European Convex Optimization Workshop 2026

We're excited to invite you to the European Convex Optimization Workshop, organized by Pontus Giselsson, Sebastian Banert, and Dirk Lorenz. The workshop will take place at the University of Bremen, Germany, from March 2–4, 2026.

Our Goal: Fostering the Next Generation of Researchers. This workshop is primarily designed to bring together PhD students and early-career researchers in convex optimization to facilitate networking, collaboration, and knowledge-sharing. We encourage senior faculty members to attend and engage with the next generation of researchers.

Schedule

Monday, 2 March

• 08:30–08:50: Registration

• 08:50–09:00: Opening and Welcome

• 09:00–10:30: Talk session

  • Yara Elshiaty (Heidelberg University)
    Multilevel Bregman Proximal Gradient Descent

  • Huiyuan Guo (University of Groningen)
    Preconditioned Primal Dual Algorithms in Convex Optimization

  • Zepeng Wang (University of Groningen)
    Adaptive Accelerated Gradient Method for Smooth Convex Optimization

• 10:30–11:00: Fika break

• 11:00–12:30: Talk session

  • Chiara Schindler (University of Vienna)
    Long-Time Analysis of Stochastic Heavy Ball Dynamics for Convex Optimization and Monotone Equations

  • Chuan He (Linköping University)
    New Results for Stochastic First-Order Methods Under Heavy-Tailed Noise

  • Siqi Qu (University of Mannheim)
    Asymptotic behaviour of coupled random dynamical systems with multiscale aspects

• 12:30–14:00: Lunch break

• 14:00–15:00: Talk session

  • Andrea Ebner (University of Mannheim)
    Computing Tight Diagonal Frame Decompositions via Alternating Optimization

  • Anton Åkerman (Lund University)
    Forward-backward type splitting methods with minimal lifting

• 15:00–15:30: Fika break

• 15:30–16:30: Talk session

  • Ngoc Hoang Anh Mai (Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology)
    On the Metric Subregularity for Cyclic Projections via Quotient Spaces and Tangential Approximations

  • Manish Krishan Lal (TU Munich)
    Projection methods for learning, sampling and inference

Tuesday, 3 March

• 09:00–10:00: Research pitch and connect

• 10:00–10:30: Fika break

• 10:30–12:00: Collaborative coding/proving sprint

• 12:00–13:30: Lunch break

• 13:30–15:00: Talk session

  • François Glineur (UCLouvain)
    Computer-aided analysis of optimization algorithms using performance estimation problems

  • Manu Upadhyaya (Inria Paris)
    The AutoLyap software suite for computer-assisted Lyapunov analyses of first-order methods

  • TBA (Speaker cancelled)

• 15:00–17:00: Poster session (with coffee)

  • Pascal Fernsel (University of Bremen)
    Nonnegative Matrix Factorization – Multiconvex Optimization and Applications

  • Mahshid Mirhashemi (University of Göttingen)
    Computing Fréchet Means via Proximal Splitting in Nonlinear Metric Spaces

  • Felix Schneppe (University of Bremen)
    The Influence of an Adjoint Mismatch on the Primal-Dual Douglas-Rachford Method

  • Markus Ydreskog (Lund University)
    An Alternating Minimization Framework for Image Reconstruction in Optical Multiplexing-based Ultrafast Videography (WIP)

• from 18:00: Conference dinner

Wednesday, 4 March

• 09:00–10:30: Talk session

  • Meggie Marschner (University of Mannheim)
    Regularization methods for solving hierarchical variational inequalities with complexity guarantees

  • Johannes-Carl Schnebel (University of Mannheim)
    Variance reduction for stochastic hierarchical variational inequalities

  • Qinyu Yan (University of Göttingen)
    First-order method on uniformly convex metric spaces

• 10:30–11:00: Fika break

• 11:00–12:00: Talk session

  • Max Nilsson (Lund University)
    Extending Douglas-Rachford Splitting for Convex Optimization

  • Alexander Posch (University of Vienna)
    Entropic Mirror Descent for Linear Systems: Polyak’s Stepsize and Implicit Bias

• Rooms will be available during the afternoon

What to Expect

• A relaxed atmosphere where you can connect with like-minded researchers
• Opportunities for PhD students to give talks and share their work
• Discussion sessions and poster or lightning-talk presentations
• A chance to catch up with colleagues and make new connections

Workshop Details

• Dates: March 2–4, 2026
• Location: University of Bremen, Germany
• Format: A mix of talks, discussion sessions, and poster or lightning-talk presentations (depending on interest)
• Registration: Free of charge; however, registration is required

Please register under this link until February 6, 2026

Who Should Attend

• PhD students and early-career researchers in convex optimization or related areas
• Senior faculty members who want to engage with the next generation of researchers

We're looking forward to seeing you in Bremen!

Venue

You can reach Bremen by train or by plane:

• You can check train connections to foreign and domestic destinations at Deutsche Bahn's web page
• Bremen Airport is quite small with a limited set of destinations.
• Hamburg Airport is the vicinity and easily reachable by local train service. We recommend to take a train from Bremen at least four hours before the departure of your flight.

The workshop will be held in the "Mehrzweckhochhaus" (Bibliothekstraße 5). You can get there from both the central train station and Bremen airport: take the tram number 6 bound for Universität and leave at the stop Universität/Zentralbereich.

Hotels near the university

• 7THINGS (budget)
• ATLANTIC Hotel Universum (4 stars)

Contact

• Dirk Lorenz, d.lorenz@uni-bremen.de
• Sebastian Banert, banert@uni-bremen.de
• Pontus Giselsson, pontus.giselsson@control.lth.se