Research Group

ISTDAS

Intelligent, Sovereign & Trustworthy Data, AI and Services

Working on smart services, sovereign and edge AI, and coordination in the era of AI.

First meeting: Okayama University, 24–28 August 2026 →

About ISTDAS

ISTDAS is a small group of scientists who gather to discuss a set of closely related topics: intelligent and smart services; sovereign data and AI, including edge data and AI; and coordination principles and techniques, notably the coordination of AI agents.

We aim for deep discussion in a relaxed environment, a strong list of problems to be solved in five years, and lasting collaboration among the members. The group is deliberately kept small — small enough to do real work together.

Topics

Topic I

Intelligent Smart Services & Agents

What does "smart" actually mean for services and agents, and what are the current limitations? Agents are smart — but still not very smart.

Topic II

Sovereign AI — the Edge AI Approach

How can sovereign AI be achieved through edge computing, even partially — and which trade-offs in non-functional properties must we deal with? Privacy and performance are only part of the picture.

Topic III

Coordination in the Era of AI

Coordination for AI-intensive services and with AI techniques: the goals of coordination — service-level agreements, uncertainty, and more — and the models and protocols to support them.

People

Hong-Linh Truong
Associate Professor, Aalto University, Finland
Contact
Liang Zhang
Professor, Fudan University, China
Yohei Murakami
Professor, Ritsumeikan University, Japan
Donghui Lin
Associate Professor, Okayama University, Japan
Chang-Gun Lee
Professor, Seoul National University, South Korea

Meetings

First meeting

Okayama Meeting

The group's first gathering — deep discussion in a relaxed environment. The goal is to define a strong list of problems to be solved in the next five years, explore the best form for the collaboration, and lay the foundation for working closely together. Follow-up meetings will be decided during this first one.

When
24–28 August 2026
Where
Faculty of Engineering Building No.4
Tsushima Campus (North), Okayama University
3-1-1 Tsushima-naka, Kita-ku, Okayama,
700-8530, Japan
Host
Intelligent Computing Laboratory, Okayama University
Contact
Donghui Lin — lindh (a) okayama-u.ac.jp

Agenda

  1. Day 1 Introduction of individual research works (IoT, smart services, business processes, Edge AI agents, etc.) and potential means of collaborations.
  2. Day 2 IoT Services and Smart Business Processes.
  3. Day 3 Intelligent Smart Services/Agents.
  4. Day 4 Sovereign AI–Edge AI Infrastructures and Coordination in the Era of AI.
  5. Day 5 Roadmap writing; broad collaboration contexts (China, Japan, EU, Asia); final discussion and planning for the next step.

Around Okayama: Korakuen Garden (one of Japan's three great gardens), Okayama Castle, and the canal town of Kurashiki are all nearby.