Season 7, Post 36: The halls are alive with the sound of data
Big Data LDN gets bigger each year. Billed as “the UK’s leading data, analytics and AI event,” your author has attended since 2019. Over 15,000 people descend on London’s Olympia venue for a two-day conference featuring speakers from the likes of NVIDIA and Microsoft, as well as a swathe of promising start-ups. The event seemed busier than on any prior occasion and for many of the presentations, it was standing room only.
Excitement over all things tech is inevitable at a self-serving event such as this. Listen in on any conversation and you will probably hear the words data and AI linked to transformation and productivity. Add in agents and things begin to sound even more exciting. Beneath the hubris, however, a more nuanced message emerges. Many of the attendees at the event are practically tasked with making AI both approachable and usable within their organisations. AI may be powerful, but you need the right tools. Start with simple use cases and work from there, was another persistent message. And in case you were wondering, AI is not a panacea.
Among the most interesting presentations was one we attended on introducing more AI use-cases into healthcare systems. This accords with the thematic pieces we have written this year on both humanoid robots and longevity science. Attendees were reminded that healthcare systems are “facing a crisis” owing to budget pressures and the fact that the World Healthcare Organisation predicts there will be a 4.5m nurse shortage by 2030.
Fortunately, it has never been easier to spin up an AI proof-of-concept. Training times for new healthcare specific large language models has apparently dropped to less than two months. Examples of beneficial solutions cited included avatar-led translation tools for patients who may not speak the same language as carers, intelligent systems that can save nurses time when writing up case notes and Nurabots. The latter are being trialled in some southeast Asian hospitals. Backed by NVIDIA, these robotic assistants can carry supplies, give nurses directions, optimise their time and even learn to pre-empt certain situations. The robots won’t take over immediately – for although AI may be “everywhere,” as our speaker described it, “let’s remember to put humans first.”
25 September 2025
The above does not constitute investment advice and is the sole opinion of the author at the time of publication. Past performance is no guide to future performance and the value of investments and income from them can fall as well as rise.
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Alex Gunz, Fund Manager
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