AI Con USA 2025 - Consultant

Customize your AI Con USA 2025 experience with sessions for consultants.

Monday, June 9

MA

Getting Started with AI and Machine Learning

Monday, June 9, 2025 - 8:30am to 12:00pm

Are you a software professional who would like to learn to use AI and machine learning (ML), but don't know how to get started? One of the best ways to get into ML is by designing and completing small projects. Although you will ultimately need to understand the fundamentals of AI/ML, there's no reason why you can't learn foundational terms, concepts and principles as you put them into practice.  Join Dionny Santiago as he introduces you to the world of applied machine learning. Dionny will guide you through a series of ML projects end-to-end, enabling you to gain experience with creating...

Matt Eland
Leading EDJE
MB

Beginning Data Analysis and Machine Learning with Jupyter Notebooks

Monday, June 9, 2025 - 8:30am to 12:00pm

In this beginner-friendly workshop you'll see how you can get started with data analytics and data science using Jupyter Notebooks. Matt will start with the basics of notebooks and then move on to using Python, Pandas, and NumPy to perform basic exploratory data analysis. See how you can use Plotly Express to create interactive charts and visuals with only a minimal amount of code. Once you've grasped the basics of understanding and visualizing the data Matt will move on to machine learning with SciKit-Learn as you train and evaluate predictive regression and classification models. The...

Joshua Powers
Dev Technology Group
MC

Get Your Data Ready for AI/ML

Monday, June 9, 2025 - 8:30am to 12:00pm

Understanding the readiness of your source data before you launch an expensive AI/ML project lets you take corrective data engineering measures that will streamline the project and give you the best probability of a successful outcome.  Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) projects can provide significant returns on investment when they are applied to narrow but difficult business problems and are supported by adequate amounts of relevant, quality data. Many such projects start with high hopes but get derailed due to fundamental problems with source data, which were...

Justin Castilla
Elastic
MG

Introduction to RAG Applications: Building Conversational AI for Domain-specific Search

New
Monday, June 9, 2025 - 1:00pm to 4:30pm

This beginner-friendly workshop introduces participants to the fundamentals of Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) applications. Using a pre-configured Docker environment featuring Python, Elasticsearch for vector storage, and OpenAI as the LLM, attendees will learn how to build a RAG-powered conversational portal. Throughout the session, participants will create a RAG application to consume and query a sample dataset of Washington State regulation documents. Replace these sample documents with your own PDF files, and you’ll interact with your data in no time! By the end, attendees will...

Tuesday, June 10

Jeff Payne
Coveros
TF

Image Classification using LLMs and Transfer Learning

Tuesday, June 10, 2025 - 1:00pm to 4:30pm

Large language models, like Generative Pre-trained Transformers (GPTs) to create textual content in ChatBots and other Generative AI applications, have garnered much attention recently. However, not all data is textual. Another important use of LLMs is for image processing to address real-world problems such as: real-time object recognition, classification of images, and generation of modern art. Jeffery Payne will explore how large language models for images (also known as visual language models - VLMs) can be used for image classification, object detection, image capture generation, and...

Dona Sarkar
Microsoft
Jeremiah Marble
3rd Rodeo AI
TG

This Is Our Agent, We Make the Call

New
Tuesday, June 10, 2025 - 1:00pm to 4:30pm

Agents! Finally, a term that might be even more over-hyped than AI! But what exactly are Agents, and more importantly, how do you use them? Where do Agents fit within the overall AI toolkit? What capabilities do they add, and what tasks can they help us perform? Dona and Jeremiah will help you gain a solid understanding of Agents and the fundamental components of an Agent-based AI system. You’ll learn key design principles for Agents, as well as when to leverage them and scenarios where they may not be the best choice. We'll cover how to identify business problems that are well-suited for...

Wednesday, June 11

erica_greene_headshot
Yahoo News
K1

Best Practices for Using AI for Structured Data Extraction

Wednesday, June 11, 2025 - 8:30am to 9:30am

Structured data extraction, or data tagging, is one of the easiest and impactful applications of modern AI. Before the wide availability of pre-trained AI models, the process of “understanding” unstructured data either required constructing complex heuristic logic or investing in a machine learning team who could train models in-house. Now, cheap and powerful tagging machines are an API call away, redefining what is possible for how we can understand our data. In this talk, I'll share how we’ve used AI at Yahoo News to improve our content understanding pipelines. Yahoo was a pioneer in...

sida_peng_headshot
Microsoft
K2

The Impact of AI on Developer Productivity

Wednesday, June 11, 2025 - 9:35am to 10:20am

Generative AI tools hold promise to increase human productivity.  In the world of software development, GitHub Copilot was one of the first practical applications of the use of generative AI to support developer productivity.  However, measuring software productivity is non-trivial.  For example, developer productivity gains is more than just producing code faster. If these artifacts don’t meet quality standards or themselves bring cost efficiency challenges then there may not be much overall improvement. To truly understand the benefits and challenges of AI-powered copilots requires real-...

Tariq King
Test IO
W4

Test Machina: Demystifying AI-Driven Testing Agents

Wednesday, June 11, 2025 - 11:50am to 12:35pm

Software vendors and practitioners are using artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) to create a new wave of test automation tools. Such tools leverage autonomous and intelligent agents to explore, model, reason and learn about a software product. But how do these testing agents really work? Is this technology any good? And can we really trust them to validate software? Tariq King will introduce you to the world of agentic AI and discuss its benefits, challenges and other limitations. Learn how AI test agents use AI/ML technologies to mimic human testing activities such as...

Apurva Misra
Sentick
W5

Powering Complex Solutions with Agentic Systems

Wednesday, June 11, 2025 - 11:50am to 12:35pm

This session explores the revolutionary potential of agentic systems—autonomous agents equipped with diverse tools to tackle multifaceted tasks effectively. By integrating tools, agentic workflows enable intelligent, adaptive solutions to complex challenges. Apurva will start with an introduction to agentic systems, highlighting their ability to utilize various tools dynamically to achieve goals with minimal human intervention. Through real-world case studies, she will demonstrate how tools like APIs, databases, and external services are orchestrated within these systems to simulate...

Mary Thorn
S&P Global Ratings
K3

Operationalizing Disruptive Technologies: A Strategic Framework for Harnessing the Power of GenAI

Wednesday, June 11, 2025 - 3:50pm to 4:35pm

The advent of disruptive technologies, particularly in artificial intelligence, has ushered in a new era of possibilities and challenges. This talk proposes a comprehensive framework for operationalizing disruptive technologies, specifically focusing on the transformative potential of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI). As organizations grapple with integrating GenAI into their operations, there is a pressing need for a structured approach that addresses technical, ethical, and organizational considerations. Mary will delve into a strategic framework designed to guide businesses in...

Dona Sarkar
Microsoft
K4

AI for Real People—Panel

Wednesday, June 11, 2025 - 4:40pm to 5:40pm

We have heard a LOT of hype about AI and AGI and ASI and all of the nonsense. But in year 3 of Generative AI, people are actually moving beyond talking and finding real value in AI. Come and hear from REAL AI implementers about how AI is having an impact on businesses across the board including small businesses, non-profits, big companies, and more.

Thursday, June 12

andreas_bohman
University of Washington
K6

AI at Scale: Balancing innovation, governance, and risk in large organizations

Thursday, June 12, 2025 - 9:35am to 10:20am

As AI reshapes industries, large organizations must scale innovation while upholding governance, security, and ethical responsibility. Deploying AI at scale isn’t just a technical challenge—it’s a strategic balancing act between agility and compliance, risk and reward. Andreas Bohman, CIO at the University of Washington, will discuss strategies to drive AI-powered innovation without compromising regulatory obligations, operational effectiveness, or public trust. He will share governance strategies that enable innovation rather than restrict it. He’ll also talk about addressing critical...

T2

Mastering Quality Engineering in the Age of AI

Preview
Thursday, June 12, 2025 - 10:50am to 11:35am

AI is transforming the software quality engineering industry by automating routine tasks and enabling smarter testing approaches. Its integration into software development has profoundly reshaped the field of Quality Engineering (QE). This presentation explores the evolving role of QE in the AI era, addressing the challenges, opportunities, and strategies for achieving excellence in AI-driven environments. By examining the intersection of AI and QE, it provides valuable insights into best practices for maintaining high-quality software and equips QE professionals with the knowledge...

Cy Khormaee
Attentive
T5

Continuous Testing for AI Applications

Thursday, June 12, 2025 - 11:40am to 12:25pm

In the era of artificial intelligence, software testing has evolved from a finite phase in development to an ongoing, dynamic process of monitoring. Unlike traditional deterministic systems, AI-driven applications operate probabilistically, introducing variability and uncertainty in outputs even with consistent inputs. This paradigm shift requires a rethinking of testing strategies, moving towards continuous monitoring to ensure performance, fairness, and reliability in production environments. This session will explore how QA teams can integrate AI-specific methods, anomaly detection, and...

Emma Pyne
EPAM/Test IO
T7

Brewing Better Technology: How Human Insights Enhance AI Capabilities

Preview
Thursday, June 12, 2025 - 1:25pm to 2:10pm

Striking the right balance between the efficiency of artificial intelligence (AI) and the nuanced insight of human interaction is crucial. The motivation behind integrating AI in development and testing is to enhance decision-making and productivity through automation. However, solely relying on AI can overlook critical elements that only human testers can provide, such as emotional intelligence and contextual understanding. To illustrate this dynamic, Emma Pyne will use the analogy of AI as coffee brewing machines and human testers as skilled baristas in Seattle's coffee shops. AI...