Hyderabad, Apr 10: In a first-of-its-kind initiative in India, the International Institute of Information Technology Hyderabad (IIIT-H) convened Learning & Longevity Symposium (LLS) 2026, placing learning—not medicine, fitness, or finance—at the centre of the longevity conversation.
Hosted by IIIT-H’s Third Age Learning (3AL) Research and Design Group, the symposium brought together leading voices from cognitive neuroscience, molecular biology, geriatric medicine, AI, game design, eldercare technology, and learning sciences. The goal: to explore a bold, unifying hypothesis — learning is the most powerful intervention for healthy aging.
The symposium unfolded across three thematic tracks: The Biology of Longevity, Third Age Learning, and The Longevity Ecosystem. The format encouraged unlikely but necessary intersections — neuroscientists engaging with game designers, dementia specialists in dialogue with edtech entrepreneurs, and cognitive scientists exchanging ideas with architects of the emerging silver economy.
“This symposium is not just an event, but the beginning of a sustained platform,” said Prof Vasudeva Varma, founder of the 3AL Research and Design Group. “We intend to return to these questions year after year—until solutions move from theory to practice.”
Adding to this, Sandeep Shukla, Director of IIIT Hyderabad, noted: “As life expectancy increases, the question is no longer just about living longer, but living meaningfully. Initiatives like this symposium reflect IIIT Hyderabad’s commitment to shaping that future—where technology, learning, and human potential come together to redefine aging.”
Opening the symposium, Prof. Varma highlighted a stark demographic reality: India’s elderly population is projected to exceed 350 million by 2050. He framed this as a “triple loss” if left unaddressed—cognitive decline in individuals, increased burden on families, and the erosion of accumulated societal wisdom.
The symposium also advanced 3AL’s evolving vision of a “Super Ager University”—a new kind of institution designed for individuals entering a third phase of life, with decades of active, meaningful contribution still ahead.
The symposium concluded with the launch of New North — a digital platform and podcast dedicated to reimagining life after 50. Co-created by Prof Vasudeva Varma and Santanu Paul, New North positions itself as a compass for navigating purpose, curiosity, and reinvention in later life.
Featuring conversations with distinguished academics, economists, and global AI researchers, the platform explores what it truly means to remain intellectually alive and socially impactful in the second half of life. Its guiding belief is simple yet powerful: it is never too late to become who you might have been.
The Third Age Learning (3AL) Research and Design Group at IIIT Hyderabad operates at the intersection of cognitive science, AI, learning technologies, and social design. Its long-term mission is to build the institutional and intellectual infrastructure for lifelong learning beyond 60.
The initiative collaborates with leading centres including Federation of Asian Biotech Associations (FABA), Language Technologies Research Center (LTRC), the Cognitive Sciences Lab, the Open Knowledge Initiative(OKI), and the Raj Reddy Center for Technology and Society (RCTS).
