Language and Communication Technologies
LCT Annual Meeting 2025
June 26-27 2025, Prague
Venue: School of Computer Science building (Malá Strana Campus), Malostranské náměstí 25, Prague 1, rooms S8 and S9 (1st floor)
Program
Thursday, June 26
8:45 corridor Registration, posters preparation (1st floor, in front of rooms S8, S9)
9:30 S9 Welcome
Mirko Rokyta, dean, Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, Charles University
Josef van Genabith, LCT project coordinator
Evgeniya Ustinova, LCT project management
10:00 S9 Invited talk
Jan Hajič, Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, Charles University
title: LLMs and symbolic meaning representations - perspectives and questions (slides)
abstract: Large Language Models have entered the field of Natural Language processing in a very
short time and very deeply. There are many interesting and useful applications, such as chatbots,
copilots, image and text generators and many other. While there are even more interesting applications
ahead, the talk will focus on the relation between LLMs and how they are traditionally built,
and their relation to symbolic meaning representations that rely on our introspection not only
about linguistic structure, but also our knowledge of the real world. Several boundary research questions
will be then presented for which we still don't have an answer, both from the fundamental research
perspective and from the application point of view.
10:45 corridor Coffee break
11:15 corridor Poster session I - Abstracts (both sessions)
12:00 corridor Poster session II
12:45 corridor Lunch
13:45 S9 Student meeting (incl. student rep elections, only for students of the intake 2024)
S8 in parallel with coordinators' meeting
15:30 corridor Coffee break
Consultations with local coordinators (e.g., individual comments/issues; Y2 information)
in parallel with graduates' preparation for ceremony
16:00 Refectory Graduation Ceremony in the Refectory (the same floor)
(formal dress required for graduates (a suit for men, and a cocktail dress / pant suit for women); others smart casual)
Jan Polák, vice rector, Charles University
Jiří Pavlů, vice dean, Faculty of mathematics and Physics, Charles University
Josef van Genabith, LCT project coordinator
student rep
music: George Frideric Händel — Eternal Source, Rejoice, Let the bright Seraphim
(organ: Jan Hajič jr., singing: Anna Petrtylová)
18:30 Reception at Café Hamu Malostranské náměstí 258 (the upper part of the square)
Friday, June 27
8:45 corridor registration
9:15 S9 Invited talk
Júlia Falcão, Barcelona Supercomputing Center (LCT alumna, intake 2021)
title: Training an LLM from scratch: a closer look at the key steps and the challenges (slides)
abstract: This talk will provide an overview of the complete process of training a Large Language Model
(LLM) from scratch, from the perspective of a research engineer in the Language Modeling group at the Barcelona
Supercomputing Center (BSC-CNS). This team was responsible for the Salamandra suite of open-source LLMs
in 2B, 7B and 40B parameters, trained on 35 European languages and codes. First, I will discuss the motivation
behind this project in the context of when it started, in light of the shift that followed the release of
ChatGPT. Then I will cover the key steps leading up to the final checkpoints and their release:
data collection and curation, architectural choices, the infrastructure that was used, and the evaluation process.
Throughout this overview, I will comment on some of the many challenges faced along the way, aiming to provide
a realistic view of what is a very intricate process. Finally, I will quickly comment on what we are working
on now since the release, and how we are still working to improve the models. The goal of this talk is to provide
a behind-the-scenes look at all the effort that goes behind the release of an open-source model that is fully
compliant with EU regulations.
10:00 S9 Plenary meeting: consortium & students
chair: Michael Awanah
Announcement of the new study rep.
11:00 corridor Coffee break
11:30 S9 Alumni session
graduates of the intake 2022 will share their experience after finishing the program
12:45 S9 Closing
13:00 Lunch
14:00-17:00 City tour
Each participant must have a ticket for public transport (30 mins ticket is enough, see below)
start: in front of the building
Accommodation: University Hotel Krystal - the hotel is 17 floors tall, you can’t miss it!
From the airport to Krystal:
-
How to get there:.
- from the airport, you can reach Krystal simply by trolley bus No. 59 to the Nádraží Veleslavín stop (15 min), then walk ca 550 m;
- operating from 4:20 to 23:30 (from the airport to the city) / from 5:10 to 0:20 (from the city to the airport) ,
- you need a ticket (for 30 min), also available through the PID LÍTAČKA app (see below).
- Avoid taxi if possible!
From Krystal to the Venue:
- metro line A to Malostranská metro station, then 1 stop by tram 12, 15, 20, or 23 to Malostranské náměstí (direction to the city center, not to the Prague Castle), approx. 25 minutes;
- you need a ticket (for 30 min), also available through the PID LÍTAČKA app (see below)
City transport in Prague:
- Fares - 30 min. (30 CZK) ticket is enough from Krystal to the venue (alternatively, 1 day or 3 days tickets are available)
- Zone P includes the metro, trams, trolley buses and city buses (lines Nos. 100 – 299 and 901 – 930), the Petřín funicular, ferries
- How to buy tram/metro tickets. Or you can use PID LÍTAČKA app.
Living in Prague - faculty webpage for incoming students with basic practical info
What to see in Prague:
- Prague official tourist portal
- Lonely Planet about Prague
-
and many others
Emergency Numbers
| Ambulance | Police | City Police | Fire Brigade | Emergency |
| 155 | 158 | 156 | 150 | 112 |