Autopoiesis, Self & Other

Autopoiesis, Self & Other

Autopoiesis, Self & Other: Modeling Autonomy, Boundaries,
and Life(-like) & Mind(-like) Interactions in Artificial Life

Luisa Damiano, Pasquale Stano, Chrystopher Nehaniv, Jean Sirmai

August dd, 2026; hh:mm-hh:mm EDT --- University of Waterloo and Wilfred Laurier University (Canada)

A satellite workshop of The 2026 Conference on Artificial Life (ALIFE2026), Waterloo(Canada), 17-20 August 2026

Workshop overview

More than fifty years after the formulation of autopoiesis by Humberto Maturana and Francisco Varela, the conceptual framework centered on the organization of living and cognitive systems as self-producing networks of processes remains highly fertile for contemporary artificial life research on complex adaptive systems. While autopoiesis has deeply influenced theoretical biology, cognitive science, epistemology, and artificial life, its implications for current challenges in modeling autonomy, system–environment coupling, and the emergence of self/other distinctions in artificial systems remain only partially explored.

This workshop aims to provide an interdisciplinary forum to revisit autopoiesis as a generative theoretical framework for investigating life and cognition, and to examine its relevance for contemporary ALife research, including synthetic modeling, minimal life, embodied and enactive cognition, artificial autonomy, and the emergence of life(-like) and mind(-like) interactions in natural and artificial systems. Particular atteention will be devoted to how autopoietic concepts can inform the modeling, implementation, and evaluation of living and lifelike complex adaptive systems.

We welcome contributions addressing theoretical developments, softyware, hardware, and wetware models, as well as epistemological analyses and experimental approaches. The goal is to stimulate cross-disciplinary exchange and identify open conceptual and technical challenges for autopoiesis-inspired research within the ALife community.

Organizers

Luisa Damiano, IULM University, Milan, Italy; luisa.damiano@iulm.it

Pasquale Stano, University of Salento, Lecce, Italy; pasquale.stano@unisalento.it

Chrystopher Nehaniv, University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada; chrystopher.nehaniv@uwaterloo.ca

Jean Sirmai, previously affiliated with the Centre Hospitalier de Marne-la-Vallée, Paris, France

Final Program

Day dd August 2026, Room ....

to be announced

Important dates

Paper Submission Deadline: to be announced

Notification of Acceptance: to be announced

Program publication on this website: to be announced

Workshop Date: to be announced

Useful links:

ALIFE2026 Conference website

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