The 2026 International Congress of Basic Science (ICBS) offers participants a platform to learn about the latest scientific achievements and to explore breakthroughs beyond their own specialties, according to guests at the event.
The congress, which opened in Beijing on Sunday, has drawn more than 1,000 participants, including scientists, researchers and young scholars from both China and abroad. It will run until August 21.
Frontier topics such as generative large-model reasoning, computer vision, human-computer interaction and quantum information will take center stage in the over 500 academic sessions during the two-week event, covering all branches and interdisciplinary directions of basic science.
Top international scientists have been invited to deliver lectures and share the latest breakthroughs in their respective fields.
"From fundamental research to applied and interdisciplinary fields, we track the most significant scientific achievements of the past five years and invite speakers accordingly. Artificial intelligence has made great contributions to many areas of science today, so we have also invited scholars working in AI. My hope is that this will help our young scholars build world-class scholarship," said Shing-Tung Yau, dean of Qiuzhen College at Tsinghua University and a Fields Medal laureate.
Claire Voisin, a distinguished French mathematician specializing in algebraic geometry and a senior researcher at the French National Center for Scientific Research, said the congress offers a rare chance to explore beyond her own field.
"Usually I attend mainly specialized conferences in my area. So here it's an occasion, an opportunity to learn about different things, which is great, of course," said Voisin, a senior researcher at the French National Center for Scientific Research.
Initiated by Shing-Tung Yau in 2023, ICBS is held annually with the theme "Advancing Science for Humanity".
Global researchers explore latest scientific achievements at Int'l Congress of Basic Science
Global researchers explore latest scientific achievements at Int'l Congress of Basic Science
