ICF-BSE Fellows Debate Session
Wednesday, September 9th, 2026 | 15:30 to 16:30, Main auditorium

Organized by the International College of Fellows of Biomaterials Science and Engineering (ICF-BSE), the “Special Fellows Session” was one of the main highlights of this year’s ESB2026 conference (https://esb2026.org/)

A welcome address was given by Prof. Joachim Kohn, founding Chair of ICF-BSE, recently serving as the Advisor in the ICF-BSE Steering Committee, followed by the introduction to the debate rules given by its organizer and moderator, Prof. Rui L. Reis, the Chair of the ICF-BSE since 2020.

The motion of the debate:

“This house believes that AI-driven NAMs (New Approach Methodologies) will soon be scientifically reliable enough to replace animal testing in preclinical biomaterial discovery.”

The proposition team consisted of Prof. Gianluca Ciardelli, Politecnico di Torino, Italy and Prof. Cristina Martins, I3S, UPorto, Portugal.

The opposition team consisted of Prof. Ana Paula Pego, I3S, UPorto, Portugal and Prof. Diego Mantovani, Laval University, Canada

True to the ICF-BSE organization’s mission of driving impactful scientific discourse, this interactive session drew more than 200 participants to debate the disruptive motion regarding AI-driven NAMs replacing animal testing in preclinical biomaterial discovery.

Due to the interesting motion, moderation and the exceptional calibre of the ICF-BSE debaters and the highly engaged audience, the event was a resounding success. The debate ended with a victory for the opposition team, whose powerful arguments triggered a 9% change in votes between the initial and final polls.