Computer engineering has elevated the University of Calabria to the top spot among Italian universities in the Shanghai Global Ranking of Academic Subjects 2026, where it is now ranked alongside Computer Science & Engineering in the 101-150 range. Last year, it was about 100 places lower. However, its top spot in the Shanghai rankings is not an isolated accomplishment. The Calabrian university, in Cosenza, has been investing in computer science for 50 years. The university's computing center was formed in 1975, and the consortium for computer research and applications was founded four years later. The Calabrian institution was thus a trailblazer in the discipline, graduating Italy's first computer engineer in 1991. Over the last two decades, the university's appeal has been primarily based on its scientific reputation in artificial intelligence. Several of the university's scholars have received Fellowships from leading international associations in the field, recognition for publications presented at global conferences, and positions and leadership roles in scientific organizations. Another deciding aspect is the university's decision not to cut itself out, not to recruit primarily from within, and not to accept a provincial perspective. Unical has opened itself up to external demands for talent, even from outside of Italy. Professor Georg Gottlob, one of the world's most prominent computer scientists, just joined Cosenza after a long career at Vienna and Oxford.