Data-Centric Engineering for Sustainable Future with AI and Human-in-the-Loop

Dear Colleagues,

The 2025 IEEE Congress on Evolutionary Computation (CEC2025 https://www.cec2025.org) is a prestigious international event in the domain of Evolutionary Computation. It offers a platform for researchers and practitioners to come together and share their latest findings on Evolutionary Computation, covering areas such as algorithms, machine learning for optimisation and evolutionary learning, optimisation, and theoretical aspects.

The CEC2025 is excited to announce a Special Issue dedicated to the innovative applications of evolutionary computation across various disciplines, with a particular focus on sustainable futures. The session, "Evolutionary Computation in Multidisciplinary Applications for Sustainable Future (ECMASF, https://github.com/CIAD-LAB/IEEECEC2025-ECMASF)", aims to connect evolutionary computation with sustainability, encouraging innovative solutions to tackle global challenges.

Under the same editorial team and with the same scope, we extend a selective invitation to authors who have presented their research at the conference to submit enhanced versions of their work for consideration in prestigious peer-reviewed journals. These manuscripts must demonstrate significant advancement, with a minimum of 50% of original content beyond the conference paper.

1. Introduction and Scope:

This Special Issue explores the convergence of artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, and human-in-the-loop methodologies in developing sustainable engineering solutions. It focuses on integrating biomimetic principles with AI and human-centred design to address complex sustainability challenges in manufacturing, energy systems, and environmental management.

2. Topics of Interest:

We invite original research, reviews, and case studies on, but not limited to, the following:

• AI-driven sustainable engineering design;
• High-precision intelligent manufacturing with AI;
• Human–AI collaboration in eco-friendly lean manufacturing;
• Robotics for environmental monitoring and conservation;
• Digital twins and cyber–physical systems;
• High-performance computing in sustainable engineering with AI-in-the-loop;
• Industry 4.0/5.0 approaches to the circular economy;
• AI for energy-efficient systems;
• Human-in-the-loop machine learning for adaptive engineering;
• AI-enhanced life cycle assessment and product design;
• AI for multidisciplinary and social science applications;
• AI-driven energy systems for enhanced efficiency;
• Lifecycle assessment and design via AI;
• Bioinspired robotics in ecological restoration;
• Cross-disciplinary AI applications in social and environmental sciences;
• Autonomous systems including unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), unmanned surface vessels (USVs), autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs), autonomous driving systems (ADSs), etc.

Importance and Timeliness:

As we transition to Industry 4.0/5.0, this Special Issue provides a platform for sharing cutting-edge research on integrating AI, robotics, and human expertise with biomimetic principles in sustainable engineering.

Dr. Yi Chen
Dr. Dehong Huo
Dr. Xiangrong Su
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Biomimetics is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2200 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• artificial intelligence
• multidisciplinary engineering
• human-in-the-loop
• sustainable manufacturing
• Industry 4.0/5.0
• digital twins
• robotics
• autonomous systems
• cyber-physical systems
• nature-inspired algorithms
• eco-innovation
• machine learning