A3TS Exclusive Meetings: When AI Reinvent Materials and Processes
March 25, 2026 — Mines Paris-PSL Innovation Campus, Versailles Satory
Sixty participants gathered at the brand-new Mines Paris-PSL Innovation Campus for this event dedicated to the role of AI in materials and processing.
With an overall satisfaction rating of 3.82 out of 4 and 91% of attendees saying they would recommend an A3TS event to a colleague or attend again, the event confirms the relevance of the discussions and the quality of the presentations.
The site, which brings together three centers of excellence—the Materials Center (CMAT), the Robotics Center (CAOR), and the Energy, Environment, and Processes Center (CEEP)—offered a unique setting for combining community activities, high-level conferences, and immersion in a major research hub. The overall organization, venue, timing, and hospitality were particularly praised, receiving near-perfect scores.
Annual General Meeting 2025
The morning began with the Annual General Meeting, which provided an opportunity to look back on a rich and eventful 2025.
In terms of events, the Mattris'25 conference and trade show in Dijon attracted nearly 300 attendees and 74 exhibitors, with a very high satisfaction rating (3.45 out of 4 for the conference), followed by the Additive Manufacturing Days in Lyon, RAVIE and J2TS in Toulouse, as well as several regional events.
The training division supported 28 sessions (both inter- and intra-company) for approximately 30 clients. The 2025 financial statement shows a balanced budget, with €682,000 in revenue. The outlook for 2026 was also unveiled: the General Assembly on Chromium VI-Free Technologies (January, already held with great success), Mattris 2026 in Dunkirk on July 1–3, Hydrogen 2026 in Courbevoie in October, and RAVIE 2026 in Limoges in November. The Qualiopi renewal audit is scheduled for April 2026.
AI & Materials Conferences
The three presentationswere viewed as complementary by the participants, who appreciated both the overall quality and the appropriate technical level of the presentations.
Pierre Kerfriden (Mines Paris-PSL, Centre des Matériaux) presented his work on image-guided simulations and digital twins for defect-tolerant materials. Three areas were explored: the role of AI in computational materials engineering based on images; AI-accelerated statistical modeling to predict high-cycle fatigue (HCF) in porous cast aluminum alloys; and the implementation of digital twins to predict the dispersion of Charpy tests on segregated forged steels used in the nuclear industry. The techniques employed (convolutional networks, graph neural networks, Slice GAN, and Bayesian correction under physical constraints) demonstrated how AI streamlines the “image → simulation” workflow and enables the separation of micro- and mesoscopic sources of uncertainty.
Edern Menou (Safran Tech) discussed the use of machine learning for the joint optimization of alloy compositions and process parameters, a presentation that particularly resonated with the participants’ industrial concerns. Two application cases were detailed: the design of high-temperature titanium alloys as part of the ANR ALTITUDE project (based on Ti6242S+Nb), using a two-phase protocol combining experimental data acquisition and predictive modeling; and the design of an aluminum alloy for additive manufacturing with simultaneous optimization of laser parameters. His presentation concluded with a clear perspective: AI is a tool for better exploring the space of materials and processes, and not a substitute for metallurgical expertise or a shortcut that allows one to dispense with high-quality experimental data.
Clara Desgranges (CEA ISAS — Institute of Applied Sciences and Simulation for Low-Carbon Energy) provided the CEA’s perspective on simulation and data science in support of the energy transition, demonstrating how these approaches are being used to develop materials for low-carbon energy sectors.
Tour of the Materials Center
The luncheon buffet provided a much-appreciated opportunity for interaction, fostering further discussion and helping to build connections among industry representatives, researchers, and students.
The afternoon was devoted to a guided tour of the Materials Center, which received one of the highest scores of the day (3.89 out of 4): a presentation of the center’s experimental platforms, characterization equipment, and simulation capabilities, delivered in an immersive format that allowed participants to truly appreciate the depth of this new facility. Many participants praised this rare opportunity to tour the laboratories of a leading player in French materials research.
The A3TS would like to extend its warmest thanks to Mines Paris-PSL for hosting the event, as well as to the speakers and all participants for the quality of the discussions.