How International Conferences Are Strengthening Vilnius’ AI Ecosystem

As Lithuania invests in advanced AI infrastructure, Vilnius is looking beyond computing power. The city wants to strengthen the international connections that can help its AI sector grow.

International conferences are part of that effort. By bringing researchers, companies and global experts to Vilnius, the city wants their impact to extend beyond the few days of the event itself. The European Conference on Algorithmic Fairness (ECAF 2027) is the latest addition to Vilnius’ growing portfolio of international AI events, with more conferences currently in the bidding pipeline.

Lithuania is moving forward with LitAI, its €130 million national AI Factory and part of Europe’s network of AI Factories. Led by Vilnius University and to be based in Vilnius, LitAI will give researchers, businesses and the public sector access to AI-optimised computing infrastructure and expertise. But computing power alone does not create innovation. It also takes people who know how to use it – and opportunities for them to meet, exchange ideas and work together.

“Powerful computing infrastructure is a major step forward, but it will not create innovation on its own. We need the talent capable of using it – researchers, engineers, PhD students and companies developing new AI solutions. International conferences allow us to bring some of that global expertise to Vilnius, connecting people developing cutting-edge technologies with the local community that can absorb and apply that knowledge,” says Dr Linas Petkevičius, President of the Artificial Intelligence Association of Lithuania and Director of the Institute of Computer Science at Vilnius University.

Bringing global AI expertise to Vilnius

Go Vilnius has worked closely with the Artificial Intelligence Association of Lithuania for several years to bring international AI conferences to the city. The Convention Bureau brings destination and bidding expertise, while the Association brings scientific knowledge and international networks. Together, this has helped Vilnius compete successfully for a growing number of AI and machine learning events.

One of the most significant examples was ECML PKDD 2024, one of Europe’s leading conferences on machine learning and data mining, which brought more than 750 researchers and AI experts to Vilnius. It also showed how an international scientific event can connect research with industry: during the Volvo Discovery Challenge, 52 data scientists used machine learning to tackle a real-world problem – predicting the risk of truck component failure.

More recently, in 2026, the Probabilistic AI School brought around 140 researchers, PhD students, engineers and AI practitioners to Vilnius. It was followed by Declarative AI 2026, which brought together researchers and practitioners working on how to make AI systems more reliable, explainable and controllable, with applications ranging from healthcare and finance to energy and the public sector.

The next addition is the European Conference on Algorithmic Fairness (ECAF), which Vilnius will host in 2027. Bringing together expertise in computer science, law, philosophy and the social sciences, ECAF will focus on fairness, accountability and transparency in AI and algorithmic systems.

And ECAF is not the end of the pipeline. Go Vilnius and its local partners are already bidding for further international conferences in AI and related technology fields.

From hosting conferences to building an ecosystem

For Vilnius, winning a conference is not the end goal. What matters is what it leaves behind: new contacts for local researchers and companies, access to international expertise and, ideally, collaborations that continue after the delegates have gone home.

International scientific and technology events also give local researchers, companies and students a chance to meet global experts without leaving the city. At the same time, they give Vilnius-based researchers and businesses a platform to present their work to international communities and build relationships that might otherwise take years to develop.

“Of course, we are happy when Vilnius wins an international conference, but for me the most interesting part is what can happen because that conference is here. Researchers meet people they might otherwise never meet, local companies gain access to international expertise, and sometimes those conversations turn into something much bigger. If some of those connections continue after everyone has gone home, then the conference has created real value for the city,” says Vita Žilinskaitė, Head of the Go Vilnius Convention Bureau.

This thinking is also shaping which conferences Vilnius chooses to pursue. Delegate numbers and immediate economic impact still matter, but they are not the only measures of value. The city is increasingly looking at how an event fits with its priority sectors and what it could bring to the people and organisations already working in those fields.

The investment in AI infrastructure is significant. But Vilnius also wants the research community, companies and international connections around it to grow. Bringing the right conferences to the city is one practical way to make that happen.