DatSci Awards announce 2018 Finalists

New category sponsored by Three Ireland announced to meet entry demand

Dublin, July 10th – For the third year, the DatSci Awards are celebrating the very best of data science in Ireland across 9 categories that represent major advances throughout the Data Science sector.

The awards, hosted by Next Generation and title sponsor Deloitte, in association with CeADAR, have seen a huge uplift in interest and applications have had steep competition. Due to demand, a new category Data Science Technology Innovation of the Year, was announced and for the first time, the DatSci Awards were open to European entries.

Ashley Cook, CRM Director, Three Ireland, “We are delighted to be sponsoring the Technology Innovation of the Year Award at this year’s DatSci Awards. Innovative technology and data analytics plays a huge role in every aspect of our business, especially in CRM  where it provides us with a much deeper understanding of our customers’ behaviour and requirements. We are very much looking forward to seeing the ingenuity of the shortlisted entrants and wish them all the best of luck.”

Newly announced sponsors include First Data who are sponsoring the award for Best
Contribution To Data Science – Academic Research Body. For the second year, Enterprise Ireland is sponsoring the award for Best Use Of Data Science In An SME.

Gerard Lande, Enterprise Ireland said: “Data Science has seen significant impact for the SME sector over the last three years. Many of the finalists in these awards are deploying machine learning and artificial intelligence technologies to enhance the benefits of their data analytics offerings. The SME sector is an important driver of economic development and an area which Enterprise Ireland is active in supporting through its Agile Innovation Fund and other supports for the development of leading edge, innovative technologies.”

Speaking about the nominations, Freda Cunningham, Director at Deloitte Ireland said, “We  are delighted to be the title sponsor of the awards for the 2nd year running. The calibre of entries are best-in-class and we are proud to be supporting their achievements and playing our part in this growing community.”

The finalists have been announced as follows:

DATA SCIENTIST OF THE YEAR sponsored by Deloitte Ireland

• Brendan Doherty | Pramerica
• Humberto Corona | Zalando Ireland Ltd
• John Doyle | Deutsche Bank
• Michael Phelan | DePuy Synthes
• Mohammad Karzand | Optum

BEST USE OF DATA SCIENCE IN A LARGE COMPANY

• Accenture The Dock
• AIB
• Genesys
• Pramerica Systems

BEST USE OF DATA SCIENCE IN AN SME sponsored by Enterprise Ireland

• Core Data
• Genomics Medicine Ireland
• HerdInsights.com
• Scully Analytics

BEST OF USE OF DATA SCIENCE IN A STARTUP sponsored by AIB

• EdgeTier
• Popertee Ltd
• TVadSync

BEST USE OF DATA SCIENCE IN A PUBLIC SECTOR BODY

• Central Bank of Ireland
• Chorus Intelligence
• Pobal

BEST USE OF DATA TO ACHIEVE SOCIAL IMPACT sponsored by Deutsche Bank

• Accenture
• DataKind UK
• Deloitte UK
• National Biodiversity Data Centre
• Transparent Referendum Initiative

BEST CONTRIBUTION TO DATA SCIENCE – ACADEMIC RESEARCH BODY sponsored by First Data

• ADAPT Centre, Dublin City University
• ADAPT Centre,Trinity College Dublin
• CeADAR, University College Dublin
• Lero | Irish Software Research Centre, NUI Galway
• Prolego Scientific, University College Dublin

AWARD FOR BEST DATA SCIENCE STUDENT OF THE YEAR sponsored by Pramerica

• Gary White |Trinity College Dublin
• Dixon Vimalajeewa | Waterford Institute of Technology
• Luke Kelly | NUI Galway
• Santhosh Parampottupadam | National College of Ireland

DATA SCIENCE TECHNOLOGY INNOVATION OF THE YEAR sponsored by Three Ireland

• Accenture
• Accenture The Dock
• AIB Analytics Factory
• Kitman Labs
• Nokia Bell Labs

The finalists will now present to a panel of 24 judges on July 26th. One winner will be chosen per category and will be announced during the ceremony on September 7th to be held in Croke Park, Dublin.

The DatSci Awards were created in an effort to celebrate the very best of Data Science talent in Ireland as well as to bring the Irish and International Data Science Community closer together.

As a non-profit event, a key element of the DatSci Awards is the Scholarship partnership with UCD Michael Smurfit School. In an effort to pay it forward to the next generation of Data Scientists, proceeds of ticket sales will be put towards a Scholarship Fund for full fees for one individual for a Level 9 MSc in Business Analytics for the Academic Year of 2018 ? 2019.

For more updates or to get involved visit www.datsciawards.ie or follow @DatSciAwards