Sören Auer is Director of the Leibniz Information Centre for Science and Technology (TIB) and Professor of Data Science and Digital Libraries at Leibniz University Hannover. His research focuses on knowledge graphs and neuro-symbolic and agentic AI, together with their applications in science and industry. The founder of the Open Research Knowledge Graph (ORKG) and co-founder of DBpedia, he has led numerous large-scale European research and innovation initiatives. His current work is exploring how trusted data, structured knowledge and AI agents can be combined to create AI systems that are more reliable, explainable and autonomous.

Adam Pustelnik studied at the University of Lodz, the European Academy of Diplomacy and the University of Oxford, among others, He holds a master’s degree in law and another in international relations. His career to date has taken him to the Ministry of Sport and Tourism, Łódź City Hall and consultancy company Savills. During his stint at Łódź City Hall from 2015 to 2019, he served as Director of the Investor Service Office, where his responsibilities included leading the implementation of the Łódź development strategy, investor acquisition, the promotion of the city’s economic potential and international cooperation. He was installed as First Deputy Mayor of the City of Lodz in September 2020. His official duties encompass supervision of the Department of Planning and Economic Development and the Department of Asset Management.

Aleksandra Nowak is a digital identity specialist working at the intersection of technology, regulation and digital trust. At IDENTT, she leads initiatives focused on identity verification and fraud detection, helping organisations navigate the transition towards the European Digital Identity ecosystem. Her expertise includes the EUDI Wallet, biometrics, AI-driven identity solutions and the practical use of digital identity and electronic attestations of attributes in regulated industries.

Sabina Brożek-Rzewuska has been involved in market research since 2021. A graduate in sociology from the University of Warsaw, she went on to gain experience at Ipsos, a leading market research company, where she worked on domestic and international projects for key corporate clients and coordinated complex research initiatives from the conceptual stage right through to the compilation of the final report. As market research team leader for Antal Polska, Sabina is responsible for planning and conducting commercial, non-commercial and in-house research projects.

Mirek Sopek’s background is in physics and he obtained his doctorate in the field of theoretical and quantum chemistry. He has been the elected chair of the University Council of Łódź University of Technology since 2021, actively supporting scientific development and collaboration between the academic and business worlds. He is also the founder and CEO of a start-up, Quantum B., which is focused on quantum cryptography.

It was in 2000 that Szymon Augustyniak began writing about technology and digitalisation and he has continued ever since, always setting his subject matter in a broader social and economic context. Now the Deputy Editor-in-Chief of Smart Tech RE:view portal, he was previously a long-time Editor-in-Chief of "CIO" magazine and organiser of CIO of the Year, nurturing eleven editions of the prestigious competition to fruition. He has been building lively, discussion-driven communities for CIOs and CxOs since 2009, with Klub CIO and CXO HUB as the thriving results, joined more recently by CxO Club. On stage, he draws panellists and audiences into shared conversations, steering them deftly until they come to conclusions that surprise even the participants.

Professor Katarzyna de Lazari-Radek has studied the subject of well-being, happiness and pleasure for the past twenty years. Philosophically, she argues for the maximisation of pleasure and diminishing of pain among as many beings as possible and believes in helping others to live a good and enjoyable life on the basis of philosophical, psychological and neurobiological research. Her main research interest focuses on the thinking of late Victorian philosopher Henry Sidgwick. She has written two books with Peter Singer, "The Point of View of the Universe" (Oxford University Press, 2014) and "Utilitarianism: A Very Short Introduction" (Oxford University Press, 2017) and edited John Stuart Mill’s "Utilitarianism" (Norton, 2021). Her "The Philosophy of Pleasure", the first introductory text of its kind on the subject of pleasure, was published by Routledge in 2024. In the field of AI ethics, her work includes "AI and Consumers’ Well-Being", with Peter Singer, published in “The Cambridge Handbook of AI and Consumer Law” (October 2024) and, most recently, talks and lectures on AI and philosophy at Freedom Games (October 2025). When she discusses AI. It is usually in connection with our well-being. In addition to her academic work, she is keen to convey philosophical ideas to a wide audience, writing for popular magazines. She and Peter Singer began running a podcast, "Lives Well Lived", in May 2024, interviewing a remarkable line-up of guests, including Daniel Kahneman, Yuval Harari, Jane Goodall, Judy Collins, Neil de Grasse Tyson and Ingrid Newkirk.

Agnieszka Walczak-Karbowska helps organisations turn complex business and regulatory challenges into digital products that deliver measurable value for clients, customers and companies alike. As Chief Product Owner at PKO Leasing, she leads the Omnichannel Platform, which includes customer self-service applications, digital portals and Automarket.pl. Throughout a career that spans banking, enterprise software and financial services, she has been responsible for scaling digital platforms, leading international product organisations and delivering large-scale transformation initiatives. Before joining PKO Leasing, Agnieszka held senior leadership roles at mBank and Atlassian, where she combined product strategy, technology and regulatory expertise to build solutions used by millions of clients and customers across multiple markets. Agnieszka is passionate about building high-performing teams, developing in-house technology capabilities and creating products that make complex processes simple, accessible and effective.

Marek Obuchowski helps organisations leverage AI, automation and modern technology platforms to transform the way they work. As Chief Product Owner at PKO Leasing, he leads initiatives focused on intelligent automation, low-code development, robotic process automation and artificial intelligence. With a background ranging from enterprise infrastructure and IT operations to product management and AI strategy, his perspective is unique and connects technology innovation with real business outcomes. Marek is passionate about responsible AI adoption, building high-performing teams and turning complex technologies into practical solutions that create measurable business value.

With more than seventeen years of experience in IT management across aviation and multi-site manufacturing environments, Piotr Jaczyński is responsible for IT services, infrastructure and technology projects. His areas of expertise include business continuity, information security, IT strategy and aligning technology with operational needs.

An experienced IT and business leader, Mateusz Rakusa-Suszczewski has a strong background in international project coordination and digital transformation. As Renault Polska’s IS/IT Director for the CEE region, he drives technology strategies that enhance customer satisfaction, optimise business processes and ensure secure, data-driven operations. Combining his extensive expertise in project management, ITIL-based service delivery and managing geographically distributed teams, he successfully leads complex initiatives across diverse markets.

Piotr Ignaczak jest doświadczonym liderem technologicznym z ponad dwudziestoletnim stażem we wdrażaniu innowacji dla globalnych marek, w tym Cisco, NTT, Orange i Accenture. Ukończył studia magisterskie z informatyki na Politechnice Łódzkiej oraz Executive MBA na Politechnice Warszawskiej. Piotr obecnie pełni funkcję Chief Technology Officer w MakoLab, gdzie kieruje inicjatywami transformacji cyfrowej i wyznacza strategiczny kierunek rozwoju technologicznego firmy.

Jacek Popko set out on his digital career in 1999. At heart a user experience professional and user advocate, by profession he is a consultant who helps businesses to innovate successfully. He has been with MakoLab for five years.

A specialist in the field of new technology law, Maria Dymitruk focuses in particular on AI, IP and IT. With her profound understanding of the legal and business conditions for IT and AI projects, she has extensive experience in supporting organisations through the processes. She began investigating the use of AI in law at the University of Wrocław’s Research Centre for Legal and Economic Issues of Electronic Communication in 2014 and obtained her PhD with honours there with a dissertation on the admissibility of using AI in civil proceedings. During her doctoral studies, she completed research stays in Canada, at the University of Montreal, and in Italy, at Università Mediterranea in Reggio Calabria. As a participant in numerous national and international research projects at the intersection of law and technology, she has wide experience in team management, legal project coordination and international collaboration, having worked in conjunction with entities like the European Commission and the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights. The president of the European Bars Federation New Technologies Commission, she also represents the Polish bar association in the work of the Council of Bars and Law Societies of Europe and is a member of the International Association for AI and Law, the AI Working Group at Poland’s Ministry of Digital Affairs and the Digitalisation Problems Team of the Civil Law Codification Commission at the Polish Ministry of Justice. She has a substantial portfolio of scientific publications in the field of AI, is recognised both as a trainer and a speaker at events in the field of IT law and teaches at the University of Wrocław and the University of Silesia in Katowice. After graduating with honours from the Faculty of Law, Administration and Economics at the University of Wrocław and also studying law in Krakow, at the Jagiellonian University’s Faculty of Law and Administration, she completed her legal training with distinction at the District Chamber of Legal Advisors in Wrocław.

Mateusz Kijowski began his career at PwC as a data engineering consultant. Today, he specialises in modern data architectures, helping organisations build scalable, future-ready data platforms. Passionate about technology, he focuses on turning complex data challenges into innovative solutions.

Dominik Lubasz specialises in new technology law, personal data protection and economic law, including European economic law. He is also a Professor at the University of Łódź. He has been singled out in the rankings run by Legal 500, Chambers and Partners Europe, Lexology, Client Choice and “Rzeczpospolita” and has spoken at numerous conferences. He runs workshops of his own devising and, as a lecturer on post-graduate courses, he focuses on personal data protection and new technologies. The head of the Centre for LegalTech and AI Research (CLAIRE) at the University of Łódź, Dominik co-created GDPR Risk Tracker, a legaltech tool that supports processes ensuring compliance with the GDPR. He is the author and academic editor of more than a hundred publications, including commentaries on laws and he serves as an AI expert and member of working groups for Poland’s Chancellery of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers, the country’s Personal Data Protection Office and the European Association of Data Protection Professionals. He is also an expert for the European Data Protection Board and the Council of Europe.