The ADIA Lab Symposium
October 26–28, 2026 at the Four Seasons Hotel on Al Maryah Island, Abu Dhabi
Overview
Join us for the fourth edition of the ADIA Lab Symposium
Over three days, global leaders in AI, data science and engineering will come together in Abu Dhabi to explore how advances in AI move from understanding complex systems, to building reliable technologies, to deploying them in the real world — under the theme:
- Prediction: Understanding, Modeling and Forecasting Systems
- Design: Engineering Systems with Reliable Intelligence
- Deployment: Scaling Innovation into Practice
The program features keynote sessions, breakout sessions, research result presentations, award ceremonies and case study expert presentations led by internationally renowned experts — including members of ADIA Lab’s Advisory Board and Research Fellows — alongside a poster session and dedicated networking opportunities. The forum is free to attend, in person or by livestream.
“
As AI continues to move from scientific discovery to real-world application, understanding how systems are predicted, designed and deployed has become increasingly important. Our flagship event will bring together experts from academia and government to discuss the challenges of modeling complex systems, the engineering discipline required to build reliable technologies, and the opportunities and practical considerations involved in deploying them at scale.
Dr. Horst Simon · Director, ADIA Lab
Guest Speakers
The ADIA Lab Symposium brings together some of the world’s most influential minds in science and technology, including three confirmed Nobel Prize laureates, for an inspiring three-day program.
Our Scientific Advisors, Research Fellows and global partners will present groundbreaking research, exploring how AI is transforming prediction, design and deployment across science and industry. Join us to discover the innovations shaping the future.
Nobel Laureates
Prof. Robert Engle
Nobel Prize, Economic Sciences 2003 · ADIA Lab Advisory Board
Prof. Steven Chu
Nobel Prize, Physics 1997 · ADIA Lab Advisory Board
Prof. Konstantin Novoselov
Nobel Prize, Physics 2010 · ADIA Lab Advisory Board
Also Speaking
Prof. Jack Dongarra
University Distinguished Professor, University of Tennessee · ACM A.M. Turing Award Laureate · ADIA Lab Advisory Board
Prof. Shafi Goldwasser
ACM A.M. Turing Award Laureate · ADIA Lab Advisory Board · Remote
Prof. Torsten Hoefler
ETH Zürich · 2024 ACM Prize in Computing · ADIA Lab Senior Fellow
Prof. Haohuan Fu
Vice Dean, Tsinghua Shenzhen International Graduate School · Three-Time ACM Gordon Bell Prize Winner · ADIA Lab Visiting Fellow
Prof. Miguel Hernán
Professor of Biostatistics & Epidemiology, Harvard University · Rousseeuw Prize for Statistics · ADIA Lab Advisory Board
Prof. Alex “Sandy” Pentland
Toshiba Professor, MIT · HAI Fellow, Stanford · Member, National Academy of Engineering · ADIA Lab Advisory Board
Dr. Edward Jung
Co-Founder & Chief Technology Officer, Intellectual Ventures · ADIA Lab Advisory Board
Prof. Le Song
CTO, GenBio AI
Prof. Aly Azeem Khan
University of Chicago
Prof. Francisco Herrera
University of Granada · ADIA Lab Senior Fellow
Prof. Luis Seco
Professor of Mathematics, University of Toronto · Director, RiskLab · ADIA Lab Visiting Fellow
Prof. Juepeng Zheng
Associate Professor, Sun Yat-sen University
Dr. Parag Khanna
Founder & CEO, AlphaGeo · ADIA Lab Visiting Fellow
Ms. Nina Kshetry
Founder & President, Ensaras, Inc.
Prof. Salman Khan
Professor, Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence (MBZUAI) · ADIA Lab Visiting Fellow
Prof. Duncan Watson-Parris
Asst. Professor, Scripps Institution of Oceanography & UC San Diego · Remote
Prof. Karim Lakhani
Harvard Business School
Prof. David Clifton
University of Oxford
Dr. Ronnie Rajan
M42
Dr. Milind Nikam
Fresenius Medical Care
Dr. Eran Segal
Dean, Biological and Life Sciences Division, MBZUAI · Weizmann Institute of Science · ADIA Lab Visiting Fellow · Remote
Dr. Farah Shamout
Assistant Professor, NYU Abu Dhabi · ADIA Lab Visiting Fellow
Dr. Sophia Rein
ADIA Lab Visiting Fellow · Remote
Prof. Leandros Tassiulas
John C. Malone Professor of Electrical & Computer Engineering, Yale University
Prof. Agostino Capponi
Professor, Industrial Engineering and Operations Research · Director, Center for Digital Finance and Technologies, Columbia University
Dr. Thomas Hardjono
CTO of Connection Science & Technical Director, MIT Trust-Data Consortium · ADIA Lab Senior Fellow
Dr. Edward Barker
Head of AI Lab, AI Enablement Unit, Mubadala Investment Company
Prof. Roberto Di Pietro
Full Professor of Computer Science, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST)
Prof. Carlos Galera-Zarco
Associate Professor, University College London (UCL) · Member, UCL Turing University Team
Plus leading researchers from academia and ADIA Lab’s own Research Fellows — see the detailed agenda below for confirmed session speakers, and full speaker bios and session abstracts here. Additional speakers will be announced as the program develops.
Agenda & Sessions
ADIA Lab Symposium 2026
A day-by-day look at the preliminary program. Times are local (Abu Dhabi, GST).
This is a preliminary agenda and is subject to change. Only formally confirmed speakers are named below; remaining sessions are marked “speaker to be announced” and will be updated as the program is finalized.
Day 1: Prediction
Monday, 26 October
Day 2: Design
Tuesday, 27 October
Day 3: Deployment
Wednesday, 28 October
09:00–09:30
Breakfast
Breakfast & Networking · all attendees
09:30–09:40
Opening Remarks
Dr. Horst Simon · Director, ADIA Lab
09:40–10:25
Keynote 1
Prof. Robert Engle
Nobel Laureate, Economic Sciences 2003
“Risk Management When We Don’t Know the Risks: Forecasting Risk, Return and the Price of Risk”
Prof. Le Song
CTO, GenBio AI
“AIDO Cell: A Multiscale Simulator for Cell Biology”
Prof. Alex “Sandy” Pentland
Toshiba Professor, MIT · HAI Fellow, Stanford
“AI Success in the Real World”
10:25–11:00
Keynote 2
Prof. Steven Chu
Nobel Laureate, Physics 1997
“Technology Challenges in Getting to Net-Zero GHG Emissions”
Prof. Shafi Goldwasser
ACM A.M. Turing Award Laureate · Remote
Prof. Karim Lakhani
Harvard Business School
“The Jagged Frontier of Deployment: Field Experimental Evidence on How AI Changes Work, Teams, and Strategy”
11:00–11:20
Coffee Break
Coffee Break
11:20–12:40
Parallel Sessions
Track AKilometer-Scale Earth System Modeling and AI-Driven Discovery
HPC, digital twins, extreme-event forecasting, and the limits of data-driven Earth system models.
11:20–12:00Prof. Haohuan Fu
“Paving the Way Toward a Scaling Law for Scientific Discovery: Lessons from the HPC–AI-Converged LineShine Supercomputer”
12:00–12:40Prof. Torsten Hoefler
“AI in Climate Sciences — Quo Vadis?”
Track BCausal and Predictive AI for Human Health
Causal inference from healthcare data, AI models of the human immune system, and the limits of what current AI can learn from clinical records.
11:20–12:00Prof. Miguel Hernán
“AI for Causal Inference from Healthcare Databases”
12:00–12:40Prof. Aly Azeem Khan
“Predictive Immunology: Building AI Models of the Human Immune System”
Track CPromises and Limits of AI in Financial Applications
LLM and agentic AI performance in market algorithms and financial analysis, benchmarked against the standards of professional practice.
11:20–12:00Prof. Leandros Tassiulas
“AI in Economics and Finance: Regulatory Filings, On-Chain Markets, and Financial Forecasting”
12:00–12:40Prof. Agostino Capponi
“AI Agents in Competitive Markets”
Track ATrustworthy Climate Risk Modeling for Capital Decisions
Validation frameworks, scenario design, sustainability metrics, and the reliability of climate-financial models.
11:20–12:00Prof. Luis Seco
“The Algorithmic Planet: AI, Mathematics, and the Reinvention of Our Relationship with Nature”
12:00–12:40Prof. Juepeng Zheng
“From Foundation Models to Operational Weather Intelligence and Practice”
Track BTrustworthy Clinical Machine Learning and Agentic Systems
Foundation models for hospitals, primary care, and public health, reliability of agentic AI, and continuous assurance for systems used in patient care.
11:20–12:00Prof. David Clifton
“Advances in Foundation Medical AI”
12:00–12:40Prof. Francisco Herrera
“Engineering Trustworthy Agentic Intelligence: From Model Reliability to Continuous Assurance”
Track CChallenges, Failures and Solutions in the Design of New Technologies
Design choices tested against legacy workflows, daily operations, real data, and real-world participants.
11:20–12:00Dr. Thomas Hardjono
“A Model for Transaction Coordination for Multi-Network Asset Transfers”
12:00–12:40Dr. Edward Barker
“Practical Lessons in Building Trustworthy Agentic AI for Investment Research”
Track ADeploying Climate and Sustainability AI Beyond the Pilot
Commercialization, infrastructure integration, adaptation finance, and the practical obstacles to scaling.
11:20–12:00Dr. Parag Khanna
“Scaling Resilience Through the Deployment of Climate Adaptation Solutions”
12:00–12:40Ms. Nina Kshetry
“Beyond the Model: Scaling Applied AI for Water and Resource Recovery”
Track BDeploying Health AI at Population Scale
Clinical integration, regulation, infrastructure, and the practical obstacles to moving health AI from pilot to routine care.
11:20–12:00Dr. Milind Nikam
“AI-Driven Digital Transformation in Dialysis Care”
12:00–12:40Dr. Ronnie Rajan
“Real-World Lessons from Deploying AI in Clinical Settings”
Track CHidden Economic Risks When AI Is Deployed at Scale
The least visible risks of AI at scale, hidden in infrastructure and long-term usage, and their security and economic solutions.
11:20–12:00Prof. Roberto Di Pietro
“Trustworthy AI Begins in the Data Center: Securing the Physical Substrate of Intelligence”
12:00–12:40Prof. Carlos Galera-Zarco
“The Shadow Agent: Governing Unseen Delegation in the AI-Driven Economy”
12:40–13:40
Lunch Break
Lunch Break
13:40–14:40
Collaborative Research Project Updates
Climate Science
13:40–14:05Prof. Salman Khan
“Climate Co-Pilot: Scientifically Grounded Agents for Multimodal Earth Data”
14:05–14:30Prof. Duncan Watson-Parris
“Benchmarking Machine Learning for Climate Science”
Health Sciences
13:40–14:00Dr. Eran Segal· Remote
“FM-GWAS: From Personalized Genomes to Disease Gene Discovery”
14:00–14:20Dr. Sophia Rein· Remote
“Causal AI for the Generation of Real-World Evidence from Healthcare Data”
14:20–14:40Dr. Farah Shamout
“AgentiCDS: A Multimodal Agentic AI System for In-Hospital Clinical Decision Support”
13:40–13:55JFDS Award Ceremony
13:55–14:10Award Presentation 1
14:10–14:25Award Presentation 2
14:25–15:00Award Presentation 3
14:30–15:00
ADIA Lab Awards
Structural Break Competition – Real-time Edition
Jean Herelle & Emanuele Olivetti
14:40–15:10
Expert Case Study
Prof. Jack Dongarra
University of Tennessee · ACM A.M. Turing Award Laureate
“HPC in Transition”
15:00–15:30
Expert Case Study
Prof. Konstantin Novoselov
Nobel Laureate, Physics 2010
“AI for Materials Discovery”
Dr. Edward Jung
Co-Founder & CTO, Intellectual Ventures
15:30–17:00
Poster Sessions
15:10–17:00
Poster Sessions
15:30–15:45
Closing Remarks
Dr. Horst Simon · Director, ADIA Lab
Day 1: Prediction
Monday, 26 October
09:00–09:30
Breakfast
Breakfast & Networking · all attendees
09:30–09:40
Opening Remarks
Dr. Horst Simon · Director, ADIA Lab
09:40–10:25
Keynote 1
Prof. Robert Engle
Nobel Laureate, Economic Sciences 2003
“Risk Management When We Don’t Know the Risks: Forecasting Risk, Return and the Price of Risk”
10:25–11:00
Keynote 2
Prof. Steven Chu
Nobel Laureate, Physics 1997
“Technology Challenges in Getting to Net-Zero GHG Emissions”
11:00–11:20
Coffee Break
11:20–12:40
Parallel Sessions
Track AKilometer-Scale Earth System Modeling and AI-Driven Discovery
HPC, digital twins, extreme-event forecasting, and the limits of data-driven Earth system models.
11:20–12:00Prof. Haohuan Fu
“Paving the Way Toward a Scaling Law for Scientific Discovery: Lessons from the HPC–AI-Converged LineShine Supercomputer”
12:00–12:40Prof. Torsten Hoefler
“AI in Climate Sciences — Quo Vadis?”
Track BCausal and Predictive AI for Human Health
Causal inference from healthcare data, AI models of the human immune system, and the limits of what current AI can learn from clinical records.
11:20–12:00Prof. Miguel Hernán
“AI for Causal Inference from Healthcare Databases”
12:00–12:40Prof. Aly Azeem Khan
“Predictive Immunology: Building AI Models of the Human Immune System”
Track CPromises and Limits of AI in Financial Applications
LLM and agentic AI performance in market algorithms and financial analysis, benchmarked against the standards of professional practice.
11:20–12:00Prof. Leandros Tassiulas
“AI in Economics and Finance: Regulatory Filings, On-Chain Markets, and Financial Forecasting”
12:00–12:40Prof. Agostino Capponi
“AI Agents in Competitive Markets”
12:40–13:40
Lunch Break
13:40–14:30
Collaborative Research Project Updates – Climate Science
13:40–14:05Prof. Salman Khan
“Climate Co-Pilot: Scientifically Grounded Agents for Multimodal Earth Data”
14:05–14:30Prof. Duncan Watson-Parris
“Benchmarking Machine Learning for Climate Science”
14:30–15:00
ADIA Lab Awards
Structural Break Competition – Real-time Edition
Jean Herelle & Emanuele Olivetti
15:00–15:30
Expert Case Study
Prof. Konstantin Novoselov
Nobel Laureate, Physics 2010
“AI for Materials Discovery”
15:30–17:00
Poster Session
Day 2: Design
Tuesday, 27 October
09:00–09:30
Breakfast
Breakfast & Networking · all attendees
09:30–09:40
Opening Remarks
Dr. Horst Simon · Director, ADIA Lab
09:40–10:25
Keynote 1
Prof. Le Song
CTO, GenBio AI
“AIDO Cell: A Multiscale Simulator for Cell Biology”
10:25–11:00
Keynote 2
Prof. Shafi Goldwasser
ACM A.M. Turing Award Laureate · Remote
11:00–11:20
Coffee Break
11:20–12:40
Parallel Sessions
Track ATrustworthy Climate Risk Modeling for Capital Decisions
Validation frameworks, scenario design, sustainability metrics, and the reliability of climate-financial models.
11:20–12:00Prof. Luis Seco
“The Algorithmic Planet: AI, Mathematics, and the Reinvention of Our Relationship with Nature”
12:00–12:40Prof. Juepeng Zheng
“From Foundation Models to Operational Weather Intelligence and Practice”
Track BTrustworthy Clinical Machine Learning and Agentic Systems
Foundation models for hospitals, primary care, and public health, reliability of agentic AI, and continuous assurance for systems used in patient care.
11:20–12:00Prof. David Clifton
“Advances in Foundation Medical AI”
12:00–12:40Prof. Francisco Herrera
“Engineering Trustworthy Agentic Intelligence: From Model Reliability to Continuous Assurance”
Track CChallenges, Failures and Solutions in the Design of New Technologies
Design choices tested against legacy workflows, daily operations, real data, and real-world participants.
11:20–12:00Dr. Thomas Hardjono
“A Model for Transaction Coordination for Multi-Network Asset Transfers”
12:00–12:40Dr. Edward Barker
“Practical Lessons in Building Trustworthy Agentic AI for Investment Research”
12:40–13:40
Lunch Break
13:40–14:40
Collaborative Research Project Updates – Health Sciences
13:40–14:00Dr. Eran Segal· Remote
“FM-GWAS: From Personalized Genomes to Disease Gene Discovery”
14:00–14:20Dr. Sophia Rein· Remote
“Causal AI for the Generation of Real-World Evidence from Healthcare Data”
14:20–14:40Dr. Farah Shamout
“AgentiCDS: A Multimodal Agentic AI System for In-Hospital Clinical Decision Support”
14:40–15:10
Expert Case Study
Prof. Jack Dongarra
University of Tennessee · ACM A.M. Turing Award Laureate
“HPC in Transition”
15:10–17:00
Poster Session
Day 3: Deployment
Wednesday, 28 October
09:00–09:30
Breakfast
Breakfast & Networking · all attendees
09:30–09:40
Opening Remarks
Dr. Horst Simon · Director, ADIA Lab
09:40–10:25
Keynote 1
Prof. Alex “Sandy” Pentland
Toshiba Professor, MIT · HAI Fellow, Stanford
“AI Success in the Real World”
10:25–11:00
Keynote 2
Prof. Karim Lakhani
Harvard Business School
“The Jagged Frontier of Deployment: Field Experimental Evidence on How AI Changes Work, Teams, and Strategy”
11:00–11:20
Coffee Break
11:20–12:40
Parallel Sessions
Track ADeploying Climate and Sustainability AI Beyond the Pilot
Commercialization, infrastructure integration, adaptation finance, and the practical obstacles to scaling.
11:20–12:00Dr. Parag Khanna
“Scaling Resilience Through the Deployment of Climate Adaptation Solutions”
12:00–12:40Ms. Nina Kshetry
“Beyond the Model: Scaling Applied AI for Water and Resource Recovery”
Track BDeploying Health AI at Population Scale
Clinical integration, regulation, infrastructure, and the practical obstacles to moving health AI from pilot to routine care.
11:20–12:00Dr. Milind Nikam
“AI-Driven Digital Transformation in Dialysis Care”
12:00–12:40Dr. Ronnie Rajan
“Real-World Lessons from Deploying AI in Clinical Settings”
Track CHidden Economic Risks When AI Is Deployed at Scale
The least visible risks of AI at scale, hidden in infrastructure and long-term usage, and their security and economic solutions.
11:20–12:00Prof. Roberto Di Pietro
“Trustworthy AI Begins in the Data Center: Securing the Physical Substrate of Intelligence”
12:00–12:40Prof. Carlos Galera-Zarco
“The Shadow Agent: Governing Unseen Delegation in the AI-Driven Economy”
12:40–13:40
Lunch Break
13:40–15:00
Collaborative Research Project Updates
13:40–13:55JFDS Award Ceremony
13:55–14:10Award Presentation 1
14:10–14:25Award Presentation 2
14:25–15:00Award Presentation 3
15:00–15:30
Expert Case Study
Dr. Edward Jung
Co-Founder & CTO, Intellectual Ventures
15:30–15:45
Closing Remarks
Dr. Horst Simon
Director, ADIA Lab
Practical Information
Plan your visit
Free to Attend
The three-day forum is free to attend, either in person or virtually. Registration is essential.
Program Format
Keynotes, breakout sessions, research presentations, award ceremonies and case studies, plus dedicated networking.
Poster Session
Researchers are invited to present their work during the symposium’s poster session — details coming soon.
Missed 2025?
Revisit sessions from the 2025 Symposium on ADIA Lab’s YouTube channel.
Join us in Abu Dhabi
The three-day forum is free to attend, in person or virtually — but registration is essential.