The aim of the event is to present the opportunities that India offers in the fields of artificial intelligence, education and research, and to encourage academic, institutional and economic cooperation between Croatia, the European Union and India. Particular emphasis is placed on the exchange of knowledge and experience, the development of joint projects, student mobility, and strengthening ties between academia, industry and diplomacy.
The event is being held in the context of the announcement of the global India – AI Impact Summit 2026, the world’s first artificial intelligence summit to be hosted in the countries of the Global South. Additional impetus for this event comes from the visit of the Ambassador of India to the Republic of Croatia, Mr Arun Goel, to the Faculty of Organization and Informatics in Varaždin, as well as from previously established cooperation between FOI and Indian academic and research institutions, and the experience of FOI faculty members gained through the prestigious ITEC programmes of the Government of India.
The event will be attended by the Ambassador of India to the Republic of Croatia, Mr Arun Goel, the Dean of the Faculty of Organization and Informatics Prof. Marina Klačmer Čalopa, PhD, representatives of regional and local government, as well as numerous experts from the IT industry, the public sector and academia. The programme is intended for FOI students and early-career researchers, faculty members, business stakeholders, and all interested participants who work in or wish to gain a deeper understanding of the development of artificial intelligence and international cooperation in this field.
As part of the event, panel discussions will be held focusing on India as a global actor in artificial intelligence, experiences of cooperation between the European Union and Croatia with the Indian IT and AI sectors, and the presentation of the ITEC programme and participant experiences, with active audience engagement through discussion and questions.
Programme
09:00 – 09:45 Informal networking breakfast (closed event, FOI Faculty Hall)
10:00 – 10:15 Official opening of the event (FOI 1, Room 10)
10:20 – 11:00 Panel discussion: India as a Global AI Power
11:05 – 11:50 Panel discussion: Cooperation with India in IT and AI – Experiences from the EU and Croatia
11:55 – 12:30 Presentation of the ITEC programme and participant experiences
12:40 – 13:00 Conclusions and networking with refreshments
The panel discussions will include Prof. Markus Schatten, PhD (FOI), Moreno Grgurić (IBM iX Croatia), Nikola Modrušan (Central State Office for the Development of the Digital Society), Sandra Carić Herceg (Nacional), Zoran Korečić (Bankai Group), and others. The ITEC programme (Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation) will be presented by Asst. Prof. Bogdan Okreša Đurić, PhD, and Ružica Jajević. This is an international technical and economic cooperation programme of the Government of India that offers free professional training courses in various sectors, covering all participant costs, including travel and accommodation.
