Keynote Speakers

Bio

Fabio Casati is Principal AI Architect at ServiceNow and Professor at the University of Trento. His work focuses on designing, architecting, and deploying AI-powered workflows for enterprise customers.

His current research interests include conversational knowledge and intent elicitation, agent-centered knowledge management, and wellbeing studies in AI agents. His broader research contributions include influential work on wellbeing for older adults, which has informed policy decisions in several countries, as well as recent work on conversational clustering.

Abstract

TBA

Bio

Dr Raian Ali is a Professor and UNESCO Chair in Digital Technologies and Human Behaviour. He is also a Visiting Professor at Bournemouth University, UK, and The Education University of Hong Kong. He received his PhD from the University of Trento, Italy, in 2010, and has held academic positions at the University of Limerick, Ireland, and Bournemouth University. He obtained his first degree from Latakia University, Syria. His research focuses on the intersection of technology and human behaviour, with an emphasis on digital addiction, responsible technology use, and the impact of design on wellbeing. He serves on the Steering Committee of the Persuasive Technology Society and the International Conference on Behavioural and Social Computing, and is on the editorial boards of journals including Behaviour and Information Technology, Journal of Responsible Technology, and Human-Centric Artificial Intelligence. He leads the $3.8 million Digital Citizenship Cluster in Qatar, involving multiple projects, over 15 national and international partners, and a team of more than 50 researchers and staff. He also provides consultancy at national and international levels.

Abstract

This talk explores the parallels between established forms of problematic technology use, including social media and online gaming and gambling, and the emerging phenomenon of problematic AI use, particularly involving Large Language Models (LLMs). Drawing on recent research on AI dependency, AI apprehension, trust calibration, explainability, and persuasive technology, the talk discusses how Generative AI systems can influence human cognition, decision making, and behaviour. It further considers how such systems can be designed and governed to support conscious, balanced, and human-centred use, while mitigating the risks of overreliance and unhealthy dependency.

Bio

Dr. Rajkumar Buyya is a Redmond Barry Distinguished Professor and Director of the Quantum Cloud Computing and Distributed Systems Laboratory at the University of Melbourne. He is also the founding CEO of Manjrasoft. He has published more than 850 works and seven textbooks, supervised over 66 PhD graduates, and is among the world’s most highly cited distributed-computing researchers. He has received ACM, IEEE, and Academia Europaea fellowships and has repeatedly been recognized as a highly cited researcher.

Technologies developed under his leadership in Grid, Cloud, Fog, and Quantum computing are used in more than 60 countries. He founded the IEEE Transactions on Cloud Computing as Editor-in-Chief and currently leads Software: Practice and Experience. He has delivered over 750 invited talks worldwide. More information is available at www.buyya.com.

Abstract

The keynote examines the software and architectural challenges of scalable, dependable quantum computing in the NISQ era. It presents the University of Melbourne’s iQuantum initiative, including tools for creating and deploying quantum applications, QFaaS for serverless execution across cloud quantum platforms, and the iQuantum simulation toolkit. It concludes with research directions spanning integrated edge, cloud, and quantum systems.

Bio

Dr. Sukhpal Singh Gill researches quantum and cloud computing, edge AI, and sustainable intelligent systems at Queen Mary University of London. His previous appointments include postdoctoral research at Lancaster University and the University of Melbourne’s CLOUDS Lab. He contributes to international journals and conferences in editorial roles and has authored numerous research articles and books. His work has received more than 18,000 citations, a Google Scholar h-index of 67, and coverage from IEEE Spectrum and international technology media.

Abstract

This keynote surveys progress and open challenges across quantum hardware, software, algorithms, and ecosystems. It considers how quantum cloud platforms can make quantum resources more accessible and scalable, then explores the convergence of quantum computing, AI, secure systems, and sustainable innovation. The talk also highlights quantum AI and quantum-cloud approaches to challenges such as climate change and next-generation infrastructure.