Budapest AI and Security Symposium 2026
Building Noah's Ark for the Age of AI — An AI-Acceleration Strategy to Catch and Surpass China
Now in its fourth edition, the Budapest AI and Security Symposium is once again brought to life through the support of Newpush. This year's conference is centered around the theme “Building Noah's Ark for the Age of AI — An AI Acceleration Strategy to Catch and Surpass China”.
Registration
Opening Remarks
- Balázs Nagy* — CEO, NewPush; President, Rotary Club [TBD]; Co-founder, Project NoéMI
- Prof. Dr. Massimiliano Albanese* — George Mason University; Co-founder, Project NoéMI
- Dr. Réka Szemerkényi* — Director for Foreign and Security Policy, Equilibrium Institute
- Vilmos Rádi* — Vice Governor for the Budapest Area of Rotary District 1911
Opening Keynote Panel: Diagnosing the Gap
How Far Behind Are We, Really?
A data-driven look at China's STEM pipeline volume, lab output, and deployment velocity versus the US and EU — and the closing window for catch-up.
Keynote Speakers:
• Péter Horváth — State Secretary for Science Policy and Innovation, Ministry of Science and Technology of Hungary, Budapest
• Éva Hegedűs — CEO, Gránit Bank, Budapest
Commentators:
• Prof. Dr. Alex Szalay* — Bloomberg Distinguished Professor (Director, IDIES), Johns Hopkins
University
• Emilio Martin,* Phd — Head of AI and Data Science, Enoda, London
• Gabriella Matyas-Kollar* — Head of AI at Shiwaforce, INSEAD Executive MBA
• Paul Domjan* — Founder and Chief Policy and Global Affairs Officer, Enoda. London
Moderator: Michelle Watson* — Executive Director of Corporate Relations, Institute of World Politics, Washington DC
Panel 1: Rebuilding the Pipeline at Speed
K-12 Literacy, Compressed University Tracks, Lab Residencies
Concrete models for shrinking time-to-competence: dual-track high schools, three-year applied AI degrees, undergraduate lab residencies, and what Óbuda's BlackAnt program reveals about builder-first pedagogy.
Speakers:
• Aanjhan Ranganathan* — Visiting Professor, ETH Zürich, Professor Northeastern University
• Prof. Dr. Alex Szalay* — Bloomberg Distinguished Professor (Director, IDIES), Johns Hopkins University
• Júlia Molnár — Governor, Rotary Clubs of Hungary
• Milán Balázs* — Assistant Lecturer, Óbuda University, Co-Inventor of BlackAnt
• Dr. Péter Galambos* — Vice-Rector for Innovations, Óbuda University
Moderator: Vilmos Rádi* — President of Rotary Academy; Pázmány Péter Catholic University Legal Faculty
Lunch
Panel 2: Capital for the Catch-up
Banks, Corporates, and the EU Funding an AI Workforce
Who pays for compressed pipelines, scholarship-at-scale, compute access for students, and corporate apprenticeships — and how Hungarian and EU capital can be aligned to this.
Keynote Speakers: András Cser* — Vice President and Principal AnalystSecurity and Risk Management at Forrester Research (5')
• Ákos Janza* — President, AmCham Hungary; Head of Enterprise Transformation, Masterplast
• András Várfi* — Founder, CEO, 4tress Kft.
• Hajdú-Németh László Jr. — Executive Director, Morgan Stanley Budapest
• László Hankiss — Deputy CEO, Gránit Bank
• Vilma Misiukoniené* — EU Affairs and Digital Policies, Digital Transformation
Moderator: Balázs Nagy* — in Rotary Club President capacity
Coffee Break
Panel 3: Hungary's Leading Role — Igniting AI Acceleration Through US Collaboration and Project NoéMI
A direct presentation of Project NoéMI by its principals: the Hungary–US AI collaboration with George Mason University at its core, what research and talent exchanges are in flight, how Hungarian universities and industry contribute, and how the model can scale into a wider US–CEE compact. The panel positions Hungary as the European node of a transatlantic acceleration strategy — the natural place to build the Ark.
Speakers:
• Balázs Nagy* — Co-founder, Project NoéMI; CEO, NewPush
• Prof. Dr. Gábor Náray-Szabó* — Hungarian Academy of Sciences (MTA); Szent Gellért Rotary Club
• Prof. Dr. Massimiliano Albanese* — Professor & Associate Chair for Research, Information Sciences and Technology, George Mason University; Co-founder, Project NoéMI
• Theodore Sebastian Boone* — Of Counsel, Dentons; Faculty, Corvinus University of Budapest School of Business
• Amb. Borbála Czako — Founding President IOD The Institute of Directors Hungary, President HBLF Women Leaders Forum, HBLF Honorary President
Moderator: Dr. Réka Szemerkényi* — Director for Foreign and Security Policy, Equilibrium Institute
Coffee Break
Panel 4: Security and Sovereignty
Export Controls, Dual-Use Research, and Trusted Talent Flows
The harder half of the catch-up problem: how to accelerate education while protecting research, managing dual-use risk, and navigating chip and model export policy.
Speakers:
• Sándor Guba* — CTO,Co-founder, Axoflow
• David Gencarelli* — President, Gencarelli Group, Washington DC
• Johannes Bernhardt*— CEO, Bonn Consulting; German Critical Infrastructure Expert
• Michelle Watson* — Executive Director Corporate Relations, The Institute of World Politics, Washington DC
• Mihály Zala* — Cyber Security Leader, EY Hungary
Moderator: Dr. Viktor Vajda* — Attorney-at-law, Secretary General of Hungarian AI Council, D-CEO of Neumann Technology Platform
Closing Keynote Panel: A Five-Year Plan to Surpass
What Hungary, Europe, and the US Must Do Together
Each speaker proposes one concrete commitment for the next 12 months and one for the next 5 years.
Keynote Speaker:
• Mónika Zsigri* — Head of unit Energy Security and Safety, European Commission
Speakers:
• Balázs Nagy* — CEO, NewPush; Co-founder, Project NoéMI
• Prof. Dr. György Eigner* — Dean, Óbuda University; Co-inventor of BlackAnt
• Prof. Dr. Alex Szalay* — Bloomberg Distinguished Professor (IDIES), Johns Hopkins University
• Eli Braginskiy* — CEO, Metadialog (online / video message)
Moderator: Vilmos Rádi* — President of Rotary Academy; Pázmány Péter Catholic University Legal Faculty
Reception & Networking