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Susana Sargento is a Full Professor at the University of Aveiro and a senior researcher at the Instituto de Telecomunicações, where she leads the Network Architectures and Protocols group. She was a visiting PhD student at Rice University and later a Guest Faculty member at Carnegie Mellon University.
With over 500 publications, Susana has led and contributed to numerous EU, CMU/MIT-Portugal, and national innovation projects, particularly in autonomous mobility, space systems, tourism, and large-scale testbeds. Her research focuses on self-organized networks, Intelligent Transportation Systems, and 5G and beyond communication and sensing platforms, including the large-scale Aveiro TechCity Living Lab.
She is the co-founder of Veniam, winner of the 2016 European Prize for Women Innovators, the Femina 2020 Science Award, and a nominee for the ACTIVA Inspiring Women Prize. Susana has served in several national strategic roles, including co-coordinator of the INCoDe.2030 digital competences initiative, member of the 200M investment fund committee, and Scientific Director of the CMU-Portugal Program.
Since 2024, she has been a board member at Martifer SA and President of the Scientific Council of the Instituto de Telecomunicações. She also regularly serves as an expert for European research programmes.

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João Abel Peças Lopes is a Full Professor at FEUP and the Director of INESC TEC. He holds both his undergraduate and PhD degrees in Electrical and Computer Engineering from FEUP and is a Fellow of the IEEE Power & Energy Society. From 1996 to 1999, he served as Adjunct Professor at Iowa State University (USA) and has been a Visiting Professor at the Universidad Pontificia Comillas in Madrid.
Author of more than 400 scientific publications, he is also the co-editor and co-author of the book Electric Vehicle Integration into Modern Power Networks (Springer), a reference in the field of electric vehicle integration into modern power systems.

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Luís Marcelino is a full-stack developer with a rich background in research and academia, now dedicated to creating impactful technology solutions in industry. Currently a Senior Software Engineer at Sound Particles, he brings extensive experience ranging from high-performance real-time systems to mobile apps and cross-platform frameworks.
A strong believer that great software begins with people, Luís thrives as a collaborator, educator, and problem-solver. Over his career, he has built native mobile apps, web platforms, hardware-level frameworks, and more recently, ML/AI-powered solutions. His previous roles include CTO at Evollu and over a decade of teaching interaction design, mobile development, and distributed systems in Portuguese universities.
Passionate about integrating ecosystems and delivering products that truly serve users, Luís continues to bridge innovation, usability, and technology in every project he leads.

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Mauro Frota is the founder and CEO of BHOUT, the company behind the world’s first “boxing bag with a brain” — a fusion of sensors, 3D computer vision, and AI that transforms combat training into a fully gamified experience. With more than 20 years in the fitness industry and over 30 years of martial arts practice, he has built his career around understanding motivation, retention, and why people stay engaged in physical activity.
At BHOUT, Mauro is pioneering a new category at the intersection of gaming, fitness, and behavioral science. His team developed a Physical Intelligence Engine powered by a proprietary Behavioral Change Matrix, turning workouts into immersive games and redefining the training experience as “Entertrainment.”
Before founding BHOUT, Mauro worked as a master coach, consultant, educator, and fitness entrepreneur, helping shape training methodologies and customer experience across the industry. Today, he continues to push the boundaries of how technology can enhance emotion, performance, and long-term adherence in fitness.

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