When a university becomes a crossroads of ideas, people, and possibilities
For five days, between 26 and 30 January 2026, the campus of Gheorghe Asachi Technical University of Iași transformed into something more than an academic space. It became a living laboratory of European collaboration, where conversations sparked new ideas and where students, researchers, and institutional leaders walked the same corridors with a shared purpose: to imagine the future together.
The event, part of the broader 10 Days of INGENIUM @ TUIASI, brought to Iași the vibrant energy of the INGENIUM European University — a community that grows stronger each time its members meet face to face.
Where Science Meets Industry: The Senior Winter School
Every morning began with the same sense of anticipation. Students from across Europe gathered for the Senior Winter School, a programme built around the theme Science Meets Industry.
They came with different backgrounds — engineering, design, computer science, business — but they shared the same curiosity. Divided into three Blended Intensive Programmes, they explored:
- Creative Convergence, where open innovation tools met sustainable design and intellectual property exploration.
- Ethical AI Development, a journey into the responsibilities behind emerging technologies.
- Driving Innovation Through Industry Challenges, where real problems from real companies became the starting point for creative solutions.
Workshops unfolded in TUIASI’s laboratories, in partner companies’ spaces, each location adding its own flavour to the learning experience. Lectures on co‑creation, product design, AI regulations, business modelling, and technology mapping blended theory with hands‑on experimentation.
By Friday, the final presentations revealed something remarkable: in just a few days, interdisciplinary teams had built prototypes, frameworks, and concepts that carried the unmistakable mark of European innovation in action.
A Week of Decisions: INGENIUM’s Strategic Meetings
While students worked on their challenges, another layer of the event unfolded quietly but decisively. TUIASI hosted key meetings that will shape the Alliance’s next steps:
- Alliance Council
- International Advisory Board
- Steering Committee
- WP Leaders, WP6, WP10
- INGENIUM Student Board
Around these tables, discussions moved from budget models to micro‑credentials, from EGTC development to long‑term governance. One of the week’s highlights was the appointment of Juan Rayón as the new Director of the INGENIUM Alliance, marking a new chapter for the consortium.
Iași, experienced together
Evenings brought a different rhythm. Participants discovered Iași not through lectures, but through shared moments:
- the warm Welcome Dinner at Berarium,
- the elegant Gala Dinner – Winter Fairytale at Unirea Restaurant,
- the emotional performance of “The Clowns’ Station” at Luceafărul Theatre.
These moments stitched together the human side of the program: the friendships, the laughter, the sense of belonging to something larger than any single institution.
Looking forward
As the week came to an end, one thing became clear: INGENIUM is not just a project — it is a community in motion. And for a few days, Iași was its beating heart.
The story continued in Skövde, where the Junior Winter School and the Staff Academy carried forward the momentum of these 10 days of collaboration, creativity, and European spirit.
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