Events

Legendary British astronaut to address AI in space exploration 

Big Data London, organised by Reed Exhibitions (RX), has unveiled its keynote lineup with renowned astronaut, Major Tim Peake, CMG, and the first British European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut to visit the International Space Station, set to headline the event. The exhibition and conference will run on 20 and 21 September 2023 at Olympia, London. Previously an Army Air Corp officer and test pilot, Tim Peake’s work on the ISS and active engagement with the public has made him a role model to millions. He will explain how technology such as AI has made missions to the international space station possible. His closing keynote session will take place at 4:40pm on 21 September in the Y-Axis keynote theatre.  The Big Data LDN keynotes are the centrepiece of the content programme and for 2023, it will be running two keynote theatres in parallel at opposing ends of the hall (x-axis and y-axis). Both theatres will be packed with leading subject matter experts presenting the latest intelligence and opinion on the industry’s hottest topics. The organisation connects data visionaries and real-world pioneers to deliver cutting-edge practical advice to delegates and in addition to Tim Peake, the keynote track will also feature speakers including:  Libby Liu, CEO at Whistleblower Aid, will present on the Y-Axis stage on 20 September from 15:20 - 15:50, to discuss ethics at the cutting-edge of innovation, and shed light on the importance of data privacy and ethics in the digital age. Libby has represented some of the most impactful big tech whistleblowers of the last several years, including Meta's Frances Haugen and Twitter's former Security Lead, Peiter 'Mudge' Zatko. She will speak to what big tech whistleblowers have in common, the ethical dilemmas they face long before their stories shake the foundations of companies and industries, what they grapple with, what motivates them and how they can blow the whistle safely and legally.  Ela Osterberger from Wetransfer, will present at 14:40 - 15:10, in the Data Strategy Theatre on 21 September to discuss ‘Data Strategy 101: The Essential Guide’ and why your company almost certainly needs one, how to assess what's required, what it should include and how to evolve it. The focus of this session will be a practical take home on the importance of how to implement a data strategy at scale that you can implement right away.   Gary Cronin, Director Digital Transformation, Data Engineering and Insights, Grant Thornton, will deep dive into technical data governance and unlocking the power of data assets on 21 September, 13:20 -13:50. Gary will discuss the world of data modelling, focusing on lineage, provenance, and auditability of data platforms to explore how businesses can build a robust data infrastructure that enables them to reverse data transactions and provide transparency for better decision-making and data-driven insights.    The event aims to join together industry leaders, data professionals, innovators, and enthusiasts to explore the limitless potential of data-driven technologies. Attendees will have the opportunity to engage with representatives and consultants from over 180 exhibiting organisations to explore effective solutions to address their data challenges and develop a robust data-driven strategy for their businesses. The event will feature a lineup of participating organisations with renowned names such as ITV, Porsche, Google, Microsoft, Bank of England, The AA, EDF, OVO, Jaguar Land Rover, Expedia, Experian, M&C Saatchi, HelloFresh and Lloyds Banking Group.   Registration for the event is now open, and interested participants can secure their spots for free here. 

DTX + UCX Europe 2023 prepares teams for a new realm

As 2023's advancements in technology pose more questions than answers, the industry's most insightful minds come together at Digital Transformation EXPO Europe (DTX) - the home of digital transformation, and UC EXPO (UCX) - the home of customer and workplace tech. Taking place on 4 and 5 October 2023 at ExCel London, the event comes at a time when IT teams and business leaders are starting to realise the impact from emerging technologies which has led to the theme of this year's show being ‘preparing for the next realm'. Organisations can learn how to balance risk with reward - readying their people, processes and infrastructure for the continual evolution of enterprise technology and AI. On day one of the show, three inspiring headline speakers take to the stage with Baroness Martha Lane Fox, President of the British Chamber of Commerce and Founder of lastminute.com, opening the show to explore why businesses need to decide if AI is friend or foe. Plus, world-renowned social engineer and author of ‘People Hacker', Jenny Radcliffe, speaking on the impact of tools such as ChatGPT on human-based attacks and approaches; and former distinguished engineer at Google Cloud, Kelsey Hightower, discussing the future of open source for product innovation. Day two will feature comedian and TV presenter Dara O’Briain alongside presenter & UCL professor, Hannah Fry to discuss the key role of storytelling and the value of being human in the age of machines. Furthermore, 18 stages of content will host case studies, panel debates and peer-to-peer roundtables discussing cloud, networks, cyber security, DevOps, software engineering, unified communications and collaboration, AI and automation and data, plus a new stage dedicated to IT Ops and service management. This year's event will be backed by a host of household names including Cisco, Google, Microsoft, AWS, Zoom and HP, plus Sophos, Okta, ThreatLocker and Checkpoint. Dominie Roberts, Programme Lead for DTX + UCX, says, “Following our hugely successful Manchester show in May, we're even more excited for the Europe edition of DTX+UCX returning to London ExCeL at such a crucial time for IT teams and business leaders.” "This year's event is designed to help organisations gain the knowledge and solutions they need to keep up with advancements in technology and the way a new generation of customers and employees are using it.” “Given the lineup of headline speakers, featured case studies and technology showcases, this year is sure to be one of the best yet and we’ll be announcing the details of the agenda and expo over the next few weeks.” To register, click here. Find more events happening around you here.

Leaders from cyber security sector come to RGU

Major figures from some of the top law enforcement agencies in the world are coming to RGU for an international cyber security conference. The University’s School of Computing has partnered with OSP Cyber Academy to host the Senior Leaders Cyber Summit on 31 August. Speakers include Cynthia Kaiser, Deputy Assistant Director of the FBI’s Cyber Division; David Charters, a former MI6 Intelligence Officer; and Chief Superintendent, Conrad Trickett, who leads Police Scotland’s Digital World Programme. The event has a distinct aim of discussing and setting out practical cyber security solutions which can be used at a national level and beyond. The Senior Leaders Cyber Summit will give a unique insight into the types of cyber security challenges faced by leaders across the globe.   Other speakers at the event come from a range of international sectors including academia, business and public services.   Irene Coyle, Chief Operating Officer of OSP Cyber Academy, says, “To bring this calibre of cyber security expertise and the diversity of the distinguished speakers to Aberdeen is truly remarkable. It is the perfect chance for people to hear from true leading lights in our sector. Working alongside RGU is perfect, as it means we can also use the University’s academic knowledge around cyber security to further accelerate awareness and engagement with this important part of our world.” As well as speakers, there will also be panel discussions and network opportunities for attendees. A senior leaders gala dinner is also being held at the Ardoe House Hotel later in the evening and this will also incorporate the Cyber Security Woman of the World Award.  Click here to find events happening around you.

Global Cyber Summit highlights Ukrainian experience amid geopolitical tensions

Nineteen Group, organiser of International Cyber Expo, has announced its programme for the annual Global Cyber Summit, sponsored by Sonatype, Opentext and Infoblox, and hosted at Olympia London on 26 and 27 September 2023. The summit returns with greater international appeal. Among other topics of discussion, guest speakers will provide the Ukrainian perspective on cyber security, in light of recent geopolitical events. With opening remarks by Professor Ciaran Martin CB, Chair of International Cyber Expo’s Advisory Council, the Global Cyber Summit assembles the industry’s great minds to review ongoing cyber threats, priorities and challenges. Uniquely, the programme this year invites advisors closely associated with Ukrainian government agencies to present their invaluable insight into the reality and impact of Russian cyber attacks on the country and beyond. Special guest speakers include, Oksana Kharchenko, a member of YouControl, who will delve into the challenges of managing sanctions risk in the current geopolitical setting; and Andrew Hural, Director, MDR of UnderDefense, who will reflect on the last 500 days of Russian cyber operations, determining the successes and failures of their espionage. Here are a few agenda highlights: Nicola Whiting MBE, co-owner of Titania Group, will reveal why diversity and inclusion efforts might be stalling and provide a new framework. Theresa Deumchen, Tech Policy Associate at Global Counsel, will examine the regulatory landscape concerning generative AI. Alexsander Gorkowienko, SecurityLabs’ Senior Managing Consultant at Spirent Communications, will explain how EU security regulations, such as the NIS 2 Directive, might affect businesses across the region. Jake Moore, Global Cyber Security Advisor at ESET, will shed light on his attempt to manipulate recruitment staff, land a job inside a company and gain full access to their data. Stewart Bertram, Head of Cyber Threat Intelligence at Elemendar, will utilise a mix of case studies and theories to expose the crossover between misinformation and cyber threat operations. Rashik Parmar, Group CEO of BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT, and Dr Saritha Arunkumar, IBM Public Cloud Worldwide Technical Leader - Security, will sit together on a panel to address the question: What does the rise of AI and quantum computing mean for the future of cyber security? Charlotte Hooper, Helpline Manager at The Cyber Helpline, will highlight the impact of cybercrime on individuals and what can be done to support them. Attendees can also take advantage of scheduled talks at the collocated International Security Expo. In fact, Joel Aleburu at Microsoft, will be speaking here about the role of cyber espionage in terrorist activities on the first day of the event, while Joe Wrieden, Intelligence Analyst at Cyjax, will assess the key role of Advanced Persistent Threats(APTs) in serious and organised crime on the second day. All sessions are CPD Certified. To register for free as a visitor: https://ice-2023.reg.buzz/dcnnAs press: https://www.internationalcyberexpo.com/press-pass-registration Click here for latest data centre news.

Cloud Industry Forum partners with Disruptive Live

The Cloud Industry Forum (CIF) has announced a new media partnership with Disruptive Live. This collaboration marks a significant step change in the delivery of high quality and dynamic content to cloud industry professionals in the UK and globally. David Terrar, CEO, CIF, comments, “This strategic media partnership is another demonstrable step on our journey towards revolutionising what we deliver to our members and the broader cloud industry. It sets the stage for innovation, collaboration and knowledge sharing, and we are excited about the opportunities it brings. We collectively look forward to setting new standards for media content creation and engagement, harnessing the impressive thought leaders within our membership.” Highlights of the partnership include: Launch of ‘Cloud Industry Forum presents TWF!’: A weekly, live streamed news and interview show. Lasting five minutes, the show will provide up-to-the-minute news on cloud computing, followed by a 10 minute interview featuring prominent industry thought leaders. This show promises to keep viewers informed and inspired by the latest trends and insights. A mixed reality virtual set: Designed to provide an immersive and visually engaging experience for live streamed programmes and individual events, it brings the benefits of virtual participation to a global audience. Members and attendees can expect enhanced coverage of CIF events and gain access to exclusive expert interviews and valuable insights. Creation of new in-studio events and glass board sessions: Viewers can experience interactive discussions and collaborative sessions covering the latest topics and innovations.   Social amplification and extended reach: CIF and its members will also gain access to CompareTheCloud and Disruptive Live's extensive social media channels, amplifying their reach to a wider audience and generating increased visibility. The partnership will kick off with the first ‘Cloud Industry Forum presents TWF!’ airing on 17 July at 10am. The initial three week run will showcase three industry luminaries including Ian Jeffs, General Manager of the Lenovo ISG in the UK and Ireland and Director and Chair of CIF; Céline Schillinger, acclaimed author of ‘Dare To Unlead’; and Mark Osborn, AI and Data Partner Ecosystem Sales Leader, EMEA.

IMServ to highlight net zero ambitions at the Big Zero Show

IMServ has announced that it will be joining the Big Zero Show 2023, as a partner at UK’s net zero conferences. The theme of this year’s sustainability exhibition is net zero, as the partners will shine a spotlight on the UK’s transition to a low carbon economy, from sustainable innovation to insight from figures across the energy industry. During the sustainability forum, IMServ will present its visualisation tool DataVision, which helps businesses to fulfil their energy efficiency potential by helping them analyse their energy use. Justin Vroone, CCO of IMServ, says, "We are pleased to be a partner at the Big Zero Show. Observing such unity among partners that share our values and vision indicates how crucial it is to reach our net zero ambitions. It is a great opportunity to showcase the potential of data and energy efficiency in our transition to a low-carbon economy."   The conference stage will host multiple tech shows and lectures by industry bodies bringing further vision on the UK’s net zero ambitions and the solutions and technologies to meet this ambition.

JLand Group signs memorandum with MSA Resources

JLand Group has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with MSA Resources Sdn Bhd (MSAR) to deploy Sedenak Tech Park's (STeP) direct connection to the Digital Superhighway Network. The scope of partnership includes Data Centre Interconnect (DCI) connectivity within and beyond STeP. Presently available for connection with Singapore data centres, the network uses dual access via the Causeway and the Tuas Second Link. The fibre connectivity which is projected to be ready by Q4 2023 will extend from Johor to the northern and southern borders of Peninsular Malaysia. This installation of the local line is set to provide carrier neutral routes as well as enhanced data transmission nationwide, covering major hyperscale data centres. Through this collaboration, both parties aim to strengthen STeP’s position as the regional data centre hub in Southeast Asia. MSAR’s objective is to enable STeP’s connectivity with neighbouring countries and beyond via upcoming subsea cable systems which will reach terrestrial networks in Johor.  The signing ceremony took place in conjunction with Johor Smart City Forum 2023, which was witnessed by Yang Berhormat Tuan Ir. Ts. Mohamad Fazli bin Mohamad Salleh, Chairman of Johor Works, Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. “We are fully optimising and integrating JLG’s real estate offerings across the data centre value chain by harnessing the opportunities found in dark fibre. Our partnership with MSAR broadens STeP’s current capabilities by complementing border-to-border linkages, resulting in increased speed and network optionality for operators. This reinforces STeP’s service delivery vision to be a thriving, vibrant data centre hub of the Southern Gateway of Malaysia, by enabling low latency connections between major data centre hubs in the region,” says Datuk Sr Akmal Ahmad, Director, Real Estate & Infrastructure, Johor Corporation and Deputy Chairman, JLG. “The deployment of this local line is set to benefit areas surrounding STeP, within the larger area of Ibrahim Technopolis (IBTEC), which spans across 7290ac. Connectivity frameworks laid in STeP today will ensure availability of high-capacity fibre cables for future residential, commercial and industrial developments of IBTEC, and is in line with our progress towards Malaysia Digital (MD) cybercentric status,” adds Datuk Sr Akmal. The Digital Superhighway Network is in line with the National Digital Network plan (JENDELA), having the capability for data transmission speeds of up to 800Gbps and higher, as well as a total network capacity of 33.6Tbs per fibre pair. From this, cities and rural areas throughout Peninsular Malaysia will have access to 4,400 Points of Interconnect (POI) that will enable high broadband coverage. Phase 1 of the project involves installation of fibres from Bukit Kayu Hitam to Johor Bahru.

AMD announces its future vision for data centre and AI

AMD has announced its vision for the future of the data centre and pervasive AI, showcasing the products, strategy and ecosystem partners that will shape the future of computing. The 'Data Center and AI Technology Premiere' highlights the next phase of data centre innovation. The company was joined on stage with executives from Amazon Web Services, Citadel, Hugging Face, Meta, Microsoft Azure and PyTorch to showcase the technological partnerships to bring the next generation of high-performance CPU and AI accelerator solutions to market. “Today, we took another significant step forward in our data centre strategy as we expanded our 4th Gen EPYC processor family with new leadership solutions for cloud and technical computing workloads, and announced new public instances and internal deployments with the largest cloud providers,” says AMD Chair and CEO, Dr Lisa Su. “AI is the defining technology shaping the next generation of computing and the largest strategic growth opportunity for AMD. We are laser focused on accelerating the deployment of AMD AI platforms at scale in the data centre, led by the launch of our Instinct MI300 accelerators planned for later this year and the growing ecosystem of enterprise-ready AI software optimised for our hardware.” The company was joined by AWS to highlight a preview of the next generation Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud, ‘Amazon EC2’, M7a instances, powered by 4th Gen AMD EPYC processors, ‘Genoa’. AMD has introduced the 4th Gen AMD EPYC 97X4 processors, formerly named ‘Bergamo.’ With 128 Zen 4c cores per socket, these processors provide great vCPU density, performance and efficiency for applications that run in the cloud. Meta participated in discussing how these processors are well suited for their mainstay applications such as Instagram, WhatsApp and more. It has also unveiled the AMD 3D V-Cache technology, with x86 server CPU and shared its AI platform strategy, giving customers a cloud, to edge, to endpoint portfolio of hardware products, with deep industry software collaboration, to develop scalable and pervasive AI solutions. The AMD Instinct MI300X accelerator is one of the advanced accelerators for generative AI, along software ecosystem momentum, with partners PyTorch and Hugging Face. It is based on the next-gen AMD CDNA 3 accelerator architecture and supports up to 192GB of HBM3 memory to provide the compute and memory efficiency needed for large language model training and inference for generative AI workloads. Finally, there was a showcase of the ROCm software ecosystem for data centre accelerators, highlighting the readiness and collaborations with industry performers to bring together an open AI software ecosystem. PyTorch discussed the work to fully upstream the ROCm software stack. This integration empowers developers with an array of AI models that are compatible and ready to use on AMD accelerators. Hugging Face also announced that it will optimise its models on AMD platforms.

Schneider Electric and Total Power Solutions triumph at DCS Awards

Schneider Electric and Total Power Solutions have won the ‘Data Centre Consolidation/Upgrade Project of the Year’ category at the DCS Awards 2023. The project saw the companies design and deliver a new high efficiency Uniflair InRow Direct Expansion (DX) cooling system to the University College Dublin (UCD) and deploy a new EcoStruxure Row Data Centre solution at its Daedalus data centre. Together, Schneider Electric and Total Power Solutions reduced the universities data centre Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE) from 1.42 to 1.37, helping it lower energy consumption and costs, while supporting its commitments to environmental sustainability. Further, parts of the cooling plant and equipment were relocated to the roof of the building, freeing up significant space for the redevelopment of new educational facilities, including an applied languages department. Modernising a live environment University College Dublin is the largest university in Ireland with a total student population of 33,000. It is also one of Europe’s leading research-intensive universities, with faculties of medicine, engineering, and all major sciences, as well as a broad range of humanities and professional departments. As part of a new strategic development plan to free-up space at its central Dublin campus, the IT services department made the decision to revitalise its data centre cooling architecture, making it more energy and space efficient, resilient, and scalable. Total Power Solutions worked with Schneider Electric to deploy a new EcoStruxure Row Data Centre solution, which provided a highly efficient, close-coupled design that is suited to high density computing to support its research workloads. Further, the companies replaced the existing data centre cooling system with a Uniflair InRow DX solution, which offers many benefits including a modular design, more predictable cooling, and variable speed fans which help to reduce energy consumption. "University College Dublin one of the world’s leading research-intensive universities, renowned for its commitments to fostering innovation and providing a dynamic student experience. Central to this is the continuity of its data centre,” says Mark Yeeles, Vice President, Secure Power Division, Schneider Electric, UK and Ireland. “I’m proud to accept this award on behalf of Schneider Electric and Total Power Solutions, which recognises how this new state-of-the-art infrastructure system will not only enhance UCD's resilience but will provide significant environmental benefits going-forward." “The Daedalus data centre serves as the beating heart that powers all essential operations on campus. From the academic research and HPC clusters to the centralised IT system, it ensures seamless functionality across the institution,” says Paul Kavanagh, Managing Director, Total Power Solutions. “This award is testament to the use of innovative technology and engineering, which ensures the university can continue operating without any downtime and can support both its students and sustainability ambitions for the many years ahead.”

DataCentres Ireland - registration now open!

Now in its 13th year, DataCentres Ireland will be held at the RDS on Wednesday 22 and Thursday 23 November, and brings together everyone involved in the dynamic and fast-growing Irish data sector. DataCentres Ireland’s multi-streamed conference will discuss the issues and opportunities affecting both the Irish and the wider DataCentre sector. The multi-streamed conference will look at the strategic issues and opportunities driving the sector, whilst the operational stream will look at the practical issue that can make your IT Infrastructure more effective and efficient whilst remaining safe, secure and resilient. Call for papers The conference programme is currently under construction. However, if you have a case study you think will be of interest to this audience of decision makers simply go to the website: Datacentres-ireland.com and hover over the tab and download the paper submission form at the end of the drop down box. Background to DataCentres Ireland DataCentres Ireland has consistently delivered a quality audience of decision makers and specifiers responsible for the Irish data centres sector and beyond. The exhibition is your opportunity to showcase you, your company, and the products, services, technology and solutions you offer to all involved in the sector in just two days in November (22-23).  Last year, over 125 companies secured their stand within the DataCentres Ireland Exhibition, as they recognised the business opportunities that can be achieved from meeting a quality audience of buyers and decision makers. Join the growing list of exhibitors Whether your objective is direct sales, to secure partnerships, to get invitations to tender, or launch new products and services, whilst re-enforcing existing relationships and making new industry contacts, exhibiting at this event will benefit you! To find out more about DataCentres Ireland simply go to datacentres-ireland.com or call Hugh and the team on +44 (0)1892 779992. DataCentres Ireland - new event sponsors The organisers are delighted to announce: Iron Mountain has become the Lead Conference Sponsor Riello UPS has repeated its Platinum Sponsorship for 2023 Africa Data Centres has become the Strategy Stream Sponsor Solar Turbines is sponsoring the event lanyards again for 2023 The organisers would like to thank these companies for their continued support of DataCentres Ireland, which confirms the event's ability to deliver a relevant and active audience that matters. Hear what delegates said about last year’s event “Great show this year...the best yet.”Eddie Kilbane, CEO, Kilon Holdings “Great event…one of the best I have been to in recent years.”James Rix, Project Director, Accredited Sustainability Advisor, Arcadis Consulting “Well attended event at all levels, stimulating and relevant conference topics with a diverse vendor expo. Ireland shows its data centre credentials…again.”Derek Webster, CEO, Andget To find out more about DataCentres Ireland simply go to datacentres-ireland.com