University of Coimbra (UC) will host, on Friday the 25th, the second edition of the Europe-China Agricultural Robotics Forum (ECARF 2026), which will bring together about one hundred experts, researchers, technology companies, agricultural producers and public decision-makers from Europe and China to discuss the technological solutions that can transform agriculture in the coming decades, according to a statement.
According to the same source, after the first edition in Wuxi (China), in 2025, the Forum is being held for the first time on European soil, with the University of Coimbra taking a central role in the dialogue between cutting-edge research and the technological development of agriculture.
Under the theme “Bridging Innovation and Adoption of Agricultural Robotics”, ECARF 2026 – co-organized by UC and the Chinese institute NICECART (NICE Center for Agricultural Robotics and Technology) – will focus on the latest innovations in agricultural robotics and artificial intelligence, addressing topics such as autonomous systems, intelligent perception, robotic navigation, and technology transfer.
In a context where labor shortages represent one of the world’s greatest challenges for agriculture, the forum aims to discuss how automation and robotics can contribute to increasing productivity, competitiveness and sustainability of farming operations. It will include participation from companies and producers who already use these technologies, to share concrete experiences and success stories, in an exercise of bringing innovation closer to the sector’s real needs.
The program, with the participation of specialists from prestigious international higher education institutions and from leading companies and organizations in the agricultural sector, also has a strong practical component, between 15:00 and 15:40, with a demonstration of agricultural robots in the atrium between the Departments of Physics and Chemistry at UC (Polo I), to live showcase some of the technologies that are transforming agriculture.
Also planned for 17:00 is the signing of three cooperation agreements – two between UC and NICECART (aimed at creating a global talent training program and the development of an international research project on “Probabilistic Perception for Agricultural Robotics”) and another between the British company Antobot and the Spanish New Growing System (involving the commercialization of agricultural robotics solutions).
The closing session, at 17:15, will feature remarks by the Rector of UC, Amílcar Falcão, and by the Secretary of State for Agriculture, João Moura.
The Europe-China Agricultural Robotics Forum 2026 runs from 9:00 to 18:30, with sessions in the Auditorium of the UC Law School (until 15:00) and in the Colégio da Trindade (from 15:40). More information about the program and the speakers of the event – which will take place in English – is available at www.ecar-forum.com.
