reference.qmd

---
title: "ECiP Speakers & Talks: 2002 - 2025"
---


# Evolutionary Computation in Practice (ECiP)

The *Evolutionary Computation in Practice (ECiP)* track at GECCO has functioned for over fifteen years as a specialized forum for bridging the gap between theoretical innovation and industrial application. While broader academic tracks prioritize peer-reviewed proofs, ECiP focuses on the operational complexities of real-world optimization. It brings together experts who manage corporations, lead large-scale industrial projects, and navigate the intricate landscape of academia-industry partnerships to share high-level insights that extend beyond textbook methodologies.


## 2025 Málaga, Spain

The 2025 program highlights the relationship between academic foundations and industrial relevance, exploring why certain simpler strategies often outperform complex methods in practice.


Evolutionary Computation Track Chairs:

* Thomas Bartz-Beielstein, IDE+A, TH Köln, Germany
* Richard Schulz, IDE+A, TH Köln, Germany


### Speakers & Talks


::: {.speaker-grid}

::: {.speaker-card}
<img src="figures/speaker/profile_picture_roman_kalkreuth.png.webp" class="speaker-photo">
<span class="speaker-name">Dr. Roman Kalkreuth</span>
<span class="speaker-affil">RWTH Aachen, Germany</span>
<div class="talk-info">On the antagonism between foundations and applications in graph-based genetic programming</div>
:::

::: {.speaker-card}
<img src="figures/speaker/anjum.jpeg.webp" class="speaker-photo">
<span class="speaker-name">Dr. Farha Anjum Khan</span>
<span class="speaker-affil">Continental-Corporation</span>
<div class="talk-info">Robust Contextual Preferential Bayesian Optimization for Real-World Applications with Biased Data</div>
:::

::: {.speaker-card}
<img src="figures/speaker/XBM_photo.jpeg.webp" class="speaker-photo">
<span class="speaker-name">Dr. Xavier Bonet-Monroig</span>
<span class="speaker-affil">Honda Research Institute Europe</span>
<div class="talk-info">Quantum (computing) needs you! Quantum (computing) wants you!</div>
:::

::: {.speaker-card}
<img src="figures/speaker/Kaji.jpeg.webp" class="speaker-photo">
<span class="speaker-name">Hirotaka Kaji</span>
<span class="speaker-affil">Frontier Research Center, Toyota Motor Corporation</span>
<div class="talk-info">Application of Quantum Annealing to Optimize Parts Storage Arrangement in a Logistics Center</div>
:::

:::


### Impressions from GECCO ECiP 2025

```{ojs}
//| echo: false
// List of all images in gecco_ecip_2025/
allImages = [
  "IMG_3918.jpeg", "IMG_3919.jpeg", "IMG_3920.jpeg", "IMG_3921.jpeg", "IMG_3922.jpeg", 
  "IMG_3924.jpeg", "IMG_3925.jpeg", "IMG_3944.jpeg", "IMG_3946.jpeg", "IMG_3947.jpeg", 
  "IMG_3948.jpeg", "IMG_3949.jpeg", "IMG_3950.jpeg", "IMG_3951.jpeg", "IMG_3953.jpeg", 
  "IMG_3955.jpeg", "IMG_3957.jpeg", "IMG_3958.jpeg", "IMG_3959.jpeg", "IMG_3960.jpeg", 
  "IMG_3962.jpeg", "IMG_3963.jpeg", "IMG_3964.jpeg", "IMG_3965.jpeg", "IMG_3968.jpeg", 
  "IMG_3970.jpeg", "IMG_3972.jpeg", "IMG_3975.jpeg", "IMG_3976.jpeg", "IMG_3977.jpeg", 
  "IMG_3978.jpeg", "IMG_3979.jpeg", "IMG_3980.jpeg", "IMG_3981.jpeg", "IMG_3982.jpeg", 
  "IMG_3983.jpeg", "IMG_3985.jpeg", "IMG_3986.jpeg", "IMG_3987.jpeg", "IMG_3988.jpeg", 
  "IMG_3989.jpeg", "IMG_3991.jpeg", "IMG_8700.jpeg", "IMG_8702.jpeg", "IMG_8704.jpeg", 
  "IMG_8707.jpeg"
]

// Shuffle and pick 3
selectedImages = {
  const shuffled = [...allImages].sort(() => 0.5 - Math.random());
  return shuffled.slice(0, 3);
}

// Render the gallery
html`<div class="gallery-grid">
  ${selectedImages.map(img => `
    <div class="gallery-item">
      <img src="figures/gecco_ecip_2025/${img}" class="gallery-img" loading="lazy">
    </div>
  `).join('')}
</div>`
```


## 2024: Melbourne, Australia

![](figures/logos/GECCO%202024%20LOGO%20resized.png){width="30%"}


The 2024 track emphasized evolutionary computation in the energy domain, particularly focusing on PV systems and dynamic optimization.

Evolutionatry Computation Track Chairs:

* Thomas Bartz-Beielstein, IDE+A, TH Köln, Germany
* Richard Schulz, IDE+A, TH Köln, Germany
* Danial Yazdani, University of Technology Sydney, Australia

The Randomised Optimisation Algorithms Research Network: Objectives and Opportunities
Carlos M. Fonseca, Bogdan Filipiˇc
Six million compute minutes solving billion dollar problems – a successful GA deployed industrially
Simon Ratcliffe
Automated Machine Learning
Steffen Limmer
Simplifying Hyperparameter Tuning for Industrial Applications with spotPython: Examples from
PyTorch, Scikit-Learn, and River
Thomas Bartz-Beielstein


### Speakers & Talks

::: {.speaker-grid}

::: {.speaker-card}
<img src="figures/speaker/carlos_fonseca.jpeg" class="speaker-photo">
<span class="speaker-name">Carlos M. Fonseca and Bogdan Filipi</span>
<span class="speaker-affil">Polytechnic of Porto, Portugal and Jožef Stefan Institute, Slovenia</span>
<div class="talk-info">The Randomised Optimisation Algorithms Research Network: Objectives and Opportunities</div>
:::

::: {.speaker-card}
<img src="figures/speaker/steffen_limmer.jpeg" class="speaker-photo">
<span class="speaker-name">Steffen Limmer</span>
<span class="speaker-affil">Siemens AG, Germany</span>
<div class="talk-info">Automated Machine Learning</div>
:::

::: {.speaker-card}
<img src="figures/speaker/simon_ratcliffe.jpeg" class="speaker-photo">
<span class="speaker-name">Simon Ratcliffe</span>
<span class="speaker-affil">School of Computer and Mathematical Sciences, The University of Adelaide</span>
<div class="talk-info">Six million compute minutes solving billion dollar problems - a successful GA deployed industrially</div>
:::

::: {.speaker-card}
<img src="figures/speaker/thomas_bartz_beielstein.jpeg" class="speaker-photo">
<span class="speaker-name">Thomas Bartz-Beielstein</span>
<span class="speaker-affil">THK-AI Research Cluster, TH Köln, Germany</span>
<div class="talk-info">Simplifying Hyperparameter Tuning for Industrial Applications with spotPython: Examples from PyTorch, Scikit-Learn, and River</div>
:::


:::


## 2023 Lisbon, Portugal

![](figures/logos/GECCO%202023%20LOGO.png){width="30%"}


## 2022 Boston (hybrid)

![](figures/logos/GECCO%202022%20BOSTON%20logo.png){width="30%"}


Evolutionary Computation Track Chairs:

* Thomas Bartz-Beielstein, TH Köln
* Bogdan Filipic, Jožef Stefan Institute


### Speakers & Talks

::: {.speaker-grid}

::: {.speaker-card}
<img src="figures/speaker/giovanni_iacca.jpeg" class="speaker-photo">
<span class="speaker-name">Giovanni Iacca</span>
<span class="speaker-affil">University of Trento, Italy</span>
<div class="talk-info">Soft skills and soft computing: when presenting the solutions of an optimization problem becomes harder than finding them</div>
:::

::: {.speaker-card}
<img src="figures/speaker/jamal_toutouh.jpeg" class="speaker-photo">
<span class="speaker-name">Jamal Toutouh</span>
<span class="speaker-affil">Massachusetts Inst. of Technology, University of Málaga</span>
<div class="talk-info">Evolutionary Algorithms Supported Decision Making for Sustainable Cities</div>
:::

::: {.speaker-card}
<img src="figures/speaker/joerg_stork.jpeg" class="speaker-photo">
<span class="speaker-name">Jörg Stork</span>
<span class="speaker-affil">TH Köln, Germany</span>
<div class="talk-info">Jumping in at the deep end: from university to industry</div>
:::

::: {.speaker-card}
<img src="figures/speaker/lina_castillo.jpeg" class="speaker-photo">
<span class="speaker-name">Eike Permin and Lina Castillo</span>
<span class="speaker-affil">TH Köln, Germany</span>
<div class="talk-info">Consider the lathe – Why manufacturing provides an interesting playground for algorithms</div>
:::

:::


## 2021 Lille, France

![](figures/logos/gecco2021_logo.png){width="30%"}


Evolutionary Computation Track Chairs:

* Thomas Bartz-Beielstein, TH Köln, Germany
* Bogdan Filipic, Jožef Stefan Institute, Slovenia
* Sowmya Chandrasekaran, TH Köln, Germany

## 2020 Cancun, Mexico

![](figures/logos/GECCO%20LOGO_2020.png){width="30%"}


No Evolutionary Computation Track, but Industrial Challenge


Organizers:

* Frederik Rehbach, TH Köln, Germany
* Thomas Bartz-Beielstein, TH Köln, Germany


The industrial challenge is posed in cooperation with an industry partner of the institute. This year’s competition partially relies on a test suite that provides expensive computer simulation-based optimization problems and provides an easy evaluation interface that will be used for the setup of our challenge. Our industry partner is willing to publish one of their CFD simulations - the optimization of a gas distribution system (GDS) in a large-scale electrostatic precipitator - as a public challenge. The task in the first track is to find an optimal configuration for the gas distribution system.


## 2019 Prague, Czech Republic

![](figures/logos/GECCO%202019%20logo.png){width="30%"}


Evolutionary Computation Track Chairs:

* Thomas Bartz-Beielstein, TH Köln, Germany
* Bogdan Filipic, Jozef Stefan Institute, Slovenia
* Jörg Stork, TH Köln, Germany
* Erik Goodman, Michigan State University, USA


## 2018 Kyoto, Japan

![](figures/logos/logo%20GECCO%202018-low%20res.gif){width="30%"}

Evolutionary Computation Track Chairs:

* Thomas Bartz-Beielstein, TH Köln, Germany
* Bogdan Filipic, Jozef Stefan Institute, Slovenia
* Shigeru Obayashi, Tohoku University, Japan


### Impressions from GECCO ECiP 2018 (Kyoto, Japan)

```{ojs}
//| echo: false
// List of all images in figures/gecco_ecip_2018/
allImages18 = [
"IMG_3094.jpeg", "IMG_3108.jpeg", "IMG_3116.jpeg", "IMG_3124.jpeg", "IMG_3135.jpeg", "IMG_3143.jpeg", "IMG_3151.jpeg", "IMG_3159.jpeg", "IMG_3168.jpeg", "IMG_3177.jpeg", "IMG_3189.jpeg", "IMG_3199.jpeg", "IMG_3207.jpeg", "IMG_3217.jpeg", "IMG_3226.jpeg",
"IMG_3099.jpeg", "IMG_3109.jpeg", "IMG_3117.jpeg", "IMG_3125.jpeg", "IMG_3136.jpeg", "IMG_3144.jpeg", "IMG_3152.jpeg", "IMG_3161.jpeg", "IMG_3169.jpeg", "IMG_3178.jpeg", "IMG_3190.jpeg", "IMG_3200.jpeg", "IMG_3208.jpeg", "IMG_3218.jpeg", "IMG_3227.jpeg",
"IMG_3102.jpeg", "IMG_3110.jpeg", "IMG_3118.jpeg", "IMG_3126.jpeg", "IMG_3137.jpeg", "IMG_3145.jpeg", "IMG_3153.jpeg", "IMG_3162.jpeg", "IMG_3170.jpeg", "IMG_3183.jpeg", "IMG_3191.jpeg", "IMG_3201.jpeg", "IMG_3209.jpeg", "IMG_3219.jpeg", "IMG_3228.jpeg",
"IMG_3103.jpeg", "IMG_3111.jpeg", "IMG_3119.jpeg", "IMG_3130.jpeg", "IMG_3138.jpeg", "IMG_3146.jpeg", "IMG_3154.jpeg", "IMG_3163.jpeg", "IMG_3171.jpeg", "IMG_3184.jpeg", "IMG_3192.jpeg", "IMG_3202.jpeg", "IMG_3210.jpeg", "IMG_3221.jpeg",
"IMG_3104.jpeg", "IMG_3112.jpeg", "IMG_3120.jpeg", "IMG_3131.jpeg", "IMG_3139.jpeg", "IMG_3147.jpeg", "IMG_3155.jpeg", "IMG_3164.jpeg", "IMG_3172.jpeg", "IMG_3185.jpeg", "IMG_3193.jpeg", "IMG_3203.jpeg", "IMG_3213.jpeg", "IMG_3222.jpeg",
"IMG_3105.jpeg", "IMG_3113.jpeg", "IMG_3121.mov", "IMG_3132.jpeg", "IMG_3140.jpeg", "IMG_3148.jpeg", "IMG_3156.jpeg", "IMG_3165.jpeg", "IMG_3173.jpeg", "IMG_3186.jpeg", "IMG_3194.jpeg", "IMG_3204.jpeg", "IMG_3214.jpeg", "IMG_3223.jpeg", "IMG_3106.jpeg", "IMG_3114.jpeg", "IMG_3122.jpeg", "IMG_3133.jpeg", "IMG_3141.jpeg", "IMG_3149.jpeg", "IMG_3157.jpeg", "IMG_3166.jpeg", "IMG_3175.jpeg", "IMG_3187.jpeg", "IMG_3197.jpeg", "IMG_3205.jpeg", "IMG_3215.jpeg", "IMG_3224.jpeg",
"IMG_3107.jpeg", "IMG_3115.jpeg", "IMG_3123.jpeg", "IMG_3134.jpeg", "IMG_3142.jpeg", "IMG_3150.jpeg", "IMG_3158.jpeg", "IMG_3167.jpeg", "IMG_3176.jpeg", "IMG_3188.jpeg", "IMG_3198.jpeg", "IMG_3206.jpeg", "IMG_3216.jpeg", "IMG_3225.jpeg"
]


// Shuffle and pick 3
selectedImages18 = {
  const shuffled = [...allImages18].sort(() => 0.5 - Math.random());
  return shuffled.slice(0, 3);
}

// Render the gallery in a 1x3 grid
html`<div class="gallery-grid"> 
  ${selectedImages18.map(img => `
    <div class="gallery-item">
      <img src="figures/gecco_ecip_2018/${img}" class="gallery-img" loading="lazy">
    </div>
  `).join('')}
</div>`
```





## 2017 Berlin, Germany

Track Chairs: 

* Anna Esparcia Alcazar
* Thomas Bartz-Beielstein
* Jörn Mehnen


More: [http://gecco-2017.sigevo.org/index.html/EC%2bin%2bPractice.html](http://gecco-2017.sigevo.org/index.html/EC%2bin%2bPractice.html)



## 2016 Denver, USA

Track Chairs: 

* Anna Esparcia Alcazar
* Thomas Bartz-Beielstein
* Erik Goodman


More: [http://gecco-2016.sigevo.org/index.html/EC%2bin%2bPractice.html](http://gecco-2016.sigevo.org/index.html/EC%2bin%2bPractice.html)

### Speakers & Talks

::: {.speaker-grid}

::: {.speaker-card}
<img src="figures/speaker/thomas_bartz_beielstein.jpeg" class="speaker-photo">
<span class="speaker-name">Thomas Bartz-Beielstein</span>
<span class="speaker-affil">TH Köln, Germany</span>
<div class="talk-info">Surrogate Model-based Optimization in Practice</div>
:::


::: {.speaker-card}
<span class="speaker-name">Maizura Mokhtar, Ian Hunt, Stephen Burns and Dave Ross</span>
<span class="speaker-affil">University of Melbourne, Australia</span>
<div class="talk-info">Optimising a Waste Heat Recovery System using Multi-Objective Evolutionary Algorithm</div>
:::


::: {.speaker-card}
<img src="figures/speaker/una_may.jpeg" class="speaker-photo">
<span class="speaker-name">Erik Hemberg, Ignacio Arnaldo and Una-May O’Reilly</span>
<span class="speaker-affil">MIT, USA</span>
<div class="talk-info">Multi-Line Batch Scheduling by Similarity</div>
:::

::: {.speaker-card}
<span class="speaker-name">Abdel-Rahman Hedar, Majid Almaraashi and Alaa Abdel-Hakim</span>
<span class="speaker-affil">King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, Saudi Arabia</span>
<div class="talk-info">Granular-Based Dimension Reduction for Solar Radiation Prediction Using Adaptive Memory Programming</div>
:::

::: {.speaker-card}
<span class="speaker-name">Silvino Fernández, Pablo Valledor, Diego Díaz, Eneko Malatsetxebarria and Miguel Iglesias</span>
<span class="speaker-affil">ArcelorMittal, Spain</span>
<div class="talk-info">Criticality of Response Time in the usage of Metaheuristics in Industry</div>
:::

::: {.speaker-card}
<span class="speaker-name">Silvino Fernández, Pablo Valledor</span>
<span class="speaker-affil">ArcelorMittal, Spain</span>
<div class="talk-info">System demonstration, ArcelorMittal Scheduling and Tuning suite</div>
:::

::: {.speaker-card}
<img src="figures/speaker/carlos_coello_coello.jpeg" class="speaker-photo">
<span class="speaker-name">Carlos A. Coello Coello</span>
<span class="speaker-affil">CINVESTAV-IPN, Mexico</span>
<div class="talk-info">Evolutionary Multi-Objective Optimization in Real-World Applications</div>
:::

::: {.speaker-card}
<img src="figures/speaker/anna_esparcia_alcazar.jpeg" class="speaker-photo">
<span class="speaker-name">Anna Esparcia Alcazar</span>
<span class="speaker-affil">University of Manchester, UK</span>
<div class="talk-info">EC in industry: the quest for the Holy Grail – from Brain Computer Interfaces to automated testing with TESTAR</div>
:::

::: {.speaker-card}
<img src="figures/speaker/michael_affenzeller.jpeg" class="speaker-photo">
<span class="speaker-name">Michael Affenzeller</span>
<span class="speaker-affil">University of Applied Sciences Upper Austria, Austria</span>
<div class="talk-info">Heuristic Optimization in Production and Logistics</div>
:::

::: {.speaker-card}
<img src="figures/speaker/thomas_baeck.jpeg" class="speaker-photo">
<span class="speaker-name">Thomas Bäck</span>
<span class="speaker-affil">Leiden University/divis, Germany</span>
<div class="talk-info">Industrial Challenge: Online Event Detection</div>
:::

::: {.speaker-card}
<img src="figures/speaker/felipe_campelo.jpeg" class="speaker-photo">
<span class="speaker-name">Felipe Campelo</span>
<span class="speaker-affil">University of Adelaide, Australia</span>
<div class="talk-info">EAs for aeronautical optimization – some results and challenges</div>
:::

::: {.speaker-card}
<img src="figures/speaker/erik_goodman.jpeg" class="speaker-photo">
<span class="speaker-name">Erik Goodman</span>
<span class="speaker-affil">Michigan State University, USA</span>
<div class="talk-info">How to Introduce Academic-developed EC Technology to Industry</div>
:::

::: {.speaker-card}
<span class="speaker-name">Anna Esparcia Alcazar, Thomas Bäck, Thomas Bartz-Beielstein, Felipe Campelo, Silvino Fernández, Erik Goodman, Thomas Stützle</span>
<span class="speaker-affil">Panel Discussion</span>
<div class="talk-info">Panel Discussion</div>
:::


:::


## 2015 Madrid, Spain

![](figures/logos/logo-2015.jpg){width="30%"}

Track Chairs:

* Thomas Bartz-Beielstein, TH Köln, Germany
* Jörn Mehnen, Cranfield University, UK


### Speakers & Talks


::: {.speaker-grid}

::: {.speaker-card}
<img src="figures/speaker/joern_mehnen.jpeg" class="speaker-photo">
<span class="speaker-name">Jörn Mehnen, Thomas Bartz-Beielstein, Anna Esparcia Alcazar, Erik Goodman</span>
<span class="speaker-affil">Cranfield University, UK</span>
<div class="talk-info">Getting a job. What to do and what not to do</div>
:::

::: {.speaker-card}
<img src="figures/speaker/erik_goodman.jpeg" class="speaker-photo">
<span class="speaker-name">Erik Goodman</span>
<span class="speaker-affil">Michigan State University, USA</span>
<div class="talk-info">Red Cedar Technology</div>
:::

::: {.speaker-card}
<img src="figures/speaker/carlos_coello_coello.jpeg" class="speaker-photo">
<span class="speaker-name">Carlos Coello</span>
<span class="speaker-affil">CINVESTAV-IPN, Mexico</span>
<div class="talk-info">Evolutionary Multi-Objective Optimization in Real-World Applications</div>
:::

::: {.speaker-card}
<img src="figures/speaker/emilia_tantar.jpeg" class="speaker-photo">
<span class="speaker-name">Emilia Tantar</span>
<span class="speaker-affil"></span>
<div class="talk-info">Programmable Communication Networks</div>
:::

::: {.speaker-card}
<img src="figures/speaker/joern_mehnen.jpeg" class="speaker-photo">
<span class="speaker-name">Jörn Mehnen</span>
<span class="speaker-affil">Cranfield University, UK</span>
<div class="talk-info">Multi-objective real-time optimisation for machine tools</div>
:::

::: {.speaker-card}
<img src="figures/speaker/arthur_kordon.jpeg" class="speaker-photo">
<span class="speaker-name">Arthur Kordon</span>
<span class="speaker-affil"></span>
<div class="talk-info">New Challenges in Applying EC in Industry</div>
:::

::: {.speaker-card}
<img src="figures/speaker/anna_esparcia_alcazar.jpeg" class="speaker-photo">
<span class="speaker-name">Anna Esparcia Alcazar</span>
<span class="speaker-affil">University of Manchester, UK</span>
<div class="talk-info">Past difficulties and new hopes to link EC in academia and industry</div>
:::

::: {.speaker-card}
<img src="figures/speaker/katya_vladislavleva.jpeg" class="speaker-photo">
<span class="speaker-name">Katya Vladislavleva</span>
<span class="speaker-affil"></span>
<div class="talk-info">TBA</div>
:::

::: {.speaker-card}
<span class="speaker-name">Jörn Mehnen, Thomas Bartz-Beielstein, Thomas Baeck, Erik Goodman</span>
<div class="talk-info">Ask the Experts: EC questions from the audience (Open panel discussion)</div>
:::

:::

## 2014 Vancouver, Canada

![](figures/logos/top_2014.gif){width="30%"}



## 2013 Amsterdam, Netherlands

![](figures/logos/index_r1_c1_2013.jpg){width="30%"}


## 2012 Philadelphia, USA

![](figures/logos/gecco-logo_2012.jpg){width="30%"}


### Impressions from GECCO ECiP 2012 (Philadelphia, USA)

```{ojs}
//| echo: false
// List of all images in figures/gecco_ecip_2012/
allImages12 = [
  "gecco2012c 001.jpeg", "gecco2012c 002.jpeg", "gecco2012c 003.jpeg", 
  "gecco2012c 004.jpeg", "philadelphiaGecco2012July 276.jpeg"
]


// Shuffle and pick 3
selectedImages12 = {
  const shuffled = [...allImages12].sort(() => 0.5 - Math.random());
  return shuffled.slice(0, 3);
}

// Render the gallery in a 1x3 grid
html`<div class="gallery-grid">
  ${selectedImages12.map(img => `
    <div class="gallery-item">
      <img src="figures/gecco_ecip_2012/${img}" class="gallery-img" loading="lazy">
    </div>
  `).join('')}
</div>`
```




## 2011 Dublin, Ireland

![](figures/logos/gecco2011-logo.gif){width="30%"}

More: [https://www.sigevo.org/gecco-2011/ecp.html](https://www.sigevo.org/gecco-2011/ecp.html)


Evolutionary Computation in Practice Chairs:

* David Davis, VGO Associates
* Jörn Mehnen, Cranfield University
* Thomas Bartz-Beielstein, Cologne University of Applies Sciences



### Impressions from GECCO ECiP 2011

```{ojs}
//| echo: false
// List of all images in figures/gecco_ecip_2011/
allImages11 = [
  "IMG_0727-2.jpeg", "IMG_0728-2.jpeg", "MBBP4755.jpeg", "MSFS7104.jpeg", "QPIV7730.jpeg"
]


// Shuffle and pick 3
selectedImages11 = {
  const shuffled = [...allImages11].sort(() => 0.5 - Math.random());
  return shuffled.slice(0, 3);
}

// Render the gallery in a 1x3 grid
html`<div class="gallery-grid">
  ${selectedImages11.map(img => `
    <div class="gallery-item">
      <img src="figures/gecco_ecip_2011/${img}" class="gallery-img" loading="lazy">
    </div>
  `).join('')}
</div>`
```



## 2010, Portland (Oregon), USA

![](figures/logos/top-logo_2010.jpg){width="30%"}

More: [https://www.sigevo.org/gecco-2010/ecp.html](https://www.sigevo.org/gecco-2010/ecp.html)


Evolutionary Computation in Practice Chairs:

* Jörn Mehnen (Cranfield Universit, UK)
* Thomas Bartz-Beielstein (Cologne Univ. of Applied Sciences, Germany)
* David Davis (VGO Associates, USA)


### Speakers & Talks

::: {.speaker-grid}

::: {.speaker-card}
<img src="figures/speaker/joern_mehnen.jpeg" class="speaker-photo">
<span class="speaker-name">Jorn Mehnen</span>
<span class="speaker-affil">Cranfield University, UK</span>
<div class="talk-info">EC in Design</div>
:::

::: {.speaker-card}
<img src="figures/speaker/thomas_baeck.jpeg" class="speaker-photo">
<span class="speaker-name">Thomas Bäck</span>
<span class="speaker-affil">Leiden University / divis</span>
<div class="talk-info">Intelligent Industry Solutions</div>
:::

::: {.speaker-card}
<img src="figures/speaker/erik_goodman.jpeg" class="speaker-photo">
<span class="speaker-name">Erik Goodman</span>
<span class="speaker-affil">Michigan State University</span>
<div class="talk-info">Managing an EC project for success, Emerging Technologies</div>
:::

::: {.speaker-card}
<span class="speaker-name">Jorn Mehnen, Thomas Bartz-Beielstein, Thomas Baeck, Erik Goodman</span>
<div class="talk-info">Ask the Experts: EC questions from the audience (Open panel discussion)</div>
:::

:::

### Impressions from GECCO ECiP 2010

```{ojs}
//| echo: false
// List of all images in figures/gecco_ecip_2010/
allImages10 = [
  "KIXW7301.jpeg", "KVFR6931.jpeg", "PIEO5782.jpeg",
  "PTSS5738.jpeg", "QJTC3366.jpeg", "XEOB0830.jpeg"
]


// Shuffle and pick 3
selectedImages10 = {
  const shuffled = [...allImages10].sort(() => 0.5 - Math.random());
  return shuffled.slice(0, 3);
}

// Render the gallery in a 1x3 grid
html`<div class="gallery-grid">
  ${selectedImages10.map(img => `
    <div class="gallery-item">
      <img src="figures/gecco_ecip_2010/${img}" class="gallery-img" loading="lazy">
    </div>
  `).join('')}
</div>`
```



## 2009, Montreal, Canada

![](figures/logos/gecco-logo09.jpg){width="30%"}

More: [https://www.sigevo.org/gecco-2009/ecp.html](https://www.sigevo.org/gecco-2009/ecp.html)

Evolutionary Computation in Practice Chairs:

* Thomas Bartz-Beielstein, Cologne University of Applies Sciences
* David Davis, VGO Associates
* Jörn Mehnen, Cranfield University


The Evolutionary Computation in Practice (ECP) track at Genetic and Evolutionary Computation Conference (GECCO) is dedicated to the discussion of issues related to practical application of Evolutionary Computation. For the past four years, members from industry, governmental agencies and other public sectors have participated in presentations and discussions describing how evolution-related technologies are being used to solve real-world problems. Moreover, subjects on bridging academic training and real-world usage are also addressed.

We invite you to present work that employs evolution-related technologies to solve real-world problems. We are accepting one to two page abstracts for review, with the following themes:

* Real-world application success story;
* Real-world application lessons learned;
* Academic case study in real-world applications;
* Expectations of academic training from industry;

The subject domains include, but not limited to the following:

* Biomedical;
* Design;
* Energy and Resources;
* Finance;
* Government and Military;
* Academic training for real-world applications;
· Computer Graphics and Gaming;

The applied technology can be any evolution-related algorithms or its hybrid with other techniques. For a list of evolution-related technologies, please refer to GECCO Tracks. Examples of other technologies are agent-based modeling, simulated annealing, tabu search, neural networks, fuzzy logic, statistical modeling, and decision trees.




## 2008 Atlanta, USA


![](figures/logos/logo08.jpg){width="30%"}

Evolutionary Computation in Practice Chairs:

* David Davis (VGO Associates, USA)
* Jörn Mehnen (Cranfield University, UK)




### Impressions from GECCO ECiP 2008

```{ojs}
//| echo: false
// List of all images in figures/gecco_ecip_2008/
allImages08 = [
  "16072008.jpeg", "CMYM5536.jpeg", "GKZS7546.jpeg", "IALH1928.jpeg", 
  "MOIY8677.jpeg", "PILU4051.jpeg", "PRIK2156.jpeg", "XMLP1108.jpeg"
]

// Shuffle and pick 3
selectedImages08 = {
  const shuffled = [...allImages08].sort(() => 0.5 - Math.random());
  return shuffled.slice(0, 3);
}

// Render the gallery in a 1x3 grid
html`<div class="gallery-grid">
  ${selectedImages08.map(img => `
    <div class="gallery-item">
      <img src="figures/gecco_ecip_2008/${img}" class="gallery-img" loading="lazy">
    </div>
  `).join('')}
</div>`
```


## 2007 London, UK

![](figures/logos/logo_2007.gif){width="30%"}


Evolutionary Computation In Practice Chairs:

* David Davis, VGO Associates
* Rajkumar Roy, Cranfield University




## 2006 Seattle, USA

Evolutionary Computation In Practice Chairs:

* Cem Baydar, Accenture
* Tina Yu, Memorial University




## 2005 Washington, USA (Renamed to ECiP)


![](figures/logos/logo_2005.jpg){width="30%"}

Organizers:

* Tina Yu (ChevronTexaco Information Technology Company)
* Cem Baydar (Accenture)

Advisory Committee:

* David Davis, NuTech Solutions
* Rajkumar Roy, Cranfield University
* Mark Jakiela, Washington University in St. Louis

More: [https://www.sigevo.org/gecco-2005/ecp.html](https://www.sigevo.org/gecco-2005/ecp.html)


For the past three years, Evolutionary Computation in Industry (ECI) track at Genetic and Evolutionary Computation Conference (GECCO) has invited many managers, technology scouts and practitioners to participate in presentations and discussions describing how evolution-related technologies are being used to solve real-world problems.
In 2005, we will continue this tradition of project presentations and panel discussions from members in industry. Additionally, we want to expand our scope to include presentations by representatives from governmental agencies, non-profit organizations and others in the public sectors. Moreover, a new topic on bridging academic training and real-world usage of evolution-related technologies is introduced. To reflect these changes, we rename the track as Evolutionary Computation in Practice (ECP), indicating that it will become a forum to discuss issues related to practical application of Evolutionary Computation.

We invite you to present work that employs evolution-related technologies to solve real-world problems. We are accepting one to two page abstracts for review, with the following themes:

* Real-world application success story;
* Real-world application lessons learned;
* Academic case study in real-world applications;
* Expectations of academic training from industry;

The subject domains include, but not limited to the following:

* Biomedical;
* Design;
* Energy and Resource;
* Finance;
* Government and Military;
* Academic training for real-world applications;

The applied technology can be any evolution-related algorithms or its hybrid with other techniques. For a list of evolution-related technologies, please navigate this website. Examples of other technologies are simulated annealing, tabu search, neural network, fuzzy logic, statistical modeling, and decision trees.

## 2004 Seattle, USA

![](figures/logos/gecco-logo_2004.gif){width="30%"}

More: [https://www.isgec.org/gecco-2004/eci.html](https://www.isgec.org/gecco-2004/eci.html)

The Evolutionary Computation in Industry sessions are organized this year by

* David Davis (NuTech Solutions)
* Rajkumar Roy (Cranfield University)
* Mark Jakiela (Washington University in St. Louis)

The Evolutionary Computation in Industry sessions are tutorial-style and presenters are invited, but all GECCO participants are invited to attend. 
Each session focuses on a different topic related to applications of evolutionary algorithms. The presentations are designed for attendees such as managers, technology scouts, and industrial practitioners, who are seeking less technical presentations on the ways that evolutionary applications can make a difference. Presenters in these sessions are experts in applications and in describing the way that good evolutionary computation projects are planned and executed.



## 2003 Chicago, USA: "Evolutionary Computing in Industry"

![](figures/logos/gecco-logo-small_2003.gif){width="30%"}

This year’s GECCO includes, for the second year, a track on Evolutionary Computation in Industry (ECI). The presentations in this track will be of most use to managers, technology scouts, and other individuals interested in assessing the potential of evolutionary algorithms to solve their industrial optimization problems.
The goal of the presenters in this track is to tell you about the realities and possibilities of evolutionary computation applications and to describe successful industrial applications, rather than to focus on technical details and the particular approaches taken.
There are six sessions in the Evolutionary Computation in Industry track:

* The first session contains an introduction to evolutionary computation in industry, including two presentations describing successful industrial projects.
* The second session concerns evolutionary computation and design, and includes three presentations describing the solution of design problems using evolutionary algorithms.
* The third session concerns evolutionary computation and data mining. The session will focus on the newly-evolving field of classifier systems and their application to learning generalizations and rules from databases and simulations.
* The fourth session concerns innovative uses of evolutionary algorithms, and will showcase the state of the art in various domains.
* The fifth session concerns evolutionary computation and logistics, and includes talks showing a variety of ways in which evolutionary algorithms can be combined with other algorithms to produce cutting-edge solutions to real problems.
* The sixth session concerns lessons learned in evolutionary computation applications, and includes two presentations detailing the things to do and not to when applying an evolutionary algorithm application in a practical setting. The session will conclude with a brief discussion planning for next year’s Evolutionary Computation in Industry track.


## 2002 New York, USA: "Evolutionary Computing in Industry"

![](figures/logos/geccologo_2002.gif){width="30%"}


Organizers:

* David Davis 
* Rajkumar Roy 

GECCO Track: ECI (invitation only track)

Publication: A seperate proceedings for the track, and it will be distributed to all the participants of GECCO. This special track provides a forum for practitioners to present their experiences on the application of evolutionary algorithms in industry. These papers will be evaluated by a separate program committee and published in a separate volume that will be distributed to the conference attendees.


Please notice: ECI Scheduling and Logistics session can be seen at: [http://www.cs.nott.ac.uk/~gxk/gecco/2002/logistics.html](http://www.cs.nott.ac.uk/~gxk/gecco/2002/logistics.html)


Traditional research papers should be submitted to the RWA deme.




## The ECiP Track: Organizational Continuity and Mission

The stability of the track over more than two decades is a product of consistent leadership and a clearly defined mission. Originally established in 2002 as Evolutionary Computation in Industry (ECI) by David Davis and Rajkumar Roy, the track was renamed in 2006 to Evolutionary Computation in Practice (ECiP), a designation it has retained ever since. Since 2009, Thomas Bartz-Beielstein has served as a central figure in the track's organization. His background, spanning both a professorship in Applied Mathematics at TH Köln and a leadership role in industrial optimization, exemplifies the dual identity required to lead such a forum.

The primary mission of ECiP is to provide a venue where distinguished speakers present the "behind-the-scenes" of establishing reliable cooperation with industrial partners. The track targets researchers interested in managing industrial projects, offering valuable hints often omitted from textbook methodologies. This focus on real-world process and project management distinguishes ECiP from the Real World Applications (RWA) track, which focuses more on the results themselves.

The organizational structure has evolved to reflect the global nature of the GECCO community. While leadership has remained constant, the track has been enriched by co-organizers bringing diverse regional and technical expertise:

| Era | Key Organizers | Affiliations and Focus |
|-----|----------------|--------------------------|
| 2023–2025 | Thomas Bartz-Beielstein, Richard Schulz, Danial Yazdani | IDE+A, TH Köln; University of Technology Sydney |
| 2021–2022 | Thomas Bartz-Beielstein, Bogdan Filipic, Sowmya Chandrasekaran | TH Köln; Jozef Stefan Institute, Slovenia |
| 2011–2020 | Thomas Bartz-Beielstein, Joern Mehnen, David Davis | TH Köln; Cranfield University; VGO Associates |
| 2009–2010 | Thomas Bartz-Beielstein, Joern Mehnen, David Davis | TH Köln; Cranfield University; Nutech Solutions |
| 2008 | David Davis, Joern Mehnen | VGO Associates; Cranfield University |
| 2007 | David Davis, Rajkumar Roy | Nutech Solutions; Cranfield University |
| 2005–2006 | Cem Baydar, Tina Yu | Accenture; ChevronTexaco |
| 2002–2004 | David Davis, Rajkumar Roy, Mark Jakiela | Nutech Solutions; Cranfield University; Washington University |

## Archives & References

The following external archives provide additional depth into the track's evolution:

::: {.archive-list}

[GECCO 2026](https://gecco-2026.sigevo.org/)

[GECCO 2025](https://gecco-2025.sigevo.org/)

[GECCO 2024](https://gecco-2024.sigevo.org/)

[GECCO 2023](https://gecco-2023.sigevo.org/)

[GECCO 2022](https://gecco-2022.sigevo.org/)

[GECCO 2021](https://gecco-2021.sigevo.org/)

[GECCO 2020](https://gecco-2020.sigevo.org/)

[GECCO 2019](https://gecco-2019.sigevo.org/)

[GECCO 2018](https://gecco-2018.sigevo.org/)

[GECCO 2017](https://gecco-2017.sigevo.org/)

[GECCO 2016](https://gecco-2016.sigevo.org/)

[GECCO 2015](https://gecco-2015.sigevo.org/)

[GECCO 2014](https://gecco-2014.sigevo.org/)

[GECCO 2013](https://gecco-2013.sigevo.org/)

[GECCO 2012](https://gecco-2012.sigevo.org/)

[GECCO 2011](https://gecco-2011.sigevo.org/)

:::