The UNU Macau AI Conference 2026 will be a two-day international convening on the future of AI and education, taking place on 25-26 November 2026 in Macau. The conference will bring together policymakers, education leaders, researchers, technology experts, youth innovators, and development practitioners to explore how AI can transform learning systems, strengthen human capacity, and expand inclusive access to quality education.
Under the core theme of “AI × Education”, the 2026 edition will examine two connected dimensions: AI in education, focusing on how AI can enhance teaching, learning, assessment, and education governance; and education of AI, focusing on how societies can prepare learners, teachers, and institutions to understand, use, and shape AI responsibly.
Join Us as a Panelist
The Conference is designed as an inclusive platform where diverse perspectives shape global policy and action in AI and Education. We invite speakers to provide their insights from across all sectors including academia, civil society, government, international organizations, and the technology industry. We particularly encourage applications from the Global South.
As a panelist, you will not only join us in Macau to speak to an international audience of stakeholders but you will also help co-author a post-conference publication within the UNU-Springer Book Series.
Participants are encouraged to submit an Expression of Interest (EOI) to speak in one or more of our five thematic panels:
Panel 1. How Should the Education Sector Respond as Generative AI Reshapes the Value of Learning and Employability Skills?
This panel examines how generative AI is reshaping the value of learning and employability skills as education systems define responsible AI use. It focuses on how educators can distinguish AI use as legitimate learning support, assessed competence, or a risk to foundational skill formation, and how these decisions should inform learning, assessment, pedagogy, and preparation for AI-mediated labour markets while preserving the broader educational value of learning.
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As academic integrity, technology adoption, and skill formation become increasingly difficult to separate, education systems are being asked to define responsible AI use in ways that protect meaningful learning and prepare learners for labour markets where work is increasingly AI-mediated. This task is complicated by a deeper shift in the value of foundational and technical skills that education has traditionally helped learners develop. Educators and institutions are therefore managing generative AI disruption at the intersection of education and work, amid growing uncertainty about which skills need deeper practice, which skills need to be developed differently, and how those skills translate into future livelihoods and employment.
This panel asks how educators should determine which uses of AI constitute legitimate learning support, which should be incorporated into assessed competence, and which should be limited because they weaken foundational skill formation. The panel also examines how these pedagogical decisions shape the skills learners need to thrive in AI-mediated labour markets.
The panel invites evidence-based contributions on how education systems can set clearer norms for AI use while redesigning learning, assessment, and pedagogy to meet the demands of changing labour markets. We are especially interested in pedagogical and policy approaches that promote balanced and responsible use of AI while remaining attentive to the broader educational value of learning and employability skills demands.
Panel 2. Agentic AI in the Loop: From Autonomous Tools to Shared Capacity
As AI systems become more agentic, their significance lies not only in autonomous task completion, but in how they enter wider loops of human judgment, tools, data, evidence, and social purpose. This panel explores how agentic AI can move from isolated assistants or autonomous tools toward shared capacity: the ability for people and communities to reason, create, test, and act with AI in more collective and accountable ways. Speakers will examine the interfaces, workflows, and harnesses that shape how agents are guided, interpreted, evaluated, and connected to real-world problems. The discussion may include agentic AI for research, knowledge synthesis, policy exploration, public-interest technology, simulation, multilingual collaboration, and other settings where human and machine capabilities are combined. The panel asks how AI Agents can be made useful, legible, and adaptable in support of public value and inclusive futures.
Panel 3. The “UN-AI” Corridor: Enhancing Macau's Role as a Multilateral Tech Bridge
While agentic AI tools increasingly support sectors like health, finance, or climate, a critical gap remains between advanced AI research and the practical needs of global, national, and local decision-makers. Drawing on UNU Macau’s experience in building UN-aligned tools for the UN system and member states—including responses to the DRC Ebola outbreak, financial inclusion in Egypt, and Blue Economy in Indonesia—this panel explores how to operationalize AI research for policymaking. Specifically, speakers will discuss how to design, deliver and learn to use AI tools that strengthen Macau’s strategic role as a gateway connecting mainland China with Portuguese and Spanish-speaking nations.
Panel 4. Human Agency in AI-Mediated Communication: Integrity, Trust, and Ethical Practice
As AI becomes deeply embedded in communication systems, it increasingly acts not just as a tool, but as an active communicator that reshapes how information is produced, circulated, and trusted. This panel addresses how communication theory must respond to these emerging challenges from a human-centered perspective. Grounded in interconnected themes, speakers will question when AI disrupts traditional sender–message–receiver models and lowers the cost of producing mis- and disinformation. The discussion will analyze the responsibilities distributed across platforms, developers, and regulators, ultimately addressing how humans should communicate ethically to preserve integrity in automated environments.
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As artificial intelligence becomes deeply embedded in communication systems, it increasingly acts not just as a tool, but as a communicator, reshaping how information is produced, circulated, interpreted, and trusted. This panel will discuss how communication theory and practice must respond to emerging challenges to information integrity from a human-centered perspective. The panel discussion is structured around five interconnected themes: (1) AI-mediated communication, questioning when AI disrupts traditional sender–message–receiver models and blurs boundaries of agency, intentionality, and responsibility, how humans consume AI-generated messages. (2) When generative AI has dramatically lowered the cost and increased the scale and speed of producing mis-and disinformation, how it complicates individuals’ ability to navigate the environment where the boundaries between truth, error, and fabrication are increasingly ambiguous. (3) These challenges are further complicated by platform algorithms and governance structures, which shape what information becomes visible, amplified, or suppressed. What responsibilities should be distributed across platforms, developers, and regulators and users? (4) In AI-mediated environments, trust is no longer confined to media institutions but extends to complex networks of human and non-human actors. Understanding how trust is constructed, eroded, and recalibrated across these relationships is essential for sustaining functioning information ecosystems. (5) Through discussing these four related questions, this panel will turn to a normative and important question: how should humans communicate ethically in the age of AI? It will reflect on what forms of ethical communication practices and integrated literacies are required to preserve integrity in increasingly automated and opaque systems.
Panelists specializing in these thematic areas are warmly welcomed to share their insights into the intersections between technological transformation and human responsibility, highlighting the critical role of human agency in sustaining information integrity in AI-medicated communication ecosystem.
Panel 5. Re-imagining AI Education in Low-Resource Regions: Who Builds the Future?
As AI reshapes societies and economies, developing a skilled and inclusive AI workforce has become a strategic priority, particularly in low-resource regions. This panel brings together diverse perspectives to examine how AI education ecosystems can be strengthened through innovative and locally relevant approaches, enabling a sustainable, future-ready AI talent pipeline.
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As AI adoption accelerates globally, its impact is increasingly evident across sectors that shape human development and societal progress. However, many low-resource regions—particularly across Africa—continue to face structural barriers, including a limited AI-skilled workforce, that hinder the full realization of AI's potential. Notably, the ability to develop, deploy, and govern AI often rests on skilled talent, effective capacity-building mechanisms, and inclusive educational opportunities. At the same time, AI itself is creating new opportunities to enhance teaching and learning. Universities, training institutions, governments, industry, and communities are experimenting with innovative approaches to AI education and leveraging AI-powered tools to expand access to learning. Yet important questions remain: How can low-resource regions develop a sustainable AI talent pipeline? How can AI education be made more inclusive, locally relevant, and future-oriented? And how can AI technologies be responsibly integrated into education systems to improve learning outcomes? This panel seeks to explore strategies for strengthening AI education ecosystems and harnessing AI to support training and learning towards an inclusive and sustainable future.
Expectations of Panelists
Selected panelists will play a crucial role in driving insightful, action-oriented dialogue at the UNU Macau AI Conference 2026. Each panel will consist of 4 to 5 speakers and will run for a maximum of 1 hour, including an audience Q&A segment.
To ensure a cohesive and high-impact session, panelists are expected to:
- Collaborate with the Panel Coordinator: Work closely with a dedicated UNU Macau team member to align on the session’s flow, core questions, and key takeaways.
- Adapt to the Session Format: Depending on the final design of the specific panel, panelists should be prepared to either: Deliver a brief, targeted presentation aligned with the panel theme of around 10 minutes, OR Participate in an interactive, roundtable-style guided discussion answering key prompt questions.
- Engage in Pre-Conference Prep: Participate in virtual briefing calls with fellow co-panelists to coordinate talking points and avoid overlap.
- Contribute to a Post-Conference Publication: Co-author a book chapter with co-panelists based on their contribution for an edited volume to be published by Springer. Panelists will be expected to expand their insights into a full chapter manuscript following the conference.
- Active in-person Contribution: Provide evidence-based insights in person in Macau during the conference.
When submitting your EOI, you may also indicate your interest in chairing the panel. Panel Chairs will help shape the session's narrative and guide the discussion on-site, supported by a dedicated UNU Macau team member to handle logistics and coordination.
Selection Criteria
UNU Macau will review and evaluate all EOIs against the following criteria:
- Thematic Alignment & Expertise: Knowledge of the subject, a track record of published research, or practical experience directly relevant to the panel theme.
- Diverse Perspectives: We will actively evaluate submissions to ensure a rich mix of institutional backgrounds, regional representation, and gender balance.
- Originality & Contribution: As panelists are expected to co-author a chapter, we will prioritise unique case studies, novel applications, or innovative proposals that add to the evidence.
How to Submit
Interested participants are invited to submit their EOI by completing the online application form at Panelist Expression of Interest Form.
To be considered, your submission must be received before deadline and include all required materials, including a 200-word maximum explanation of your interest in presenting as aligned with your chosen panel theme, a brief biography, and an indication of your interest in serving as a Panel Chair.
Incomplete applications, those received after the deadline, or those that do not use the online form will not be reviewed.
Timeline
- Expressions of interest open – July 7
- Expression of interest close – August 7
- Selection of panelists – August 21
- Confirmation of panelists – September 4
- Conference day - November 25
Costs
Selected panelists are expected to cover their own travel and accommodation expenses for their stay in Macau. A conference registration fee may apply. This fee will be confirmed at a later stage and will include lunch and dinner on the day of the conference. Further details regarding on‑site logistics, hospitality arrangements, and practical guidance will be shared directly with confirmed speakers in due course.
While panelists are generally responsible for these costs, there may be limited opportunities for sponsorship or institutional support. Information on potential sponsorships, eligibility, and application procedures will be communicated separately if available.
For further inquiries, please contact: AIConference@unu.edu
