Zsolt Szalay Appointed Vice President of HUN-REN for Engineering and Natural Sciences

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Dr. Zsolt Szalay, Head of the Department of Automotive Technologies at the Budapest University of Technology and Economics (BME), has been appointed Vice President for Engineering and Natural Sciences (STEM) at the HUN-REN Hungarian Research Network, effective March 1, 2026.

The appointment is part of HUN-REN’s ongoing organizational and operational renewal. The Governing Board of the research network has appointed three Vice Presidents for specific scientific domains in order to strengthen collaboration across institutions and enhance research and innovation performance. Dr. Zsolt Szalay will oversee the coordination of engineering and natural sciences, while Dr. Péter Nagy will be responsible for life sciences and Dr. Petra Aczél for frontier sciences.

The HUN-REN Hungarian Research Network is one of Hungary’s most significant scientific institutions: its research centres, institutes, and supported research groups bring together thousands of researchers working to advance scientific knowledge, foster innovation, and strengthen the country’s international competitiveness. The Vice Presidents play a key role in the strategic coordination of this complex system, supporting research excellence and promoting cross-institutional collaboration and new research directions.

Dr. Zsolt Szalay has more than three decades of experience in automotive innovation, with a research focus on the verification and validation of automated vehicle systems. Alongside his academic work at BME, he has played a key role in the establishment and professional development of the ZalaZONE automotive proving ground. Throughout his career, he has consistently worked to advance the industrial application and commercialization of university research results. He has led numerous EU-funded R&D projects and is an active contributor to the development of Hungary’s innovation ecosystem. Alongside his new role, he will continue his academic and leadership duties at the university.

“It is a great honor to receive this appointment, and I am grateful for the trust placed in me. The task is clear: to strengthen collaboration within the scientific community and to build connections between academia, industry, and government that translate research performance into tangible results,” said Dr. Zsolt Szalay.

He added that one of his key objectives is to more effectively leverage the advantages of HUN-REN’s network-based operation, ensuring that scientific results contribute directly to Hungary’s innovation capacity and economic performance.

The appointment represents an important recognition of Dr. Szalay’s decades-long work in academic research, industrial collaboration, and innovation ecosystem development, while also creating new opportunities to apply this experience at a national level.