We are pleased to announce a Special Issue entitled “Emerging Issues and Applications of Fuzzy Systems, Neural Networks, and Metaheuristics.”

This Special Issue focuses on recent advances in fuzzy logic, neural networks, metaheuristic optimization algorithms, and their hybrid combinations. It particularly welcomes theoretical and applied studies in intelligent control and robotics, pattern recognition, medical diagnosis, time series forecasting, and complex optimization.

Submissions may address new concepts, algorithms, and applications based on type-1, type-2, and type-3 fuzzy logic, as well as theoretical and practical developments in metaheuristics. Topics of interest include genetic algorithms, particle swarm optimization, grey wolf optimization, and other emerging nature-inspired optimization methods. The Special Issue also welcomes research on neural networks, including convolutional neural networks, deep learning architectures, and hybrid neuro-fuzzy systems.

Recent studies have demonstrated the growing potential of these computational intelligence techniques in healthcare, robotics, pattern recognition, forecasting, and optimization. Their relevance is expected to increase further as intelligent systems continue to emerge across science and engineering, particularly in social network analysis, big data analytics, cybersecurity, cyber-physical systems, and cloud computing.

Topics of Interest:

• Theory and design of hybrid intelligent systems

• Applications of hybrid intelligent systems in control, robotics, time series forecasting, and medical diagnosis

• Theory and optimal design of fuzzy systems, including type-2 and type-3 fuzzy systems

• Evolutionary fuzzy systems and neuro-fuzzy approaches

• Large language models for the design of fuzzy systems and neural networks

• Novel metaheuristic algorithms and their applications

Important Dates

• Submission deadline: September 30, 2026

• First-round review: Normally completed within four to six weeks after submission

• Revision period: Determined according to the reviewers’ comments

• Publication: Accepted papers will be published online on a rolling basis after peer review, revision, and production

• Expected completion of the Special Issue: March 31, 2027

Organizer

Prof. Dr. Oscar Castillo

Tijuana Institute of Technology, Tijuana, Mexico.

Web page: www.hafsamx.org/castillo

Email: ocastillo@tectijuana.mx

Oscar Castillo holds a Doctor of Science degree (Doctor Habilitatus) in Computer Science from the Polish Academy of Sciences, with a dissertation entitled “Soft Computing and Fractal Theory for Intelligent and Manufacturing.” He is a Professor of Computer Science in the Graduate Division at the Tijuana Institute of Technology in Tijuana, Mexico. In addition, he serves as Research Director of Computer Science and Head of the Research Group on Hybrid Fuzzy Intelligent Systems. Currently, he is President of HAFSA (Hispanic American Fuzzy Systems Association) and Past President of IFSA (International Fuzzy Systems Association). Prof. Castillo is also Chair of the Mexican Chapter of the IEEE Computational Intelligence Society. He is also a member of NAFIPS, IFSA, and IEEE. He belongs to the Mexican Research System (SNI Level 3 and Emeritus). His research interests include Type-2 and Type-3 Fuzzy Logic, Fuzzy Control, and Neuro-Fuzzy and Genetic-Fuzzy hybrid approaches. He has published over 400 journal papers, 20 authored books, 100 edited books, 300 papers in conference proceedings, and more than 400 chapters in edited books, totaling more than 1,300 publications according to Scopus, with an h-index of 107 and more than 36,000 citations according to Google Scholar. He has served as Guest Editor of several successful Special Issues in journals such as Applied Soft Computing, Intelligent Systems, Information Sciences, Soft Computing, Non-Linear Studies, Fuzzy Sets and Systems, JAMRIS, and Engineering Letters. He is currently an Associate Editor of the Journal of Multiple-Valued Logic and Soft Computing, Axioms, AI and Innovation, and JAMRIS. He has served as an Associate Editor of Applied Soft Computing, IEEE Transactions on Fuzzy Systems, International Journal of Fuzzy Systems, Journal of Complex Intelligent Systems, Information Sciences, Engineering Applications of Artificial Intelligence, Granular Computing, and Intelligent Systems. He was elected an IFSA Fellow in 2015 and a MICAI Fellow in 2016. Additionally, he was recognized as a Highly Cited Researcher in 2017 and 2018 by Clarivate Analytics and Web of Science. Finally, he received the National Award in Computer Science in 2019 from the National Academy of Computer Sciences in Mexico.