Slovakia Invites Georgia to Collaborate on AI-Enabled Factories of the Future

The world’s largest producer of cars per capita is inviting Georgia to partner on the road toward the factories of the future. 

Slovakia, a Central European nation of 5.5 million people, has wooed some of the world’s largest and most luxurious automotive brands on the promise of its technically skilled workforce and its nimble economy, a gateway to the 450 million consumers of the European Union. 

The country is situated in a Central European automotive belt that spans multiple countries, much like Georgia has benefited from the arrival of foreign firms across Southern states. 

In fact, many of the same suppliers serving the Kia Motors factory in Žilina, Slovakia, can be found along the Interstate 85 corridor between the Kia and Hyundai factories in west Georgia and Montgomery, Ala.

Now, Slovakia wants to move even further up the value chain, enticing AI giants with the prospect of a real-world national rollout across a network of sophisticated, connected factories. 

“What we what we want to do right now is make sure that we are implementing AI into the whole supply chain, and we really want to become the first AI-native factory country,” said Vladimir Lackovic, the New York-based special representative for SARIO, the Slovak Investment and Trade Development Agency. 

Capping downside in Slovakia, he argued an interview with Global Atlanta, is easy, especially when compared to the opportunity the country presents.  

“Because Slovakia is small, right in the middle of everything, we can also be very nimble,” he said during a roadshow event in Atlanta in March. “And Slovakia has been very much a test-and-deploy economy.” 

Successful fintech rollouts in the country over the last five years offer a glimpse of how AI can start in a real-world testbed and expand outward throughout Europe, he added. 

“If you really fail, you’re not making a big mistake. But then you can deploy globally,” Mr. Lackovic said. 

And, crucially, Slovakia has the energy backbone to support AI experimentation. The country is a net electricity exporter, with almost two-thirds of its production coming from nuclear power and 82 percent from clean sources. An intergovernmental agreement with the United States should bring a new reactor in the coming decades, likely built by Westinghouse. 

That power, paired with efforts in tech hubs like Bratislava and Košice to build an AI-literate workforce, can support a supply-chain-level approach to deployment, from suppliers to OEMs, with logistics in between, Mr. Lackovic said. 

“The nuclear power supply has been crucial, but there have been energy shocks because we were still dependent on Russian oil, gas and even nuclear fuel. So we’re diversifying from them very successfully.”

Slovakia, a NATO member, has also revived its defense sector, especially after the Russian invasion of Ukraine and U.S. President Donald Trump’s chiding of allies to spend more on weapons and equipment. That translates to fertile ground for future collaboration with Georgia firms in the space, and perhaps investment by Slovak innovators here. 

That doesn’t scare Mr. Lackovic, who sees outbound investment as a win for both the recipient country and Slovakia itself. Speaking soon after attending SXSW in Austin, he cited the example of Brightpick, a warehouse automation firm that hired 200 people in Texas while simultaneously growing its core team in Bratislava, the Slovak capital.

“We need to work with the world. We cannot grow a global company in the Slovakia market.”   

vladimir lackovic

“We need to work with the world. We cannot grow a global company in the Slovakia market. The fastest way and the best way to do is to bring Slovak companies to the U.S., put them through accelerator programs, put them through incubators. That’s why we want to set up something in Atlanta as soon as possible, because we have talented founders. They are technically skilled, but we need to teach them, in a really quick way, how to talk to the U.S. market, how to communicate, and then they’re going to grow here.” 

That entry point could come sooner rather than later: On a trade mission led by John Woodward, the former Metro Atlanta Chamber executive and now honorary consul of Slovakia, the City of Roswell signed a memorandum of understanding with The Spot, a 1,500-member co-working space in Bratislava, to explore starting a branch in the north metro city.

Roswell was already attuned to the charms of Central Europe. The community won a $20 million investment by the Czech Republic’s PBS Aerospace after a 2024 trade mission, then returned to the region in 2025 with an expanded trip also tacking on Slovakia and Hungary. Fulton County officials joined the latter trip. 

Roswell and Fulton County delegates helped receive Mr. Lackovic at the law offices of Arnall Golden Gregory for the March 25 roundtable and reception organized by Mr. Woodward. Plans to make good on the tech connection were discussed. (The Czech Republic already operates a business incubator in Peachtree Corners).

“We need to figure out whether it’s going to be sector-focused, if we’re going to focus on fintech, or if it’s going to be sector-agnostic,” Mr. Lackovic. “But we already have this deeper relationship here. We need to build on it and bring those companies here.”

Georgia and Slovakia, he said, share many of the same target sectors, like biotech, robotics, advanced manufacturing, aerospace, but each offers access to a different market. And in both places, low unemployment rates make it hard to find workers. In an optimistic scenario, AI could provide a relief valve by helping existing workers boost efficiency.

“It’s going to be a disruption,” Mr. Lackovic said of AI. “But we need to jump on that train first. That’s what can leapfrog us.” 

• Connect with Mr. Lackovic on LinkedIn
• Email him at Vladimir.lackovic@sario.sk