Defining Autonomous Matter Symposium
Thursday, June 11, 2026 | 09:00–17:30 | AMOLF | Registration deadline: May 10, 2026
Symposium overview
Autonomous Matter describes systems, both living and synthetic, that can sense, decide, move and act without external control. From cells navigating their environment to engineered materials that adapt and respond, these systems challenge traditional boundaries between passive and living matter.
To explore this exciting frontier,AMOLF’s Autonomous Matter department is hosting a one-day symposium: Defining Autonomous Matter. The event will bring together researchers from physics, biology, chemistry, robotics, and engineering to exchange ideas, define key concepts, and discuss how we might not only understand autonomy in matter, but also design it with purpose and function in mind.
Program
- 09:00 – Registration desk opens @ Congress Centre
- 09:25 – Opening
- 09:40 – Pierre Thomas Brun, KU Leuven
Slender Structures as Building Blocks for Autonomous Matter - 10:15 – Sijbren Otto, Groningen University
Steps in the Synthesis of Life - 10:50 – Coffee break
- 11:20 – Danny Sahtoe, Hubrecht Institute
Conformational Control of Disordered Regions through Protein Design - 11:55 – Elisabetta Chicca, Groningen University
A Neuromorphic Processor with On-Chip Learning for Beyond-CMOS Device Integration - 12:30 – Lunch @ AMOLF
- 14:00 – Benoit Ladoux, Max Planck Center for Physics and Medicine
Role of Mechanical Stresses in the Regulation of Epithelial Tissue Homeostasis - 14:35 – Jay Groves, UC Berkeley
Active Condensation in Signal Transduction - 15:10 – Tea break
- 15:40 – Marco Tamborini, Università Pegaso
Autonomy is not Controlled, it is Shaped! A Philosophy of Science Perspective - 16:15 – Closing
- 16:30 – Drinks @ AMOLF
Learn more about the speakers
Read the full speaker profiles, including talk titles and short bios.
Practical information
Contact
AMOLF events
Email: events@amolf.nl
Locations
Registration and all talks:
Turing room, Amsterdam Science Park Congress Centre
Science Park 125, Amsterdam
Lunch and drinks:
AMOLF, Science Park 104, 1098 XG Amsterdam
Organizers
Organized by the AMOLF Autonomous Matter department.