Official announcement of new dual AI focused MSc in two-day conference from the University of Piraeus and Purdue University Indianapolis

Published on: June 22, 2026
12:26 pm

The University of Piraeus is at the center of global developments in Artificial Intelligence at the International Conference on the Limits and Implications of Artificial Intelligence launching a brand new international dual MSc program in “Global Applied AI” with the Purdue University of Indianapolis.

The two-day conference on Artificial Intelligence, co-organized by the University of Piraeus and Purdue University in Indianapolis, was successfully completed, with the participation of leading figures from the global academic community, government and the business world.

The Rector of the University of Piraeus, Professor Michail Sfakianakis, proclaimed the opening of the conference, welcoming the participants to what he described as a landmark conference that examines the practical, economic, and ethical dimensions of Artificial Intelligence. Speaking in his capacity as a teacher and President of the “National Dialogue on Education”, he emphasized that AI reduces educational inequalities by offering access to all. AI does not replace the teacher, but transforms them into a mentor, while allowing students to learn at their own pace. Finally, he noted that the digital revolution represents a historic opportunity for the country to strategically reposition itself on the global innovation map through investments in knowledge and digital infrastructure, and for this reason, it requires collaboration between the academic community, the government, and industry.

The Minister of Education, Religious Affairs, and Sports, Sofia Zacharaki addressed the event and highlighted the importance of international academic collaborations and the role of AI in shaping the future of education, while making special mention of the new joint international master’s program “Global Applied Artificial Intelligence”, which is being implemented by the University of Piraeus and Purdue University, describing it as a shining example of the innovative orientation of Greek higher education and, in particular, the University of Piraeus.

Dimitris Papastergiou, Minister of Digital Governance, also greeted the audience online, noting, among other things, that Greece is methodically building a comprehensive artificial intelligence ecosystem, based on modern infrastructure, open data, European partnerships, and strong institutions, in order to capitalize on the opportunities of this new era in a safe, competitive manner that benefits society.

The international conference featured speeches and presentations by internationally renowned figures in the field of nanotechnology, both from the academic community (MIT Professor Kostis Daskalakis, Professor Emeritus at the University of Piraeus, Professor at Purdue University, Nikolaos Bourbakis, Honorary Doctorate from the University of Piraeus, Professor Hironori Washizaki (IEEE Computer Society, Japan), Professor Maria Virvou – Dean, School of Information and Communication Technologies, University of Piraeus, Member of the Organizing Committee for the joint, dual MSc program “Global Applied Artificial Intelligence,” as well as representatives from the business and technology community (John Josephakis – Global Vice President for High Performance Computing (HPC), Artificial Intelligence (AI) & Supercomputing, NVIDIA; Panagiotis Papadimitriou – Senior Director of Engineering, Meta; as well as representatives from public administration, the market, industry, and policy-making institutions.

Through the specialized discussions held over the two-day event, three fundamental pillars emerged that will shape the future of AI implementation:

Human-centered and trustworthy AI. Transparency, security, accountability, and human oversight are not secondary issues; they are prerequisites for the social acceptance and institutional legitimacy of AI systems.
Innovation with safety. AI applications create new possibilities in critical sectors, but at the same time raise challenging questions regarding accuracy, reliability, algorithmic “biases,” cybersecurity, and protection against digital fraud.
True interdisciplinarity. The responsible use of AI cannot be the responsibility of a single discipline. It requires collaboration among computer science, engineering, economics, law, management, the social sciences, and ethics.

A major highlight of the conference was the official announcement by Professors Michail Sfakianakis, Rector of the University of Piraeus, and Dimitrios Peroulis—Senior Vice President for Partnerships and Online; Reilly Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Purdue University, of the launch of the International Dual MSc Program “Global Applied AI” between the University of Piraeus and the internationally renowned Purdue University in Indianapolis.

This program opens up new, global horizons for the Greek academic community, offering students access to cutting-edge, world-class education for a tuition fee of 10,000 euros, making it accessible to Greek applicants as well.

The conference concluded by reaffirming the University of Piraeus’s position as a pioneering institution that effectively links high-level academic research with the job market and global technological developments.