Agenda
Keynotes and Panel Discussions
- 08:00 - 08:30
- Switzerland Innovation Park Biel/Bienne AG
Welcome Coffee and Check-in
Start the day with a networking coffee and check-in.
- 08:30 - 08:35
- Swiss Smart Factory Hall
Speaker
tbd
Welcome address by the State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation
- 08:35 - 08:40
- Swiss Smart Factory Hall
Speaker
tbd
Welcome address by the Bern Economic Development Agency
- 08:40 - 08:50
- Swiss Smart Factory Hall
Speaker
Dr. Dominic Gorecky
Chair IHF, Head of Swiss Smart Factory and President of Swiss Cobotics Competence Center
Dr. Hakan Girgin
Co-Chair IHF, Innovation Director at Swiss Cobotics Competence Center
Dr. Anca Rusu
Co-Chair IHF, Executive Director, Swiss Robotics Association (SRA)
Opening Remarks by the Chairpersons of IHF
- 08:50 - 09:20
- Swiss Smart Factory Hall
- #Keynote #Industry
Speaker
tbd
Opening Keynote
- 09:20 - 09:35
- Swiss Smart Factory Hall
- #Keynote
Speaker
Lukas M. Ziegler
Venture Partner at First Mumentum Ventures; Lecturer, Business School, Warsaw University of Technology; Robotics & AI Consultant / Evangelist
Participants
David Reger
CEO Neura Robotics
Prof. Dr. Emre Ugur
Associate Professor at Bogazici University
Zakia Zeroual
Board Member at Swiss Engineering, AI and robotics specialist
Andre Heskamp
Vice President of Advanced Automation Technology at Schaeffler
“Humanoids at the Crossroads: Breakthrough or Breakdown?
- 09:35 - 10:20
- Swiss Smart Factory Hall
- #Panel Session
Moderator
Lukas M. Ziegler
Venture Partner at First Momentum Ventures; Lecturer, Business School, Warsaw University of Technology; Robotics & AI Consultant / Evangelist
Participants
tbd
Oliver Authried
Project Coordinator at the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) in the Division of Digital Transformation and Artificial Intelligence
Firas Ghanem
Industrial Development Expert at Digital Transformation and Artificial Intelligence department, UNIDO
Dr. Xavier Comtesse
Innovation Strategist, Futurist, and Thought Leader *Digital Transformation*
Prof. Dr. Yulia Sandamirskaya
Head of a Research Center “Cognitive computing in Life Sciences” at ICLS/ZHAW
Dr. Seungjoon Yang
Professor at Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology
“From Crossroads to Action: Turning Humanoid Potential into Impact”
- 10:20 - 10:50
- Foyer & Auditorium
Coffee Break & Live Demos
- 10:50 - 11:20
- Swiss Smart Factory Hall
- #Keynote #Academic
Speaker
Prof. Dr. Tamim Asfour
Spokesperson, Robotics Institute Germany (RIG), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Institute for Anthropomatics and Robotics (IAR), High Performance Humanoid Technologies (H2T)
- 11:20 - 12:30
- Auditorium
- #Pitching Session
Moderator
Dr.-Ing. Dominic Gorecky
Head of Swiss Smart Factory and President of Swiss Cobotics Competence Center
Participants
Yuichiro KAWASUMI
Kawada Robotics
AGIBOT
Benoit Berkoukchi
Bleu Robotics
Edwin Yap
Founder of Mr. Robot
Dr. Seungjoon Yang
Professor at Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology
Pitching Session with Insights from Industrial and Academic Leaders
Join us for an engaging pitching session featuring up to 6 presentations, each lasting 5 minutes + 2 minutes Q&A, from leading figures in both industry and academia. This session will provide a unique opportunity to gain insights into the latest innovations, research breakthroughs, practical applications and critical reflections in the field of humanoid robotics.
- 12:30 - 13:30
- Foyer & Auditorium
Name
Designation
Name
Designation
Lunch Break and Live Demos
- 13:30 – 14:00
- Swiss Smart Factory Hall
- #Keynote #Academia
Speaker
Prof. Dr. Yulia Sandamirskaya
Head of Research Center "Cognitive computing in Life Sciences" at Zurich University of Applied Sciences (ICLS/ZHAW)
- 14:00 - 15:00
- Swiss Smart Factory Hall
Moderator
Prof. Dr. David Romero
Full Professor, Tecnológico de Monterrey University
Participants
Prof. Dr. Sarah Dégallier Rochat
Professor, Berner Fachhochschule BFH
Katrin Yuan
CEO, Swiss Future Institute
Hiroyuki Fujii
Business Development Manager, Kawada Robotics Corporation
Kai Leuze
CEO of inMotion.robotic, representing Deep Robotics
Zakia Zeroual
Board Member at Swiss Engineering, AI and robotics specialist
David Weder
CEO, Swiss Cobotics Competence Center S3C
Tobias Rainer Schäfle
Business Segment Manager Automated Intralogistics and Manufacturing Systems Fraunhofer IPA
Dr. Xavier Comtesse
Innovation Strategist, Futurist, and Thought Leader *Digital Transformation*
Yuki Long
Founder Sino Swiss Hub
Panel Session
Join us for an engaging panel session.
- 15:00 - 15:30
- Foyer & Auditorium
Coffee Break & Live Demos
- 15:30 - 16:30
- Swiss Smart Factory Hall
- Startup Pitch Arena
Moderator
Dr. Dominic Gorecky
Head of Swiss Smart Factory & President of the Swiss Cobotics Competence Center
Participants
Marco Failla
Wheemo Tech
Martin Wanitschke
Wandelbots
Benoit Berkoukchi
Bleu Robotics
Dr. Davide Zappetti
Innovation Manager at Enchanted Tools
Startup Pitch Arena: Breakthroughs & Bold Visions in Humanoid Robotics
Step into a high-energy pitch arena where visionary startups and innovators compete for attention, traction, and future investment. Up to six cutting-edge teams will pitch their solutions in 5-minute lightning rounds, followed by 2 minutes of rapid-fire Q&A from the audience.
This session shines a spotlight on emerging startups, disruptive technologies and bold ideas shaping the next era of humanoid robotics. Whether you’re scouting innovation, looking for collaboration opportunities or aiming to understand where the market is heading, this is your chance to experience the forefront of robotics entrepreneurship.
Special highlight: Selected teams will have the opportunity to pitch directly in front of attending venture capitalists and corporate innovation leaders, opening doors for potential partnerships, pilots, and investment discussions.
- 16:30 - 16:45
- Swiss Smart Factory Hall
Speakers
Dr. Dominic Gorecky
Chair IHF, Head of Swiss Smart Factory and President of Swiss Cobotics Competence Center
Dr. Hakan Girgin
Co-Chair IHF, Innovation Director at Swiss Cobotics Competence Center
Dr. Anca Rusu
Co-Chair IHF, Executive Director, Swiss Robotics Association (SRA)
Closing Remarks and Day 2 Outlook by the chairpersons of IHF
Recap of the day’s discussions and a preview of the next day’s workshops.
- 16:45 - 18:00
- Swiss Smart Factory (SSF) and Swiss Cobotics Competence Center (S3C)
Live Demonstrations and Networking
Showcasing cutting-edge robotic technologies and their applications in the exhibition area.
- 18:00 - 21:00
- Foyer & Swiss Smart Factory Hall
Evening Reception & IHF Special award
Join us for a delightful dinner reception, offering a perfect opportunity for informal networking over drinks and a meal.
Workshop day
Workshop participants will be issued a certificate
- 08:30 - 09:00
- Switzerland Innovation Park Biel/Bienne AG
Welcome Coffee and Check-in
Start the day with a networking coffee and check-in.
- 09:00 - 09:10
- Swiss Smart Factory Hall
Speakers
Dr. Hakan Girgin
Innovation Manager at Swiss Cobotics Competence Center
Dr. Anca Rusu
Executive Director, Swiss Robotics Association (SRA)
Dr. Sylvain Calinon
Senior Researcher at Idiap Research Institute
Introduction by the Co-Chair of IHF
- 09:10 – 09:30
- Swiss Smart Factory Hall
- Industrial Keynote
Speaker
Dr. André Scholz
leading “Autonomous Factory” at Digital Industries – Factory Automation, Siemens AG
Participants
Dr. Sylvain Calinon
Senior Researcher at Idiap Research Institute
Integrating Humanoids and Physical AI in Industrial Operations
- 09:30 – 10:30
- Swiss Smart Factory Hall
- Panel Session
Moderator
Dr. Milan Kumar
CIO, ZF Commercial Vehicles (CVS), TEDx Speaker, Global CIO & CDO Awards Winner, CIO Series Author, Forbes Tech Council
Participants
Dr. André Scholz
leading “Autonomous Factory” at Digital Industries – Factory Automation, Siemens AG
Urs Gehrig
Managing Director Business Development, Lighthouse Consulting AS
Dr. Baptiste Busch
CEO & Co-Founder, AICA
Kristof Buzsics
Flex
Industrial Use-cases
- 10:30 - 11:00
- Foyer
Coffee Break
- 11:00 - 12:00 - Workshop A
- S3C
- #Technical Workshop
Instructor
Dr. Sylvain Calinon
Senior Researcher at Idiap Research Institute
Hands-on Programming Humanoid Robots
- 11:00 - 12:00 - Workshop B
- Swiss Smart Factory Hall
- #Ideation Workshop
Instructor
Dr. Anca Rusu
Executive Director, Swiss Robotics Association (SRA)
Dr. Reik Leiterer
Booster Manager, Innovation Booster Artificial Intelligence
Interactive design-thinking ideation lab
- 11:00 - 12:00 - Workshop C
- Foyer
- #Exploratory Foresight Workshop
Instructor
Prof. Dr. Sarah Rochat
Professor, Berner Fachhochschule BFH
“Future of (Human) Work” Workshop
- 12:00 - 13:30
- Foyer
Lunch Break
- 13:30 - 14:30
- Swiss Smart Factory Hall
- #Keynotes – Panel Discussion – Q&A
Moderator
Dr. Anca Rusu
Executive Director, Swiss Robotics Association (SRA)
Participants
tbd
Prof. Dr. Yulia Sandamirskaya
Head of a Research Center "Cognitive computing in Life Sciences" at ICLS/ZHAW
Dr. Sébastien Dalibard
Hardware Chief Technology Officer at Aldebaran
Prof. Dr. Robert Katzschmann
Assistant Professor at the Department of Mechanical and Process Engineering
Keynotes – Panel Discussion – Q&A (Service Robotics Challenges)
- 14:30 - 15:00
- Foyer
Coffee Break
- 15:00 - 16:00 - Workshop A
- S3C
- #Technical Workshop
Instructor
Dr. Sylvain Calinon
Senior Researcher at Idiap Research Institute
Hands-on Programming Humanoid Robots
- 15:00 - 16:00 - Workshop B
- Swiss Smart Factory Hall
- #Ideation Workshop
Instructor
Dr. Anca Rusu
Executive Director, Swiss Robotics Association (SRA)
Interactive design-thinking ideation lab
- 15:00 - 16:00 - Workshop C
- Foyer
- #Exploratory Foresight Workshop
Instructor
Prof. Dr. Sarah Rochat
Professor, Berner Fachhochschule BFH
“Future of (Human) Work” Workshop
- 16:00 - 16:15
- Swiss Smart Factory Hall
Speaker
Dr. Dominic Gorecky
Chair IHF, Head of Swiss Smart Factory and President of Swiss Cobotics Competence Center
Dr. Hakan Girgin
Co-Chair IHF, Innovation Director at Swiss Cobotics Competence Center
Dr. Anca Rusu
Co-Chair IHF, Executive Director, Swiss Robotics Association (SRA)
Closing Remarks by the Chairpersons of IHF
Recap of the day’s discussions.
- 16:15 – 17:30
- Swiss Smart Factory (SSF) and Swiss Cobotics Competence Center (S3C)
Networking and Farewell Reception
A closing session for participants to network, exchange ideas, and discuss potential collaborations, accompanied by refreshments.