Equality and Inclusion Statement

Core Ideas (Кор Айдиас ЕООД) is a lean, project-based research and development company. We operate with a flexible network of external researchers, engineers, and domain specialists engaged per project, rather than with a large permanent workforce. This statement sets out the principles that guide how we work with people, today and as the company grows.

Open to anyone aligned with our mission

We welcome collaboration from individuals of any gender, age, nationality, ethnicity, religion or belief, sexual orientation, disability, family situation, or socio-economic background, whose values, skills, and interests align with our work in trustworthy artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and applied research. When we form a project team, the criteria we apply are competence, integrity, and alignment with the mission and ethical framework of Core Ideas.

Non-discrimination

We do not discriminate on the basis of any characteristic protected under Bulgarian and European Union law. This applies to all interactions, including discussions about potential collaboration, project participation, contracting, and remuneration.

Respect for personal life

Core Ideas is built on the conviction that meaningful research and meaningful personal life are compatible. We respect collaborators’ family obligations, caregiving responsibilities, and the right to disconnect, and we organise our work around outcomes rather than presence.

Safe and respectful environment

We do not tolerate harassment, intimidation, or disrespectful conduct in any interaction connected to Core Ideas, whether on shared infrastructure, in correspondence, at events, in consortium meetings, or in any other professional context. Anyone who experiences or witnesses such conduct in connection with Core Ideas is invited to raise it directly with the company’s management, in confidence.

Gender and intersectional dimensions in research

Where the subject matter allows, we consider how gender and other intersecting dimensions may be relevant to the design, validation, and evaluation of the AI systems, datasets, and tools we develop, and we aim to make those considerations explicit in our methods and outputs.

Open collaboration

Beyond commercial and contractual engagement, Core Ideas is open to dialogue with researchers, students, and practitioners who share our interest in explainable AI, cybersecurity, and applied research. Interest in contributing to our work, in any form, is welcome.

How this scales

The substance of these principles does not depend on company size. The formal practices that support them, including documented hiring procedures, training programmes, sex-disaggregated workforce reporting, and a dedicated equality function, will be introduced as Core Ideas grows, in proportion to its actual workforce and operations, and in line with applicable European requirements, including the Horizon Europe Gender Equality Plan framework where relevant.

---

Signed,

Svetlana Kopanova
Manager, Core Ideas (Кор Айдиас ЕООД)
Veliko Tarnovo, Bulgaria · 23 May 2026