Call for Speakers
Data & AI Community Day Durban: AI Unplugged
14 Mar 2026
Richfield College, Umhlanga Campus, Centenary Boulevard, Park Square, 5-9 Park Avenue, Umhlanga Durban, South Africa
aimldatadurban.org/
Data enthusiasts, AI innovators, and tech explorers, it's time to strip away the hype and get real! Data & AI Community Day Durban: AI Unplugged is taking place on March 14, 2026, and we're bringing you a full day of raw, authentic, community-powered learning. 🎸
In a world drowning in AI buzzwords and hype cycles, AI Unplugged is our answer: honest conversations, practical demos, and real-world insights, no corporate polish required. Think of it like MTV Unplugged, but for tech. We're stripping things back to what actually matters: knowledge, community, and the skills that make a difference.
Our events have become one of the largest community-run tech gatherings in South Africa, and we've built that reputation on one simple principle: for the community, by the community.
Now it's your turn to take the stage.
Although AI is in the name, we also expect topics covering the broader data and development ecosystem. This event will feature a mix of 50-minute deep dives and 20-minute lightning sessions, delivered by a diverse panel of experts, architects, and Microsoft Most Valuable Professionals (MVPs) who are all at the forefront of their fields.
Whether you're curious about building AI agents, want to level up your data engineering game, or want to hear honest takes on what works and what doesn't in the real world, this event has something for everyone.
NOTE-1: Our "long" sessions are 50 minutes. This is to make scheduling easier.
NOTE-2: This is an in-person event. We do not have the facilities to live stream.
The Azure, AI/ML & Data Community Durban group is a user group for the community by the community. It is a learning experience where we share, learn, and encourage the community to leverage Azure, AI/ML, and Data to solve problems. Our mission as a group is to empower and create heroes of society through Azure, AI/ML, and Data. We Do Positive Things through Innovation and Passion.
Call for Speakers
11 Feb 2026
28 Feb 2026
If you're passionate about AI, Data, or anything tech-related, this is your chance to unplug from the hype and share real knowledge with our Durban community. We're calling on developers, architects, data engineers, AI practitioners, and innovators to step onto the stage and deliver insights that inspire.
🔥 Why Should You Speak?
- Share your expertise with over 200 passionate attendees from across the AI, data, and developer communities.
- Expand your network by connecting with fellow industry leaders and innovators.
- Contribute to the growth of the local Data and AI/ML community.
- Elevate your personal brand and thought leadership. Speaking at AI Unplugged is the acoustic set that shows off your real talent.
🎯 What We're Looking For:
The event's theme is AI Unplugged, honest, practical, no-hype tech talks. We want sessions that show what actually works in the real world, share lessons learned (failures included!), and give our audience skills they can use on Monday morning. We want sessions that are honest, practical, and accessible. Think "here's what actually works" over "here's a 47-slide deck about a product roadmap."
So what are interesting topics? Since it is we, the Azure, AI/ML & Data Community Durban, organising the event, almost anything goes:
- Building AI agents and agentic workflows (the practical way)
- Model Context Protocol (MCP): connecting AI to the real world
- Getting real with generative AI: what works, what doesn't, and what's overhyped
- Small language models and running AI locally
- Responsible AI, bias, fairness: the stuff that actually matters
- AI for Africa: unique use cases, challenges, and opportunities on our continent
- Database Development: performance, architecture, and modern database tech
- Microsoft Fabric: data engineering, analytics, and business intelligence
- Streaming Data & Real-Time Analytics: Kafka, Event Hubs, and data in motion
- Power Platform & Power Apps: making AI accessible to business users
- Real-world AI & Data Use Cases: because theory is great, but practice is better
If you have a passion for any of these areas (or anything else related to AI/ML and Data) and want to share your knowledge, we want to hear from you!
💡 Got a topic that doesn't fit neatly into these categories? Submit it anyway! Some of our best sessions have come from unexpected places.
🌟 First-Time Speakers: Yes, That Means YOU
Some of the most memorable talks at our events have come from first-time speakers. If you've been thinking about getting on stage but haven't found the right opportunity, this is it.
We provide:
- A supportive, encouraging audience (seriously, our community is amazing)
- The option to do a 20-minute lightning talk if a 50-minute session feels daunting
- A platform that has launched dozens of speaking careers
You don't need to be an expert. You just need to have something worth sharing.
🚀 Ready to Unplug?
Hit that Submit Session button and join us on stage at Data & AI Community Day Durban: AI Unplugged.
Let's strip away the hype and get to what really matters: learning, sharing, and building together.
Join us on March 14 in Durban!
For the community, by the community. 🇿🇦
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