MDPI Korea | 2026 MDPI Seoul Salon: Connecting Engineering Research and Open Science in the Age of AI

On 9 May 2026, MDPI Korea hosted the third MDPI Seoul Salon at the Plaza Hotel in central Seoul, bringing together over 30 editors, researchers, and academics who have worked with MDPI journals.

The event served as a platform for knowledge exchange and networking among members of South Korea’s engineering research community, with discussions focusing on open science, creativity, research integrity, artificial intelligence (AI), and the future of scholarly publishing. It was a continuation of MDPI Korea’s efforts to support the local academic community and to promote open access publishing since its establishment in 2024.

The event kicked off with opening remarks delivered by Mr. Jackie Liu, Official Editorial Director at MDPI Korea. This was followed by a presentation by Ms. Diana Elena Radulescu, Deputy Managing Editor at MDPI, on MDPI’s recent key achievements and its engineering journal portfolio. To finish off the first session, Prof. Yun Mook Lim of Yonsei University gave an inspiring presentation regarding researcher creativity, emphasizing that creativity stems from making small changes, connecting ideas from multiple perspectives, and recombining existing elements rather than simply focusing on major breakthroughs.

Following the coffee break, the second session explored the digital transformation of scholarly publishing and research in the age of AI. Ms. Jelena Licinar, Deputy Managing Editor at MDPI, discussed AI in the context of scholarly publishing, highlighting its benefits, risks, and ethical considerations. She also outlined MDPI’s AI tools, policies, and core principles designed to uphold research integrity. The focus then shifted to cutting-edge AI methodologies and cybersecurity. Prof. Kwang Sig Lee of Korea University delivered a lecture on foundation models and AI orchestration, explaining how reinforcement learning accelerates AI development and predicting a future where autonomous AI agents collaborate without human intervention. The session concluded with a presentation by Prof. Kwangjo Kim of KAIST, which highlighted the evolution of cryptographic systems and the importance of post-quantum cryptography in countering emerging threats from quantum computing.

The event concluded with a Q&A discussion, in which participants reflected on the presentation topics and exchanged views on AI-related research ethics and MDPI’s strategies for upholding publication integrity.

Looking Ahead

The third MDPI Seoul Salon successfully opened new avenues for South Korea’s prominent scholars to discuss the rapidly evolving landscape of engineering research in an unpredictable world. We would like to thank all speakers and participants for their valuable contributions, thoughtful discussions, and continued support for the advancement of open science in Korea. We look forward to hosting more events in the future, catered to scholars in other research fields as well.