The Selection Committee for the ACM/SIGAI Autonomous Agents Research Award is pleased to announce that Sven Koenig is the recipient of the 2026 award.

Professor Koenig is Chancellor’s Professor and Bren Chair in the Department of Computer Science at the University of California, Irvine. He is one of the foundational figures in modern AI planning and search, whose work has fundamentally shaped how intelligent agents reason and act in complex, dynamic environments.

His contributions seamlessly bridge theory and practice, with a profound impact not only on artificial intelligence and multi-agent systems, but also on robotics, where his algorithms have enabled robust, scalable autonomy in real-world robotic platforms.

A Fellow of the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence, American Association for the Advancement of Science, and Association for Computing Machinery, Professor Koenig has received several best paper awards from AAAI Conference on Artificial Intelligence, International Conference on Automated Planning and Scheduling, and Symposium on Combinatorial Search. He has also contributed extensively to the research community through numerous service roles, most recently serving as Conference Chair of AAAI 2026.

Call for Nominations: 2025 Autonomous Agents Award

Nominations are solicited for the 2026 ACM SIGAI Autonomous Agents Research Award. This award is made for excellence in research in the area of autonomous agents. It is intended to recognize researchers in autonomous agents whose current work is an important influence on the field. The award is an official ACM award, funded by an endowment created by ACM SIGAI from the proceeds of previous Autonomous Agents conferences. The recipient of the award will receive a monetary prize and a certificate, and will be invited to present a plenary talk at the AAMAS 2026 conference.

How to Nominate

Anyone can make a nomination. Nominations should be made by filling out the below google form, and should consist of a short (< 1 page) statement that emphasizes not only the research contributions that the individual has made that merit the award but also how the individual’s current work is an important influence on the field.

NOTE: a candidate can only be considered for the award if they are explicitly nominated. If you believe that someone deserves the award, then NOMINATE THEM — don’t assume that somebody else will!

Nomination Link: https://forms.gle/RNLZgbbaPQe6TDsb6

Important Dates

• 15 December 2025 — Deadline for nominations
• 1 February 2026 — Announcement of winner
• 25-29 May 2026 — AAMAS-2026 conference in Paphos, Cyprus

For any questions please contact Edith Elkind (Award Chair, edith.elkind@northwestern.edu) or Louise Dennis (SIGAI Vice Chair, louise.dennis@manchester.ac.uk).