Fondation Sopra Steria Grand Prize

Prize to recognise and support research carried out in Europein the field of artificial intelligence (AI) and responsible and sustainable technologies.

The Foundation Sopra Steria operates under the Institut de France and supports projects using digital technology to serve vulnerable people and the environment.

The Foundation’s Grand Prize falls awards research in the field of artificial intelligence (AI) and responsible and sustainable technologies. The 2027 edition of the Prize focuses on the impact of AI on the acquisition of knowledge in children, adolescents or young adults, throughout their educational and training path, from basic learning to higher education, from initial training to entry into working life.

The Prize aims to support work that helps to better understand the effects of AI on how young people acquire, mobilise, deepen and update their knowledge in the broadest sense: academic knowledge, cognitive and social skills, methodological skills, critical thinking, and intellectual dispositions necessary for learning.

The Prize recognises research projects already underway that have produced significant initial results on the proposed theme. The Prize money aims to acknowledge the scientific quality of the work carried out and to contribute to its continuation: further development, expansion, fieldwork or action research, or exploration of new avenues for development related to the results obtained.

Applications may include those from the humanities and social sciences such as education sciences, psychology, cognitive sciences, sociology, information and communication sciences, political science, law, linguistics, anthropology, any other relevant scientific discipline, or a multidisciplinary approach.

The expected contributions may fall within one or more of the following research areas:

• Analyse the effects of AI on young people’s access to knowledge – Research will be able to study how AI is transforming modes of access to knowledge and learning practices in different contexts, whether educational, academic, or social.
• Measuring the effects of AI on the cognitive and intellectual capacities used in learning – Research may address, for example, the effects of AI on executive functions (reasoning, analysis, problem-solving, etc), language and expression, memory and retention, and the development of faculties such as creativity, critical thinking, autonomy, curiosity, perseverance, etc.
• Identify the conditions that allow AI to positively support learning and intellectual empowerment – Research may examine the conditions under which AI can be a positive lever for learning, knowledge development, and skills enhancement in childhood and throughout the educational and training process. It may focus in particular on teaching practices, the roles of teachers, parents, trainers, educators, institutions, healthcare professionals, and the media, as well as learning environments and support mechanisms that enable the effective use of AI at different developmental stages.