News

The Athena Research Center completed, on Friday 26 June 2026, one of the most significant investments in its history, with the signing of the final contracts for the acquisition of its new building complex in Chalandri, Attica. The agreements were signed between the President and General Director of Athena, Professor Ioannis Emiris, and the CEO of ELLAKTOR Group, Mr. Efthymios Bouloutas, in the presence of the Secretary General for Research and Innovation, Mr. Dimitris Terzis. This milestone marks the first major step towards realizing Athena’s vision to consolidate and expand its activities within a unified space, fostering interdisciplinary collaboration and advancing research.

 

This new investment responds to the growing needs of an organization that has experienced significant expansion in recent years, continuously broadening its scientific and research footprint and playing a leading role in national and European initiatives in the fields of Artificial Intelligence, data science, information systems, robotics and Industry 4.0. The acquisition of the complex represents a strategic step forward not only for the Athena but also for the broader digital technologies ecosystem in Greece for future generations.

 

The building complex, with a total surface area of approximately 12,200 sq.m., which for many years hosted Pegasus Publishing—historically associated with the newspaper “Ethnos”—now takes on a new mission as a modern hub for research, technological development and innovation. It will accommodate Athena’s Central Administration, Institutes and Research Units, robotics laboratories, a start-up incubator, as well as study, meeting and recreational spaces. In parallel, state-of-the-art research and computing infrastructures will be developed, including data rooms, makerspaces and a modern auditorium.

 

The signing ceremony was also attended by Mr. Vassilis Kyriakopoulos, Project Manager on behalf of Growthfund (Hellenic Corporation of Assets and Participations – HCAP), along with members of Athena’s management, Institute Directors, researchers and representatives of collaborating organizations.

 

President and General Director of Athena, Professor Ioannis Emiris, stated:

“With the acquisition of the new building, we are definitively addressing the long-standing accommodation challenges faced by Athena in the capital, which have intensified in recent years due to the Center’s rapid thematic and quantitative expansion. Today, our personnel in Athens exceeds 800 full-time and part-time staff. At the same time, in the new premises we anticipate original, often unexpected, synergies emerging from the proximity of diverse research teams.

We would like to express our gratitude to the leadership of the Ministry of Development for their continuous support of Athena’s vision within the framework of the ‘Greece 2.0’ initiative, especially given the significant investment involved (approximately €19 million). Finally, we hope that the building’s configuration will be completed soon so that it can be delivered for use by Athena’s personnel.”