Government approval for Dublin branch of MIT Media Lab

The Cabinet yesterday gave its approval to an ambitious £150 million (€190.46 million) plan to establish a European branch of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's famed Media Lab in Dublin, The Irish Times has learned.

According to informed sources, the much-anticipated and long-awaited project got the go-ahead yesterday morning.

The Dublin Media Lab Europe project will involve MIT establishing an independent research institute in the Republic - the only such branch of the Media Lab - which will focus on the development of cutting-edge Internet and e-commerce applications. It is understood that key aspects of the project are to produce Irish companies developing new technologies and to involve Irish researchers and new media artists.

The MIT Media Lab, led by the internationally known digital researcher, pundit and author, Prof Nicholas Negroponte, has, since its launch in 1985, been the pioneer in many areas of new media research and in many of the technologies now taken for granted on the Web. The lab is particularly well-known for its work with virtual reality devices and in the area of artificial intelligence and robotics.

The proposed Dublin project, for the creation of a campus for Internet-related research and business incubation, is broad in scope and would make the Republic one of the world's leading centres for new media.

It is understood that the Government would contribute about 20 per cent, or £28 million, of the cost of the project. That entire funding commitment will go towards the purchase and equipping of a premises for the centre.

The location of choice for the centre is understood to be the Guinness Hop Store, which will be vacated when Guinness moves the facility elsewhere.

The balance of the estimated cost, covering operating expenditures over an initial five-year period, is expected to be picked up by grants, research funds and private industry. According to sources familiar with the proposal, several major technology corporations in Ireland have pledged funds for the project, while many others, most of which have asked to remain unidentified, have indicated privately that they would welcome the opportunity to be involved with it.

Some of these say they have in recent weeks approached the Department of the Taoiseach, which now has responsibility, to express interest in and lobby for the project. The centre is expected to generate major interest abroad and is seen as a flagship project for promoting the Republic as a leading-edge location for technology companies.

It is expected to have a pan-European perspective and to draw teachers and students from Ireland and across Europe. Although it will have a strong business element, sources say it is also intended to be a major artistic centre for new media and will have leading multimedia artists among its staff and governing board.

It is understood that Prof Negroponte will live in the Republic and oversee the laboratory for part of each year. Faculty members will also include a range of MIT lecturers.