35th International Conference on Artificial Neural Networks (ICANN)
14-17 September 2026, Padua, Italy
Perception is the interface between sensing and knowledge, part of the process leading from stimulus acquisition to information handling. For animals, the nervous system processes signals from a distributed system of highly specialized peripheral sensors, collected into a single centralized brain.
Consequently, as long as neuromorphic engineering, encompassing neuromorphic computing and Neuro-AI, aims to emulate, or draw inspiration from, the nervous system, a fundamental aspect to be considered is the interplay between peripheral sensing and central processing. Essential for perception, this is also a key aspect of knowledge formation for intelligent systems.
Depending on the timescale required for action, perception triggers quick reaction or reasoning. Additionally, the different sensing modalities, i.e. tactile, visual or others, can define the actual interaction with the surrounding environment, leading to different ways of understanding or navigating the scene.
This Special Session targets perception through neuro-inspired approaches at both the sensory and the processing level, focusing on the formation of actionable knowledge through event-based sensing or computation.
Theoretical and application-oriented contributions are encouraged, in order to foster a comprehensive discussion on the results, strategies and prospects of bio-inspired perception.
ICANN 2026 is an in-person conference: at least one co-author of each accepted paper must be physically present in Padua to give the presentation. Make sure you register by the corresponding deadline.
Prepare, anonymize and submit your paper referring to the instructions available on the dedicated page of the ICANN 2026 website. Select “Perception frontiers with neuromorphic methods” as Primary Subject Area among the Special Sessions in the CMT submission form accessible from this link.
Papers accepted for this Special Session will be included in the ICANN 2026 proceedings, published in the Springer Lecture Notes in Computer Science (LNCS) series (indexed as peer-reviewed publication in the Web of Science).