AI agents are emerging as an important trend since they enable levels of business adaptability, flexibility and agility that traditional AI systems can’t achieve. This flexibility is valuable in unpredictable environments where real-time monitoring and control aren’t practical. Autonomous behaviors, despite significant societal, legal and ethical implications, are the answer to the increasing complexity in our enterprise systems.

Discover how Data Mesh is transforming data management by decentralizing delivery and empowering business-driven D&A initiatives. You will find out what data mesh is, its benefits, and the most common challenges. We will provide a successful path based on the experience of early adopters, allowing you to avoid the most common pitfalls and adopt data mesh successfully.

Prioritizing data and AI literacy programs directly impacts the core measures of a firm’s financial performance. Investing in data and AI literacy is the fastest way for D&A leaders to achieve payback in their D&A maturity journey, especially in early stages of maturity.

Responsible data sharing is the key to intelligent health, enabling seamless insights across healthcare. Industry leaders face challenges in balancing new data demands, data sharing and AI innovation while complying with tough privacy regulations and overcoming cultural resistance. This session will explore opportunities and best practices for securely and ethically sharing data to drive innovation, improve patient outcomes and enhance collaboration across the ecosystem.

AI-ready data is a key pillar for enabling AI-related ambitions. But how should you do this, and what are others doing? This session explores what we mean by AI-ready, what clients and vendors are doing, and what Gartner recommends you do.

Data and analytics leaders and their data engineering teams are tasked with evaluating and selecting data integration tools. However, there are many options, which can be confusing. This session will explain the various types of data integration tools and technologies available in the market, and help you select the right data integration tool for your needs.

Data integration is evergreen, serving as a foundation element for any resilient data management strategy.
This session gives guidance on:
1. Data engineering top practices: What are the best practices to improve data integration?
2. Technology trends: What are the trends guiding the data integration technology?
3. Prioritization: Which of these top practices would prove to be the most impactful to your organization, given your current level of maturity?

Is D&A governance another data management initiative or is it more? Join us in this two-speaker debate session that clarifies the differences and synergies between the two practices, and why D&A leaders should care about making that differentiation. You will learn the best practices to complement D&A governance with data management practice.

Urgent Investments in data, analytics and AI use cases has put the spotlight once more on strong data management foundations. Is our Data even Ready for upcoming AI, analytics and data sharing initiatives is now top of mindshare for heads of data, CDAOs and their counterparts. Data Fabrics have emerged as a long term, foundational data management architecture that you should now pursue for sustained D&A success. This session will:
1. Help understand what data Fabrics are and what they mean for your data strategy and architecture
2. Help decide how to build and where to buy
3. Navigate the vendor landscape to assist in tech procurement decisions to aid your fabric journey

Dive into the symbiotic relationship between data and Artificial Intelligence in this comprehensive session. Explore how robust data foundations are critical for developing effective AI systems and how AI, in turn, refines and enhances data quality. Gain actionable insights into transforming raw data into intelligent solutions and leveraging AI to drive business innovation.

Successful data and analytics strategies today are business-centric, focused on achieving tangible and measurable business outcomes. This session will discuss the anatomy of an effective data and analytics strategy that enables organizations to thrive in today’s highly challenging and dynamic business environments.

D&A and AI leaders including CDAOs continue to struggle to prove the value of D&A and AI. This session will provide a roadmap for gaining stakeholder buy-in on D&A initiatives, quantifying the value and building the business case, learning from the success of other organizations, and continuously measuring results and adjusting.

Analytics and Business Intelligence (ABI) Platforms are being transformed by AI. Data insights are more likely to be discovered by machine learning. Natural language generation will turn dashboards into data stories. Natural language query will make data more accessible. This session will show how ABI Platform vendors are incorporating AI and how analytic leaders can manage the additional cost and risk these trends will bring.

This workshop is designed for first-time CDAOs and experienced CDAOs at a new company/industry. We will explore a framework to quickly enhance the impact you make as a CDAO. We will also focus on building your influence and brand, as well as strategies for engaging with stakeholders effectively.

Communicating the reality of what can be achieved with AI against what people think can be achieved can be challenging, and risky, especially when it's your boss. Join this session to learn effective communication techniques and methods for navigating internal politics to help reset expectations and chart a realistic course for using AI in your organization.

Heads of analytics & AI face many challenges such as keeping afloat, staying the course or racing ahead in the race for AI superiority. This session will focus on the top fears, risks, objections and hurdles leaders of Analytics & AI face and most importantly, how to handle them.

This very popular workshop shares the latest toolkit which can be used to diagnostically connect data, analytics, governance and their impact on business processes, decisions and outcomes.

D&A leaders and teams are at an AI-driven inflection point. They are crucial to enable business value through AI-readiness but must evolve their strategy and operating model to meet their organization’s AI ambitions. Reporting from the Gartner 2025 CDAO Agenda Survey, this session reveals actions successful D&A leaders have taken to deliver business outcomes from AI, data, and analytics, and what they need to do next year.

With high D&A ambitions and AI pilots becoming increasingly ubiquitous, focus is shifting toward consistent execution. We will share how to continue innovating and experimenting while scaling success. In this keynote, Gartner’s perspective will guide you on preparing for the expected and adapting to the unexpected. Learn to enhance your D&A and AI capabilities on the path to success.