Premio America Innovazione 2025

Chamber of Deputies, Rome, 28.04.2025 — In a moment that marks a turning point for the intersection of art, technology, and institutional rinnovation, artist and inventor Gio Montez has been awarded the Premio America Innovazione 2025, a prestigious recognition granted by Fondazione Italia USA and MIMIT (the Italian Ministry for Enterprises and Made in Italy). The award celebrates Montez’s visionary research work in redefining the fruition processes of contemporary art, that is to say the way art is valued, authenticated, distributed through the new technologies and a scientific approach.

Montez’s recognition arrives after more than five years of intense research and experimentation, during which he developed a patented system titled “System for Physical and Digital Art and Method for Valuation and Authentication of a Work of Art.” At the core of this innovation lies a radical ambition: to turn the art market into a more transparent, democratic, and technologically advanced ecosystem, in tune with the models of Industry 5.0. Leveraging the power of artificial intelligence, IoT, and blockchain, Montez has not only reimagined the infrastructures of the art world but has also given shape to ARTup S.r.l., a startup that fuses artistic sensibility with industrial precision.

The award also acknowledges Montez’s invention of the “Art Coefficient,” an index designed to measure performance and trends in both the primary and secondary art markets. With this art index, Montez introduces a scientific method into the traditionally subjective sphere of art evaluation, offering a data-driven tool for collectors, institutions, and artists alike.

The project first gained institutional attention in 2021, when Montez was invited to present the concept at the Italian Chamber of Deputies by On. Federico Mollicone, President of the Intergroup for Art, Culture and Entertainment (ICAS). In 2021 he also brought the same vision to the Senate of the Republic. 

The turning point came in October 2023, when Montez reached Technology Readiness Level 6 and showcased two fully functioning prototypes at the Chamber of Deputies and at the Museum Atelier Canova Tadolini in Rome, during the bicentennial commemoration of the death of Italian sculptor Antonio Canova. The press conference was held at the Accademia Nazionale di San Luca at the presence of Prof. Claudio Strinati, On. Federico Mollicone, On. Lucia Borgonzoni then undersecretary for the superintendency and cultural heritage.

On that occasion, Montez performed a historic act: the tokenisation of Canova’s 1811 sculpture Danzatrice con Cembali—the first time a classical physical artwork was linked to a blockchain certificate via IoT in what he defined as the first NFT Phygital. The On. Vittorio Sgarbi also attended the demonstration of Montez’s prototypes, spending some good words on the invention.

In 2024 Gio Montez has participated in a press conference at the Chamber of Deputies dedicated to the theme of intellectual property protection.

As if that weren’t enough, he also unveiled a second, derivative crypto-artwork titled Danzatrice con Cembali in Rosso, signed and dated 2023, as a provocative statement on how new technologies are not only tools of preservation but of reinterpretation. This act challenged traditional frameworks of intellectual property, cultural heritage protection, and digital rights—while sparking dialogue with institutions about future legal alignments in areas such as MiCAR regulation, the AI Act, AML compliance, and data privacy.

With ARTup S.r.l., Montez proposes a complete redefinition and democratisation of the art economy: one that is accessible, measurable, and aligned with digital-age expectations without compromising the emotional or cultural depth of the artistic experience. His work brings together an unlikely triad—machine logic, artistic intuition, and institutional vision—into a single, forward-facing platform that reflects the potential of what he calls the “Art Industry 5.0“.