The School of Systems and Technology (SST), University of Management and Technology (UMT), successfully organized the 1st International Conference on AI and Emerging Technologies (ICAIET 2025) on June 19, 2025. The full-day global event was jointly hosted by the Department of Artificial Intelligence and the Centre of Education and Innovation, bringing together leading researchers, industry experts, and innovators to explore groundbreaking research, cutting-edge technologies, and real-world applications shaping the future of Artificial Intelligence and emerging technologies.
Track: Digital Transformation and Smart Technologies
The conference commenced at Hakeem Saeed Hall with the recitation of the Holy Quran and the national anthem. Dr. Asghar Zaidi, Professor and Provost of UMT, delivered the welcome note and provided a formal introduction to the conference, highlighting UMT's commitment to fostering innovation, technology-driven education, and global academic collaboration.
The keynote session featured thought-provoking presentations under the theme Digital Transformation and Smart Technologies.
Dr. Wajahat Qazi, CEO of KNOWA Tech, Member of the National AI Task Force, and Assistant Professor at COMSATS, delivered a compelling talk titled "Edge AI and IoT in Smart Cities: Challenges and Opportunities." He explored the transformative potential of edge computing and the Internet of Things in reshaping urban infrastructure.
Dr. Yasir Niaz Khan, CTO of Punjab Safe City and Senior Research Fellow at LUMS, spoke on "Generative Intelligence in Action: From Research Labs to Real-World Impact." He presented an insightful overview of how generative AI technologies are transitioning from academic research environments to impactful real-world deployments across industries.
The keynote session concluded with a presentation of souvenirs to the distinguished speakers, followed by a group photograph.
Track: Emerging Trends in AI
The conference continued with Session I, held under the track of Emerging Trends in AI, alongside parallel technical workshops conducted across multiple venues.
Dr. Khurram Shahzad, Associate Professor at PUCIT Lahore, opened the session with a talk on "AI Trending Use Cases in Industry," offering a panoramic view of how artificial intelligence is being practically applied across diverse sectors, and what this means for the future of work and business.
Syed Hamaad Hassan, Additional Director General at the Punjab Information Technology Board (PITB), presented on "From Data to Decisions: Designing Next-Gen Recommender and Monitoring Systems," illustrating how data-driven decision-making frameworks are being developed and deployed at a governmental and institutional level.
Dr. Imran Ashraf, Assistant Professor at Yeungnam University, Republic of Korea, delivered a remote presentation on "Autonomous Vehicles and Artificial Intelligence," discussing the intersection of deep learning, computer vision, and autonomous systems in reshaping the future of transportation.
Track: Technical Workshops
Simultaneously, four technical workshops ran in parallel, offering hands-on learning opportunities for participants:
Farhan Ammar Ahmed, Team Lead at the Agriculture Robotics Lab, LUMS, conducted a two-hour workshop on "Building Real-Time Embedded Systems with FreeRTOS."
Mahmood Hussain, Lecturer in the AI Department at UMT, facilitated a workshop titled "Python Foundations: Coding Made Easy," providing beginners and intermediate learners with a solid grounding in Python.
Mr. Tayyab Shaheen, PNY Certified Trainer and Lecturer at the University of Lahore, led a session on "Visualize to Realize: Transforming Data into Insights with Power BI."
Dr. Muhammad Shoaib Farooq, Chairperson of the AI Department at UMT, alongside Dr. Shaista Habib, Associate Professor at UMT, conducted a deep-dive workshop on "Designing Smart Agents: A LangChain and LangGraph Deep Dive."
Track: Applied AI and Data Science Across Disciplines
Session II of the conference continued under the track of Applied AI and Data Science Across Disciplines, accompanied by parallel technical workshops.
Dr. Wei Lei, Associate Professor at the University of Roehampton, London, UK, delivered a remote presentation on "New Paradigms in Chronic Disease Detection," showcasing how artificial intelligence is revolutionizing early detection and diagnostic accuracy in healthcare settings.
Dr. Usman Ghani, Professor and Chairperson of the CS Department at UET Lahore, spoke on "From Insight to Impact: Sectoral Innovation with AI and Data Science," examining how AI-driven insights are being translated into tangible advancements across sectors including agriculture, finance, and public services.
Dr. Syed Abdul Rahman bin Syed Abu Bakar, Professor in the Electrical Engineering Department at UTM, Johor Bahru, Malaysia, addressed the growing global concern of synthetic media in his talk on "Deepfake - Impact, Challenges and Opportunities."
Dr. Ali Raza, Assistant Professor at Grand Valley State University, USA, presented on "Designing Partnerships for Improvement in Students' Experience through MultiModal Learning Analytics."
Dr. Tien Anh Tran, Senior Research Support Officer at the University of Malta, closed the session with a presentation on "Enhancing Agile Collaboration in Distributed Teams Through Blockchain."
Track: Technical Workshop Sessions
Three technical workshops ran in parallel, offering further opportunities for applied learning.
Dr. Tanweer Bukhari, Assistant Professor, Consultant AI, and CTO at UCP, Lahore, conducted a workshop on "Humanoid Robotics: AI for Embodied Intelligence," exploring the rapidly advancing field of humanoid robotics.
Mr. Muhammad Zunnurain, Assistant Professor in the CS Department at Bahria University, Lahore, led a session titled "Cloud Sentinel 360: Securing the Future with AI-Powered Cyber Defence," demonstrating how AI-driven security frameworks can be deployed to mitigate cyber threats.
Mr. Usama Ahmed, Lecturer, and Mr. Usama Amjed, Lab Engineer, both from the AI Department at UMT, facilitated a workshop on "Smart Diagnostics: Exploring AI in Medical Image Analysis."
Panel Discussion
Topic: AI and Emerging Technologies in Future Ready University.
The day's events culminated in a high-level panel discussion on the topic: "AI and Emerging Technologies in Future Ready University." Dr. Asghar Zaidi, Professor and Provost of UMT, moderated the discussion, which brought together prominent voices from academia, industry, and the student community:
- Dr. Atif Alvi, Dean, SST, UMT
- Dr. M. Amjad Iqbal, Dean, FOIT, UCP
- Zahid Raza, CEO, Visionary Systems Pvt Ltd
- Dr. Mazhar Javaid, Senior Manager and Consultant, Systems Pvt Ltd
- Dr. Adnan Abid, Professor at PUCIT and Co-founder & Director of Techtics AI Pvt Ltd
- Syed Saadain Haider, Student Representative, UMT
The panel engaged in a rich exchange of perspectives on how universities must evolve to prepare graduates for an AI-driven world.
Closing Remarks
The conference concluded with closing remarks and a presentation of souvenirs to the distinguished participants and speakers, followed by a group photograph marking the successful culmination of ICAIET 2025.