DSPT#38 - Behind the Science: Data and Software (Lisboa)

DS and ML are gaining traction, however, with great power comes great responsibility. The expectations of end applications and users are becoming more and more demanding. What can we do to keep up? Are we bringing out the full potential of available data? Saghir Bashir, from Ilustat, will discuss the advantages of having a full understanding of your data. What about performance? Can Deep Learning be a way to achieve breakthroughs? António Alegria from Outsystems will guide us through advancements made in the context of software development . Will one day software write itself?

Curious? Don’t miss this opportunity.

Agenda:
• 18:30-19:00: Welcome and get together
• 19:00-19:30: Talk 1: “The "D" in Data Science” by Saghir Bashir - ilustat
• 19:40-19:45: Group photo
• 19:45-20:15: Networking / Coffee Break
• 20:15-20:45: Talk 2: "What if Software wrote itself?" by António Alegria - OutSystems
• 20:50: Closing, hanging out and some beers
• 21:00: Dinner is optional but it might be an excellent opportunity for networking

If you want to attend the dinner please check in here: https://doodle.com/poll/g6uzgau3qezgrmfz

We would like to thank Stratio (https://stratioautomotive.com/) and OutSystems (https://www.outsystems.com/) for their partnership and support in this event!

Interested in supporting future meetups? Please contact us: info@datascienceportugal.com

Talk 1: The "D" in Data Science

How essential is the data in your DS work? Do you, intentionally or unintentionally, give greater emphasis to which "black box" models to use and improving their performance compared to really understanding the data? I will use real life examples (including Google Flu Trends) to discuss the advantages of having a full understanding of your data, its origins and what it really represents, before you embark on any programming or analyses.

Saghir Bashir is the founder of ilustat, a data science consultancy and training company. After earning a PhD in "Biostatistics and Epidemiology" from Cambridge University (UK) he has worked on various real life data science projects in both the public and private sectors. The success of his extensive international experience is built on his pragmatic and collaborative nature. He is a natural communicator who actively engages his audiences in his presentations, courses and workshops. He is currently developing a series of "Getting Started" guides for the R programming language.

Talk 2: What if Software wrote itself?

Can machines learn to build their own software? Can they give developers more time to focus on value and creative tasks? Why is software still so hard to develop? Tools have improved but user and business needs have been increasing as well. We need to catch up! ML and, in particular, Deep Learning, have ushered a new era of Software 2.0 — systems that are more adaptable and evolve faster. Although this has successfully automated tasks in many fields, software development is still largely untouched. Why is it so hard? OutSystems AI was created to make software development a universal and purely creative endeavor, pushing forward in AI applied to software development. In this talk, you’ll learn about the progress of AI applied to software, as we dive into the latest methods. I will also share what the OutSystems AI group is doing to address current challenges.

António is leading the OutSystems AI group, an applied research team that is bringing the power of AI and ML to Software Development. Previously he spent 6 years at Feedzai, starting as the first hire in the Research team where he participated in the creation of their Fraud Detection and ML technology that underpins their flagship products. Throughout that time he worked at the intersection of Product, Engineering and Science to bring new products and innovations to market. He comes from an extensive Engineering and DS background, having spent the past 10 years designing and building disruptive data products in different domains.