Conference Programme Snapshot

Curious for what's in store?

Our 2024 conference programme will be live in January, but here's a quick taste of some of our sessions confirmed for Big Data & AI World 2023...

Is Big Data up to the challenge of climate change?

Big Data could be the perfect tool for tackling the climate crisis. By analysing vast troves of historical, real-time and projected data (from historical carbon emissions to current solar capacity), it could be used by governments, NGOs and businesses to track progress, policies and impacts. Nice in theory, but Big Data is far from giving us this unified picture. In this session we’ll ask:

• Has Big Data failed to communicate the climate crisis?
• Is climate tracking the next frontier for Big Data 2.0?
• Can Big Data provide a single version of the truth for climate change?
• What should we be measuring??

The big debate: Is augmented analytics the future of BI?

There’s only so much number-crunching a human data scientist can do each day. So why not get a computer to help them? Augmented analytics is the notion that AI and ML can be set to work on your company’s data and begin semi-autonomously cleaning data, looking for patterns and discovering insights. It’s a compelling idea, but can it really work? In this panel session, you’ll learn from researchers and companies that are exploring this approach, as well as look at some of its potential use cases. Attend to learn about:

• What augmented analytics is and how it works
• What it can (and can’t) do
• The tools currently available
• What skills and know-how you’ll need

Panel debate: Navigating the changing data privacy landscape

The 2018 introduction of GDPR was the first truly international regulation that seriously affected how companies managed customer data. But it certainly isn’t the last. January 2020 saw California’s CCPA (California Customer Privacy Act), Australia’s ACCC is being updated, China’s PIPL is open to public comment, while the UK is also figuring out its privacy rules post-Brexit. Any firm that operates internationally must keep on top of this ever-changing landscape to avoid fines and build on customer trust around the world. Attend this session to learn:

• What’s on the horizon for data privacy around the world
• How to navigate this changing landscape
• How to make your business regulation ready

Cyber-physical systems: hypebeast or digital panacea?

Capital-intensive industries (infrastructure, built environment, transport, healthcare) have a profound impact on people’s lived experiences. The decisions that we make when we apply technology in this space can result in both massive benefits, and dangerous unintended consequences. Cyber-physical systems – such as Digital Twins – can help us to better understand the risks and benefits behind our investment in infrastructure. This session will use case studies and discussions with practitioners to answer the following questions:

• How to stop hyped technologies becoming solutions looking for problems?
• Whose problems are we actually trying to solve with these technologies?
• How do we account for groups who are left out of the decision-making?
• How do we measure the success of the application of cyber-physical systems?

Talent pooling: When to hire data scientists vs. when to train?

Firms have competed ferociously for data science talent over the past decade, with skilled professionals commanding high salaries. This means many firms have struggled to find or hold onto the kind of skilled employees they need. In response, many are opting to retrain or upskill technically minded staff to take on more data analytics, management and processing roles. While internal hiring can be helpful, it’s not always appropriate, especially at early stages of a Big Data project. This panel session will explore this issue so you can understand:

• Whether you actually need a data scientist or not
• When hiring consultants is the right option
• How to hire analytics professionals internally
• Overview of training options available