Tulmulla, June 17: As a prelude to the International Conference on Applied Artificial Intelligence (2AI–2026), scheduled for June 18–19, 2026, the Department of Information Technology, Central University of Kashmir (CUKashmir), in collaboration with the University of South Dakota AI Research Lab, USA, and with Springer and CCIS as partners, organised a pre-conference workshop on Artificial Intelligence at the Tulmulla Campus on Wednesday.
Addressing the participants, Dean Academic Affairs Prof. Shahid Rasool described Artificial Intelligence as “the elephant in the room,” stating that it can no longer be ignored as it has become integral to modern life and education. He emphasised the need to integrate AI across disciplines rather than treating it as a standalone field, noting that emerging technologies create both challenges and new opportunities. He urged students to focus on how AI can augment their respective domains and contribute to national development in line with Viksit Bharat @ 2047.
Prof. R. S. Hegadi, Professor, Department of Computer Science, Central University of Karnataka, said academic conferences must go beyond paper presentations and serve as platforms for practical knowledge sharing. He noted the strong response to 2AI–2026 and highlighted the growing importance of AI in shaping future careers and industries.
Mr. Naseer Butt, Principal Engineering Manager at Microsoft, described the current era as a major technological transformation, stating that AI is reshaping industries and redefining workplace practices. He said AI is not replacing human creativity but enhancing it by expanding human capability and efficiency.
Dr. Debasmita Ghosh Roy, Associate Professor, Poornima University, Jaipur, spoke on the ethical and practical aspects of AI. She cautioned against uncritical use of generative AI tools and highlighted issues such as prompt engineering, model bias, and responsible AI deployment, especially in sensitive sectors like healthcare.
In his welcome address, event organiser and Assistant Professor Dr. Yash Paul highlighted the workshop’s focus on AI-enabled innovation, ethical challenges, workforce transformation and the future of AI-driven societies. He thanked Vice-Chancellor Prof. A. Ravinder Nath for his support and noted that the conference proceedings will be indexed in Scopus.
Faculty members, scholars and students from CUKashmir, along with distinguished guests including Dr. Maheshkumar H. Kolekar (IIT Patna) and Dr. Suresh Jange (Gulbarga University), attended the event. Er. Afaq Alam delivered the vote of thanks. The programme concluded with technical sessions featuring presentations by Mr. Naseer Butt and Dr. Debasmita Ghosh Roy.