On 20-21/05/2026, the Kick-Off Meeting (KOM) of the European project AIOS - "AI-Driven Open Science: A Curriculum for Research and Innovation" was successfully held, marking the official launch of a new initiative funded by the European Union under the Erasmus+ programme (Key Action KA220-HED, Cooperation Partnerships in Higher Education). The project runs from March 2026 to March 2028.
The University of Thessaly (UTH) acted as coordinator and host of the meeting, organising and leading the proceedings under the scientific responsibility of Professor Panos Fitsilis. Professor Fitsilis warmly welcomed all consortium partners, thanked them for their participation, and presented in detail the project's vision, strategic objectives, and implementation timeline, laying the groundwork for a productive and constructive collaboration throughout the coming two years.
The two-day meeting brought together representatives from all consortium partners, fostering a lively and substantive exchange of views and expertise. Throughout the sessions, participants had the opportunity to discuss extensively the overall structure of the project, which is organised into five Work Packages: Project Management, the development of assessment tools, the design of the curriculum, the production of training materials, and the certification, dissemination, and exploitation of project results. Each partner presented their respective role and responsibilities, while the group discussed at length the upcoming steps, key deliverable deadlines, and the communication and coordination mechanisms that will govern the functioning of the consortium.
Particular emphasis was also placed on the administrative and financial aspects of project management, as well as on the reporting requirements towards the responsible National Agency, the Greek State Scholarships Foundation (IKY).
The meeting was marked by an excellent spirit of collaboration and a shared commitment from all partners to the successful achievement of the project's objectives. AIOS aims to develop an innovative and forward-looking curriculum on Open Science, harnessing Artificial Intelligence technologies, addressed to researchers, academics, and students in higher education at a European level, meaningfully contributing to strengthening the research and innovation skills of the next generation of scientists.
