• What separates the manufacturers already generating measurable AI value from those still funding pilots that never scale?
• Why have cyber security, data governance and AI risk become board-level issues rather than simply IT concerns?
• What are the practical signs that an AI initiative is delivering genuine business value rather than simply generating activity?
• How can manufacturers move from experimentation to scalable AI deployment while maintaining control of risk, data and investment?

• Where should you place your next investment if you want measurable operational return, not another proof of concept?
• What foundations - data, governance, ownership, skills - have to exist before AI can scale past a single site?
• How does senior leadership need to rethink digital investment to move the needle on national productivity?
• What separates a pilot that becomes standard practice from one that quietly dies?
• What did Medik8, Weir and Cognite get wrong before they got it right?

Moderator: Andrew Delaney, Programme Director, Finelight Media Group
Manou Campbell, Head of Data & Information Systems, Medik8
Walid Hadid, Group Head of Digital & Automation, Weir
Dr. Slimane Allab, Global Technology Executive and Senior Vice President of Manufacturing, Cognite
Representative, SnapLogic

• What does "good" data governance actually deliver in commercial terms, not just in theory?
• What are the foundational elements of governance, and why does data literacy - not just dashboards - actually change decisions?
• Is there a genuine bridge between operations and the business, and where does it usually break?
• How can data quality be measured in a way that proves operational improvement rather than just compliance?
• What are DS Smith, BAT and Kenvue doing differently to embed data literacy beyond the reporting layer?

Moderator: Yaniv Naor, Data Management, Governance and AI expert
Gerald Schmidt, Head of Engineering, Digital & Data, DS Smith
Malgorzata Samuel, Operations Data Standards Manager, BAT
Darren Lewis, Senior Data Analyst, Kenvue

• IT, operations, digital, or a dedicated function - who should genuinely own AI and digital transformation?
• What skills gaps quietly block scale long after the technology itself is proven?
• How do you avoid "solution overload" without losing momentum?
• Does your senior leadership actually understand what the transformation will demand of them?

Moderator: Emmanuel Ewah, Applied AI innovation Lead, Innovate UK
Yaniv Naor, Data Management, Governance and AI expert

• Where do AI and automation genuinely accelerate lean principles - and where do they just add noise?
• How are Jaguar Land Rover and others measuring and managing lean KPIs alongside digital investment?
• What's the most effective way to link digital initiatives directly to productivity metrics your board will recognise?
• Where does data eliminate waste - and where does it quietly create new complexity instead?
• How do you design for a future state without losing today's operational discipline?

Moderator: Manou Campbell, Head of Data & Information Systems, Medik8
Harshit Sikarwar, Digital Strategy & Capability Lead, Jaguar Land Rover
Katharina Spitzhirn-Eckhardt, Solutions Architect, Operational Excellence & Lean Six Sigma, Minitab
Sofia Karlen, Smart Factory Product Management Lead, Mars 

Join a roundtable discussion for a deep-dive, interactive discussion with your peers on some of the day’s most important themes. Address common problems, benchmark your progress and come away with practical solutions and takeaways!

1. How can manufacturing companies keep data secure? What are public examples of cyber breaches and the root causes?
   Led by Paul Knight, Group VP Information Technology and Security, Martin-Baker Aircraft Company
2. Data AI & strategy - where to start and how to scale? 
   Led by: Sofia Karlen, Smart Factory Product Management Lead, Mars 
3. How do you ensure digital investment drives long-term enterprise value? Creating the right mindset and culture. Where is the weakness in our culture? Are we self-introspective?
4. How to avoid being overloaded by high volumes of data and how to unleash data value?
5. How do you turn the data strategy into measurable benefits in a manufacturing environment such as cost savings , efficiency, improvements in hours or headcount production as an example?
   Led by: Adina Manisor, Global Head of Data & Analytics Product, Electrolux AB
   
6. Closing smart manufacturing gap with manufacturing partners