The capital of Galicia is preparing to dazzle the scientific elite in Artificial Intelligence: between October 19 and 24, the celebration in the city of the European Conference on Artificial Intelligence (ECAI 2024) -the most important congress in Europe in the field, and one of the three of reference on the planet-,  will turn Santiago de Compostela into the world capital of AI. An event of extraordinary magnitude that already has more than 1,600 people registered from all over the world, positioning the city as an international benchmark in the field of smart technologies. Figures and expectations of a global nature that, however, coexist with the interest of the local public, to whom time and space have been reserved in the historical context of this conference, through activities designed for the closest society.

In parallel to the intense coordination work as the institution responsible for this meeting, CiTIUS (Singular Center for Research in Intelligent Technologies of the USC), has scheduled a series of events open to the public under the title 'Semana da cidadanIA', with the aim of taking advantage of the historic opportunity of this conference to bring AI closer to the general public. The activities will take place the week before the congress (between 14 and 19 October), and will be distributed throughout different parts of the city, being free of charge and open until full capacity is reached, without the need for prior registration. 

Every wAI leads to Santiago 

Throughout the week, different events will be held aimed at the general public, spread over various spaces in the city. On Monday, October 14, the Casa das Máquinas (Galeras), will host the opening of the 'Semana da cidadanIA' with a series of informative talks given by CiTIUS researchers, which will address the impact of artificial intelligence on everyday life. People who attend this meeting will be able to discover, for example, how social robots interact naturally with human beings, how artificial intelligence has been integrated into chips, or how linguistic technologies allow machines to understand and use Galician. In addition, the applications of AI in the field of medicine (such as clinical monitoring) will be discussed and the possibilities of virtual reality in fascinating fields such as nanoscience or the relief of terminal experiences or end-of-life moments will be explored. 

On Wednesday, October 16, at the Café Bar Alborada in Veiga, CiTIUS research staff will offer a series of informal and informative talks, in which current topics such as the use of artificial intelligence to create images or content automatically (generative AI) or the representation of 3D scenes using advanced technologies will be explained. In addition, we will reflect on the mathematical models that help us understand how certain ideas or phenomena are propagated in society, also relating them to the scientific method. 

On Thursday, October 17, the CGAC Auditorium will be the scene of a very special activity: a magic show fused with artificial intelligence, by the director of CiTIUS, Senén Barro, the AI engineer Alba Meijide, and the renowned magician Jorge Luengo. This event will seek to provoke in the public a reflection on the differences between human and artificial intelligence, highlighting how both, although advanced, are not infallible. 

On Friday, October 18, at the Faculty of Philosophy of the USC, a group of experts from various disciplines will analyze the ethical, legal and technical aspects related to AI, and how this technology can be perceived by society, through an interesting debate entitled 'Can we trust AI'?.

The Semana da cidadanIA will finally conclude on Saturday, October 19, with the screening in the CGAC Auditorium of the film Justicia Artificial, recently released and directed by Simón Casal. After the screening, a colloquium will be held moderated by the journalist Jaime García Cantero (content director of El País Retina), in which the limits of the use of AI in situations as complex as decision-making in war conflicts or in medical diagnoses will be discussed. The colloquium will feature the participation of the producer, Chelo Loureiro, the director (Simón Casal) and the actor Tamar Novas. Detailed information on this cycle of activities can be found by downloading the full Programme of the 'Semana da cidadanIA.