Thursday, 19 March 2026
Location (for in-person attendees): Aula Europa – Sala Affreschi, Department of Management “Valter Cantino,” University of Turin, Corso Unione Sovietica 220, Torino (Italy)
Session I of the symposium will be in person at the University of Turin; Session II will be in person and online (via webinar registration).
The symposium will focus on how digitization — and artificial intelligence — are reshaping public contracting across the world, with an eye to ongoing revisions to the EU Directives, the UNCITRAL model law and the U.S. Federal Acquisition Regulation. Panelists will address key developments integrating digitization and AI architectures into procurement systems at a global level to achieve efficiency, transparency, and innovation, and to deliver new public value through digital transformation while preserving accountability, integrity and fundamental rights.
PROGRAM PARTNERS
Session I (in-person only): 9:30 CET
Introduction
- Gabriella M. Racca – University of Torino, Italy
- Christopher R. Yukins – George Washington University, USA
Transnational Developments
- Caroline Nicholas – Former Senior Legal Officer with the International Trade Law Division of the United Nations Office of Legal Affairs – Reopening the UNCITRAL Model Law and AI’s impact
- Laurence Folliot-Lalliot – Université Paris Nanterre, France –Public procurement and data — emerging challenges
- Steven Van Garsse – Hasselt University, Belgium – AI, GDPR and confidentiality issues
Challenges in Implementation
- Stéphane De La Rosa – Université Paris-Est Créteil, France – The interplay between the Digital Market Act (DMA) and the Digital Services Act (DSA) and the use of public procurement platforms as a gatekeeper
- Tunde Tatrai – Corvinus University of Budapest, Hungary – Data utilization, trust, and transparency in European public procurement
- Andrea Sundstrand – Stockholm University, Sweden – Digital and green qualification of suppliers
- Patricia Valcárcel – Universidad de Vigo, Spain – Buying AI and developing new agentic procurement platforms
Luncheon Break
Session II (in person and webinar): 11:00 ET / 16:00 CET
Session II, in person and by webinar, will run for 90 minutes, and will focus on disruptive innovation and emerging technologies — and on preserving core principles while accommodating new methods and goals.
Interventions
- Luca Martinelli – Head of Unit, Publications Office, European Union
- Jessica Tillipman – Associate Dean, Government Procurement Law Program, George Washington University Law School
- Caroline Nicholas – Senior Legal Officer with the International Trade Law Division of the United Nations Office of Legal Affairs
- Tunde Tatrai – Corvinus University of Budapest, Hungary
- Eliza Newiadomska – Senior Counsel Legal Transition Programme, EBRD
Open Debate
- Laurence Folliot-Lalliot – Université Paris Nanterre, France
- Stéphane De La Rosa – Université Paris-Est Créteil, France
- Patricia Valcárcel – Universidad de Vigo, Spain
- Steven Van Garsse – Hasselt University, Belgium
- Andrea Sundstrand – Stockholm University, Sweden
- Anna Maria La Chimia – University of Nottingham, UK
Concluding remarks
Jean-Bernard Auby – Émérite de Droit Public, Université de SciencePo, France
Scientific committee: Prof. Gabriella Racca & Prof. Christopher Yukins
Organizational committee: Prof. Silvia Ponzio & Dott. Mara Demichelis
Research Resources
Jessica Tillipman, Buying Blind: Corruption Risk and the Erosion of Oversight in Federal AI Procurement, 55 Public Contract Law Journal ___ (forthcoming Winter 2026)
Jessica Tillipman, Abdicated Judgment: AI Tools and the Future of Reasoned Decision-Making in Federal Procurement, Symposium on AI & the Administrative Procedure Act), Yale J. on Reg.: Notice & Comment (February 2026).
Digital procurement: Public procurement is undergoing a digital transformation. The EU supports the process of rethinking public procurement process with digital technologies in mind.
