Students from Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia are spending the first two weeks of September studying the mathematics behind artificial intelligence at a new regional summer school held in Batumi and Kutaisi, Georgia.
The program, called MAI 2026 (“Mathematics for AI”), began September 1 at Batumi Shota Rustaveli State University and runs through September 9 at Kutaisi International University (KIU), according to the organizers. It coincides with two academic conferences: the XVI International Conference of the Georgian Mathematical Union in Batumi and the Second International Conference on Algebra, Analysis, and Applications in Kutaisi.
What students are learning
The curriculum covers algebra, functional analysis, mathematical logic and statistics, framed around how each field underpins modern machine learning. Organizers say the goal is to give Caucasus-region students a grounding in the theory behind AI research, rather than training on applied tools.
Nine instructors are teaching, from institutions in Israel, Canada, Italy, Brazil, Germany, the United States and France. They include Elena Bunina of Bar-Ilan University, Anastasis Kratsios of the Vector Institute, and Davit Gogolashvili, a Georgian mathematician now at Germany’s Weierstrass Institute for Applied Analysis and Stochastics. The school is chaired by Alexander Meskhi of KIU.
Registration costs €200, covering materials and meals, and organizers say a limited number of fee waivers and accommodation grants are available for students who cannot cover the cost themselves.
Part of a broader push
The school follows a run of AI-education initiatives in Georgia this year, including George Washington University’s new AI master’s program in Tbilisi. A recent survey found a shortage of AI skills remains the top barrier Georgian businesses report when adopting the technology — a gap that academic programs like MAI 2026 aim to narrow from the university side.