The 6th Digital Twin International Conference (DigiTwin 2026) successfully concluded from 4 to 8 August 2026 at the University of Oxford, UK. Initiated by Prof. Fei Tao of Beihang University, the conference was jointly organized by the University of Oxford, the journals Digital Twin and Digital Engineering, Taylor & Francis Group, and Elsevier.

Under the theme “Digital Twins with AI,” DigiTwin 2026 brought together scholars and industry experts from around the world to share the latest research advances and explore emerging developments in the digital twin field.

This year’s hybrid program featured two in-person venues at the University of Oxford in the UK and Beihang University in China, respectively, along with 13 online venues. In total, 126 academic presentations were delivered to participants from 29 countries and regions, with more than 230 participants attending on site.

UK Main Venue (University of Oxford)

China Venue (Beihang University)

Conference Review - Opening Ceremony

The opening ceremony was chaired by Prof. Alfonso Bueno-Orovio (University of Oxford), Conference Chair of DigiTwin 2026. Prof. Alfonso Bueno-Orovio and Prof. Fei Tao (Beihang University) delivered opening remarks.

Prof. Duc-Truong Pham (University of Birmingham) addressed the conference on behalf of the Digital Twin International Advisory Committee (DTIAC). Mr. Richard Goodman (Taylor & Francis) and Dr. Monaz Mehta (Elsevier) introduced the journals Digital Twin and Digital Engineering, respectively.

Conference Review - Special Event

 makeTwin – An Industrial Digital Twin Software Platform

The makeTwin Digital Twin Industrial Software Platform, independently developed by the makeTwin team at Beihang University, was officially launched during DigiTwin 2026. Chaired by Prof. Stefan W. Pickl, the launch brought together experts and representatives from leading universities, research institutions, companies, and international publishers, including the University of Oxford, University of Cambridge, Université Paris-Saclay, Cranfield University, ETH Zurich, the UK Atomic Energy Authority, Jaguar Land Rover, Elsevier, and Taylor & Francis.

The event showcased the platform’s key capabilities and applications in digital twin modeling, data, connectivity, algorithms, visualization, and simulation. The launch marked an important milestone in the development of makeTwin and highlighted the latest progress of the Beihang University team in digital twin industrial software.

 
Conference Review - Keynote Speeches

Keynote presentations were delivered by:

· Prof. Duc-Truong Pham (University of Birmingham, UK)

· Prof. Fei Tao (Beihang University, China)

· Prof. Jan C. Aurich (RPTU Kaiserslautern-Landau, Germany)

· Prof. Michael Grieves (University of Central Florida, USA; online)

· Prof. Stefan W. Pickl (University of the Bundeswehr Munich, Germany)

· Prof. John Erkoyuncu (Cranfield University, UK)

Conference Review - Parallel Sessions

From August 5–7, DigiTwin 2026 hosted 126 academic presentations across two in-person venues and 13 online venues. Talks spanned key digital twin technologies, manufacturing systems, cross-disciplinary frontiers, smart construction and twin cities, marine engineering, communication networks, reliability, logistics, testing and validation, and healthcare.

The hybrid format enabled broad international participation and fostered active exchange among researchers and industry professionals from around the world.

Conference Review - IDEA Fellow Announcement

On the afternoon of August 8, DigiTwin 2026 announced the 2026 IDEA Honorary Fellows and IDEA Fellows. Assoc. Prof. Li Yi (Beihang University) gave a brief introduction to the International Digital Engineering Association (IDEA) and announced the Fellow list.

Founded in 2025, IDEA is a global nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing innovation, collaboration, and standardization in digital engineering and accelerating industrial digital transformation.

2026 IDEA Honorary Fellows:

· Prof. Qinping Zhao (Beihang University, China)

· Prof. Andrew Y.C. Nee (National University of Singapore, Singapore)

· Prof. Duc-Truong Pham (University of Birmingham, UK)

· Prof. Alain Bernard (Centrale Nantes, France)

· Prof. Michael Grieves (University of Central Florida, USA)

2026 IDEA Fellows:

· Prof. Fei Tao (Beihang University, China)

· Prof. Stefan W. Pickl (University of the Bundeswehr Munich, Germany)

· Prof. Jan C. Aurich (RPTU Kaiserslautern-Landau, Germany)

· Prof. Nabil Anwer (Université Paris-Saclay, France)

· Prof. Tianliang Hu (Shandong University, China)

· Prof. Xiaojun Liu (Southeast University, China)

As the founder of IDEA, Prof. Fei Tao presented certificates to the Fellows and joined them for group photos.

Conference Review - Award Ceremony & Closing Ceremony

On the afternoon of August 8, DigiTwin 2026 also held its Awards and Closing Ceremonies. The awards were presented following the evaluation by the DigiTwin Awards Committee.

The conference recognized outstanding achievements across eight award categories:

· Digital Twin Outstanding Scientist Award

· Digital Twin Young Scientist Award

· Innovation Application Award

· Best Presentation Award

· Best Student Presentation Award

· Best Poster Award

· Best Doctoral Thesis Award

· Outstanding Organisation Award

Digital Twin Outstanding Scientist Award recipients: Prof. Qinping Zhao (Beihang University, China) and Prof. Stefan W. Pickl (University of the Bundeswehr Munich, Germany).

Digital Twin Outstanding Scientist Award

Digital Twin Young Scientist Award recipients: Prof. Erica Pastore (Politecnico di Torino, Italy) and Prof. Jun Xu (Xi’an Jiaotong University, China).

Young Scientist Award

Innovation Application Award recipients: Jaguar Land Rover (UK) and SAIC-GM-Wuling Automobile Co., Ltd. (China).

Enterprise Innovation Application Award

 

Best Presentation Award recipients: Dr. Abdallah Hasaballa (University of Oxford, UK), Dr. Helen Brooks (UK Atomic Energy Authority), Prof. Jose Antonio Marmolejo (Universidad Panamericana, Mexico), Prof. Junfeng Wang (Huazhong University of Science and Technology, China), and Prof. Mohamed Marzouk (Cairo University, Egypt).

Best Presentation Award

Best Student Presentation Award recipients: Hibat Allah BABTY (Université de Technologie de Compiègne, France), Tianhe Gao (Dalian University of Technology, China), Haitham Al-Shami (Aalto University, Finland), Junyang Chen (Hong Kong University of Science and Technology), and Zhi Wang (Harbin Institute of Technology, China).

Best Student Presentation Award

Best Poster Award recipients: Dr. Giulia Pellegrino (University of Salento, Italy) and Prof. Weihua Lu (Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, China).

Best Poster Award

Best Doctoral Thesis Award recipients: Dr. Jan Mertes (engineering methods AG, Germany), Dr. Shuaiming Su (The University of Hong Kong), Dr. Enxhi Ferko (Jotne Connect, Norway), Dr. Xin Ma (Beihang University, China), and Dr. Riku Ala-Laurinaho (Aalto University, Finland).

Best Doctoral Thesis Award

Outstanding Organisation Award recipient: Prof. Stefan W. Pickl (University of the Bundeswehr Munich), in recognition of his organization of the DigiTwin 2025 conference in Germany.

Best Organizational Contribution Award

Finally, Prof. Alfonso Bueno-Orovio delivered the closing remarks, summarizing the conference and expressing his sincere appreciation to all the experts and scholars for their enthusiastic participation. He also gave a preview of DigiTwin 2027, the 7th Digital Twin International Conference, which will be held in Barcelona, Spain, from July 26 to 31, 2027.