University of Cincinnati

10/29/2025 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 10/29/2025 12:47

Innovation in focus at the 2025 Data Science Symposium

Innovation in focus at the 2025 Data Science Symposium

Experts, industry leaders and students collaborate at the annual event

By Emily Glass Email EmilyEmail Emily
7 minute read October 29, 2025 Share on facebook Share on Twitter Share on LinkedIn Share on Reddit Print StoryLike

The University of Cincinnati Center for Business Analytics once again welcomed attendees to its annual Data Science Symposium at the Carl H. Lindner College of Business on Oct. 9. The 2025 symposium featured experts and industry leaders detailing how they're leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) to solve actual business challenges.

Ryan Fitzpatric, senior director of data science and analytics at GE Aerospace, delivered the opening keynote and Matt Booher, vice president of data solutions at E.W. Scripps, closed the event. Between the two keynotes, attendees chose from 10 breakout sessions led by data scientists and industry experts who walked through current AI applications and data solutions in classroom-sized discussions.

Georgette Angulo-Ramirez took on the role of executive director after nearly 15 years at dunnhumby/84.51. Photo/provided

Georgette Angulo-Ramirez, the new executive director of the Center for Business Analytics, said she wanted to bring people together at this year's symposium, highlighting the space for discussion, networking and collaboration throughout the day's activities.

"This is our most technical-focused conference of the year. Having guests like Ryan Fitzpatric detail their companies' case studies and share their knowledge, that's what has this crowd truly geeking out," Angulo-Ramirez said. "It's really wonderful to see these highly technical folks engage and bring a more playful vibe."

One of the many guest speakers at the event was UC alum Aedhan Scott, who is now an AI engineer at Orchard Digital Marketing. His session, "Less Hype, More Launch: Building Useful AI for Marketing Teams," dove into best practices for AI integration and streamlining workflows. "Which should we be using in our businesses: People, software or AI? The answer is 'yes' to all of them," he said at his seminar.

Deep dive breakout sessions right arrow down arrow
  • "Turning Data into Value: The Analytics-Informed Path to Impactful Transformation" by Dave Cherry, Cherry Advisory"
  • "Beyond A/B Testing: How Causal Inference Powers Real-World Marketing Decisions" by Sahil Sampat, 84.51
  • "Forecasting Catastrophe Insurance Losses with AI: Integrating Weather Models, Computer Vision and LLMs" by Matt Ritchey, Great American Insurance Group
  • "Bot or Not? How to Tell Who's Really There" by Michael Jones, PhD, Lindner College of Business
  • "Attacking the Gaps in Emerging Technology" by Summer Crenshaw, Enterprise Technology Association
  • "Less Hype, More Launch: Building Useful AI for Marketing Teams" by Aedhan Scott, Viridity Technologies & Orchard Digital Marketing
  • "Implementing ReACT Agents from Scratch" by Dave Ramsey, Syrv.ai
  • "AI for Data and Business System Security: Challenges and Future Trends" by Nelly Elsayed, PhD, College of Education, Criminal Justice, and Human Services
  • "Feature Feast: Building a Data Buffet for Models" by Shanna Anderson and Katie Long, Fifth Third
  • "The Future of AI: From the Wild West to the Gold Rush" by Jeffrey Shaffer, Lindner College of Business

Angulo-Ramirez (middle), along with Mike Fry and Dungang Liu, welcomed over 200 attendees to the symposium ahead of the first keynote. Photo/David Bauer

Michael Fry, PhD, senior director of Lindner Centers & Institutes, delivered opening remarks that highlighted the evolution of the Center for Business Analytics and its events over the years. "The name of this event has evolved from 'Business Intelligence' to 'Data Science,' reflecting the shift in tools, method, and computing power that continue to reshape our field," Fry said.

"That evolution hasn't stopped. Our newest addition to the Center is the Applied AI Lab," he added. "As AI and data science transform what is possible and what is expected, progress will only come through close collaboration between UC faculty, staff, students and all of you from industry."

Tech takes flight

Following the opening remarks, Fitzpatric presented "The Evolution of Analytics & AI at GE Aerospace." He walked the audience through how his team uses artificial intelligence to predict bottlenecks in the supply chain years in advance. "I see aviation as a space that is highly disruptive," he said. "The domain is changing and we have to be making strategic innovations as you all do in your own businesses."

"Everything that we theorized in the 60s, the computer is finally catching up," he said as he walked through a brief timeline of computer integration into analytics. Fitzpatric explained that GE had been using machine learning to manage its fleets for decades, and now emphasizes using trusted data, ensuring transparency and always keeping a "human in the loop" of workflows.

His keynote ended in a conversation with the audience on looking for opportunities to have an impact and be a leader in analytics as the landscape evolves.

Fine-tuning opportunity

Booher offered the closing keynote before another networking hour. In "Data Goes Live: How Scripps is Evolving AI & Analytics," he offered insights using real examples from the broadcasting company. "Everyone sees the potential in AI. We're just scratching the surface," he said, before acknowledging that many teams across industries are feeling pressure to implement AI tools quickly and effectively. Under this pressure, he emphasized the importance of trustworthy data. "It starts with this foundation. Unreliable data means reliably wrong AI."

He also detailed how data analytics is like a team sport. He said that in Scripps' case, in order to widen its broadcast audience, centralized support, hybrid analytics and self-service tools have to work together.

The Center for Business Analytics partners with leaders in the data science community to provide leadership development, events, trainings and consultation services.

Thank you Center for Business Analytics members right arrow down arrow
  • 84.51
  • ABC Fitness
  • altafiber
  • American Modern Insurance Group
  • Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center
  • Cincinnati Reds
  • Cintas
  • Drees
  • DHL
  • Fifth Third
  • GE Aerospace
  • Great American Insurance Group
  • HBH Holdings Inc.
  • Hikma
  • Hoxworth Blood Center
  • Kadant
  • Kroger
  • Nestle
  • Procter & Gamble
  • Ryerson
  • Western & Southern
  • Worthington Steel
Thank you Data Science Symposium sponsors right arrow down arrow
  • Costrategix
  • The Circuit
  • Knime
  • Vaco

About the UC Center for Business Analytics

The Center for Business Analytics unites organizations and a world-class, multidisciplinary group of faculty and students to educate and exchange ideas and best practices on applying analytical methods to enhance business performance. To inquire about membership, sponsorship, training or speaking opportunities, email [email protected].

Featured image at top of the Data Science Symposium volunteer team and attendees. Photo/David Bauer

Tags

  • Center for Analytics
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Operations, Business Analytics & Information Systems
  • Information Systems
  • Lindner College of Business
  • Data Analysis
  • Business-Analytics
  • Operations & Business Analytics
  • Science & Tech

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