University of Canterbury Applied Data Science and AI in Industry Postgraduate Research Symposium 2026

Data science is an established profession, driven by exponential growth in availability of “big data” and domains that are increasingly data-driven and AI-enabled. The Master of Applied Data Science was developed by the University of Canterbury to provide students with a single programme of study that combines mathematics, statistics, and computer science with domain-specific applications of data science and AI. The capstone projects require students to work with an industry partner or research group to solve real-world data science problems that have practical business outcomes and research opportunity.

This summer we have 85 students working on 57 projects across 37 industry partners, and this year they will showcase their work with a presentation and poster at our inaugural Applied Data Science and AI in Industry Postgraduate Research Symposium this February. The projects are from a wide range of domains and contain a variety of practical internships and applied research projects.

We are delighted to welcome Yanosh Irani, recently appointed Head of DigiGEN at Meridian Energy, as our keynote speaker. Meridian Energy have recently started a new digital generation capability programme, DigiGEN, and is sponsoring one of our research projects this summer. We will also be joined by a number of graduates from our programme, some of whom are currently serving on our Applied Data Science Industry Board, for a panel discussion on “applying data science in practice.”

The symposium will be held in the Arts Lecture Theatres, with posters and breaks in the Atrium, combined talks in A1, and streams in A2 and A3. Morning tea, lunch, afternoon tea, and coffee will be provided. There are several carparks available across campus; their locations are marked on the map on Page 8. The symposium will be livestreamed and recorded and recordings will be made available to all participants, industry partners, and registered attendees. Details will be provided following registration. If you have any questions, please contact us by email.

• For more details, see the programme at rebrand.ly/uc-ads-and-ai-in-industry-2026

• For any questions, please contact us by email at datascience@canterbury.ac.nz