The specific timing of each Meet-Up will be confirmed later and published both on this page and in the final CHI 26 programme. Meet-Ups are free to attend, included with the main conference registration, and do not require any additional sign-up. Each Meet-Up runs for up to 90 minutes, is open to all CHI attendees, and will take place as scheduled without requiring participants to submit materials or submission in advance.
Please note that the following list of meet-ups might include minor details that are subject to change. Please check this page (and the individual meet-up pages) often for updates.
Exact timings and schedules are to be announced.
List of Accepted Meetups:
- M1: 1st Annual Human-CAT (Connection, Animals, Technology) Interaction Meet-Up
- M2: What Comes After Research? Exploring Alternative Research Outcomes in HCI
- M3: The Arts in HCI Tapestry: Networking, Making, and Reflecting Together
- M4: Bridging Factions: A Meet-up Connecting Diverse Perspectives in Human–Computer Interaction
- M5: Knots & Flows: An Engagement Design Meet-Up
- M6: Multi-sensory Dark Patterns
- M7: Architects at CHI
- M8: Meta-HCI: Practising Reflection in HCI Research
- M9: CHI Stitch ’n B*tch, A Feminist HCI Meetup
- M10: Sign-Up on Deaf Technologies: Reframing Access, Interaction, and Design
- M11: Embodiment in Action: Embodied Experiences of More-Than-Human Entanglements
- M12: Flourishing In Flux: Connecting on the Things That Keep (Us) Changing
- M13: Crossing the Academia–Practice Divide in Interaction Design
- M14: AI and the Self: Exploring Identity, Agency, and Relational Personhood
- M15: SportsHCI Meet-Up: Exploring the Role of AI in the Evolving World of SportsHCI
- M16: PhysioCHI: Lessons Learned from Implementing Human-Centered Physiological Computing
- M17: Meetup: Mentorship in HCI × Health Research
- M18: Neurodiversity Meet-Up @ CHI: Building a Neuro-Affirming Community in HCI
- M19: Follow Your Nose: Experiencing Smell as a Design Material
- M20: Disability, Differences, and Diversity: Revisiting Inclusive Design and Access
- M21: Cultures as Catalysts: Nurturing HCI Communities Across Regions
- M22: How Could AI Supply Chain Research Shape HCI Inquiries And Vice-Versa?
- M23: Meet ACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction: Submitting, Getting Accepted, and Being Involved
- M24: Generative Design and Vibe Coding: Rethinking The Design-Development Divide for UI Prototyping
- M25: RAI@CHI: Responsible and Human Centred AI Across Borders
- M26: The CHIndness of Strangers: Exploring Reciprocity and Pro-Social Action
- M27: Planetary boundaries and data in HCI
- M28: Legitimizing, Developing, and Sustaining Feminist HCI in East Asia: Challenges and Opportunities
- M29: NeuroHCI: Integrating Neuroscience and Human-Computer Interaction
- M30: The Role of AI in HCI Education
- M31: Strengthening the CHIIR Community: Bridging Interactive IR and HCI at CHI 2026
- M32: A Meet-Up done the Mediterranean way: prospects of the Mediterranean CHI community
Meet-Up Descriptions
M1: 1st Annual Human-CAT (Connection, Animals, Technology) Interaction Meet-Up
Website: humanCATinteraction.github.io
Date: 2026-04-13
Time: 16:30-18:00
Organizers:
- Chenxinran Elise Shen, University of Toronto
- Michael Yin, University of British Columbia
- Angela Chiang, University of British Columbia
- Preeti Vyas, University of British Columbia
- Xincheng Huang, University of British Columbia
- Robert Xiao, University of British Columbia
Description: This meet-up focuses on the relationship between humans, pets, and technology. The first part of the meet-up will involve informal networking among pet owners of the HCI community, as well as anyone interested in discussing pets. In a group setting, participants will share their experiences of balancing pet ownership with academic responsibilities, offer advice for both current and prospective pet owners, and highlight the current needs of pets and how they can be addressed. The latter part of the meet-up will focus on design for pets. The organizers will first discuss prior HCI work in the area. Then, in breakout groups, participants will engage in rapid brainstorming to identify challenges in designing for their pets and develop ideas to address these gaps. At the end, attendees will have employed design thinking towards human-pet interaction, while fostering a renewed appreciation for supporting and enriching the lives of their animal companions.
M2: What Comes After Research? Exploring Alternative Research Outcomes in HCI
Website: http://alternativeresearchoutcomes.com/
Date: 2026-04-15
Time: 14:15-15:45
Organizers:
- MinYoung Yoo, Simon Fraser University
- Sophia Ppali, CYENS Centre of Excellence
- Catherine Wieczorek, Georgia Institute of Technology
- Hayoun Noh, University of Oxford
- Seung Hyeon Han, KAIST
- Anna R. L., Northumbria University
- Alexandra Teixeira Riggs, Georgia Institute of Technology
- Nava Haghighi, Stanford University
- Yvon Ruitenburg, Eindhoven University of Technology
- William Odom, Simon Fraser University
Description: HCI researchers are increasingly producing outcomes that extend beyond academic papers – such as video and audio documentaries, zines, exhibitions, podcasts, DIY tutorials and many more. These Alternative Research Outcomes (AROs) open up new ways of communicating research insights, situate knowledge in specific contexts, and engage audiences outside of academic circles. While research work has positioned AROs as an emerging area of interest, open questions remain on ethics, ownership, evaluation and positionality. Our meet-up invites researchers, designers and practitioners who are interested in exploring alternative endpoints of HCI research. Rather than defining a single path forward, the meet-up serves as a collaborative space to share experiences, discuss challenges, and imagine how AROs might take shape in the future academic ecosystem. Attendees will leave with new connections, practical ideas, and a clearer sense of how alternative endpoints can strengthen the impact of their research.
M3: The Arts in HCI Tapestry: Networking, Making, and Reflecting Together
Website: https://hci-events.github.io/Arts-in-HCI-Tapestry/
Date: 2026-04-16
Time: 14:15-15:45
Organizers:
- Makayla Lewis, Kingston University London
- Denise Lengyel, Newcastle University
- Miriam Sturdee, University of St Andrews
- Nick Bryan-Kinns, University of the Arts London
- Mafalda Gamboa, Chalmers University of Technology & University of Gothenburg
- Gabriella Di Feola, Artist
- Swen E Gaudl, Gothenburg University
- Silvia Carderelli-Gronau, Bath Spa University
- Joseph Lindley, Lancaster University
- Sarah Fdili Alaoui, University of the Arts London
- Gerard Nolan, Kingston University London
Description: Throughout history, the arts and creative practices have played a pivotal role in HCI. They serve as inspirations, challenges, and innovative avenues for learning and extending HCI methods. While HCI often prioritises empirical evidence and outcomes, the art world emphasises diversity, process, and personal experiences. As generative AI and interdisciplinary collaboration grow, the relationship between art and HCI is undergoing a transformative shift, affecting how we make and think. Tapestries have long recorded changing narratives, practices, memories, and identities, capturing transformation. By tradition, they are collaborative productions of skilled craftspeople. Inspired by this, the meetup invites artists, designers, makers, technologists, researchers, educators, and others to create a shared tapestry ‘beyond warp and weft’. Attendees may contribute sensory elements to a paper surface (warp), including visual, tactile, auditory, kinaesthetic, gustatory, olfactory, cross-sensory, and social aspects (weft). The completed tapestry serves as a collective narrative that encapsulates the shared experiences of participants.
M4: Bridging Factions: A Meet-up Connecting Diverse Perspectives in Human–Computer Interaction
Website: https://hci-events.github.io/Bridging-Factions/
Date: 2026-04-14
Time: 14:15-15:45
Organizers:
- Makayla Lewis, Kingston University London
- Denise Lengyel, Newcastle University
- Miriam Sturdee, University of St Andrews
- Paul R Neve, Kingston University London
- Farzana Rahman, Kingston University London
- Anna R. L. Carter, Northumbria University
- Mauro Toselli, Independent Artist
Description: Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) flourishes through methodological diversity, encompassing computational, human-centric, theoretical, and integrative traditions. While this richness strengthens the field, it can also foster silos and misunderstandings. Computational work may be perceived as rigid, human-centric approaches as less rigorous, theoretical perspectives as abstract, and integrators as “jack-of-all-trades-master-of-none.” The Bridging Factions meet-up provides a friendly and inclusive environment for CHI attendees to acknowledge, explore, and connect across these divides. Through activities such as a post-it notes interests wall and speed networking, participants will identify shared interests, discover unexpected overlaps, and establish new connections across HCI “factions.” The session welcomes researchers, students, educators, and industry professionals—no prior expertise is necessary. By the conclusion of the meet-up, attendees will have expanded their networks, gained shared insights into cross-faction collaboration, and developed a stronger appreciation for how diverse approaches in HCI can complement one another.
M5: Knots & Flows: An Engagement Design Meet-Up
Website: https://sites.google.com/view/engagementdesignjam2026chi/home
Date: 2026-04-15
Time: 16:30-18:00
Organizers:
- Isabella Cadoni, University of Twente
- Ruben Gouveia, Universidade de Lisboa
- Bruna Oewel, University of California
- Kevin Doherty, University College Dublin
- Gianluca Schiavo, Fondazione Bruno Kessler
- Eftychia Roumelioti, Fondazione Bruno Kessler
- Roxanne Ziman, University of Bergen
- Laura Garrison, University of Bergen
- Saskia M Kelders, University of Twente
Description: This meet-up invites researchers and practitioners to collaboratively surface challenges, strategies, and perspectives on designing for engagement. Engagement is a central yet fragmented concept, with approaches and insights often emerging in silos across HCI subfields. Our goal is to foster networking and cross-pollination among HCI domains, establishing continuous dialogue on engagement practices beyond CHI 2026. Participant will explore differences and commonalities while co-creating a network of ideas to address shared challenges. Attendees will leave with a broadened perspective on engagement design, practical insights of community members, and new connections across fields.
M6: Multi-sensory Dark Patterns
Website: https://multisensorydarkpatterns.framer.website/
Date: 2026-04-15
Time: 14:15-15:45
Organizers:
- Karthikeya Puttur Venkatraj, TU Delft & Centrum Wiskunde & Informatica
- Donald Degraen, University of Canterbury
- Abdallah El Ali, Centrum Wiskunde & Informatica (CWI) & Utrecht University
- Jan Gugenheimer, TU-Darmstadt
- Gijs Huisman, Delft University of Technology
- Veronika Krauß, Ansbach University of Applied Sciences
- Christina Schneegass, TU Delft
- Steeven Villa, LMU Munich
Description: Deceptive patterns in visual interfaces – subtle nudges that persuade or manipulate users to take a certain action – have been researched extensively. Yet, little is known about how these patterns can be translated to the other human senses and what other forms of deception could be implemented for them. This meet-up aims to bring together researchers and practitioners with an interest in studying multi-sensory manipulative interface design, exploring how deceptive patterns for touch, sound, taste, and smell, but also lesser-known senses such as balance, pain, or interoception, can be created, embedded, and mitigated in and with current and future technologies. By facilitating the discussion of potential opportunities and risks across senses, we want to foster new collaborations to advance the field of responsible multisensory deceptive pattern research. In the long term, we hope to raise awareness of potential threats before they arise so we can better safeguard end users.
M7: Architects at CHI
Website: https://sites.google.com/view/architectsatchi/home
Date: 2026-04-14
Time: 14:15-15:45
Organizers:
- Mafalda Gamboa, Chalmers University of Technology & University of Gothenburg
- Kristina Andersen, Eindhoven University of Technology
- Peter Gall Krogh, Aarhus University
- Siddharth Nair, Umeå University
- Nava Haghighi, Stanford University
- Nantia Koulidou, Sheffield Hallam University
Description: This meetup brings together architects at CHI to reflect on how architectural training and practice have shaped trajectories in HCI, and to explore how architectural sensibilities have informed—and could further enrich—the field. We will begin with brief personal narratives: how participants came into HCI or interaction design, what architectural skills and ways of seeing they brought, and which theories continue to guide their work. In a collective mapping exercise, we will examine the relevance of architectural thinking for HCI, surfacing shared insights, divergent practices, and potential avenues for future research. Beyond networking, the session aims to provoke reflection on how architecture has influenced HCI in design processes, pedagogy, and aesthetics, particularly regarding space, materiality, poetics, and human experience. We will also consider critical perspectives, identifying architectural sensibilities that support or challenge current practices, while highlighting canonical architectural theories with promise for informing HCI research and design.
M8: Meta-HCI: Practising Reflection in HCI Research
Website: https://meta-hci.github.io/
Date: 2026-04-16
Time: 14:15-15:45
Organizers:
- Annika Kaltenhauser, University of St. Gallen
- James Peter Arnéra, University of Lausanne
- Amelie Unger, Universität zu Lübeck
- Sophia Ppali, CYENS Centre of Excellence
- Niels van Berkel, Aalborg University
- Benjamin Tag, University of New South Wales
- Elena L. Glassman, Harvard University
- Phoebe Sengers, Cornell University
- Simo Hosio, University of Oulu
- Jonas Oppenlaender, University of Oulu
Description: Reflection is recognised as vital for rigorous and responsible (HCI) research, yet it is often treated as secondary, hidden in the margins of papers. This meet-up invites CHI attendees to come together in the META HCI community to explore how we as researchers and practitioners reflect on our own practices – and how we might do so more intentionally.
Over 90 minutes, the session will provide a lively, informal forum for sharing experiences, surfacing challenges, and discussing the role of reflection in HCI. By fostering candid conversations about ourselves, our practices, and the structures that shape the field, the meet-up offers an opportunity for collective self-examination and connection across subfields, laying the groundwork for an enduring community of reflective practice.
M9: CHI Stitch ’n B*tch, A Feminist HCI Meetup
Website: https://sites.google.com/view/feministhci/
Date: 2026-04-16
Time: 16:30-18:00
Organizers:
- Nadia Campo Woytuk, KTH Royal Institute of Technology
- Nimra Ahmed, University of Zürich
- Mafalda Gamboa, Chalmers University of Technology & University of Gothenburg
- Fiona Bell, University of Maryland
- Benedetta Lusi, Erasmus Medical Center
- Daisy O’Neill, Eindhoven University of Technology
- Michael Muller, IBM Research
- Xinglin Sun, Tongji University
- Amelia Lee Dogan, University of Washington
- Adrian Petterson, University of Toronto
- Ana O Henriques, University of Lisbon
- Gisela Reyes-Cruz, University of Nottingham
- Anupriya Tuli, KTH Royal Institute of Technology
- Angelika Strohmayer, Northumbria University
Description: This meetup invites feminist researchers and allies to gather for a relaxed textile crafting session (for all levels of expertise, including complete beginners) alongside informal discussion of our research, experiences, and visions for community-building in HCI. Building on a tradition of grassroots feminist CHI gatherings named #CHIversity since 2017—including zine-making, lunch meetups, curating lists of feminist and social justice-oriented papers published at CHI each year, and online programs during the pandemic, this session provides a safe and creative space to connect in times of increasing academic precarity and censorship. The format facilitates networking across institutions, disciplines, and career stages, while fostering dialogue that affirms feminist ideas as central to HCI. By offering an explicitly critical feminist environment as part of the CHI program, this meetup not only supports immediate exchange and connection, but also strengthens the long-term continuity of feminist community within CHI.
M10: Sign-Up on Deaf Technologies: Reframing Access, Interaction, and Design
Website: http://experiencing-access.eu/chi26-meetup
Date: 2026-04-14
Time: 16:30-18:00
Organizers:
- Robin Angelini, TU Wien
- Maartje De Meulder, HU – University of Applied Sciences
- Shuxu Huffman, Colorado State University & Gallaudet University
- Raja Kushalnagar, Gallaudet University
- Abraham Glasser, Gallaudet University
- Oliver Suchanek, Metalab
Description: Research on technologies for deaf communities has grown in recent years, yet it remains fragmented across disciplines and is largely dominated by hearing, non-signing researchers. Deaf scholars and users remain significantly underrepresented, raising critical questions about whose perspectives guide research and development. This deaf-led Sign-Up seeks to address these issues by bringing together researchers from diverse fields to explore Deaf Tech as an emerging research field. Through interactive activities, including the World Café approach, participants will reflect on current challenges, collaboratively expand the understanding of deaf technologies, and identify directions and strategies for future works. The session invites both deaf and hearing researchers to come together, share experiences and perspectives, and build community around deaf technologies. Together, we will explore and strengthen practices and guidelines for research, design, and innovation in ways that are deaf-centered and critically informed.
M11: Embodiment in Action: Embodied Experiences of More-Than-Human Entanglements
Website: https://embodiment.tech-experience.at/
Date: 2026-04-15
Time: 16:30-18:00
Organizers:
- Diotima Bertel, AIT Austrian Institute of Technology GmbH & University of Salzburg
- Quynh Nguyen, AIT Austrian Institute of Technology GmbH & University of Salzburg
- Anna Blumenkranz, University of Salzburg
- Julia Himmelsbach, AIT Austrian Institute of Technology GmbH & University of Salzburg
- Simone Kriglstein, Masaryk University
- Bojana Nikolovska, Independent Researcher
- Maria Normark, Uppsala University
- Dorothé Smit, Vrije Universiteit
- Beatrix Wais-Zechmann, AIT Austrian Institute of Technology GmbH
- Yoko Akama, RMIT University
Description: This meet-up brings together HCI researchers, designers, and practitioners to explore embodiment and more-than-human relations through a shared, situated, and embodied experience. While fourth-wave HCI has increasingly addressed the entanglement of bodies, technologies, and systems of power, such discussions are often abstract and disembodied. This session counters that trend by centring participants’ lived, bodily states, such as hunger, fatigue, joy, and discomfort, through a series of rotating, themed stations inspired by embodied design and World Café methods. Participants will reflect on how social inequalities, technologies, and non-human actors are inscribed in and experienced through the body. By approaching embodiment with our own bodies at the centre, this meet-up aims to cultivate a sense of community, inspire new research perspectives, and foster long-term collaborations. Attendees will leave not only with insights but with a felt sense of relationality that extends beyond the session.
M12: Flourishing In Flux: Connecting on the Things That Keep (Us) Changing
Website: https://sites.google.com/view/flourishinginflux/home
Date: 2026-04-13
Time: 16:30-18:00
Organizers:
- Jaydon Farao, University of Cape Town
- Arissa J. Sato, Independent Researcher
- Ajit G. Pillai, The university of Sydney
- Sophia Ppali, CYENS Centre of Excellence
Description: Transitions–between career stages, life events, project phases, and social roles–shape how researchers work, learn, grieve, and collaborate. This Meet-Up centres those liminal moments through two complementary activities: a rotating communal beadwork practice and a soundscape co-creation and listening session. Over 90 minutes, small teams engage through beadwork themes (each theme is associated with different bead types and a transition prompt) to gradually build a bead strip that documents personal and professional transitions. The group then uses a multi-media activity–voice fragments, environmental sounds, and vibrations–to surface how transitions sound, feel, and reconfigure relationships. Outputs include textile artifacts and a short soundscape collage shared with participants after the conference. We emphasize artistic and generative practices by co-creating prompts as a collective that is currently in flux both personally and professionally, and designing activities to invite multiple epistemologies into HCI practice.
M13: Crossing the Academia–Practice Divide in Interaction Design
Date: 2026-04-16
Time: 14:15-15:45
Organizers:
- José Abdelnour Nocera, University of West London & ITI Larsys
- Elizabeth F Churchill, Mohamed Bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence
- Torkil Clemmensen, Copenhagen Business School
- Marta Kristín Lárusdóttir, Reykjavik University
- Teresa Macchia, Rolls-Royce
- Marta Rey, Zillow
- Tony Russell-Rose, University of London & UXLabs
- Aletta Smits, Hanze University of applied Science
Description: The divide between academic research and professional practice in interaction design continues to challenge how methods, ethics, and innovation are understood and applied. This CHI 2026 meet-up creates a forum where academics, practitioners, and industry leaders can reflect together, share experiences, and explore collaborations. Structured activities will help participants map shared concerns (such as ethics in AI, sustainability, usability in context, and evolving educational practices) while also strengthening cross-sector connections and identifying opportunities for action. The aim is to cultivate a practice-aware, inclusive community that ensures HCI research remains connected, relevant, and impactful. The meet-up capitalizes on the conversations and relationships sparked at ARPPID 2025 (Academic Research and Professional Practice in Interaction Design), a working conference that brought these issues to the fore, extending them into the CHI community and charting directions for future collaboration.
M14: AI and the Self: Exploring Identity, Agency, and Relational Personhood
Date: 2026-04-14
Time: 16:30-18:00
Organizers:
- Amy McCerery, Northumbria University
- Jayne Wallace, Northumbria University
- William Gaver, Northumbria University
- Kyle Montague, Northumbria University
- William Odom, Simon Fraser University
- Samuel Barnett, Simon Fraser University
- Austin L. Toombs, Indiana University
- Anja Thieme, Microsoft Research
- Claire Craig, Royal College of Art
- Tiago Guerreiro, Universidade de Lisboa
Description: HCI research has a strong background of engaging with identity, values, and lived experience, and has started to explore the role of technology in contexts such as stroke, bereavement, and dementia. By personhood, we mean the recognition of individuals as whole people with histories, relationships, and capacities for growth, rather than being defined solely by their health, impairments, or vulnerabilities. However, questions of how AI mediates and supports what it means to be a person, remain under-researched. This meet-up will position personhood as a central concern for the future of HCI research. Therefore, we invite CHI attendees to explore how Artificial Intelligence (AI) can be designed and used for supporting personhood.
This meet-up will focus on methodological and ethical challenges of how HCI researchers can responsibly adopt and study AI systems in ways that sustain dignity, autonomy, and personhood. In particular, discussions will address methods that examine how AI may reconfigure personhood, as well as the risks associated with deficit-based framings that position people primarily in terms of problems to be solved. These framings can have negative consequences, such as undermining agency, narrowing opportunities for expression, reinforcing harmful stereotypes, and producing designs that not only fail to support people but may increase the current inequalities and exploitation.
M15: SportsHCI Meet-Up: Exploring the Role of AI in the Evolving World of SportsHCI
Date: 2026-04-14
Time: 14:15-15:45
Organizers:
- Vincent van Rheden, University of Salzburg
- Michelle Adiwangsa, Australian National University
- Maria Fernanda Montoya, Monash University
- Ian Smith, University of New Brunswick
- Don Samitha Elvitigala, Monash University
- Daniel Harrison, Northumbria University
- Amon Rapp, University of Turin
- Alexander Meschtscherjakov, University of Salzburg
- Florian ‘Floyd’ Mueller, Monash University
Description: Sports Human-Computer Interaction (SportsHCI) is a growing field that is dedicated to investigating the coming together of human-computer interaction and sports. Through this meet-up, we aim to bring together the SportsHCI community and engage adjacent communities including User-centered AI, MobileHCI, CHIPlay, ISWC-Ubicomp, and Augmented Humans. Sports inherently involves mobile, playful, and ubiquitous technologies as well as human augmentation—making SportsHCI directly relevant to these subcommunities. By framing discussions around AI in the athlete experience and the role of multifaceted sports data, we create natural entry points for researchers across these domains. We invite participants to discuss their thoughts on these topics to foster collaboration among research groups.
M16: PhysioCHI: Lessons Learned from Implementing Human-Centered Physiological Computing
Website: https://physiohci.com/chi26meetup/
Date: 2026-04-13
Time: 16:30-18:00
Organizers:
- Kathrin Schnizer, LMU Munich
- Teodora Mitrevska, LMU Munich
- Benjamin Tag, University of New South Wales
- Abdallah El Ali, Centrum Wiskunde & Informatica (CWI) & Utrecht University
- Sven Mayer, TU Dortmund University & Research Center Trustworthy Data Science and Security
Description: Integrating physiological signals in Human-Computer Interaction research has significantly advanced our understanding of user experiences and interactions. However, the interdisciplinary nature of this research presents numerous technical challenges. These include the lack of standardized protocols, unclear guidelines for data collection and preprocessing, and difficulties in pipeline management, reproducibility, and transparency. The purpose of this meet-up is to offer a lightweight opportunity for CHI attendees to connect around these issues, exchange experiences, share tools and workflows, and identify best practices. By fostering open exchange, we aim to improve the reliability of physiological data in HCI, promote open science, and build a sustainable community. Ultimately, our goal is to overcome technical barriers and strengthen the foundation for future research in physiological computing.
M17: Meetup: Mentorship in HCI × Health Research
Website: https://www.hcihealth.org/upcoming-and-past-events/chi-26-meetup
Date: 2026-04-15
Time: 14:15-15:45
Organizers:
- Ignacio Avellino, Sorbonne Université
- James R Wallace, University of Waterloo
- Francisco Nunes, Fraunhofer Portugal AICOS & Comprehensive Health Research Center (CHRC)
- Jason Wiese, University of Utah
- Helena M. Mentis, Drexel University
- Sean A. Munson, University of Washington
- Aneesha Singh, University College London
- Chia-Fang Chung, University of California
- Pin Sym Foong, National University of Singapore
Description: This meetup is a mentorship and community-building space for researchers working in HCI × Health, including undergraduate and graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and early-career faculty. Through two activities, participants will have the opportunity to discuss challenges they currently face when establishing their careers. In a 60-min structured mentorship discussion activity, mentors will share experiences in three rotations around five possible selected topics. Then during a 30-minute social networking session, participants will engage in a This or That game. This meetup will strengthen relationships and foster new connections that can have profound effects on the careers of researchers-in-training.
M18: Neurodiversity Meet-Up @ CHI: Building a Neuro-Affirming Community in HCI
Website: https://sites.google.com/view/ndmeetupchi26/home
Date: 2026-04-15
Time: 16:30-18:00
Organizers:
- Nathalie Alexandra “Alex” Penglin Tcherdakoff, University of Bristol
- Patricia Piedade, Universidade de Lisboa
- Grace Jane Stangroome, University of Bristol
- Marta E. Cecchinato, Northumbria University
- Antonella Nonnis, LCC Design School UAL
- Shoko Kimura, Nagoya Institute of Technology
- Nicolai Brodersen Hansen, Aalborg University
- Laura Maye, University College Cork
- Anna R. L. Carter, Northumbria University
Description: This Meet-Up aims to support the neurodiverse communities at CHI and broaden our examination of our practices, with the goal of fostering neuro-affirming environments both within and outside academia. Following our Special Interest Group (SIG) meeting at CHI last year, we aim to further establish a sense of community, continuity, and tradition at CHI and continue these discussions in the long term. We build on our existing resources and community from this SIG and seek to continue extending it in future years, welcoming participants of any neurotype to join us in this endeavour. We focus on shared strategies, creating infrastructure, and providing access to information through documentation. We will discuss how different actors at micro (individual), meso (community), and macro (structural) levels can help distribute access labour through a World Café-style discussion, followed by a document of resources for the community to access.
M19: Follow Your Nose: Experiencing Smell as a Design Material
Website: https://www.multisensoryexperiences.co.uk/chi-2026-meetup-follow-your-nose
Date: 2026-04-13
Time: 14:15-15:45
Organizers:
- Marianna Obrist, University College London
- Ceylan Beşevli, University College London
- Emanuela Maggioni, Hynt Labs Limited
- Mei-Kei Lai, Macao Polytechnic University
- Carlos Velasco, BI Norwegian Business School
Description: Over the past decades, olfactory interfaces have moved from the margins to the forefront of inquiry and design in HCI research and practice. Yet, while technical and interaction-focused work has advanced, there has been limited collective engagement with scent as a design material and its potential to shape multisensory experience. Building on this growing interest, the Follow Your Nose meet-up invites researchers, practitioners, and designers to collaboratively explore scent in this broader, practice-led context. We will draw on the olfactory design space through light, nose-first activities exploring how scents i) shape spatial experience, ii) evoke emotions and memories, iii) unfold over time, iv) reveal chemical contrasts that influence perception, and v) convey recognisable qualities (e.g., fruity, woody, musky). Through these activities, we will reflect on scent as a medium for interaction and surface emerging questions, opportunities, and directions for research and practice in olfactory and multisensory HCI.
M20: Disability, Differences, and Diversity: Revisiting Inclusive Design and Access
Website: https://tacit-project.nl:443/chi26-meetup/
Date: 2026-04-16
Time: 16:30-18:00
Organizers:
- Himanshu Verma, TU Delft
- Giulia Barbareschi, University of Duisburg-Essen
- Sophia Ppali, CYENS Centre of Excellence
- Kathrin Gerling, Human-Computer Interaction and Accessibility
- Maartje De Meulder, HU – University of Applied Sciences
- Judith Good, University of Amsterdam
- Jatinder Singh, University of Duisburg-Essen
- Katta Spiel, TU Wien
- Abdallah El Ali, Centrum Wiskunde & Informatica (CWI)
- Marios Constantinides, CYENS Centre of Excellence
- Maristella Matera, Politecnico di Milano
- Monica Perusquia-Hernandez, Nara Institute of Science and Technology
- Hamed Alavi, University of Amsterdam
- Pablo Cesar, Centrum Wiskunde & Informatica (CWI)
- Alessandro Bozzon, Delft University of Technology
Description: Over 1.3 billion people worldwide live with long-term disabilities, yet many still face systemic exclusion despite advances in accessibility policy and technology. New regulations such as the EU Accessibility Act demand comprehensive transitions, but compliance risks becoming a superficial “checklist” exercise rather than fostering meaningful inclusion. For the HCI community, this moment calls for rethinking our approaches to participation, technology, ethics, and policy. In this meetup, we bring together researchers, practitioners, and advocates to revisit inclusive design through four themes: rethinking inclusive methodologies, disentangling technological challenges, unpacking ethical implications, and navigating policy opportunities. Through interactive mapping activities, participants will share practices, identify collaboration opportunities, and co-develop future directions. Our goal is to build cross-disciplinary connections and create actionable approaches that move beyond compliance toward holistic inclusion, ensuring that accessibility remains central to HCI research and practice.
M21: Cultures as Catalysts: Nurturing HCI Communities Across Regions
Website: https://sites.google.com/view/regionalcommitees-chi2026
Date: 2026-04-13
Time: 16:30-18:00
Organizers:
- Maristella Matera, Politecnico di Milano
- Zhicong Lu, George Mason University
- Gustavo Lopez, University of Costa Rica
- Houda Elmimouni, University of Manitoba
- Susan Dray, Dray Associates
Description: This Meet-Up explores how regional cultural values can act as a catalyst for the growth and sustainability of HCI communities and research agendas worldwide. Organized by the chairs of SIGCHI Regional Committees (Asia CHI, Latin America CHI, Mediterranean CHI), with support from the SIGCHI VP at Large, the session positions Regional Committees as bridges that attract new participants, mentor and nurture local ecosystems, and connect bottom-up initiatives to the global CHI network. Through short framings, small-group dialogues, and collective synthesis, we will surface culture-aware practices for attraction, mentoring and opportunities for culturally grounded community-building and collaboration. The session aims to produce a concise set of reusable outputs (1) better attract and welcome newcomers and underrepresented groups; (2) nurture local communities via context-sensitive programming; and (3) translate regional insights into globally visible collaborations within SIGCHI.
M22: How Could AI Supply Chain Research Shape HCI Inquiries And Vice-Versa?
Date: 2026-04-13
Time: 14:15-15:45
Organizers:
- Inha Cha, Georgia Institute of Technology
- David Gray Widder, University of Texas at Austin
- Blair Attard-Frost, University of Toronto
- Jatinder Singh, University of Cambridge & Research Center Trustworthy Data Science and Security (RC-Trust) of the UA Ruhr
- Agathe Balayn, Microsoft Research
Description: HCI research on AI has largely focused on end-user interactions or the practices of developers working to improve system performance. This meetup proposes to broaden that scope of interaction to encompass the material, political, and economic dynamics that shape AI across its lifecycle. Drawing on STS, we recognize AI as the outcome of extended supply chains involving practitioners, organizations, infrastructures, and governance, all entangled with power asymmetries and economic incentives. Much of this supply chain remains invisible within HCI, yet it profoundly influences how AI systems are designed, deployed, and experienced. The meetup will bring together HCI scholars to explore how supply chain perspectives can enrich HCI research. We plan to gather researchers of the HCI community and beyond, in order to discuss how they could integrate the AI supply chain in their research and what would be the implications, and how HCI can further contribute to supply chain studies.
M23: Meet ACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction: Submitting, Getting Accepted, and Being Involved
Date: 2026-04-13
Time: 14:15-15:45
Organizers:
- Kasper Hornbæk, University of Copenhagen
- Tiffany D. Do, Drexel University
- Irmandy Wicaksono, National University of Singapore
- Sanchari Das, George Mason University
- Christopher Frauenberger, Interdisciplinary Transformation University
Description: The purpose of this meetup is to give CHI attendees a better understanding of ACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction (TOCHI). This happens by presenting the goals of TOCHI, giving attendees the opportunity to give input to TOCHI, and by informal discussions between attendees and the editorial board about paper ideas, directions for the journal, and being part of its organization.
M24: Generative Design and Vibe Coding: Rethinking The Design-Development Divide for UI Prototyping
Website: www.genai-prototyping.fun
Date: 2026-04-15
Time: 16:30-18:00
Organizers:
- Xinqi Zhang, Santa Clara University
- Hariharan Subramonyam, Stanford University
- Advait Sarkar, Microsoft Research
- Ian Drosos, Trent AI
- Zichao Wang, Adobe
- Kyungho Lee, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST)
- Veronica Pimenova, University of Michigan
- Xiang ‘Anthony’ Chen, UCLA
- Kai Lukoff, Santa Clara University
Description: Prototyping has long been central to HCI as a way of knowing for exploring and communicating design ideas. Recent advances in Generative AI Practices—from Generative Design to Vibe Coding—are reshaping who prototypes and how. These approaches blur boundaries between designers and developers, enabling faster, more inclusive workflows while raising new challenges around trust, authorship, and control. This CHI 2026 meet-up will gather researchers and practitioners to discuss how AI-assisted prototyping transforms Houde and Hill’s dimensions of “look and feel” and “implementation”. Through a hands-on Designathon, participants will reflect on opportunities, breakdowns, and best practices for human–AI collaboration in prototyping.
M25: RAI@CHI: Responsible and Human Centred AI Across Borders
Website: https://rai.ac.uk/upcoming-events/rai-chi26/
Date: 2026-04-14
Time: 16:30-18:00
Organizers:
- Neelima Sailaja, University of Nottingham
- Joel E Fischer, University of Nottingham
- Rishub Jain, Google DeepMind
- Neha Kumar, Georgia Tech
- Simone Stumpf, University of Glasgow
- Min Kyung Lee, King’s College London
- Heloisa Candello, IBM Research
- Raquel Iniesta, King’s College London
Description: As AI deployment accelerates globally, the urgency for responsible AI(RAI) frameworks has catalysed unprecedented policy initiatives and research investments worldwide. The CHI community, positioned uniquely at the intersection of technology, people, society, and values, has a crucial role in shaping RAI development. This meet-up brings together international HCI researchers working across value-sensitive design, human-centered AI, ethics, explainability, trustworthy AI, sustainability and equitability to foster collaborative dialogue on CHI’s perspectives and potential in RAI. Through an interactive town hall format featuring community standups, democratic topic selection, and structured roundtable discussions, we will generate actionable outcomes including network building, knowledge sharing, and concrete collaboration opportunities for the CHI community around RAI. This meetup would serve as a foundational response from the CHI community to establish priorities, forge connections, and catalyse the next generation of RAI research that centers human values, promotes fairness, and advances democratic principles in an era of AI transformation.
M26: The CHIndness of Strangers: Exploring Reciprocity and Pro-Social Action
Date: 2026-04-13
Time: 14:15-15:45
Organizers:
- Pamela Briggs, Northumbria University
- Jayne Wallace, Northumbria University
- Rob Bowman, Northumbria University
- Kyle Montague, Northumbria University
- Claire Craig, Royal College of Art
- Austin L. Toombs, Indiana University
Description: The main goal of this meet-up is to facilitate the exchange of hand-made gifts between strangers, building on previous work by the authors that explores care ethics and the value of making for others. Essentially, the meet-up explores a radically new form of building connections between CHI delegates, asking them to take time out before (or during) the conference in order to craft a small gift, based on a strictly limited understanding of the likes and dislikes of the unknown other. The exchange of gifts is designed to reduce the social anxiety associated with meeting strangers, and the display of gifts within the meet-up will act as forceful prompt for initial discussion.
M27: Planetary boundaries and data in HCI
Date: 2026-04-16
Time: 16:30-18:00
Organizers:
- Jonas Frich, Aarhus University
- Eva Eriksson, Aarhus University
- Rikke Hagensby Jensen, Aarhus University
- Elisabet M. Nilsson, Malmö university
- Lars Holmberg, Malmö University
- Daisy Yoo, Eindhoven University of Technology
- Mathias Funk, Eindhoven University of Technology
- Wolmet Barendregt, Eindhoven University of Technology
Description: This meet-up invites the Human-Computer Interaction community to figure out what sustainable data practices are in relation to planetary boundaries. The multiple ecological crises we are facing demand transformative change. We believe data is at the core of moving beyond talking about sustainability as an elusive concept, but what does this mean for data practices in HCI, and how do we move from talking about sustainability to consider planetary boundaries? The aim of this meet-up is to build a network, stimulate reflective discussions and practice-sharing among members of the HCI community on planetary boundaries and data practices in HCI, and envision actionable ways forward.
M28: Legitimizing, Developing, and Sustaining Feminist HCI in East Asia: Challenges and Opportunities
Website: https://feminist-hci.github.io/
Date: 2026-04-16
Time: 16:30-18:00
Organizers:
- Runhua ZHANG, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
- Ruyuan Wan,Pennsylvania State University
- Jiaqi Li, Northeastern University
- Daye Kang, Cornell
- Yigang Qin, Syracuse University
- Yijia Wang, Institute of Science Tokyo
- Ziqi Pan,The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
- Tiffany Knearem, MBZUAI
- Huamin Qu, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
- Xiaojuan Ma, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
Description: Feminist HCI has been rapidly developing in East Asian contexts in recent years. The region’s unique cultural and political backgrounds have contributed valuable, situated knowledge, revealing topics such as localized digital feminism practices, or women’s complex navigation among social expectations. However, the very factors that ground these perspectives also create significant survival challenges for researchers in East Asia. These include a scarcity of dedicated funding, the stigma of being perceived as less valuable than productivity-oriented technologies, and the lack of senior researchers and established, resilient communities. Grounded in these challenges and our prior collective practices, we propose this meet-up with two focused goals: (1) to provide a legitimized channel for Feminist HCI researchers to connect and build community, and (2) to facilitate an action-oriented dialogue on how to legitimize, develop, and sustain Feminist HCI in the East Asian context.
M29: NeuroHCI: Integrating Neuroscience and Human-Computer Interaction
Website: https://neurohci.github.io/CHI2026/
Date: 2026-04-15
Time: 14:15-15:45
Organizers:
- Amber Maimon, University of Bremen & Ben Gurion University of the Negev
- Iddo Yehoshua Wald, University of Bremen
- Yudai Tanaka, University of Chicago
- Yun Ho, University of Chicago
- Jamie A Ward, Goldsmiths University of London
- Max L Wilson, University of Nottingham
- Kristina Höök, KTH Royal Institute of Technology
- Pedro Lopes, University of Chicago
- Rainer Malaka, University of Bremen
Description: This meet-up will bring together researchers and practitioners interested in the timely intersection of neuroscience and human–computer interaction (NeuroHCI). Advances in performance and accessibility of methods such as EEG, fNIRS, BCIs, and biosensing open new possibilities for design and interaction while also raising conceptual, technical, and ethical challenges. The session will employ engaging, interactive activities to maximize dialog, including an exercise that invites participants to experience embodied approaches to interaction. Our goal is to catalyze interdisciplinary collaboration, strengthen and grow the NeuroHCI community, and identify promising directions for future research and practice.
M30: The Role of AI in HCI Education
Website: https://pokristensson.com/meetup-ai-in-hci-education.html
Date: 2026-04-14
Time: 16:30-18:00
Organizers:
- Per Ola Kristensson, University of Cambridge
- Elizabeth F. Churchill, Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence
- Kasper Hornbæk, University of Copenhagen
- Antti Oulasvirta, Aalto University
- Malak Sadek, Cambridge University
- Albrecht Schmidt, LMU Munich
- Lin-Ping Yuan, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
Description: While AI has a long history in HCI, AI is now readily accessible to everyone and providing a level of performance that makes the use of AI tractable across a wide range of applications. As such, HCI needs to seriously consider the role of AI in HCI education. This meet-up serves as a catalyst to create a community within HCI, discussing how we teach HCI in the era of AI from four perspectives: (1) theory; (2) practice; (3) assessment; and (4) an inclusive community.
M31: Strengthening the CHIIR Community: Bridging Interactive IR and HCI at CHI 2026
Website: https://sites.google.com/view/chiir-at-chi2026/home
Date: 2026-04-16
Time: 14:15-15:45
Organizers:
- Haiming Liu, University of Southampton
- Rob Capra, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
- Paul Thomas, Microsoft
- Jaap Kamps, University of Amsterdam
- Toine Bogers, IT University Copenhagen
- Morgan A Harvey, University of Sheffield
- Rosie Jones, Spotify
- Chang Liu, Peking University
- Udo Kruschwitz, University of Regensburg
- Stephann Makri, University of London
- Laurianne Sitbon, Queensland University of Technology (QUT)
- Adam Roegiest, Zuva
- Johanne R Trippas, RMIT University
Description: This meet-up will bring together members of the ACM SIGIR In formation Interaction and Retrieval (CHIIR) community and the broader CHI audience to strengthen cross-community dialogue on interactive information retrieval (IIR), search interfaces, and human-centred evaluation methods. Through structured activities, networking opportunities, and collaborative brainstorming, the session aims to identify common challenges, inspire collaborations, and chart a forward-looking research agenda that connects CHI and CHIIR communities.
M32: A Meet-Up done the Mediterranean way: prospects of the Mediterranean CHI community
Website: https://sites.google.com/view/medchichi2026/home-page
Date: 2026-04-14
Time: 14:15-15:45
Organizers:
- George Caridakis, Aegean University
- Joel Lanir, The University of Haifa
- Maristella Matera, Politecnico di Milano
- Valentina Nisi, IST University of Lisbon
- Giuliana Vitiello, Università di Salerno
Description: The Mediterranean is a living laboratory where deep cultural practices meet rapid technological change. This Mediterranean CHI Committee (MedCHI) Meet-Up convenes researchers, practitioners, and students to co-design a participatory roadmap for Mediterranean HCI: practical priorities, near-term projects, and commitments that reflect regional values (heritage, hospitality, migration, sustainability, and strong community ties). Through interactive discussions we will produce open artifacts (a public roadmap, contact network, and project briefs) and position the Mediterranean perspectives as first-class contributions to SIGCHI’s global agenda.
