Social Robotics and AI: IULM at the 2026 Abruzzo Economy Summit
Professor Luisa Damiano is participating in a discussion on new technologies alongside Fabio Puglia of Oversonic Robotics and the humanoid robot RoBee
IULM Professor Luisa Damiano will participate in the 6th edition ofthe Abruzzo Economy Summit – General Assembly on the Economy, scheduled for September 24 and 25 at the Aurum in Pescara.
As part of the session dedicated to Artificial Intelligence and new technologies, Prof. Damiano will participate in a panel discussion with Fabio Puglia, CEO of Oversonic Robotics, titled “Social Robots and Generative AI: Innovation Challenges for Businesses and Society.” The discussion will feature a live demonstration with RoBee, a social and cognitive humanoid robot, to analyze how the proliferation of artificial agents is transforming our social environments, communication, and interaction dynamics.
Professor Damiano’s presentation will focus on the ethical and social implications of robotics and the human–machine communication model developed as part of IULM’s research. The presentation will explore the integrated perspective spanning philosophy, ethics, and epistemology developed at the research center CRiSiCo, promoting a sustainable and relational approach to technology.“RoBee isn’t just a technology we bring to the stage: it’s an opportunity to look at ourselves. — explains Prof. Damiano — As social robots enter the places where we live and work, something changes in the way we communicate, relate to one another, and experience emotions—and it is a change that depends on the choices we make when designing these machines, not on a predetermined fate. That’s why, for several years now, I’ve been working on the idea of ‘robots with us, not like us’: machines that don’t imitate humans, but whose differences can become a resource for building new ways of interacting that complement our own. It’s not so much a question of to what extent robots will become human, but rather of understanding what kind of humanity we’re building through them.”
Participation in the Summit is part of IULM’s research activities dedicated to the future of communication and the impact of artificial systems on the processes through which people build relationships and meaning.