Juan Isern speaking at ETSIIT - UGR

On October 4th, 2024, I had the pleasure of delivering the inaugural talk for the 2024–2025 academic year of the Master’s Degree in Data Science and Computer Engineering at the University of Granada’s School of Computer and Telecommunications Engineering (ETSIIT).

The session was titled: “The transformative role of Data Science and its impact on Smart Cities”.

🧠 Data science as a driver for urban innovation

Throughout the talk, I shared our experience at Innovasur in applying data-driven approaches to address urban challenges. We discussed how AI, IoT, real-time data pipelines, and cybersecurity are shaping the future of urban environments—making them more efficient, reactive, and citizen-focused.

We covered several key topics, such as:

• How data science is becoming a core pillar of urban strategy and policy.
• Real examples of smart city platforms that integrate sensor data, camera feeds, and incident management.
• The value of combining machine learning and computer vision to automate event detection and optimize services.
• The role of secure architectures for handling large-scale IoT deployments in urban settings.

🎓 Talking to the next generation

The most exciting part was speaking directly to students starting their journey into data science. I encouraged them to embrace the complexity of real-world problems and to see beyond the algorithms—to think in terms of solutions, value, and social impact.

Presentation slide about the profiles we are looking for

I also shared insights into:

• What companies are looking for in future data scientists.
• Why understanding both the technical and strategic aspects of data is key.
• How to align academic projects with real-world needs in smart cities, especially in areas like:
  • Real-time incident detection.
  • Visualization dashboards for decision-making.
  • Scalable and secure data infrastructures.

📍 Location: ETSIIT, University of Granada
📅 Date: October 4th, 2024
🎤 Event: Official Opening Session of the Master’s in Data Science and Computer Engineering
🎯 Hosted by: University of Granada

📸 Image credits: ETSIIT - Universidad de Granada