Learning

**Hello PyData People!** We are excited to announce our **second event of 2026**! This time, we will be hosted at **iliad Italia**'s headquarters in Milan for an evening dedicated to AI at scale—ranging from Foundation Models for credit risk to sovereign and open-source data architectures. 📅 **When:** Wednesday, February 18, 2026 📍 **Where:** iliad Italia, Viale Francesco Restelli, 1A, 20124 · Milano **⚠️ Important:** Spots are limited. Please keep your RSVP updated to allow others to participate if you can no longer attend. *** ## 🕒 Agenda * **18:30:** 🚪 Doors open & Check-in * **19:00:** 🎤 **Talk 1:** Open Source & Sovereign Architecture – Riccardo Lorenzon * **19:45:** 🎤 **Talk 2:** Klarna’s Foundation Model – Valeria Verzi, Sudhakar Periyasamy, Goran Dizdarevic * **20:30:** 🍕 **Networking & Aperitivo** offered by Iliad! *** ## 🎤 The Talks ## 1️⃣An Open Source and Sovereign Architecture for Data, ML and AI **Speaker:** Riccardo Lorenzon (Head of Data @ iliad Italia) Iliad Group invests billions in sovereign AI ecosystems, open-source tech, and low-carbon data centers to reduce reliance on non-European providers and bolster Europe's technological autonomy. True to Iliad Group's 'make-over-buy' culture of full control, iliad Italia is building a data architecture in a hybrid on-prem and Scaleway (Iliad Group cloud) setup, combining open-source tech and managed services. This powers data management, self-service analytics, and ML/AI use cases for our 12m+ user base and 1000+ employees. During this speech, we will guide you through the tech journeys we have built and are building. **About the Speaker:** Riccardo Lorenzon serves as Head of Data at iliad Italia, where he works on evolving the data function into a modern setup covering the full data value chain from sources to business decisions. He previously led data teams at Vedrai, an AI startup, and Whirlpool EMEA, handling projects in analytics, machine learning, and cloud platforms across areas like consumer service, supply chain, and sales. With a Master’s in Mathematical Engineering from Politecnico di Milano and studies at ETH Zürich, he combines a hands-on approach to delivery with a strong focus on strategic value for the business. *** ## 2️⃣ Building the Klarna Foundation Model: A Unified Transformer for Customer Behavior Modeling at Scale **Speaker:** Valeria Verzi (Principal Data Scientist @ Klarna), Sudhakar Periyasamy, Goran Dizdarevic In this session, we introduce Klarna’s Foundation Model (KFM): a lightweight Transformer trained on more than 130 million customer events to learn a unified representation of customer behavior. Rather than building separate, task-specific models, KFM operates as a common sequence-modeling backbone that encodes behavioral patterns across different touchpoints of a customer’s interaction history with Klarna. We will walk through the technical design of the system, including event tokenization, sequence construction, and Transformer architecture, as well as how the learned embeddings are exposed as a shared layer for multiple downstream use cases. Attendees will gain a concrete understanding of how foundation models can be applied to behavioral sequence data in fintech, and how a single model can serve as a reusable, extensible representation layer across heterogeneous modeling tasks. **About the Speaker:** Valeria Verzi is a Principal AI Scientist at Klarna, where she leads the development of next-generation models, from foundation models to advanced deep learning or agentic systems. She has nearly a decade of experience applying machine learning to high-stakes decisioning across fintech and insurance. Before her current role, Valeria served as Klarna’s Head of Data Science for Fraud Prevention. Prior to Klarna, she held senior data science roles at Generali and NTT Data. Valeria holds a Master’s degree in Computer Science Engineering from Politecnico di Milano. *** See you there! 🚀 *The PyData Milano Team*

# *"Once in a while, the right people sit at the same table."* ​**QUARTET** is a small private morning gathering organised by Data Leaders. Please register at: [https://luma.com/84zbikxz](https://luma.com/84zbikxz) *** ​**The Session** ​The session takes place on **Thursday, 19 February 2026** in the heart of **Winter Olympics in Milan – Data Leaders - Edition Olympics**. ​Milano host the winter Olympics is a excellent backdrop to discuss the latest innovation in data and AI, at the center where the world's top athletes take on each others. *** ​**The Table** ​At the **QUARTET** table there will be one of each: ​**A Builder** \- An entrepreneur\, founder or independent operator\. ​**A Technologist** \- A deep tech\, data\, AI\, engineer\, developer\, scientist or architect\. ​**A Pragmatist** \- A person with common sense\, a generalist from a private or public organisation\, or an aspirational non\-technical profile\. ​**The Host.** *** ​**Protocol** ​Bring one topic or question that needs an answer. ​The purpose is a casual peer exchange across different viewpoints, without panels, presentations or performance. No stress. ​The gathering is free flow with no forced answers. Join the discussion or simply enjoy tasty pastries and coffee in a setting that reflects Olympics spirit, Milanese heritage. ​Typical discussion themes include: Is AI a bubble, where data ROI really comes from, latest innovation in data and AI, operating models, why everything still ends up in Excel, geopolitics impact on tech and AI and why the answer is 48. ​**Chatham House Rule** applies. No recordings. The conversation stays at the table. *** ​**Rules** ​• **Four people only** • **One table, one hour** • **No investors or VCs** • **Strictly no soliciting or shilling** • **Chatham House Rule** ​Coffee is not free but of excellent quality. Please order a coffee or drink to respect the venue. *** ​**Venue** ​**Marchesi 1824 – Milano** ​Marchesi has embodied Milanese style since 1824. Exceptional craftsmanship, elegant spaces and impeccable service have accompanied moments of conviviality shaped by artisanal taste and refined creativity. ​One of Milan’s oldest and most renowned patisseries, Marchesi 1824 is known for its heritage, precision and attention to detail. Traditional recipes are reinterpreted with a contemporary approach, reflecting a spirit of research and quiet excellence that aligns naturally with the Data Leaders ethos. ​Find Marchesi 1824 at (NOTE this is original cafe opened in 1824 located at Via Santa Maria): ​[https://share.google/TkSM8P4mELr9yeOcP](https://share.google/TkSM8P4mELr9yeOcP) *** ​**Registration** ​Please register with full details. Confirmation subject to availability. ​If plans change, update the RSVP so the seat can be released. *** ​**About Data Leaders** ​Data Leaders is a regional collective of data and AI professionals, connecting peers through initiatives such as **Data Leaders QUARTET**, **Data Tuesday** and **DAMA Singapore**. ​https://www.linkedin.com/company/data-ai-tuesday/

**How to Join** * Add your name on Meetup to reserve your spot. * Message me on **WhatsApp** to get information about introductory class and package options. * Once the **payment** is completed, your booking will be **confirmed**, and all details will be shared with you. **Monday Studio Class** * **Time:** 18:45 – 19:45 * **Level:** Transition to Intermediate (International, English) This class is for students who already know basic yoga poses and have been practicing regularly. (not for beginners) We focus on **balance, strength, and flexibility** with intermediate-level poses and flows. If you’re ready to take your practice to the next level, this class is for you. 📍 **Location:** Via Melzi d’Eril , Milan **What to Bring** * Your own yoga mat *(limited studio mats available on request)* * Comfortable clothes and water *** **📌 Cancellation Policy** – More than 24h before class: Cancel directly on Meetup. – 6–24h before class: Send me a WhatsApp message to let me know. – Less than 6h before class: Unfortunately, your class credit will be used and no replacement can be offered. *** **Safety & Notes** * Your safety and well-being are very important. By attending, you acknowledge that yoga involves physical activity and accept responsibility for your own practice. * ❗ *This class is not suitable for pregnant women.* * If you have health concerns, please check with a doctor before joining. *** **About Me** I’m Ozzy, a certified yoga instructor specializing in **Hatha Yoga**. Learn more about me: [https://linktr.ee/ozzyoga.milano](https://linktr.ee/ozzyoga.milano)

Welcome to the Thursday English Aperitivo! The perfect place to speak in English and meet some interesting people from all over the world. Everyone is welcome to come and join in some conversation whilst enjoying a drink and a bite to eat in a friendly, easy going atmosphere. Don't worry about your level of English, the most important thing is to have fun! My name is Diana and I'm from England I'll be there to help you with your English and make you feel at home. I have been an English teacher in Milan for many years. Just come to Pacino Cafe on Thursday and ask for Diana or the English Aperitivo. I can't wait to meet you! Drink and aperitivo 11 euro

Discover Your Perfect Palette: Color Analysis Workshop 🎨✨ Unveil the colors that truly bring out your best at our Color Analysis Workshop! This unique event will help you identify the shades that enhance your natural features, elevating your clothing and makeup choices to align perfectly with your personal style. Kick off the experience with a welcoming coffee, the perfect opportunity to relax and connect with others. From there, dive into the art of color analysis, learning which hues complement your features and simplify your shopping for clothes and beauty products. The workshop also highlights seasonal trend colors, giving you the tools to stay on top of the latest fashion while seamlessly incorporating them into your wardrobe. As a special takeaway, you’ll receive your very own personalized color palette, tailored just for you, ensuring confident and stylish decisions in the future. Step into the world of color, creativity, and confidence—this workshop is your key to effortless style! 🌸👗✨ **Les Amis** is a women-only community of friendly souls. We provide access to hundreds of experiences that explore your passions and connect you with other event participants. **Check our website to learn more, and apply to join our community and events**: [lesamis.cc/apply](https://www.lesamis.cc/apply)

**Open Coding Night** Ti va di allenarti con il TDD provando qualche Kata? Vuoi provare il *vibe coding*? Hai un progetto personale che non riesci mai a portare avanti? Oppure ti piacerebbe imparare Rust, Zig, Haskell o qualche altro linguaggio? **Open Coding Night** è un formato anti-procrastinazione libero e non limitato al solo TDD: ci si trova la sera insieme ad altre persone curiose e motivate, per finalmente dare spazio alle proprie idee e sperimentare. **Come Partecipare** Porta con te un’idea, un esercizio, un progetto o una tecnologia che vuoi provare. Troverai una scrivania e un monitor a tua disposizione per metterti subito all’opera. Non hai un obiettivo preciso ma ti piace lasciarti guidare dalla serendipità? Nessun problema: puoi unirti a chi vuole condividere la propria attività e lavorare insieme. **Programma** * **19:00 – 21:30** meetup aperto * **19:30** breve giro di presentazioni: chi c’è, cosa vuole fare, a cosa vuole aggregarsi * **19:45 – 21:15**: focus time, ma siete liberi di muovervi, esplorare e fare domande in giro. * **21:15** mini-retrospective su cosa è stato fatto * Dalle **21:30** in poi, libertà totale: puoi tornare a casa o unirti a chi ha voglia di andare a cena insieme! \-\-\- We are open to English speaking participants: **Open Coding Night** Do you feel like practicing TDD by trying out some Katas? Want to try vibe coding? Do you have a personal project you never manage to move forward? Or would you like to learn Rust, Zig, Haskell, or some other language? **Open Coding Night** is an anti-procrastination format not limited only to TDD: you meet in the evening with other curious and motivated people to finally give space to your ideas and experiment. **How to participate** Bring an idea, an exercise, a project, or a technology you want to try. You’ll find a desk and a monitor at your disposal so you can get to work right away. Don’t have a specific goal but enjoy being guided by serendipity? No problem: you can join those who want to share their activity and work together. **Schedule** * **19:00 – 21:30** open meetup * **19:30** short round of introductions: who’s here, what they want to do, what they want to join * **19:45 – 21:15:** focus time, but you’re free to move around, explore, and ask questions. * **21:15** mini-retrospective on what was done * From **21:30** onward, total freedom: you can go home or join those who feel like going out for dinner together!

Immerse yourself in the world of matcha in this hands-on workshop, where you'll learn the traditional techniques of preparing and enjoying this vibrant green tea. You’ll explore matcha’s rich history, health benefits, and different grades, while mastering the art of whisking the perfect frothy bowl. Experience a mindful tea ritual and discover how to incorporate this superfood into modern recipes. Whether you’re a tea enthusiast or a curious beginner, this workshop offers a unique blend of culture, flavor, and relaxation. 🍵✨ **Les Amis** is a women-only community of friendly souls. We provide access to hundreds of experiences that explore your passions and connect you with other event participants. **Check our website to learn more, and apply to join our community and events**: [lesamis.cc/apply](https://www.lesamis.cc/apply)

Join us for another session of our study group as we continue our coverage of the book Domain-Specific Small Language Models. In this session, we will Chapter 2 which is titled Tuning for a Specific Domain. This isn't just a lecture! Come ready to ask questions, share insights, and code along. Whether you're a beginner or have some experience, this is the perfect opportunity to continue to learn together. If you plan to work with the code on your own laptop during the session, try and download the code from here https://github.com/virtualramblas/Domain-Specific-Small-Language-Models/ ahead of time. We will be meeting at the University of North America in room 2215 for this event.

We will be meeting at Starbucks to learn together. Come with an online class you're already going through or an interest and we will try to connect you with a course where you can learn it. Already have a skill you want to contribute to a Kaggle Datascience competition? We will work on these too! Laptop required :)

Discover the path to stress management, life's tranquility, and self-improvement through Heartfulness Meditation. Embrace relaxation, meditation, and emotional detoxification practices to unlock your best self. Join our free sessions every Sunday at 8 AM at VA. Experience the profound benefits of these simple yet powerful practices. Commit to a few months of meditation and witness the transformative impact firsthand. We eagerly await your presence at these enlightening sessions.

[Profs and Pints Northern Virginia](https://www.profsandpints.com/washingtondc) presents: **“The Hidden Cleopatra,”** an excavation through myth and slander to uncover the real Egyptian queen, with Jacquelyn Williamson, an Egyptologist and associate professor of archaeology and ancient art at George Mason University. [Advance tickets: $13.50 plus sales tax and processing fees. Available at [https://www.ticketleap.events/tickets/profsandpints/hidden-cleopatra](https://www.ticketleap.events/tickets/profsandpints/hidden-cleopatra) .] Depictions of Cleopatra are abundant in popular culture. A long list of painters have depicted her, Marilyn Monroe and Kim Kardashian have posed as her, and Vivien Leigh and Elizabeth Taylor famously portrayed her in Hollywood films. At the end of the day, however, what most of us think we know about Cleopatra is wrong, the product of the ancient Rome’s “fake news” and anti-Egypt propaganda. Learn about the real Cleopatra—and how our understanding of her came to be so distorted—with Professor Jacquelyn Williamson, scholar of women and power in ancient Egypt, teacher of courses on ancient Egyptian art and archaeology, and author of *Nefertiti’s Sun Temple: A New Cult Complex at Tell el-Amarna.* Dr. Williamson will walk us through how the first Roman emperor, Octavian, created the distorted image of Cleopatra as seductress that we know today as part of his political scheming to defeat his rival Antony and end the Roman Republic once and for all. Cleopatra has been the subject of debate and controversy ever since. William Shakespeare later relied on ancient Roman sources such as Horace and Plutarch in writing *Antony and Cleopatra*, and his play helped give rise to countless other works offering a distorted picture of her. Professor Williamson argues that “Cleopatra was a human being, like you and I,” and “deserves the dignity of being represented as accurately as possible.” Her efforts to set the record straight have met frustration, however—after being extensively interviewed for the recent Netflix historical docuseries Queen Cleopatra, she concluded that it, too, had missed the mark. You’ll gain a much deeper appreciation of the challenges of researching and accurately depicting the ancient past from Dr. Williamson, who also has taught at Harvard, Brandeis, and the University of California at Berkeley and is involved with an ongoing archaeological investigation of Queen Nefertiti’s sun temple. (Doors: $17, or $15 with a student ID. Listed time is for doors. Talk starts 30 minutes later.) Image: Layla Taj portrays Cleopatra VII as part of an Egyptian Cultural Performing Arts Society production. (Photo by Amos Gvili / Wikimedia Commons.)

Learn to manage stress and achieve self-growth through simple relaxation and Meditation. Heartfulness Meditation is a simple, modern, methodical approach to meditation. Rather than homing in on your breath or repeating a mantra, you simply focus inward, on your heart, to cultivate inner strength and serenity. Heartfulness meditation is gaining traction in recent years. It focuses on the heart, allowing individuals to connect with themselves on a deeper level, and ultimately achieve peace, relaxation, and clarity. It is a practice that encourages patience, self-compassion, and acceptance, helping cultivate a deeper appreciation for the present moment. This practice is offered with love and at no cost

Bonsoir à tous! Venez nombreux pour causer autour d'un repas ou d'un verre chez La Madeleine. On n'a que deux règles: (1) qu'on y parle exclusivement le français et (2) qu'on achète quelque chose à boire ou à manger (c'est La Madeleine qui le demande). Merci et à bientôt!

Do you feel stuck in the rat race? Do you want to learn how to earn extra income and become financially free? Event outline: Arrive: 6:00 - 6:10 PM Play Cashflow and discuss Investing - 6:10 PM - 9:00 PM We welcome new and experienced players to the meetup. If this is your first game, you will have a lot of fun in a very safe, beginner-friendly environment. If you’ve played many times, prepare to be challenged! There will be a Cashflow 101 game for newer players. There will be a Cashflow 201 game for advanced players. Cost: Free Parking: There is free parking available around the outside of the building. How to get to the office: Park in the parking lot around the outside of the building. Enter in through the front doors. (The side the parking garage is on) Enter the Elevator and go up to the 3rd floor. Walk down the hallway to the end. You will see a room marked as the "Daybreak Room" The event will be inside that room Feel Free to bring in any food or drinks. There are many restaurants nearby. If you have any questions please call or text -- (240) 357-5597