FIPSE-7 is organized around three forward-looking themes at the intersection of process systems engineering, AI, and control, spanning physics-informed machine learning (Monday), autonomous/self-driving laboratories (Tuesday), and generative AI (Wednesday). The program is anchored by invited talks from leading academic and industrial voices, including Joel A. Paulson(University of Wisconsin–Madison) on representation, uncertainty, and deployment in physics-informed ML; Mariano Nicolás Cruz Bournazou (TU Berlin) on autonomy from lab to production; Swee-Teng Chin (Dow) on generative AI in chemical manufacturing; Federico Galvanin (UCL) on integrating physics-informed ML with optimal experimental design; Tanja Junkers (Monash University) on closed-loop automated polymerization; and John Kitchin (Carnegie Mellon University) on generative AI in chemical engineering. Together, these sessions highlight both the opportunities and the unresolved challenges in deploying AI responsibly and effectively across modeling, optimization, control, experimentation, and education in chemical engineering.
July 6 - 8, 2026
FIPSE-7 at a glance
Why another PSE conference?
Future Innovation in Process System Engineering (FIPSE) aims to provide a framework for researchers to come together and discuss selected topics in some depth, reflect on their accomplishments, and postulate future developments. The emphasis will, therefore, be on discussions rather than presentations and the future rather than the present and the past.
The upcoming seventh in a series of FIPSE conferences aims to look into the significant open research and educational challenges in the area of Process Systems Engineering with an emphasis on AI issues.
Scientific program: Daily Topics
Details on THIS page
Monday, 6 July 2026
Physics-informed Machine Learning
Michael Baldea and Mike Doherty
Organizers and Session Co-Chairs
Invited Speakers:
Joel A. Paulson
Chemical and Biological Engineering,
University of Wisconsin-Madison
USA
Federico Galvanin
Department of Chemical Engineering,
University College London
UK
Tuesday, 7 July 2026
Autonomous Labs
Claire Adjiman and Victor Zavala
Organizers and Session Co-Chairs
Invited Speakers:
Mariano Nicolas Cruz Bournazou
Institute of Biotechnology,
Technical University of Berlin
Germany
Tanja Junkers
School of Chemistry,
Monash University
Australia
Wednesday, 8 July 2026
Generative AI
Srinivas Rangarajan and Qi Zhang
Organizers and Session Co-Chairs
Invited Speakers:
Swee-Teng Chin
Senior Data Scientist,
The Dow Chemical Company
USA
John Kitchin
Department of Chemical Engineering,
Carnegie Mellon University
USA
Conference Location
Makedonia Palace Hotel
FIPSE-7 will be held at the Macedonia Palace Hotel in Thessaloniki, Greece. This unique 5-star luxury hotel is only a 10-minute walk from the city center. In every aspect—history, location, and services—this remarkable 276-room hotel was destined from the beginning to become an integral part of the city, even extending beyond the ordinary or conventional.
More Information HERE.
To book your hotel room, please go HERE.
The City
Thessaloniki is the second-largest city in Greece, situated on the Thermaic Gulf in Macedonia, boasting a prime waterfront location. The city serves as an excellent base for exploring northern Greece and acts as a commercial and transportation hub for this region of the country. Additionally, it is one of the liveliest destinations, offering a variety of facilities alongside numerous historical and cultural attractions.
More Information HERE.
Social Events & Excursions
On Sunday, July 5, a day-long cultural excursion to Vergina, Greece, will take place to visit the Tomb of King Philip II of Macedon. This will be followed by a wine-tasting and lunch visit at the Kyr-Yanni winery.
The day after the conference, on Thursday, a cruise ship excursion to Mount Athos, a mountainous peninsula full of Greek Orthodox monasteries, is available.
During the conference, spouses and companions will have the opportunity to participate in three activities: a gastronomy tour on Monday, a tour of some Byzantine sites on Tuesday, and a Greek cooking class on Wednesday.
Find more details HERE.
From King Philip’s tomb.
The FIPSE Trustees
University of Minnesota, USA
Imperial College London, UK
University of Texas - Austin, USA
Imperial College London, UK
Aalto University, Finland
U. of Southern California, USA
RWTH - Aachen, Germany
Pfizer Worldwide R&D, USA
Delft University, The Netherlands
U. of Wisconsin - Madison, USA
Testimonials
Great workshop!
Excellent networking with sharing ideas and future prospective. Such workshops are very important to shape the direction of the PSE research.
Impressive
This is an unusual workshop and a very impressive one. Enjoyed the discussions a lot and learned a lot. Thanks for organizing
Most Informative
FIPSE was the most informative and rewarding conference I have been to as a graduate student. The change of format really suited the content, and by running a series of cohesive talks, followed by ample discussion time, I found I could take away much more useful information than a regular conference session. Couple this with a spectacular venue and FIPSE was a fantastic success
Excellent, New Kind … Magnificent Setting
This excellent, new kind of conference that you organized in the magnificent setting of the Western Peloponnese seems a long time ago now and I am now mired in current my day job as an HOD. Anyway, I found this one of the most stimulating and valuable conferences that I have attended because of its focused nature and the ability to meet and interact with all the speakers and participants
Refreshing Air of Reflection
Comparing with what one gets in the established conferences, a refreshing air of reflection
Learned a lot
“When I first arrived at the conference, I was a bit star-struck and intimidated by all of the impressive leaders in the field present. … Through discussions with many of the attendees, I learned a lot about the research process and different problems in PSE. Since the conference, I feel much more confident in my ability to network with others in the field, and I also have some extra motivation and ideas for my own research. The conference, both the work and fun parts, were organized outstandingly. …”.
Really unique event
“Really unique event done with a good balance of humor and serious work. Thank you for keeping the event moving despite the two postponements. It is important to do this brainstorming as PSE [moves to the] next decade”
Structure extremely valuable
“As an industry participant, I found the symposium structure extremely valuable; good mix of talks and discussions; input from prospective industrial actually possible”.
Enjoyed the discussions
“I very much enjoyed the discussions. They helped me to identify future research topics.”
Best conference ever!
“Absolutely loved the format, focus on discussions… Best conference ever! Big thanks to the trustees for opening up the conference to young people”.
Best FIPSE
“It was one of the best FIPSE conferences organized. Excellent selection of thematic topics. Excellent organization. Excellent discussions. Excellent hospitality.”
Hesitated to come, but
“Excellent. I hesitated to come, but now I am hesitating to leave.”
Enjoyable Conference
A very enjoyable conference. Excellent presentations and discussion sessions on visions of PSE.
Different Meeting
I really like the format. This is a different kind of meeting!
Truly Unique
A truly unique and very enjoyable conference. A good mix of interesting presentations, fruitful discussions, and networking.
Glad I Came
I am glad I came. A conference like this is quite exotic for me but I really like the format and enjoyed getting to know several attendees.
FIPSE-7 Sponsors
Pfizer
CASALE
