Who is Allowed to Decide – Redefining Control in an Age of Autonomous and Agentic AI

Saartje Verbeke (PhD) joined GUBERNA in March 2020 as Lifelong Learning Manager and member of the Management Committee. She is also researcher at the Centre of expertise Financial Governance. She is responsible for the development and quality assurance of GUBERNA's basic training modules and in-house training. She performs research into new trends and evolutions within corporate governance with a focus on the impact of the sustainability transition on the functioning and roles of the board, and translates this research into continuous innovation of the training programme. Saartje worked several years in the academic world. She obtained her PhD at Ghent University in 2011 and continued working as a postdoctoral researcher at Fonds Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek Vlaanderen and as a guest professor at Ghent University. Apart from being passionate about good governance, she is an expert in linguistics, Indian languages and political organization of India. “Good governance: bringing structure in common sense”

Prof. Dr. Ingrid De Poorter is an seasoned board member, professor and governance expert with extensive experience at the intersection of technology, regulation and strategic oversight. She serves as an independent director of ING Belgium and IMEC International, where she contributes to discussions on innovation, risk, governance and the responsible use of emerging technologies. She also serves on several audit, risk and remuneration committees and has extensive experience in highly regulated and technology-driven environments. Ingrid is Professor at Ghent University, where she teaches and researches corporate governance, ethics and financial law. In addition, she is Managing Partner of DGDM Advocaten, an innovative Belgian law firm advising organizations on governance, technology, compliance and digital transformation. Her work focuses on how organizations can embrace innovation while maintaining trust, accountability and responsible decision-making in an increasingly digital and AI-driven world.

Matthias Feys is the Co-founder and Chief Technology Officer of ML6, a leading European AI consultancy. An expert in artificial intelligence, machine learning and cloud technologies, he leads the company’s technical strategy and innovation programmes. Beyond his role at ML6, Matthias is an adviser, community builder and frequent speaker on AI, helping organisations translate emerging technologies into practical business impact. He is a Google Developer Expert in Machine Learning and has played an active role in strengthening the Belgian and European AI ecosystem.

Peggy Valcke is Executive Board Member at BIPT, where she leads the Legal Service, HR and NetSec departments. She is also part-time Full Professor of Law & ICT at KU Leuven, co-director of imec-CiTiP and member of Leuven.AI. Her main areas of expertise cover media and communications, data protection and data governance, cybersecurity, and artificial intelligence. She is head of the Belgian delegation in CAI, the Council of Europe’s Committee on AI which prepared and negotiated the Framework Convention on AI, and previously served as Vice-Chair of CAI’s predecessor, CAHAI. She was one of the founding co-directors of the KDM until she joined BIPT in January 2024. Peggy was elected Belgium's Cyber Security Researcher 2025.

Nele Roekens is Project Manager Strategic Litigation and AI at Equinet, the European Network of Equality Bodies. She works at EU level to advance equality and fundamental rights through AI related litigation and legal strategy. She brings over eight years of experience from a national Fundamental Rights Authority, leading work on emerging technologies and non-discrimination. Previously, Nele chaired the European Network of National Human Rights Institutions’ Working Group on AI and represented ENNHRI at the Council of Europe’s Committee on Artificial Intelligence (CAI). She also served as an independent expert to the Council of Europe’s Committee of Experts on Artificial Intelligence, Equality, and Discrimination (GEC/ADI AI).