Uhlík vs Křemík · Czech podcast about artificial intelligence

Slovakia brings AI into schools and healthcare, but messy data holds companies back

Episode 20 · 14 October 2026 · 53:35 · Guest: Daniela Švihrová Grečnerová

The Czech Republic and Slovakia have similar economies and are entering the world of artificial intelligence at practically the same moment. In the Uhlík vs Křemík podcast, Daniela Švihrová Grečnerová, executive director of the Slovak AI Association (ASAI), described what already works in Slovakia and what Czechs can take from their neighbours. With hosts David Salomon and Adam Hanka she talked about schools, healthcare and companies, and about why it makes no sense for two small countries to work everything out separately.

The memorandum is a start, the cooperation is already running

In September, the Czech Republic and Slovakia signed a memorandum of cooperation at state level. According to Švihrová Grečnerová, it covers sharing computing centres, joint research and mutual support for small and medium-sized businesses. She is curious herself what it will mean in practice, but in her view the direction is clear: "Today it is probably clear to everyone that the path of cooperation is the simplest one, and that we are looking for overlaps rather than racing each other over who will be first."

Adam Hanka pointed out that the two markets together have about 16.5 million people and that their institutions come from a very similar historical background. When politicians in Prague and Bratislava separately work out, for example, how to implement the European AI Act, he sees it as wasted effort. The associations are not waiting for their governments. The Czech and Slovak AI associations already cooperate, and the guest values how much basic know-how she received from Lukáš Benzl, her first contact.

Schools run like a startup, and help for patients

According to the guest, the Slovak Ministry of Education is the most active on artificial intelligence, and it moved really fast by local standards and with a startup approach. Since September, primary and secondary schools have basic AI milestones in their curricula, and by the end of primary school a pupil should reach basic AI literacy. Teachers are getting paid ChatGPT licences for free, and AI vouchers for training will also be available.

The reason, she says, is obvious. Among pupils and students, AI use is at 100%, among teachers only around 15%, so teachers need to keep learning. In healthcare, the insurer Dôvera has made an AI advisor available to roughly 350,000 people diagnosed with high blood pressure. It is meant to help them with a healthier lifestyle and with advice while they wait for a doctor, instead of searching Google or online forums. A doctor stands behind the content as its expert guarantor, and it is stressed that the tool does not replace a doctor.

Companies: data and processes first

Large corporations are much further along in their transformation, but they are still asking what it actually means to be a company transformed by AI. According to Švihrová Grečnerová, small and medium-sized businesses are only at the adoption stage. They tried AI, maybe went through some training, and then came the sobering moment: "Some AI expert came to them and told them that their data is a total mess, that they have no processes at all, that they should have been digitised long ago and still are not." Many companies, she says, have not yet moved from physical servers to the cloud, and their entire IT rests on a single person.

Adam Hanka added that smaller companies with progressive leadership can automate very quickly, while a large company is like a slower steamship. Getting started is not free, though: licences, legal review and training people cost money, and the return does not show right away. The guest also pointed to the downside of the savings. Companies will want to cover their investments by cutting staff, which is why retraining will be needed. She does not think people will stop being needed, they will just be needed elsewhere.

How to bring an AI product to Slovakia

Anyone who wants to bring a Czech app to the Slovak market should, according to the guest, translate it into Slovak. Before that, though, they should check in a few meetings whether it makes sense. "In Slovakia, recommendations and a good experience, references, work really well." Slovaks like to try new things, and in a small market where everyone knows each other, a well-built product can quickly gain awareness. ASAI and the SAPIE alliance can help with contacts.

This year Slovakia is also running AI Month, with more than 25 events in Bratislava and more across the country. The organisers want to gather the content created during the month into a library that people can work with all year round.

The full conversation with Daniela Švihrová Grečnerová is available in episode 20 of the Uhlík vs Křemík podcast.

The episode is in Czech. Czech page with chapters, quotes and the full transcript