ARTIFACT-DN Workshop

7 May 2026, 14:00 → 8 May 2026, 16:00 Europe/Berlin

Room 283, Wilhelm Köhler Hall, S1/03 (TU Darmstadt)

Adnan Ghribi (CNRS-GANIL), Carsten Welsch (University of Liverpool), Oliver Boine Frankenheim

Building on the momentum of the ARTIFACT ecosystem and recently funded Horizon Europe projects, this meeting will prepare the proposal for ARTIFACT-DN, a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Doctoral Network targeting the RAISE MSCA-DN call. The network will address the most pressing challenges for large-scale research infrastructures: how to push the boundaries of artificial intelligence to design, operate, and sustain next-generation particle accelerators.

ARTIFACT-DN aims to train a new cohort of doctoral researchers at the interface of accelerator physics, advanced AI, and research infrastructure engineering. The scientific program will be structured around three tightly integrated work packages, spanning data-driven accelerator modelling and control, trustworthy and explainable AI for safety-critical systems, and scalable AI deployment across distributed accelerator facilities. These research activities will be embedded in a strong training framework combining scientific excellence, transferable skills, and exposure to real-world operational constraints.

This workshop will bring together prospective academic partners, research infrastructures, and industrial stakeholders to jointly define:

• the scientific scope and research challenges of the doctoral projects,
• the training program, including interdisciplinary and intersectoral components,
• secondment opportunities across laboratories, infrastructures, and industry,
• and the overall implementation and governance of the Doctoral Network

The meeting is designed as an interactive forum for shaping the network’s vision and ensuring strong alignment with both cutting-edge research and societal and industrial needs. Participants will have the opportunity to influence the network structure, identify synergies with ongoing initiatives, and position their organisations at the core of a European effort to train leaders in AI-enabled accelerator science.

We look forward to welcoming universities, research centres, accelerator facilities, and industrial partners active in AI, computing, instrumentation, control systems, and advanced engineering to join this discussion and help co-design ARTIFACT-DN as a flagship MSCA Doctoral Network for AI in accelerator-based research infrastructures.

Registration deadline: 5 April 2026

Thursday, 7 May

14:00 → 14:15 Welcome and overview

Speaker: Carsten Welsch (University of Liverpool)

14:15 → 14:30 ARTIFACT, TWINRISE,…and more

Speaker: Adnan Ghribi (CNRS-GANIL)

14:30 → 14:45 iRIS

Speaker: Johannes Gutleber

14:45 → 15:15 Discussion

15:15 → 15:30 Coffee break

15:30 → 17:15 Scientific Work Package 1

15:30 tbc

15:45 tbc

16:00 tbc

16:15 tbc

16:30 tbc

16:45 Discussion

19:00 → 22:00 Dinner

Friday, 8 May

09:00 → 10:45 Scientific Work Package 2

09:00 tbc

09:15 tbc

09:30 tbc

09:45 tbc

10:00 tbc

10:15 Discussion

10:45 → 11:00 Coffee break

11:00 → 12:45 Scientific Work Package 3

11:00 tbc

11:15 tbc

11:30 tbc

11:45 tbc

12:00 tbc

12:15 Discussion

12:45 → 13:45 Lunch

13:45 → 14:45 Training and secondments – best practice in Europe

Speaker: Carsten Welsch (University of Liverpool)

14:45 → 15:15 Communication and Dissemination

Speaker: Alexandra Welsch (University of Liverpool / The Cockcroft Institute)

15:15 → 15:30 Coffee break

15:30 → 16:00 Implementation and summary

Speaker: Carsten Welsch (University of Liverpool)