Invited Lecture: Navigating Research, Entrepreneurship & EU Grants

🎤 Join us for Ioana Cheres, ML Engineer & PhD Candidate (AI), Technical University of Cluj-Napoca, as she shares a hands-on journey from early research prototypes to EU-funded AI tools and enterprise platforms (MindBugs & TechWave). 📅 Wednesday, December 3, 2025, 17:00–18:00 📍 Room M2, 71–73 Dorobanților Street, Cluj-Napoca

** About the talk**Italic From early research prototypes to EU-funded AI tools and enterprise-grade platforms, this presentation explores how the two brands that I have built: MindBugs and TechWave, are creating products that matter. It traces the evolution from academic insights into real-world applications: narrative-based AI models, custom operational software, and data-driven solutions. Along the way, it reflects on navigating grants, collaborating with clients, translating research into value, and continuously iterating in an environment that changes faster than any roadmap. This is not a finished success story, but a journey still unfolding, shaped by experimentation, persistence, and a passion for technology.

About the speaker Ioana Cheres began her career in machine learning as a Big Data Engineer in the Distributed Systems Research Laboratory at the Technical University of Cluj-Napoca. She specializes in parsing large-scale text data to analyze and understand propaganda narratives. Using advanced AI methods—especially large language models (LLMs) and knowledge graphs—she extracts insights and identifies patterns that help reveal how propaganda operates and shapes public perception and behavior. She is also the creator of Mindbugs and an artist exploring the impact of misinformation. Her work blends AI and creative practice—using techniques such as deepfakes and real-time image manipulation—to create immersive, thought-provoking experiences.

Quote My art projects focus on the impact of misinformation and comes as a meaningful way to experience technology. By using technology elements like deepfakes, real-time image manipulation and artificial intelligence I combine in my works artificial intelligence and art in a unique way in order to create a complex and surreal environment.