Young Talent, International Perspectives and AI Tools on Day 0 of the AI Symposium

One of the highlights of Day 0 will be the morning's Poster Booster Session, offering a dynamic snapshot of the topics, results and research questions being explored by young researchers. Around 40 posters are expected, with contributors from more than 15 institutes. Built around short, three-minute pitches, the format gives students and early-career researchers the opportunity to present their latest findings and ideas to an international professional audience. The initiative aims to provide a platform for the next generation of AI talent and innovators, while creating space for new professional connections.

The first item on the afternoon agenda will be an introduction to the symposium's co-organiser, Nanyang Technological University (NTU) in Singapore, and its College of Computing and Data Science (CCDS). The presentation will offer insight into NTU's innovation and research ecosystem, with particular emphasis on postgraduate study and research opportunities. This will be especially valuable for students and young researchers with an international outlook who are keen to learn more about one of the world's leading environments for AI and data science. By international standards, CCDS is an outstanding institution, ranked among the world's top five AI and Data Science programmes in the QS rankings.

The third main pillar of Day 0 will be the programme hosted by the AI Service Centre, focusing on the role of artificial intelligence in science and AI-driven opportunities in research. In the first part of the session, two talks will outline emerging directions in the field and show how new tools and methods are enabling researchers to approach scientific problems in novel ways — and to investigate AI systems themselves. The second half will shift towards practical experience: through live demonstrations, participants will be introduced to the ADP, or Agentic Discovery Platform, which is soon to be made available across the research network and brings together a range of research-specific agents and tools.

The demonstrations will feature a wide variety of AI-based solutions, from classical workflow-building techniques to science support tools developed by researchers themselves. A particular highlight will be the chance to try ToolUniverse, created by MIT and Harvard, through which participants will be able to experiment with systems for data analysis, optimisation and data integration. The aim is to ensure that a brief theoretical introduction is followed by as much hands-on experience as possible, encouraging participants to start actively using these next-generation AI tools in their own research.

Day 0 of the AI Symposium is therefore more than simply a prelude to the conference. It is a meaningful opening day in its own right: a meeting point where a new generation of researchers can find inspiration, gain international perspective and walk away with directly applicable knowledge about some of the most exciting directions in AI research.

Participation is free, but registration is required. You can register via this link.