Special sessions are very small and specialized events to be held during the conference as a set of oral and poster presentations that are highly specialized in some particular theme or consisting of the works of some particular international project. The goal of special sessions (minimum 4 papers; maximum 9) is to provide a focused discussion on innovative topics. All accepted papers will be published in a special section of the conference proceedings book, under an ISBN reference, and on digital support. All papers presented at the conference venue will be available at the SCITEPRESS Digital Library. SCITEPRESS is a member of CrossRef and every paper is given a DOI (Digital Object Identifier). The proceedings are submitted for indexation by SCOPUS, Google Scholar, DBLP, Semantic Scholar, EI and Web of Science / Conference Proceedings Citation Index.
SYMPOSIA/SPECIAL SESSIONS LIST
STP-LRL 2026, Special Session on Speech and Text Processing for Low-Resource Languages
Chair(s): Mounir Zrigui, Mohamed Ali Sghaier and Mohamed Lazhar Bellagha
FIS-AI 2026, Special Session on Fairness, Interpretability, and Security in AI
Chair(s): Meghana Kshirsagar, Irene Anthi and Gauri Vaidya
EAA 2026, Special Session on Emotions and Affective Agents
Chair(s): Emilio Vivancos and Joaquin Taverner
Special Session on Speech and Text Processing for Low-Resource Languages -
STP-LRL
2026
Paper Submission:
December 17, 2025
Authors Notification:
January 14, 2026
Camera Ready and Registration:
January 22, 2026
Scope
Speech and text technologies have achieved significant progress in recent years, driven by deep learning and large-scale data. However, most advances still focus on high-resource languages, leaving many languages underrepresented.
The special session on Speech and Text Processing for Low-Resource Languages (STP-LRL) at ICAART 2026 aims to unite researchers and practitioners dedicated to advancing speech and text technologies for low-resource languages. It will provide a forum to discuss recent breakthroughs, share innovative approaches and resources, and address future challenges in creating inclusive and accessible language technologies.
We invite contributions presenting novel theoretical advances, practical implementations, and methods designed to overcome data scarcity and support low-resource languages.
Special Session on Fairness, Interpretability, and Security in AI -
FIS-AI
2026
Paper Submission:
December 17, 2025
Authors Notification:
January 14, 2026
Camera Ready and Registration:
January 22, 2026
Scope
Artificial intelligence is transforming decision-making and operational efficiency across critical domains, from finance to healthcare. Yet, as AI systems increasingly shape outcomes in high-stakes environments, concerns about fairness, interpretability, and security are becoming ever more urgent.
Inherently interpretable approaches such as decision trees for credit scoring, rule-based data mining algorithms for clinical decision support, sparse linear models for hospital readmission risk, or symbolic reasoning frameworks that encode human-understandable rules allow stakeholders to directly trace reasoning. Black-box models, like deep neural networks, can be explained post-hoc using tools such as saliency maps or counterfactuals (e.g., showing that income stability drove a loan rejection). Interpretability and explainability are both valuable, but the distinction is critical for building trust.
Fairness-aware algorithms can reduce racial bias in credit scoring or address inequities in healthcare outcomes by adjusting for underrepresented patient groups. Similarly, security intersects with fairness and interpretability in important ways. In fraud detection, interpretable rule-based models not only catch anomalies but also make reasoning clear to investigators, avoiding opaque false positives that disproportionately affect marginalized users. In credit scoring, fairness-aware linear models or symbolic reasoning frameworks can provide transparent, auditable decision rules.
By centering fairness, interpretability, and security, this session will showcase innovations that make AI more equitable, transparent, and resilient, addressing the pressing challenges of deploying AI in high-stakes environments. We invite submissions spanning algorithms, audits, and interdisciplinary approaches that advance these goals and strengthen the development of trustworthy AI.
Special Session on Emotions and Affective Agents -
EAA
2026
Paper Submission:
December 17, 2025
Authors Notification:
January 14, 2026
Camera Ready and Registration:
January 22, 2026
Scope
The "Emotion and Affective Agents" ICAART Special Session aims to bring together researchers, practitioners, and experts in the fields of artificial intelligence, psychology, computer science, and human-computer interaction to explore the multifaceted realm of emotions and their integration into intelligent systems. This session will explore cutting-edge topics such as emotion recognition, affective computing, the design and development of affective agents, and their application in various domains including healthcare, gaming, education, and more. Articles examining the latest advancements, challenges, and ethical considerations in understanding and modeling human emotions for computational applications are welcome. This session will provide a platform for attendees to gain insights, exchange ideas, and collectively shape the future of affective computation.