Bridging academia and industry in the era of Industry 4.0 by means of the triple helix: The PLANET4 initiative

Practical Learning of Artificial Intelligence on the Edge of Industry 4.0 (PLANET4) is a cross-disciplinary initiative funded by the European Commission under the Erasmus+ program that embodies the triple helix model of collaboration between academia, industry, and administration. It aims to bridge the gap between academic teaching and practical applications in the context of Industry 4.0. PLANET4 focuses on developing hard skills in artificial intelligence, industrial Internet of things, and cloud and edge computing, along with the soft competencies required to manage changes in the industrial ecosystem. It involves three phases: (1) training needs analysis, taxonomy development, and workshop design; (2) collection of best practices and training material design; and (3) implementation of the PLANET4 learning course. This paper presents the materialization of these phases into a blended learning course, highlighting the integration of the triple helix model and the European Commission’s support for academia-industry collaboration with the aim of improving education quality and promoting Industry 4.0 innovation in Europe.