Technology

What matters

AI is reshaping how economies grow and how businesses compete. In the South West that shift is already underway and the region is well placed to make the most of it. Ireland’s National Digital and AI Strategy sets out clear ambitions for stronger digital capability, sector-specific adoption, and a long-term skills roadmap.

For the South West this represents opportunity but national strategy only delivers regional benefit if the foundations are in place. That means investment in skills, infrastructure and governance that are aligned with the region’s industrial profile.

Technology and sustainability

The South West is home to a significant cluster of multinationals and indigenous firms spanning life sciences, biopharma, medical devices, advanced manufacturing, agrifood, energy and cybersecurity. These are the data-intensive and heavily regulated sectors where AI can deliver the greatest productivity gains.

The South West is not a consumer-tech story. Its competitive edge lies in applying AI in regulated production environments, safety-critical systems, and complex supply chains. Getting AI right in these settings is harder but the advantage it creates is more durable. That is a credible and distinctive proposition for European investors.

The opportunity is not confined to attracting inward investment. The South West has a strong university and applied research base that is already generating activity in AI, cybersecurity, robotics, health‑tech and climate‑tech.

Munster’s growing role in renewable energy and digital infrastructure adds another dimension. The region can build a coherent story around technology and sustainability together, which matters increasingly to investors and to the people they want to recruit.

Upskilling and understanding

The opportunity is real but several structural challenges need to be confronted directly. Demand for AI, data and cybersecurity skills continues to outpace supply, with a similarly acute shortage at leadership level.

Upskilling pathways are fragmented, and the South West faces strong competition from Dublin and other European cities for critical talent. Focus is also required on ensuring there is integrated understanding and learning that reflects how AI, data, cybersecurity, software and decision making interact in practise.

Tech infrastructure

Infrastructure is a major deciding factor for investment. Housing, transport, energy supply and laboratory space all shape whether businesses can grow here and whether people choose to stay. AI-driven growth is also energy-intensive, which creates real pressure on grid capacity and raises legitimate questions about alignment with climate commitments.

Moving AI from pilot to production is proving harder than many organisations anticipated. Fragmented data and legacy systems are common obstacles. In regulated sectors the consequences of weak governance are more serious. It can stall adoption entirely or undermine trust in systems that communities and businesses depend on.

Coordinated regional response

AI will reshape roles across the economy, most immediately in process-heavy functions, and this requires a coordinated response. Without it the gains from technology adoption will concentrate in some firms and sectors while others and their workforces are left behind.

Cybersecurity can no longer be treated as an individual business issue. As AI and cloud adoption accelerate the attack surface grows and a major cyber incident can cascade across supply chains and essential services. This is a regional vulnerability that requires a regional response.

Making the right investment

The South West’s technology opportunity is not about chasing the latest trend. It is about doing the hard work of embedding AI in regulated industries, in complex production environments, and in services that people rely on.

With the right investment in skills, infrastructure and governance, the region can make a credible case as a European leader in responsible AI. That is a strong foundation for Cork 2040 and for the long-term growth the region needs.

Breda O'Callaghan

Managing Director, Management Consulting

KPMG in Ireland

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Michael Lynch

Partner

KPMG in Ireland

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Voices

"From an industry perspective, there are three persistent gaps we need to address. First is the scale gap.

We simply do not have enough graduates with strong foundations in AI, cybersecurity, and core engineering disciplines.

Second, there is a curriculum integration gap. Graduates need exposure to systems-level learning and modern, industry-relevant tools such as Python and Rust alongside strong software engineering fundamentals.

Third, a leadership capability gap also exists. Building AI literacy at leadership level is essential so that executives can make informed decisions and guide organisations through rapid technological change.

Industry–academia collaboration is a key lever in addressing all three.’

Paul Kelleher, VP Engineering, Qualcomm Ireland

Making it happen

The South West region has strengths in life sciences, technology, agri-food, tourism and manufacturing. AI will influence all of these sectors though its value will vary by industry.

Many of the regions largest sectors are predominantly process-driven and regulated environments where AI must be transparent and auditable. Compliance is not a secondary consideration but a design constraint from the outset.

The challenge is deploying AI it to run complex and regulated systems better. With the right focus, the region could become a reference point for AI applied in real-world production environments. 

We support and advocate these initiatives:

Establish a research-led, cross-industry innovation cluster

Create a regionally anchored, research-driven cluster that brings together industry, academia and public stakeholders to identify, prioritise and coordinate high-impact AI and digital opportunities for the South West.

This cluster should take shared ownership of strategic use cases, accelerate translation from research to deployment, and ensure knowledge, investment and capability are retained within the region. These clusters can serve as incubation beds and enablers for many of the initiatives outlined below.
Focus AI on production and real-world impact

Prioritise applied AI in live operational environments through production AI acceleration zones. These are settings where solutions are tested against constraints such as uptime, audit requirements, operator interaction, and sector-specific risk
Build shared data and AI foundations

Develop common, sector-focused data and AI infrastructure on a pre-competitive basis. Strong data governance frameworks and interoperable architectures will reduce duplication and lower costs, enabling AI solutions to be reused across organisations, including SMEs.
Connect AI adoption to long-term resilience goals

Position AI investment as essential infrastructure for meeting regulatory and sustainability demands. This strengthens executive ownership and improves funding discipline.
Develop an AI and cyber ready workforce

The South West must strengthen end to end talent pathways, from graduate education to leadership development and workforce reskilling. Emphasis should be placed on hybrid “domain plus AI” skills that combine sector expertise with AI literacy, ensuring technology augments rather than replaces human judgement.
Strengthen regional digital robustness

Treat cyber security and operational resilience as core regional infrastructure, integrating tested preparedness across organisations to support secure digital growth and AI adoption at scale.
Support start-ups and indigenous scale-ups

Provide targeted accelerators, improved access to capital and stronger university spin-out mechanisms. Incentives to scale locally will help ensure that value created in the region is retained and reinvested.

Let's talk

At KPMG we’re all about helping make cities and regions better places. Our experience and expertise in Irish cities and regions as well as in urban areas worldwide, makes us uniquely placed to help decision - makers, policy stakeholders, infrastructure leaders and private companies who want to move quickly to make our cities and regions better places.

If you would like to find out more about how we can help you achieve your ambitions for the South West or further afield - please contact our team. We'd be delighted to hear from you.