10th Sclera Segmentation Benchmarking Competition 2026 (SSBC) Call for Papers

 CALL FOR PARTICIPANTS 
 SSBC 2026

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10th Sclera Segmentation Benchmarking Competition 2026 (SSBC)
Foundation Models and VLMs & Label-efficient Learning

Held in conjunction with IEEE IJCB 2026
https://ijcb2026.ieee-biometrics.org/

Important dates: Registration is open now
Website: https://sites.google.com/hyderabad.bits-pilani.ac.in/ssbc2026/home
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We are inviting all researchers and research teams to participate in
our new Sclera Segmentation challenge, which focuses on Foundation
Models and VLMs, as well as on label-efficient segmentation
approaches.

All participants (above baseline) will coauthor the joint IJCB
paper. The results submission deadline is expected by mid-May 2026.

SSBC 2026 addresses the theme of "Sclera segmentation in the age of
foundation models and large multi-modal models", as well as
label-efficient learning. It is organised as a two-track
competition. Participants are free to enter only a single track or
compete in both. A detailed description of the two tracks is given
below:

    Track 1: Foundation Models & VLMs. In this track, we aim to
    benchmark the performance of sclera segmentation approaches based
    on Foundation Models and VLMs. Participants will submit solutions
    that integrate large multi-modal models into biometric
    segmentation pipelines. We specifically encourage grounding
    approaches, in which textual or auxiliary prompts guide the
    segmentation, or novel architectures built on top of
    FMs/VLMs. Results will be compared against standard lighter-weight
    segmentation models provided by the organisers.

    Track 2: Label-Efficient Learning. The second track will focus on
    semi-supervised, weakly-supervised, and self-supervised learning
    approaches. Participants will be challenged to train models
    capable of learning from incomplete or no labels, addressing the
    critical issue of data scarcity in medical and biometric
    imaging. To maintain fairness during evaluation, participants may
    be required to submit their models and training code, which the
    organisers will test using a flat protocol for the segmentation
    task.

To enter the competition, visit the website and follow the
registration instructions:
https://sites.google.com/hyderabad.bits-pilani.ac.in/ssbc2026/home


Best regards on behalf of all co-organisers,