Presenters

Shadi Aljendi

Assistant Teaching Professor
Faculty of Computer Science

Dr. Shadi Aljendi, P.Eng., is an Assistant Teaching Professor at the University of New Brunswick's Faculty of Computer Science. With a multidisciplinary background in Computer Science, Engineering, and Industrial Engineering, Dr. Aljendi brings extensive experience in artificial intelligence, data governance and technology integration in higher education. His research explores the ethical use and practical applications of AI, particularly in computer science education, smart cities, and healthcare optimization. Dr. Aljendi is currently leading research and educational initiatives focused on responsible AI adoption and its impact on higher education and the workforce. He is committed to advancing digital literacy and fostering collaboration between academia, industry, and community organizations.

Kelly Arnold

Director of Strategic Projects in Platform Technologies, IGT

Kelly Arnold is an MBA graduate from Université de Moncton and a BA graduate in Organizational Management from Crandall University. She has ~20 years of leadership experience in a variety of industries including Healthcare, Insurance and Gaming. Currently employed with IGT Canada as Director of Strategic Projects in Platform Technologies, Kelly is accountable for innovative transformational projects such as an internal AI advancements, platform convergence and the strategic partnership with UNB.

Kelly is also responsible for leading a team of Platform engineers that delivers foundational technologies to IGT games which includes significant contributions to enabling the sale of cabinets into global markets, enabling the creation of new content and the entrance into new jurisdictions around the globe.

Jake Arsenault

CEO and Co-Founder
the Black Arcs

Jake is CEO of the Black Arcs, the makers of Citisketch, a toolkit that shows the impacts of land-use decisions in a way that supports better decisions. He is one of the few New Brunswick based dedicated deep tech entrepreneurs and has a PhD in engineering from the University of New Brunswick (UNB). Before co-founding the Black Arcs, he founded Inversa Systems, a pioneer of gamma-ray imaging for infrastructure. He supports start-ups by mentoring early-stage ventures and is also a board member of Springboard, Atlantic Canada’s commercialization and industry liaison network for universities. Jake is focussed on partnerships and is a director of the company.

Yigit Aydede

Professor
Sobey Professorship in Economics
Department Chair of Economics

Dr. Yigit Aydede is a Professor of Economics at the Sobey School of Business, Saint Mary's University, Halifax, Canada. His research focuses on machine learning applications in social sciences, unconventional data analysis, disease surveillance systems, and genomics. Dr. Aydede teaches data analytics courses at both undergraduate and graduate levels, including Machine Learning & Artificial Intelligence in the Master of Business Analytics program.

He is the author of "Machine Learning Toolbox for Social Scientists: Applied Predictive Analytics with R," published in September 2023. His forthcoming book, co-authored with Dr. Mutlu Yuksel, titled "Causal Machine Learning for Econometrics," is under contract with Taylor & Francis and is expected to be published in February 2025. Dr. Aydede co-founded the Research Portal on Machine Learning for Social and Health Policies (MLPortal), which organizes scholarly activities such as summer schools and workshops. His recent research includes identifying regional drivers of influenza-like illness in Nova Scotia using dominance analysis, published in Nature's Scientific Reports in 2023.

In recognition of his contributions, Dr. Aydede was appointed as a Scientific Affiliate (Research) at the Nova Scotia Health Innovation Hub in March 2024. He also serves as the Department Chair of Economics at Saint Mary's University. Since July 2021, Dr. Aydede has held the Sobey Professorship in Economics, a five-year appointment acknowledging his expertise and contributions to the field.

Nicole Bendrich

Product Team Lead

Nicole Bendrich is a cybersecurity awareness solutions expert leading the Product Team at Beauceron Security. Her work focuses on innovation and collaboration with leading cybersecurity researchers to challenge perspectives in the cybersecurity awareness field and drive the industry forward. Nicole works with some of North America’s largest enterprises, government, and critical infrastructure, helping awareness professionals create engaging, results-driven programs that foster a meaningful security culture and reduce risk. Nicole holds a Master of Science in Engineering specializing in Machine Learning from the University of New Brunswick.

Kwasi Boakye-Boateng

Research Associate
Cybersecurity R&D Team Lead

Dr. Kwasi Boakye-Boateng is a Research Associate and Cybersecurity R&D Team Lead at the Canadian Institute for Cybersecurity, specializing in operational technology (OT), industrial control systems (ICS), critical infrastructure, and mission-critical military systems. His research focuses on developing cybersecurity frameworks that protect both civilian critical infrastructure and military environments from advanced cyber threats. Dr. Boakye-Boateng has collaborated with industry leaders such as Siemens, IBM, and military-based industry partners, contributing to the development of detection systems, risk management strategies, and impact assessment models. He also brings over a decade of experience in the telecommunications sector, enhancing his expertise in securing communication networks and critical systems.

Hung Cao

Assistant Professor, founding member and director of the Analytics Everywhere Lab

Dr. Hung Cao is affiliated with the University of New Brunswick as an Assistant Professor of Computer Science. He is the founding member and director of the Analytics Everywhere Lab - a multidisciplinary research group focused on critical thinking, excellence, and innovation to foster future digital transformation and solve societal challenges. His lab has been involved in different research projects in the field of IoT, Data Science, and AI (e.g., MITACS, NSERC Engage, NSERC/Cisco IRC projects) collaborating with different start-ups, SMEs, and large companies, including Cisco, NB Power, Eigen Innovation, Rimot, IntroHive, Codiac Transpo, HotSpot, etc. to develop working prototypes that could be used as a template for the company’s products.

Dr. Cao has been a member of 21 Technical Communities (e.g. IEEE Smart City, Internet of Everything, Big Data, Cloud Computing, Intelligent Informatics, Wearable and Ubiquitous Computing, etc.). He has served as a TPC member, conference program/session chair, and scientific reviewer invited by many conferences and journals. He is currently an Associate Editor of Discover Artificial Intelligence Journal and IET Smart Cities Journal, a Topic Editor appointed by Electronics Journal, Editor Board Member of many other Journals.

His research portfolio bridges the areas of Internet of Things (IoT), Explainable AI, Edge/Fog/Cloud Computing, Machine learning , Data Science, Context-enriched Analytics, Streaming Analytics, Decision Intelligence, TinyML/Federated Learning, Cyber-Physical Systems (CPS), and Real-time System.

Stephen Czarnuch

PhD, P.Eng. Associate Professor
Director. Centre for Artificial Intelligence
Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science
Faculty of Medicine

Dr. Czarnuch is an Associate Professor of Biomedical Engineering, joint-appointed to the Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science (Electrical and Computer Engineering) and the Faculty of Medicine (Emergency Medicine) at Memorial University. He is also the Director of the Centre for Artificial Intelligence at Memorial, and the program co-chair of the joint Masters of Applied Science in Software Engineering and Masters of Artificial Intelligence. His research is inherently interdisciplinary, lying at the intersection of engineering, computer science, medicine, gerontology, rehabilitation, psychology, and sociology. Specifically, he seeks to develop relevant, accessible, acceptable and adoptable patient-oriented technological interventions, commonly based on autonomously tracking human motion. His technical focus is on machine learning, deep learning, and computer vision with a specific interest in human detection, segmentation, semantic labelling, and activity recognition. Parallel to his technical research, he is a scholar in the field of public safety, mental health and wellness, predominantly focused on public safety communicators (e.g., 911, call-takers, and dispatchers). Dr. Czarnuch is a founding member of the Canadian Institute for Public Safety Research and Treatment (CIPSRT), and an inaugural and re-elected member of the Academic, Research, Clinician, and Network Advisory Committee for CIPSRT.

Hadi Eslami

Assistant Professor
Marketing Department

Dr. Hadi Eslami is an Assistant Professor of Marketing at the Sobey School of Business, Saint Mary’s University. His research focuses on innovation, new product development, and the strategic use of emerging technologies in marketing. He has integrated Generative AI into his Digital Marketing and Sustainable Marketing Management courses, emphasizing content creation, personalization, and ethical strategy. His work has been published in JPIM, JBR, Technovation, and Industrial Marketing Management (IMM). His research continues to be supported by a recent federal SSHRC Insight Grant focused on Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) adoption.

Ryan Garnett

Ryan Garnett is a senior data leader and creative technologist who bridges the gap between vision and execution in AI and data innovation. With over 20 years of cross-industry experience spanning government, healthcare, aviation, and global tech, Ryan is known for building impactful data programs from the ground up—including leading the AI and data transformation at Halifax International Airport.

At the Halifax International Airport Authority, Ryan is shaping the organization’s culture and practice around data, analytics, and AI. His current work focuses on using AI to improve data accessibility and decision-making across airport operations, with an emphasis on practical, human-centered solutions that drive real impact, and improve productivity.

Prior to joining HIAA, Ryan played key roles in transforming how organizations use data at Green Shield, a health benefits provider, and GSTS, a marine AI start-up. His public sector work includes leading Toronto’s Open Data program and modernizing the city’s foundational mapping and analytics infrastructure. His career has also included urban data projects across Canada, the U.S., Qatar, China, and India.

Andrew Godbout

Associate Professor, School of Mathematical and Computational Sciences

Andrew Godbout is an Associate Professor and Program Lead for Computer Science in the School of Mathematical and Computational Sciences at the University of Prince Edward Island. He received his PhD and MSc from the University of Calgary in Computer Science. In addition, Andrew worked for at IBM in their compiler division as a software developer for a number of years between his undergraduate and graduate studies.

Andrew's research areas include data sonification, machine learning, applications of machine learning and machine vision, and computer science education. He is especially interested in applying his research to areas involving human movement, including sporting and rehabilitation settings.

Steven Hager

Director, Office of the CISO

Steve Hager provides strategic cybersecurity and cloud adoption advisory to global public sector organizations, drawing upon his unique blend of military and technology leadership. As former CISO for Google's Public Sector, he understands the specific challenges and regulatory environments faced by government agencies, building strong relationships with key decision-makers to facilitate secure digital transformation. His distinguished career includes retiring as a Major General from the U.S. Army, where he gained extensive experience in Department of Defense and Intelligence community operations, providing a deep understanding of security in sensitive environments.

A Silicon Valley native, Steve's technical proficiency spans microelectronic integrated circuit design, embedded software development, and end-to-end global communication systems, including secure cloud solutions. He has held leadership positions at companies like Cisco and Alcatel-Lucent, consistently focusing on developing and delivering secure products. His roles encompassed all phases of development, including developer, manager, and director.

Steve possesses a proven track record of leading large, complex organizations, including global teams exceeding 2,000 personnel and managing large budgets. He is dedicated to empowering public sector organizations to leverage cloud technologies while ensuring the highest levels of security and compliance.

Stephanie Kelley

Assistant Professor
Scotiabank Professor in Innovations in Business Technology

Dr. Stephanie Kelley is the Scotiabank Professor in Innovations in Business Technology and an Assistant Professor of Management Science at the Sobey School of Business at Saint Mary’s University, where she studies the ethics of artificial intelligence (AI). She investigates both algorithmic and governance solutions and currently has projects on explainable AI, human-AI collaboration, measuring AI governance, and AI ethics audits. She has worked with several organizations to implement AI ethics including the Monetary Authority of Singapore, OSFI, Lululemon, Stewart McKelvey, and several Canadian banks. Before returning to academia, she held various marketing, sales, and analytics roles in the pharmacy and home hygiene industry at Reckitt Benckiser.

In the MBAN program, Stephanie leads the Ethics and Governance for Analytics course, helping students navigate the ethical complexities of AI -driven decision-making.

Greg Lukeman

CEO of ACENET, Atlantic Canada’s Digital Research Infrastructure (DRI) organization

Greg Lukeman is the CEO of ACENET, Atlantic Canada’s Digital Research Infrastructure (DRI) organization. With over 20 years of experience in advanced computing, he has played a key role in major DRI funding proposals in Canada. Notable contributions include work on the Leadership Council for Digital Research Infrastructure’s 2017 federal government submission, which led to Canada’s $572.5M DRI Strategy, and the proposal for the Pan-Canadian AI Compute Environment (PAICE), which is now being deployed. Greg is based at St. Francis Xavier University in Antigonish, NS.

Julia Knox

Chief Technology and Analytics Officer, Chief Privacy Officer (CPO)

Julia Knox serves as the Chief Technology and Analytics Officer (CTAO) and Chief Privacy Officer (CPO) at Empire Company Limited. In her role, she oversees Technology, Cyber Security, Enterprise Data, Advanced Analytics and AI, and the Enterprise Project Management Office (EPMO). She focuses on leading large-scale technology-driven business transformations and data and AI-driven innovations that drive outstanding customer and employee experiences, and operational efficiency.

Julia joined Empire in 2021 as SVP, Merchandising Solutions and Retail Enablement, bringing with her extensive retail expertise gained as a highly accomplished executive at Giant Tiger, where she was SVP, E-Commerce and Chief Merchandising Officer for the non-food businesses, leading both merchandising and e-commerce. She also held senior roles at H-E-B Grocery Company in Texas and worked in strategy consulting at Monitor Group in Toronto and New York.

Beyond her corporate leadership, Julia is deeply committed to serving the retail industry and her community. She is currently Chair of the Advisory Council at the David Sobey Retailing Center at St. Mary’s University and serves on the Board of Governors at GS1 Canada. She is on the Board of Directors at the St. Joseph’s Health Center Foundation in Toronto, is the Past Chair of the Board of the Ottawa Cancer Foundation and has played a pivotal role as a founding activator of Coralus, a non-profit venture capital fund supporting women entrepreneurs.

Victor Martinez

Clinical Genomics Specialist & Data Analytics Lead, Maritime Centre for Precision Medicine, IWK Health

Assistant Professor, Faculty of Medicine, Dalhousie University

Dr. Victor Martinez integrates AI and genomics at IWK Health and Dalhousie University. He leads a clinical genomics team implementing AI-powered bioinformatics solutions to enhance patient care, focusing on transforming the diagnosis and treatment of inherited diseases in Atlantic Canada through genome-wide analysis. In addition to his work on AI and genomics, Dr. Martinez conducts research on molecular markers for environmentally induced cancers, utilizing advanced sequencing technologies. He is also involved in developing data governance and strategy frameworks for the IWK's Maritime Centre for Precision Medicine and advocates for in-house genomic sequencing to maintain data sovereignty within Canada. His research contributions have been published in leading scientific journals, including Science, Cancer Discovery, and PNAS

Matt McGuire

Assistant Professor, Faculty of Education
McKenna Fellow in Digital Education

Dr. Matthew R. T. McGuire is a nationally recognized Canadian educator and Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Education at the University of New Brunswick. As the inaugural McKenna Fellow in Digital Education, he developed the New Brunswick Digital Literacy Framework and now works to advance digital competencies across K-12 and university contexts. McGuire's teaching practices have earned him significant accolades, including the Prime Minister's Award for Teaching Excellence, the New Brunswick Minister's Excellence in Teaching Award, and the G. Forbes Elliot Scholarship for Educational Leadership.

Dr. McGuire’s research explores digital technologies in education, specifically generative AI and creative learning spaces, instructional systems design, preservice educator development, and music and makerspace pedagogies.

When he is not at the university, you can find him at home with his family, recording original music and podcasts, or making hand-crafted soaps.

Andrew McIntyre

Assistant Professor
Jodrey School of Computer Science
Director of the Acadia Institute for Data Analytics

Dr. McIntyre is an assistant professor at the Jodrey School of Computer Science at Acadia University and serves as Director of the Acadia Institute for Data Analytics (AIDA). His research focuses on AI and machine learning (ML), with a particular focus on developing evolutionary computation algorithms for ML tasks. He previously served as a senior researcher with Dalhousie University’s Network Information Management and Security (NIMS/Project X) group, where he concentrated on applying AI techniques to behaviour mining applications. Previously, he worked as a postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Science and collaborated with the National Research Council Canada Institute for Biodiagnostics Atlantic at the Neuroimaging Research Laboratory, developing models of functional connectivity in brain images.

Noah Mitton

Director of Corporate Analytics

Noah Mitton is a long-time analytics expert, helping companies make better and faster decisions using data.

As Director of Corporate Analytics for J.D. Irving, Limited, Noah leads a team of analytics professionals who work on projects using all types of analytical tools including data exploration, root-cause analysis, simulation, optimization, and AI. He has supported the growth of J.D. Irving companies including farming, manufacturing, supply chain, customer service, trucking and financial modeling.

With a master’s degree from Dalhousie and a bachelor’s degree from McGill, Noah has led research involving trade, economics, and health care. Noah works with executives and key stakeholders to ensure J.D. Irving is ready for an ever-changing business landscape by focusing on how AI will impact people, process, and technology.

Matthew Murphy

Chief Data Officer at Nova Scotia Health

Matthew Murphy is a recognized leader in healthcare strategy, performance, and data-driven decision-making. With a Master’s degree in Applied Health Services Research and extensive experience as Chief Data Officer at Nova Scotia Health, Matthew brings deep expertise in transforming health systems through evidence-informed leadership.

He is a Certified Health Executive with the Canadian College of Health Leaders and an EXTRA Fellow with Healthcare Excellence Canada. His contributions have been acknowledged nationally and internationally, including being named one of the Global Top 50 Innovators by the Public Service Network.

Matthew also serves as an Adjunct Professor at Dalhousie University, where he teaches and mentors future health leaders on system design, analytics, and health leadership.

Passionate about the power of data to improve healthcare, Matthew champions the use of analytics, AI, strategic planning, and performance management to drive better outcomes. He is committed to helping healthcare organizations make informed decisions, optimize performance, and ultimately, improve the lives of patients and communities.

Suresh Neethirajan

Dalhousie University Research Chair
Professor, Faculty of Agriculture and Faculty of Computer Science

Dr. Suresh Neethirajan is a Professor and University Research Chair at Dalhousie University, cross-appointed between the Faculty of Computer Science and the Faculty of Agriculture. His research focuses on AI-driven innovations for livestock farming, precision agriculture, and sustainability. He leads the MooAnalytica research group, which develops cutting-edge AI solutions for monitoring animal welfare, optimizing farm efficiency, and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. With expertise in machine learning, digital livestock farming, and sensor technologies, Dr. Neethirajan collaborates with industry and policymakers to drive AI adoption in agriculture.

Natalie Oake

IM/IT Director
Enterprise Architecture and Digital Strategy

Natalie Oake is an accomplished leader in digital health strategy and transformation. With an extensive background in epidemiology and health analytics, she has dedicated her career to advancing data-driven decision-making in healthcare systems.

Natalie holds a Master of Health Management from McMaster University, and a Master of Science in Epidemiology and Community Medicine from the University of Ottawa. Additionally, she is a Certified Professional in Health Information and Management Systems (CPHIMS-CA) and a Business Relationship Management Professional (BRMP).

Currently, Natalie serves as the IM/IT Director for Enterprise Architecture and Digital Strategy at Nova Scotia Health. In this role, she leads a team of architects, developers, and data engineers in the implementation of Nova Scotia’s FHIR Electronic Health Record system. She has been instrumental in establishing health data standards and modern data integration patterns to support the province’s digital health transformation efforts.

Passionate about integrating digital solutions and healthcare, Natalie continues to shape the future of digital health, ensuring that data-driven solutions enhance the citizen, provider, and administrator experience.

Sageev Oore

Associate Professor, Faculty of Computer Science, Dalhousie University
Faculty Affiliate, Vector Institute

Sageev Oore’s research encompasses both foundational elements of deep learning (AI) as well as an emphasis on applications in music, creativity, and health. He has worked as a Visiting Research Scientist at Google Brain Research (Mountain View, California), as Research Faculty Member at the Vector Institute for Artificial Intelligence (Toronto), as a consultant/advisor and speaker, as a professional musician, and is currently also an Associate Professor in the Faculty of Computer Science at Dalhousie, where he supervises a wonderful team of graduate students. A recent Canada CIFAR AI Chair, his lab is currently/recently funded by NSERC, CIHR, SSRHC, NFRF, CIFAR, and MITACS. Sageev completed his undergrad in Mathematics at Dalhousie (BSc Hon, with Karl Dilcher) while also studying piano at the Department of Music (with Lynn Stodola), and completed graduate studies at University of Toronto (MSc and PhD, with Geoff Hinton).

Jason Pearson

Professor of Chemistry
Co-founder of Stemble Learning

Jason Pearson is a Professor of Chemistry at the University of Prince Edward Island, where he leads an interdisciplinary research group in computational methods for chemistry, spanning quantum chemistry, electronic structure theory, and artificial intelligence for molecular discovery. He is also a co-founder of Stemble Learning, a data-driven teaching and learning platform designed for chemistry classes and laboratories.

Stemble delivers course content and learning analytics to over 30,000 students each semester across North America. These include automated assessments driven by artificial intelligence, and fully interactive virtual lab experiences.

Prof. Pearson is the winner of numerous SoTL awards including the Reg Friesen Award from the Chemical Education Division of the Canadian Society for Chemistry, The Hessian Award, The Janet Pottie Murray Award for Educational Leadership, and the Brightspace Award for Innovation in Teaching and Learning from the Society for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education.

Enayat Rajabi

Associate Professor
Management Science Department

Dr. Enayat Rajabi is an Associate Professor of Business Analytics at Management Science Department, Cape Breton University, NS, Canada.

He has a Ph.D. degree in Information and Knowledge Engineering and was a postdoctoral fellow at Dalhousie University. Dr. Rajabi's research interests include machine learning, knowledge graphs, and data analytics. He has published several papers in computer science JCR journals and has been awarded the NSERC Discovery Grant in Canada.

Janarthanan Rajendran

Sexton Chair in Reinforcement Learning
Assistant Professor,
Faculty of Computer Science

Janarthanan Rajendran is an Assistant Professor and the Sexton Chair in Reinforcement Learning in the Faculty of Computer Science at Dalhousie University. His research interests lie in building AI systems that–throughinteraction–canlearn to be competent in complex, dynamic, and uncertain environments. He is interested in computational methods that build such systems as well as their practical applications and societal implications. To this end, his current research primarily focuses on deep reinforcement learning. Prior to his current position, he was an IVADO postdoctoral research fellow at Mila - Québec AI Institute and the University of Montréal, working with Prof. Sarath Chandar and Prof. Doina Precup. He completed his Ph.D. at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, under the supervision of Prof. Satinder Singh, and his master's and undergraduate degrees at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IITM) under the supervisionof Prof. Balaraman Ravindran and Prof. Kaushik Mitra. Janarthanan’s research in machine learning has been published in top venues such as NeurIPS, ICLR, and ICML.

Chantal Ritcey

VP, Public Sector Practice, AltaML

Chantal is a skilled professional with over two decades of public sector experience, navigating all levels of government. Specializing in digital transformation and program management, Chantal has excelled in diverse industries, showcasing exemplary skills in business development and stakeholder engagement. Currently serving as the Public Sector Practice Lead at AltaML, Chantal oversees the overall success of all public sector engagements, including the development of artificial intelligence and machine learning solutions from proof of concept to deployment, with a keen focus on delivering offerings that are competitive in the market. Prior to this role, Chantal held the position of Senior Executive Business Partner - Public Sector at AltaML, where she played a pivotal role in driving strategic planning and innovation. Her influence still extends to the success of AltaML’s expanding talent accelerator program, GovLab.ai. Chantal also serves as AltaML’s Responsible AI Practice Lead, ensuring that appropriate RAI practices guide all of AltaML’s work. Chantal holds a Master of Library and Information Studies from the University of Alberta.

Frank Rudzicz

Associate Professor
Canada CIFAR Chair in AI
Killam Memorial Chair

Frank Rudzicz is an Associate Professor at Dalhousie University, founding faculty member at the Vector Institute for Artificial Intelligence, status professor at the University of Toronto, Killam Memorial Chair, and Canada CIFAR Chair in Artificial Intelligence. His work is in machine learning in healthcare, especially in natural language processing, speech recognition, and safe AI. His students have founded several companies in AI and Health that have had successful exits, including Winterlight Labs and Mutuo Health Solutions. His research has appeared in popular media such as Scientific American, Wired, CBC, and the New York Times, and in scientific press such as ACL, NeurIPS, JAMA, and Nature.

Hassan Sajjad

Associate Professor
Faculty of Computer Science

Hassan Sajjad is an Associate Professor in the Faculty of Computer Science at Dalhousie University, Canada, and the Director of the HyperMatrix Lab. He is a leading researcher in Safe and Trustworthy AI, with a focus on safety alignment, model editing and machine unlearning, interpretability and explainability. Dr. Sajjad's pioneering research on interpretability and AI safety has been recognized at top-tier venues such as NeurIPS, ICLR, and ACL, and has been featured in leading tech blogs, including MIT News. Beyond his research, Dr. Sajjad actively contributes to the AI and NLP community as a speaker, an area chair and a reviewer for major machine learning and computational linguistics conferences and journals.

Robyn Stewart

Director of Consulting Services at CGI

Robyn Stewart is the Director of Consulting Services at CGI, where she leads the Strategic IT and AI business for Atlantic Canada. With over a decade of experience, she specializes in helping government and private sector clients harness cloud, data, and artificial intelligence to drive innovation and operational efficiency.

A seasoned technology consultant, Robyn blends deep technical expertise with a strong understanding of business strategy. She is passionate about demystifying AI and making its benefits accessible to organizations of all sizes and maturity levels. Through workshops, strategic advisory, and change management, she empowers clients to modernize their IT environments and embrace AI as a catalyst for transformation.

Robyn is especially active in the public sector, where she advocates for AI-driven solutions to improve healthcare and public service delivery. A recognized leader in the tech community, she regularly speaks at industry events and collaborates with academic and industry partners to advance innovation and applied AI research.

Rob Thacker

Professor
Department of Astronomy and Physics

Dr. Rob Thacker is one of Canada’s most respected astrophysicists. Previously having held research positions at the University of California, Berkeley, and Queen’s University, he became a Canada Research Chair in computational simulation at Saint Mary’s University in 2007. In 2015 he became the first non-U15 researcher to lead the national research review for astronomy. With funding implications of over $400M within a decade, this appointment also led to him advising policymakers at the key government agencies involved in astronomy funding. Over the past two decades he has contributed to multiple groundbreaking projects that have shaped our modern understanding of “feedback” process in galaxy formation. His research has consistently emphasized the value of comparative analysis and the challenges of modelling dynamical systems characterized by non-Hamiltonian chaos. Since 2016 he has become increasingly dedicated to public science communication, earning both regional and national recognition. While having direct research interests in AI and machine learning, Dr. Thacker has found considerable overlap on these topics with his other area of expertise as a union negotiator. Recognizing the importance of public discussion on these matters, as the current Director of Science Outreach at Saint Mary’s, he engages with the public every week—appearing on Halifax’s News 95.7 and Ottawa’s CFRA 580.

Terrence Tricco

Assistant Professor
Computer Science and Physics departments
Chair of the graduate-level Data Science program

Terrence is an Assistant Professor in the Computer Science and Physics departments at Memorial University of Newfoundland, and is chair of the graduate-level Data Science program. Terrence uses AI and machine learning in his research on turbulence and astrophysics, and is interested in synthetic data generation for a variety of domains, such as financial data.

Uday Venkatadri

Professor and Head of the Department, Industrial Engineering, Dalhousie University

Uday Venkatadri, Ph.D., P.Eng, is Professor and Head of the Department of Industrial Engineering at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia. He has taught at Dalhousie University since July 2001. Before joining Dalhousie, he was a Lead Architect for supply chain planning products at Baan (now Infor Global Solutions Inc.). He also worked as a Research Associate at Université Laval in Québec City. He holds a Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering from Purdue University, a Master of Science degree in Industrial Engineering from Clemson University, and a Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from IIT (BHU) Varanasi, India. He teaches courses in inventory systems, facilities design, and supply chain management at Dalhousie. His current research is focused production and distribution systems design and operations within the Industry 5.0 and hyper-connected logistics context. He is interested in the Physical Internet, production planning, and forward and reverse supply chain management using contemporary AI, ML, and Decision Analytic tools.

Thumeera Wanasinghe

Assistant Professor
Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science

Thumeera Wanasinghe is an assistant professor in the electrical and computer engineering department of the Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science at Memorial University of Newfoundland. His research program, “Artificial Intelligence (AI) for Autonomous Systems and Beyond (AI4ASB)”, combines multi-sensor data fusion, learning-based control systems, digital twin (DT), AI, and socioeconomic paradigms to deploy trustworthy and socially acceptable autonomous systems for civilian and commercial applications.

Christopher Whidden

DeepSense COVE Digital Ocean Research Chair
Assistant Professor
Faculty of Computer Science

Dr. Chris Whidden is an Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Computer Science at Dalhousie University and the DeepSense/COVE Digital Ocean Research Chair. He has expertise in algorithm development, data science, machine learning and optimization with a focus on bioinformatics and ocean research. Chris is particularly interested in practical collaborative applied research with ocean scientists and industry partners to help translate AI technology research and development to practical, responsible uses such as monitoring and protecting at-risk species of fish with video and acoustics to encourage clean energy generation and carbon dioxide removal. He is an editor for the ICES journal of Marine Science, PI of the MERIDIAN ocean acoustics and ship tracking research initiative, and the lead PI of Subtheme 1.2: Transforming Climate Action with AI for Dalhousie University’s transformational CFREF grant to transform climate action through ocean study and impact.

Xichen Zhang

Assistant Professor
Sobey School of Business

Dr. Xichen Zhang holds a Ph.D. in Computer Science from the Canadian Institute for Cybersecurity at the University of New Brunswick. He is currently an Assistant Professor at the Sobey School of Business, Saint Mary's University.

Dr. Zhang has extensive industry experience, having previously worked in roles such as Research Scientist and Senior Software Developer at the Canadian Institute for Cybersecurity. In addition to his current faculty position, he also serves as a Visiting Professor at the Sauder School of Business, University of British Columbia, and an Adjunct Professor at both Dalhousie University and the University of New Brunswick.

His research interests focus on social media analysis, fake news detection, and practical data mining applications in cybersecurity. His work bridges the gap between business analytics and cybersecurity, addressing real-world challenges in online information integrity and digital security.