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Advancing AI in Europe: From Foundations to Real-World Applications
7 – 8 July, 9:00 – 18:00 (CEST)
Palais des Académies, Brussels, Belgium.
About the Conference
This event is designed to bridge the gap between technical research and real-world deployment, gathering leading voices from academia, industry, and public policy to address the most pressing challenges and opportunities shaping the future of artificial intelligence in Europe. The programme opens with keynotes that frame both the infrastructure and resource constraints at the heart of large-scale AI deployment, and the imperative for human-centric, and regulation-aware design. Following sessions offer both technical depth and policy relevance on system robustness, green AI, data quality, explainability, and security. A dedicated track on AI literacy, workforce development, and strategic autonomy reflects the urgency of building European capacity in critical sectors, including energy and space. The event will conclude highlighting the role of European Networks of Excellence in scaling research collaboration and advances into tangible societal impact. In this respect, ENFIELD will present its strategic outcomes and roadmap which align with Europe’s broader ambitions for a competitive, responsible, and sovereign AI ecosystem.
Meet the Keynote Speakers
Rod Evans
VP for Supercomputing, HER Cloud and AI for EU, Middle East and Africa at NVIDIA
Rod Evans is NVIDIA’s Vice President for
Supercomputing, HER Cloud and AI for Europe, Middle East and Africa. He joined NVIDIA in 2018 and has overseen strong growth in the High-Performance Computing and Artificial Intelligence businesses at NVIDIA across Europe. Rod is a highly accomplished international business leader and draws on more than 30 years of experience in the IT industry. Before joining NVIDIA, Rod led the European direct sales force at Intel Corporation and previously held European Vice President Positions at Silicon Graphics, Rackable Systems, Copan Systems and EMC. Currently based in Reading, United Kingdom; he has worked in the UK, USA, and Germany. Rod is a British national and alumnus of Queen Mary University, London.
Virginia Dignum
Professor of Responsible Artificial Intelligence at Umeå University
Virginia Dignum is Professor of Responsible Artificial Intelligence at Umeå University, Sweden, where she leads the AI Policy Lab. She is a leading voice in global AI policy, chairing the ACM Technology Policy Council , and advising the Wallenberg Foundations in Sweden. She is a member of expert groups at UNESCO, OECD, and was part of the EU’s High-Level Expert Group on AI, the UN’s High Level Advisory Body on AI, and World Economic Forum Global Future Council on Artificial Intelligence. She also founded ALLAI, the Dutch AI Alliance. As part of her work for UNESCO’s AI Ethics Experts Without Borders, she is advising governments around the world on the development and operationalization of their national AI strategies. Her latest book is “The AI Paradox” published by Princeton University Press in February 2026.
Agenda
8:30-9:30
Registration & Check-in
9:30-10:30
Green AI & Sustainable Infrastructure | Green Data Centers
Rod Evans, NVIDIA
Keynote speaker
10:30-11:00
11:00-12:00
Edge AI: Robustness, Continual Learning and Real-World Deployment
Antoine-Alexandre André (EU AIO), Bert Pluymers (KU Leuven), Ovidiu Vermesan (SINTEF/dAIedge), Sotiris Makris (UPatras), Andon Tchechmedjiev (IMT) and Walter Quadrini (POLIMI)
12:00-13:00
Sustainable AI – Challenges and directions for future AI Applications
Jan Tobias Mühlberg (ULB), Martin Willame (UCLouvain), Alexandra Papageorgiou (KU Leuven), Nicki Lisa Cole (KNOW) and Erik Johannes Husom (SINTEF)
13:00-14:30
14:30-15:30
From Principles to Practice: Assessing Trustworthy and Sustainable AI in Industry
Paolo Giudici (University of Pavia), Nicolas Rebierre (European Trustworthy AI Association), Alexander Machado (appliedAI), Amael Parreaux-Ey (Resilio) and François Picard (DTI)
15:30-16:30
AI Trustworthiness in the Wild: Closing the Reality Gap
Sebastian Heil (TUC), Giovanni Bonati (MAG), Javier Augusto (BAS), Sofia Segkouli (CERTH) and Georgios Spathoulas (NTNU)
16:30-17:00
17:00-18:00
AI research funding in Europe: From NoEs to AI Continent Action Plan and beyond
Cecile Huet (European Commission), Alain Pagani (DFKI), Dimitrios Tzovaras (CERTH), Georgios Spathoulas (NTNU) and Ana Solange Leal (INOVA+)
8:30-9:00
Registration & Check-in
9:00-10:00
The AI Paradox: A Guide for Responsible Humans
Virginia Dignum, Umeå University, Sweden
Keynote speaker
10:00-10:30
10:30-11:30
Explainability and Human Oversight in AI Systems
Johan Loeckx (VUB), Isel Grau (TU/e), Jeriek van de Abeele (Telenor), Géza Németh (BME) and Mohammed Al-Radhi (BME)
11:30-12:30
Code, Compliance, and Competitiveness: making the AI Act work for Europe
Giovanni Bonati (Maggioli), Jerry Spanakis (UM), Julia Palma (CeADAR), Astik Samal (Maggioli) and Alberto Casanova (Maggioli)
12:30-14:00
14:00-15:00
Shaping Europe’s AI Talent: Literacy, Training and Future Skills
David Timis (Global Governance Institute), Thérésa Elhage (All Digital), Adina Florea (UPB), Ștefan Trăușan-Matu (UPB) and Kristina Vassiljeva (TalTech)
15:00-16:00
EU AI sovereignty: a two-fold challenge
Valerie Zapico (Valkuren), David Timis (Global Governance Institute), Ricardo Bessa (INESC TEC), Sagar Sen (SINTEF) and Jeriek Van den Abeele (Telenor)
16:00-16:30
16:30-17:30
From Lighthouse to Continent: ENFIELD and the Future of European AI Leadership
Habtamu Abie (NR), Adina Florea (UPB), Ricardo Bessa (INESC TEC), Adam Brandstetter-Kunc (ESF) and Leïla Belmerhnia (PREDICT)
Meet the Speakers
Alain Pagani
DFKI
Valerie Zapico
Valkuren
Giovanni Bonati
Maggioli
Nicki Lisa Cole
KNOW Center
Paolo Giudici
University of Pavia
Sebastian Heil
TUC
Cecile Huet
European Commission
Georgios Spathoulas
NTNU
Erik Johannes Husom
SINTEF
Adina Florea
UPB
Jeriek Van den Abeele
Telenor
Ana Solange Leal
INOVA +
Pankaj Pandey
NTNU
Mohammed Al-Radhi
BME
Ricardo Bessa
INESC TEC
Géza Németh
BME
François Picard
DTI
Kristina Vassiljeva
Taltech
Astik Samal
Maggioli
Isel Grau
TU/e
Nicolas Rebierre
EU Trustworthy AI Association
Andon Tchechmedjiev
IMT
Thérésa Elhage
All Digital
Jerry Spanakis
Maastricht University
David Timis
Global Governance Institute
Julia Palma
CeADAR
Alberto Casanova
Maggioli
Ștefan Trăușan-Matu
UPB
Johan Loeckx
VUB
Jan Tobias Mühlberg
ULB
Alexandra Papageorgiou
KU Leuven
Martin Willame
UCLouvain
Javier Augusto
BAS
Bert Pluymers
KU Leuven
Antoine-Alexandre André
EU AIO
Ovidiu Vermesan
SINTEF/dAIedge
Amael Parreaux-Ey
Resilio
Alexander Machado
appliedAI
Sofia Segkouli
CERTH
Sagar Sen
SINTEF
Leila Belmerhnia
PREDICT
Sotiris Makris
UPatras
Habtamu Abie
NR
Dimitrios Tzovaras
CERTH
Adam Brandstetter-Kunc
ESF
Moderators
Speaker name
Entity
Speaker name
Entity
Target audience
The target audience includes organisations, researchers, policymakers, AI educators, and other professionals interested in exploring and implementing the application of artificial intelligence to optimise processes, improve efficiency, and drive innovation across sectors such as energy, manufacturing, healthcare, and space systems. These sectors are increasingly adopting AI technologies to solve complex challenges, enhance productivity, and enable new advancements that can transform industries on a global scale.