The future by Design, not by default. CRAFT holds first official meeting at Faculty of Management

The Faculty of Management at Wrocław University of Science and Technology (WUST) marked a significant milestone today with the first official meeting of CRAFT (Collaboratory for Responsible and Future Technologies). Held in Room 448 – Building B4, the event brought together faculty staff, students, teachers and researchers to unveil a new initiative dedicated to making future technologies more responsible and human-centered.

The meeting opened with a welcome address from Dr. hab. inż. Anna Kowalska-Pyzalska, Dean of the Faculty of Management. She presented the Faculty’s vision, highlighting how CRAFT—the Faculty’s first-ever laboratory—aligns with its broader strategic goals.

Following the opening remarks, Dr. Yash Chawla (Head of CRAFT) introduced the core concept of CRAFT. He described it as a “collaboration-oriented laboratory and think tank” designed to generate research and societal influence. The central theme of the initiative, “The future, by design. Not by default,” emphasizes the need for technology to be Centered on humane principles, Responsiblity, Accessiblity, Fairness, and Transparency.

The core of the event was the unveiling of CRAFT’s three main pillars of action: Research & Analysis, Education & Talent, and Dialogue & Engagement. Various team leaders presented specific initiatives under these pillars. Following is a brief about the team of each initiative and a short description. The presentation from the meeting can be found here: First Meeting presentation – 9.12.2025:

CRAFT Academy

An education and talent-focused initiative developing post-graduate programs, doctoral courses, and youth programs.

Team: Dr. Olga Voropai (Lead), Sofiia Hovdysh, Rafal Misko, Erwin Ong

CRAFT Research Labs

A research unit working on DeepTech, humane technology innovations, innovation mapping in healthcare, and other topics in the direction of CRAFT’s mission and vision. This unit shall also be concentrating on various grant applications.

Team: Dr. Yash Chawla (Lead), Jakub Bęben, Joanna Kott, Andrzej Postawa, Monika Rogalska, Joanna Szustakiewicz

The CRAFT Index

A project developing data-driven hierarchical composite indicator, that captures several pillars, to benchmark organizations’ technology and to shape their policies and future directions.

Team: Dr. Dimitrios Sotiros (Lead), Barbara Fomin, Damian Góra, Magdalena Kotas, Wiktor Kozłowski, Zuzanna Lis, Maciej Przygoda

CRAFT Briefings

A research and analysis action focused on producing concise and informative briefings. One of the example of such activities was already carried out in form “Wroclaw and Lower Silesia Startup Ecosystem Report“, which was highlighted during the meeting.

Team: Dr. Yash Chawla (Lead), Tymon Gajewski, Maja Kupczyk, Maksymilian Pordzik

CRAFT Network

An initiative dedicated to fostering dialogue and building a robust engagement network.

Team: Dr. Agnieszka Dziob-Zadworna (Lead), Nikol Khmura, Nazlı Betül Üngören

CRAFT Talks

A platform for ongoing dialogue and engagement through talks and presentations.

Team: Rassul Bolatuly, Marcelina Kosiorowska, Dawid Pukacz, Marcin Szyszka

CRAFT B.E.E.R (Brainstorming and Exchange for Ethical Recommendations)

A creative brainstorming format designed to generate ethical recommendations and ideas. The meeting featured the 2nd Sip of CRAFT B.E.E.R, themed on “Post-AI University Experience”

Team: Dr. Yash Chawla (Lead), Rafał Miśko, Maciej Przygoda, Suriya Subramaniyan Ramesh

CRAFTing H-T-S, CRAFT inpiratiON, and The Wall

A set of community engagement projects involving students and external partners to foster inspiration and collaboration.

Team: Dr. Yash Chawla (Lead), Aleksandra Drozdowska – co-lead for CRAFT inspiratiON (Samorząd Studencki PWr), Dr. Agnieszka Dziob-Zadworna, Dr. Olga Voropai, Nikol Khmura (Marketing team lead), BI Students, Anna Jarosz (Academia Europa), Marzena Kurdyś, Anna Iwanowska, Justyna Kościelna (Center for National and International Relations, Wrocław Tech).

The event concluded with the unveiling of creative community engagement project, “The CRAFT inspiratiON Wall“.

We would like to extend our gratitude to all the participants who joined us for this meeting, with a special thanks to Ms. Paulina Muszynska (Head – Startup Wroclaw, ARAW), Ms. Krystyna Kardacz (Specialist at Development Projects Department, Startup Wroclaw, ARAW and an Alumni of Faculty of Management), and Mr. Lukasz Liebersbach (Founder of Play Drive, and Senior Innovation Consultant at Capgemini Applied Innovation Exchange, Poland).

CRAFT invites all students, researchers, and industry partners to join this open community. As stated during the meeting, this is an opportunity to gain experience with real-world problems through social cohesion and collaboration.

For more information on upcoming events and how to get involved, please watch this space.

Cheers – Team CRAFT.