On December 12, the session “Smart Networks for a Sustainable Future: Energy, Water, Environment and Agriculture” took place, as part of the cycle “Artificial Intelligence Interacting with the Physical World”, an initiative organized by the Institute of Systems and Robotics (ISR-Lisbon/LARSyS). The event featured Alexandre Bernardino, a faculty member of DEEC and researcher at ISR; João Coimbra, CEO of Quinta da Cholda; Tiago Morais, founder of VirtuaCrop; and Tiago Domingos, a faculty member at Técnico and researcher at the Center for Marine and Environmental Sciences and Technology (MARETEC).

Throughout the discussion, topics such as the processing of large volumes of data and effective real-time decision-making were addressed, including applications like seabed radioactivity mapping and wildlife monitoring. The panel also discussed the combination of different technologies to address current challenges in agriculture, including solutions based on the integration of traditional physical modeling with machine learning, as well as the development of interpretable models.

Alexandre Bernardino presented the perspective of environmental monitoring, highlighting artificial intelligence as a “relevant factor” for several sectors of the economy.

The economic leap happens when we act in the physical world.

Alexandre Bernardino, DEEC faculty member and ISR researcher

In addition to the use of these systems for integrating data from sensors, satellites, and historical time series (to identify past patterns), he also emphasized the “need to build people’s trust in using artificial intelligence,” particularly through uncertainty quantification, an area that is still under development.

The cycle “Artificial Intelligence Interacting with the Physical World” will include two more sessions this year:

• January 23, 2026 – “Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare: Diagnosis, Treatment, and Personalized Care”
• February 13, 2026 – “Ethics and Social Responsibility of AI”

News and photo gallery: Técnico