5th International Workshop on
Edge Network Softwarization
ENS 2026

Welcome to ENS 2026!

The 5th International Workshop on Edge Network Softwarization (ENS 2026) will be co-hosted at the 12th IEEE International Conference on Network Softwarization (NetSoft 2026) that will be held from June 29th to July 3rd, 2026 in Berlin, Germany.

The concepts of virtualization and softwarization, started with the introduction of 5G, have begun to play an increasingly significant role in the transformation of traditional networks, characterized by the replacement of dedicated hardware functions with software-based solutions, enabling greater flexibility, scalability, and efficiency during the deployment of new services. With the advent of 6G and the integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) techniques, deployment and computation at the network edge have become crucial, especially for applications requiring low or ultra-low latency.

Edge Network Softwarization (ENS) is emerging as a critical area that requires thorough investigation and active advancement by the research community, as it will provide benefits for both final users and network operators. For users, it ensures application requirements such as latency, reliability, and security are consistently met. For operators, it enables more efficient network management, including zero-touch solutions that adapt autonomously to varying network conditions.

In this rapidly evolving landscape, the ENS workshop aims to provide a comprehensive and detailed overview of the softwarization and virtualization process that is impacting the edge. It highlights innovative AI-driven approaches that will characterize future telecommunications networks, from design to resource management. ENS 2026 will address research problems related to solutions for network edge, such as orchestration strategies, uCPE monitoring, traffic engineering; novel solutions for data-plane programmable edge devices, as P4, eBPF, XDP; support for low latency applications and edge-driven use cases, e.g. Tactile Internet, Agriculture 4.0, Industry 4.0, etc.

The idea is to give the opportunity to researcher and practitioners from academia and industry to discuss about relevant topics, including the impact of novel edge computing approaches on 6G and beyond, applications in non-terrestrial networks, and challenging environments like underwater and underground networks. It will also explore emerging use cases such as VR/AR, networked autonomous systems, and vehicular networks, along with resource and security management at the edge.

Call for Papers
The Call for Papers is available at this link.

Important Dates
Paper Submission: March 30th, 2026
Notification of Acceptance: April 27th, 2026
Camera-ready Submission: May 4th, 2026
Workshop Date: Monday June 29th, 2026

Paper Submission

Authors are invited to submit original contributions for presentation at the workshop. All submissions must be written in English. Papers should be up to 7 pages, including references and all other material. They must use the standard IEEE two-column conference template, which can be downloaded from www.ieee.org/conferences/publishing/templates.html. Accepted and presented papers will be included in the IEEE NetSoft 2026 Proceedings and published on IEEE Xplore.

The PDF version of the paper can be submitted  through EDAS at the following link: https://edas.info/N34948
 

Workshop Organizers

General Co-Chairs

• Alessio Sacco, Politecnico di Torino, Italy

• Christian Grasso, University of Catania, Italy 

• Sebastian Troia, Politecnico di Milano, Italy

TPC Co-Chairs

• Omran Ayoub, University of Applied Sciences of Southern Switzerland, Switzerland

• Gianluca Davoli, University of Bologna, Italy

• Marco Savi, University of Milano-Bicocca, Italy

Past Editions of the Workshop

• 1st Edition (ENS 2022)

• 2nd Edition (ENS 2023)

• 3rd Edition (ENS 2024)

• 4th Edition (ENS 2025)