP). The jury's decision, which in its most recent edition took place in the city of Valladolid, highlights the impact of the work in a key field for the development of inclusive linguistic technologies, being recognized as the best scientific contribution of this edition, marked by the 40th anniversary of the organization.
At the service of the Galician language
The awarded article, the result of research in which researchers Pablo Rodríguez, Iria de Dios, Susana Sotelo, Silvia Paniagua, Daniel Bardanca, José Ramón Pichel, Marcos Garcia, and Pablo Gamallo participated, proposes a generative language model specifically designed for Galician, a minorized language in the digital realm. The work represents a significant advancement in this context and not only boosts the presence of Galician in new technologies but also reinforces the importance of developing inclusive tools in artificial intelligence.
Its main author, researcher Pablo Rodríguez, was in charge of collecting the award at the conclusion of the conference. "This model is another step in the integration of minorized languages in the digital environment," he explained, "reinforcing their role in artificial intelligence and natural language processing." The project underscores CiTIUS's commitment to linguistic diversity and technological accessibility.
The SEPLN award is added to the one obtained at the EPIA2024 conference, where another work from CiTIUS, a center co-funded by the European Union through the Galicia Feder Program 2021-2027, was awarded the Best Application Paper Award. Both recognitions consolidate the center as a reference in the field of linguistic technologies, both nationally and internationally. With these achievements, CiTIUS faces 2025 with the intention of continuing to lead innovative projects that combine advanced research with social impact, as evidenced by the words of its team: "Awards like this motivate us to continue exploring new technologies that enhance inclusion and linguistic diversity," they assure.
The year that just went by will mark a milestone in the history of CiTIUS. The granting of various awards and recognitions in 2024, both on a national and international level, has highlighted a scientific leadership that continues to grow under the auspices of ambitious projects, with a prominent role in the field of linguistic technologies. With initiatives like the Project Nós or its extension through the ILENIA Project (focused on less attended or minorized languages), or even through other, a priori, less evident but equally transversal ones, like XAI4SOC (a project to develop natural language processing techniques to improve social well-being), the center connects artificial intelligence with areas such as health, finance, and education, reinforcing its commitment to social impact and innovation. This effort, throughout 2024, has translated into prestigious distinctions, which have placed the center at the forefront of research in this field. Among others, this is evidenced by two 'Best Paper Awards' for the best scientific contribution at two major international conferences; a well-known award in the research community, which values the meticulous work of colleagues and institutions participating in these meetings.
The latest addition to this streak of successes came with the article Open Generative Language Models for Galician. The work won the Best Paper Award at the XL Edition of the International Conference of the Spanish Society for Natural Language Processing (SEPLN), one of the most relevant annual meetings in the field of natural language processing (NLP). The jury's decision, which in its most recent edition took place in the city of Valladolid, highlights the impact of the work in a key field for the development of inclusive linguistic technologies, being recognized as the best scientific contribution of this edition, marked by the 40th anniversary of the organization.
At the service of the Galician language
The awarded article, the result of research in which researchers Pablo Rodríguez, Iria de Dios, Susana Sotelo, Silvia Paniagua, Daniel Bardanca, José Ramón Pichel, Marcos Garcia, and Pablo Gamallo participated, proposes a generative language model specifically designed for Galician, a minorized language in the digital realm. The work represents a significant advancement in this context and not only boosts the presence of Galician in new technologies but also reinforces the importance of developing inclusive tools in artificial intelligence.
Its main author, researcher Pablo Rodríguez, was in charge of collecting the award at the conclusion of the conference. "This model is another step in the integration of minorized languages in the digital environment," he explained, "reinforcing their role in artificial intelligence and natural language processing." The project underscores CiTIUS's commitment to linguistic diversity and technological accessibility.
The SEPLN award is added to the one obtained at the EPIA2024 conference, where another work from CiTIUS, a center co-funded by the European Union through the Galicia Feder Program 2021-2027, was awarded the Best Application Paper Award. Both recognitions consolidate the center as a reference in the field of linguistic technologies, both nationally and internationally. With these achievements, CiTIUS faces 2025 with the intention of continuing to lead innovative projects that combine advanced research with social impact, as evidenced by the words of its team: "Awards like this motivate us to continue exploring new technologies that enhance inclusion and linguistic diversity," they assure.
