DataFest 2026 - programme announced + Wikipedia founder to headline! 🎉
There's just under one month to go until DataFest, Scotland’s leading data and AI conference, returns to The Assembly Rooms on 27th & 28th May.
This year, our theme 'Intelligent Futures' will explore how data and AI are shaping the systems, industries and societies of tomorrow, with a focus on long-term impact, trust and responsible scale.
We've just announced this year's full programme, including our headline speaker, Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales, who joins a stacked lineup of world-leading experts and innovators.
Keep reading to hear about some of this year's highlights, and make sure to get tickets before it's too late. We're on to our Final Release, and tickets are moving fast!
Speakers include...
Jimmy Wales, Founder, Wikipedia
Described by The Guardian as the “last decent tech baron,” Jimmy Wales is one of the most influential internet pioneers of our time. At a time when disinformation and fake news are reshaping the digital landscape, Jimmy joins us for an exclusive fireside chat, 'The Future of Truth'.
Dex Hunter-Torricke, Founder, The Center for Tomorrow
A veteran of the global tech industry, Dex has worked alongside Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, and Eric Schmidt. At DF26, Dex will examine what it will take to thrive in the years ahead - from systems thinking in siloed institutions and coalition-building in an era of fracture, to connecting cutting-edge technology with compelling human stories.
Dr Rachel Adams, Executive Director, Leverhulme Centre for the Future of Intelligence
Rachel's keynote, 'Can Intelligence Solve Global Poverty?', will explore why, despite unprecedented advances in AI, progress on global poverty remains uneven, fragmented, and fragile. Drawing on global evidence and frontline experience, she will examine three competing visions for how AI might address poverty — from targeted interventions to super-intelligence and post-scarcity abundance.
Georgia Channing, AI for Science Lead, Hugging Face
Georgia's talk, 'Scaling Up Science in the Era of Agents', looks at how AI is fundamentally changing the way we do science - from literature search and hypothesis generation to experiment execution and data evaluation. She asks - what must we do to super-scale science, and what will remain for us to do once we get there?
Plus much, much more! 🥳
Across our two-day programme we're deep-diving into how data and AI are revolutionising the way we work, learn and live. Sessions include:From Copilots to Agentic Systems: How Enterprise AI Is Really Evolving
- Why Do So Many AI Projects Fail?
- Is the Public Sector Ready for an AI-Driven Future?
- Open source and open infrastructure in the age of AI
- Who Builds AI - and Why It Matters
- Are We Outsourcing Thinking?
- Taking AI Consciousness Seriously
- What Does AI Mean for Creativity?
- From Humans to Humanoids: Intelligent Machines in the Real World
- Who Powers the AI Boom?
Get tickets! 🎟️
Haven't got a ticket yet? What are you waiting for?! Secure your ticket now and join 600+ data and AI professionals and enthusiasts at DataFest 2026.