From Agentic AI to Future-Proof Intelligent Systems: AI Symposium 2026 Comes to Budapest This Week with World-Class Speakers

AI Symposium 2026 is not only a major event in the international professional dialogue on artificial intelligence; it is also an exceptional opportunity for the HUN-REN research community, university students and early-career researchers. One of the symposium’s greatest strengths is that participants can meet world-renowned researchers and speakers free of charge — an exceptionally rare opportunity in Hungary in such a concentrated format. The guests coming to Budapest are internationally recognised figures in their fields setting the agenda not only through their scientific achievements, but also through the ideas with which they are shaping the future of artificial intelligence. As such, the event offers first-hand knowledge, opportunities for personal exchange and new avenues for professional collaboration.

“AI Symposium 2026 is not merely a scientific conference, but also a meeting point: a space where AI research, industrial application and future directions come into view together, with the participation of representatives of the international forefront. The Budapest event offers inspiration, knowledge and professional connections to everyone who wants not only to follow, but also to shape the next era of AI,” said Roland Jakab, CEO of the HUN-REN Hungarian Research Network.

“Some of the most important advances in AI today are emerging at the intersection of disciplines, institutions, and research communities. The AI Symposium continues to provide an important platform for researchers and students to exchange ideas, build connections, and explore new opportunities for international collaboration in AI and related fields. NTU values the growing partnerships and research exchanges that have emerged through our collaborations with HUN-REN and the broader Hungarian research community,” added Luke Ong, NTU’s Vice President for Artificial Intelligence and the Digital Economy and Dean of the College of Computing and Data Science.

The symposium’s Day Zero, on 20 May 2026, is aimed primarily at the next generation. Designed for students and early-career researchers, the programme offers an inspiring introduction to the conference: the Poster Booster Session will present young researchers’ topics, findings and questions in a dynamic format, while also creating space for professional networking. Participants will also have the opportunity to learn about NTU’s study opportunities and HUN-REN’s AI-First Science initiative, which explores how AI is transforming the methodology of scientific discovery. (Participation in the free Day Zero programme requires separate registration.)

The main conference programme spans the full spectrum of artificial intelligence. On 21 May, key topics will range from medical and industrial applications of intelligent technologies to quantum technology. Cuntai Guan will discuss one of the most promising areas in the field — the present and future of brain–computer interfaces — while Philip W. Y. Chiu will speak about intelligent technologies supporting next-generation surgery. New directions in medical AI will be addressed by Jagath Chandana Rajapakse, Yanan Sui and István Csabai. The industrial perspective will be represented by István Szászi, while Marc Pollefeys will explore the future of vision, robotics and intelligence operating in motion. From the University of Oxford, Andrew Briggs will show that quantum technology presents not only risks, but also opportunities for those working in security.

On 22 May, the focus will shift to the perceptual capabilities of next-generation AI systems, trustworthy AI and machine learning. The day will open with Davide Scaramuzza, who will present robotic applications of ultra-fast machine vision, followed by Federico Tombari, who will discuss the perceptual and intelligence foundations of future AI systems. Kwek Leong Chuan will address optical neural networks, while questions of robust and responsible AI will be examined by Weiyang Liu, Kang Hao Cheong and Márk Jelasity. In the afternoon, attention will turn to future-proof security and scalable intelligent solutions, with speakers including Mathis Bode, Dániel Paulin and Balázs Csáji.

AI Symposium 2026 is not only about current achievements, but also about how the next, agentic era of AI is being built. Future AI systems will increasingly require complex capabilities such as accurate perception of their environment, situational understanding, reliable decision-making, real-time responsiveness and the ability to act in physical or digital settings. This direction of development is strongly reflected in the symposium’s sessions on perception, robotics, medical applications, intelligent systems and trustworthy AI, outlining the path from models to more autonomous, goal-directed systems capable of operating in real-world contexts.

Alongside research results, AI Symposium 2026 places strong emphasis on practical implementation and on building bridges between research and industrial innovation. This is exemplified by speakers such as Marc Pollefeys, but also by the conference’s corporate sponsors — Bosch, Ericsson, KPMG and Aumovio — all of whom are at the forefront of turning the theoretical potential of artificial intelligence into tangible, production-ready innovation. As the principal sponsor, Bosch, for example, is using AI in pioneering ways to redefine mobility, focusing on how the capabilities enabled by foundation models with increasingly precise environmental perception — such as ADAS — can be translated into safe, reliable functions in real products.