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VIRTUAL
Conference 2026
On 2nd and 3rd September 2026, we ran our first fully virtual Data Community Conference. 13 talks, all centred around what it takes to get your data ready for AI. Take a look back through the highlights below, and join the conversation in the Data Community Forum.
Event Sponsors
The Premier Virtual Data Conference
The Data Community Virtual Conference brought together the full spectrum of the data world, from engineers to executives, for two days of talks grounded in practical application, business context, and the growing role of AI.
We're the community for data professionals and business leaders, sharing best practices and building connections with like-minded people.
This year, we rebuilt the conference as a live, hosted virtual event — two focused afternoons, 13 sessions, and one question running through nearly all of them: what does it actually take to get your data ready for AI?
AI in Practice
Real-world AI deployments, pitfalls, and patterns from teams shipping production systems. Julien Redmond (Iris) and Marc de Burlet (dFakto) showed why AI projects stall without the right data foundations underneath them, and our own Neil Strange closed the loop with seven principles for what an AI-ready architecture actually looks like.
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Business-First Data
Bridging the gap between technical teams and the business decisions that matter. Shane Gibson's Information Product Canvas tackled the oldest problem in the industry — data teams and stakeholders talking past each other — while Andrew Jones showed how to stop a data team becoming the bottleneck that slows the whole business down.
Modern Architecture
Data stacks and pipelines built for scale, speed, and reliability. Roberto Zagni and Saska Saarioja's "Pragmatic Data Platform" and Myles Richardson's real-world build at Companies House both made the same case: simple, well-governed architecture beats clever one-off engineering — with Corné Potgieter and Stephen Nwoye tackling data mesh and legacy modernisation head-on.
Community
Connect with peers, share hard-won lessons, and build lasting professional relationships. Two days of live polls, on-the-spot quizzes (with a fiercely contested hoodie on the line), and real conversation — continuing now in the Data Community forum.
Neil Strange
The AI-Ready Data Platform
Neil Strange argues "AI readiness" isn't a new discipline — it's the data good practice organizations have been deferring for 20 years, now forced by AI. Using a real client with nine overlapping CRM systems, he shows why AI amplifies existing data problems instead of fixing them.
Julien Redmond
Why Data Vault Will Save Your AI Project
Julian Redmond, CEO of Iris and Ignition Data, explains why AI projects stall — and argues it's rarely the model's fault. He makes the case that Data Vault gives AI the consistent meaning, complete history, and explicit relationships it needs to reason over trustworthy data.
Get a better feel for the event
Curious to see what the event was like? Take a look through the event brochure to get a feel for the sessions, speakers and how the day was structured.
Previous attendee feedback
The insights shared by industry leaders were not only thought-provoking but also practical, offering real-world applications that can drive immediate impact.
A well-executed balance of strategic and technical application.
A great opportunity to spend time with other users of Data Vault and understand their solutions to some of the challenges we already face.
Excellent way to network with other practitioners who have made a success of their projects.
