2026 AEPIA Call for the Best Bachelor’s and Master’s Thesis Awards

The Spanish Association for Artificial Intelligence (AEPIA) announces the 3rd edition of the Awards for the Best Bachelor’s Thesis and the Best Master’s Thesis in any of the thematic areas of AEPIA, as covered in the topics of the Association’s Conference (CAEPIA 2026).

This initiative aims to promote the dissemination of Artificial Intelligence academic work carried out by students and early-stage researchers, as well as to foster their communication skills.

Contact: caepia2026_competition@easychair.org

Presidents

• Alberto Bugarín Diz, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela
• José Antonio Gámez, Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha

Jury

Bachelor’s Thesis jury:

• Pablo Bermejo López, Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha (president)
• Juan Manuel Fernández Luna, Universidad de Granada
• Antonio Peregrin Rubio, Universidad de Huelva
• Beatriz Remeseiro López, Universidad de Oviedo
• José María Serrano Chica, Universidad de Jaén

Master’s Thesis jury:

• Berta Guijarro Berdiñas, Universidade da Coruña (president)
• Luis de la Ossa Jiménez, Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha
• José Antonio Lozano Alonso, Euskal Herriko Unibertsitatea
• Luis Magdalena Layos, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid
• Eva Onaindia de la Rivaherrera, Universitat Politècnica de València

Eligibility

Undergraduate and Master’s students of any nationality may apply, provided they have defended their thesis at a Spanish university between April 1, 2025 and July 31, 2026.

Format

Submissions must consist of a single PDF file including:

• A document of up to 5 pages in LNCS-Springer Computer Science Proceedings format, containing:

  • Information:

    • Author
    • Contact email and mobile phone number
    • Title of the thesis
    • Degree (Bachelor’s/Master’s)
    • University
    • Department/Supervisor’s affiliation
    • URL where the full thesis can be accessed

  • Abstract:
    A brief description of the thesis. The main objective and results must be clearly and concisely stated, highlighting those related to Artificial Intelligence. Originality and the author’s contribution will be especially valued.

  • Methodology and Work Plan:
    Description of the tasks carried out, with particular emphasis on the milestones that demonstrate achievement of the proposed objectives.

  • Relevance:
    Discussion of the scientific and technical importance of the work, the quality and validation of the results, and its potential for application or technology transfer.

• A valid certificate or proof that the thesis was defended within the specified period, including the final grade.

• A declaration of responsibility stating that:

  • The work has not been and will not be submitted to equivalent awards from other societies within SCIE.
  • The work is original and does not infringe any third-party rights.

Submission Procedure

Documents must be submitted through the CAEPIA 2026 EasyChair platform selecting the track: “TFG and TFM Awards”.

Important Dates

• Submission deadline: July 31, 2026 (CEST)
• Notification: September 30, 2026
• Award ceremony: During CAEPIA 2026 (Jaén, November 11–13, 2026)

Awards

The following awards are established:

• First Prize:
  Official AEPIA certificate and €350 for the best Bachelor’s thesis and the best Master’s thesis.

• Second Prize:
  Official AEPIA certificate and €150 for the second-best Bachelor’s and Master’s theses.

• Third Prize:
  Official AEPIA certificate.

The following special mentions are also being established, each accompanied by an official certificate of recognition for the authors and advisors, as well as a prize of €150:

• Special Mention in “AI and Health,” to be awarded to the Master’s thesis that stands out for its contribution in this area. This mention is supported by the “USC-Plexus Chair in AI Applied to Precision Personalized Medicine”.
• Special Mention in “AI and Language Technologies,” which will be awarded to the thesis that stands out for its contribution in this area. This mention is supported by the “HiTZ Chair in Artificial Intelligence and Language Technology”.
• Special Mention in “AI and data-driven solutions” which will be awarded to the thesis that stands out for its contribution in this area. This mention is supported by the “URJC-OGA Chais in en AIA for Data Driven Solutions”.
• Special Mention in “Ethical and Responsible AI,” which will be awarded to the thesis that stands out for its contribution in this area. This mention is supported by the “UGR Chair of Ethical, Responsible, and General-Purpose AI”.
• Special Mention in “AI and Sustainable Development,” which will be awarded to the thesis that stands out for its contribution in this area. This mention is supported by the “ENIA-UPV Chair in AI and Sustainable Development”.

The authors of the best Bachelor’s and Master’s theses must attend CAEPIA 2026 to present their work in person. Attendance is not mandatory for second and third prize winners.

The names of the awarded authors and the titles of their work will be publicly announced through AEPIA communication channels.

The decision of the evaluation committee is final. The committee may declare any award void if deemed appropriate.

Acceptance of the Rules

Participation in this call implies full acceptance of all its rules, including the mandatory attendance at CAEPIA for first prize winners.

Award Winners

AEPIA Awards for Best Bachelor’s and Master’s Thesis

Best Bachelor’s Thesis (TFG)

• 1st prize: Bruno Corcuera Sánchez. Representaciones Latentes Perceptuales: Mejorando la Fidelidad Visual y el Control Autónomo en Modelos Generativos de Mundos
• 2nd prize: Salvador de la Torre González. GAUFS: Genetic Algorithm for Unsupervised Feature Selection for Clustering
• 3rd prize: Mario Pascual González. Predicción del Crecimiento del Meningioma en Resonancia Magnética Multimodal mediante Técnicas de Aprendizaje Profundo

Best Master’s Thesis (TFM)

• 1st prize: Javier Ballesteros-Jerez. Metodología de validación de grounding basado en ontologías y razonamiento causal para robots sociales
• 2nd prize: Alberto Landi Cortiñas. A Comparative Analysis of LLM and Knowledge Graph Integration Strategies in the Medical Domain
• 3rd prize: Francisco Blas Martínez Pareja. Mejora del rendimiento de modelos de aprendizaje automático mediante el tratamiento del desequilibrio de clases

Special mentions

• Special mention for the best Master’s Thesis in “AI and Health” (USC-Plexus Chair on AI applied to precision personalised medicine, CAMELIA): Aina María Tur Serrano. AI-Based Segmentation and Classification of White Matter Hyperintensities in MRI
• Special mention for the best Bachelor’s Thesis in “AI and Language Technologies” (HiTZ Chair on Artificial Intelligence and Language Technology): Xiana Carrera Alonso. Comparativa de tecnologías de búsqueda en bancos de prueba para el estudio de la desinformación en el ámbito de consultas de la salud
• Special mention for the best Master’s Thesis in “AI and Data-Driven Solutions” (URJC-OGA Chair on Artificial Intelligence for Data Driven Solutions): Lucas Martín García. Búsqueda de vecindad variable para el UFLP
• Special mention for the best Master’s or Bachelor’s Thesis in “Ethical and Responsible AI” (UGR Chair on ethical, responsible and general-purpose AI): The decision will be published soon
• Special mention for the best Bachelor’s Thesis in “AI and Sustainable Development” (ENIA-UPV Chair on AI and sustainable development): Laura de la Fuente García. Análisis de EROI en centrales hidráulicas de almacenamiento por bombeo (PHS)

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