The Bernoulli Center for Fundamental Studies had the pleasure of organising the 2026 Assyr Abdulle Lecture, a public event held in memory of Prof Assyr Abdulle, former EPFL faculty member at the Mathematics Institute (2009–2021).
Prof Abdulle was a world-leading expert in numerical methods for stochastic differential equations and multiscale problems. Beyond his outstanding research contributions, he was deeply committed to promoting mathematics at EPFL and inspiring the next generation of scientists, notably through the Youth@Bernoulli program. This annual lecture series honors his legacy and celebrates excellence in mathematical research.
This year, we were delighted to welcome Prof Weinan E from Peking University as the distinguished speaker.
Professor E is a leading mathematician in applied mathematics and scientific computing, whose research spans a remarkable range of fields, including partial differential equations, multiscale modelling, computational fluid dynamics, computational chemistry and machine learning. His contributions have been recognised with numerous major distinctions, including the ICIAM Collatz Prize, the SIAM Theodore von Kármán Prize, the Peter Henrici Prize and, in 2023, the Maxwell Prize for seminal contributions to applied mathematics, including machine learning, multiscale modelling, rare events and stochastic partial differential equations.
His lecture explored the growing role of deep learning and AI for Science, presenting these methods as a new class of mathematical tools capable of addressing complex problems involving high dimensionality, non-locality and large hidden spaces. The talk also raised a fundamental question: while AI has demonstrated remarkable practical success, it has largely developed through experience and experimentation rather than from first principles. Could mathematics provide a deeper theoretical foundation for understanding and developing AI?
The presentation prompted a lively discussion with the audience. Participants had the opportunity to exchange views on the challenges of complexity, the potential of AI to transform scientific research, and the mathematical developments that may be needed to better understand these emerging tools.
The Bernoulli Center warmly thanks Prof Weinan E for his outstanding talk and all attendees for making this edition of the Assyr Abdulle Lecture such a vibrant and memorable occasion.
