Allen Weeks

We use lasers every day – in barcode scanners, surgery, and in electronics. At ELI, lasers are pushed to extremes, powerful enough to probe the smallest structures of matter, explore fusion energy, and pioneer new medical therapies.

That’s the vision driving Allen Weeks, the Director General of ELI (Extreme Light Infrastructure), who leads the world’s most advanced laser research infrastructure based in Hungary and Czechia. An American who has made Europe his home for three decades, Allen has coordinated major scientific projects from Italy to Sweden before unifying ELI’s facilities under a single organisational structure. At Brain Bar, he will share how cutting-edge lasers are not just scientific marvels, but have the potential to impact all of our lives even more than they already do. 

Want to catch up with this special speaker at the festival and ask your burning questions? Grab your ticket — or if you're a student or teacher, sign up for a free pass!