In its continued collaboration with BMW Group and its subsidiary Idealworks, the LAU School of Engineering (SOE) hosted the seventh edition of the Vision Intelligence and Robotics Applications (VIRA) workshop on April 9 on the Byblos campus.

The event featured presentations by industry experts, and both former and current LAU interns at BMW and Idealworks, who showcased their projects and shared cutting-edge insights into the applications of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and robotics in the automotive manufacturing sector.

In his opening speech, SOE Dean Michel Khoury praised the students’ achievements, adding that he looked forward to seeing the work and creativity of newcomers evolve.

“VIRA is more than just a workshop,” he said. “It’s a bridge between academia and industry—a space where ideas grow, skills are shared, and collaboration happens. It’s a chance for our students to shine, and for us all to learn from each other.”

The event had become a yearly tradition at LAU, he added, “and we are proud to continue hosting it in collaboration with our valued partners: BMW Group Logistics, IdealWorks, InMind Academy, and our sister universities across Lebanon. We are also grateful for the continued support of the IEEE—the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers—Lebanon Section, IEEE Young Professionals, and ACM SIGAPP French Chapter.”

Thanking the university for hosting this workshop annually, Dr. Jimmy Nassif, the chief technology officer of Idealworks who helped establish this partnership, added that he looked forward to building on it in the coming years.

Expressing his delight in the collaborative initiative, he added, “A significant portion of the technical team at Idealworks, including many members working on the Sordi.ai project along with BMW Group Tech Office to create the Largest Synthetic Object Dataset for Industries, is made up of Lebanese students who are interning here.”

The workshop featured two lectures by Logistics Robotics Team Lead at BMW Group Wafic El Arris, titled BMW Group Innovation in Logistics Robotics, and Senior Engineer at IdealWorks Nour Azzi, titled Idealworks: The Robotics Ecosystem Provider, during which the speakers shared valuable insights into innovations and state-of-the-art practices in the robotics and logistics automation industry.

The session also included two PhD talks and multiple presentations by current engineering students and alumni, detailing their projects and reflecting on their experiences. The presenters fielded questions from younger students eager to apply for similar training opportunities.

In that regard, Associate Professor of Computer Engineering and Assistant Provost for Strategic Planning and Academic Initiatives and Collaborations Joe Tekli mentioned the InMind Academy training program, spearheaded by the SOE and launched in March 2023.

“We are collaborating with leading sister universities in Lebanon to train top students before they head to BMW Group and Idealworks,” said Dr. Tekli. “This two-month training program is conducted by former BMW Group interns, who train the new students on state-of-the-art technologies and algorithms,” reducing their onboarding time when they land in Munich.