7th Artificial Intelligence Symposium*

June 26–27, 2025

* Formerly known as the Data Harnessing Symposium (held in 2018 and 2019)

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Thank you for participating in the event! To receive your Certificate of Participation, please complete the form at the following link: https://forms.office.com/r/deink2VGxh. Once submitted, your certificate will be sent to you automatically via email.

Welcome to 7th Artificial Intelligence Symposium 2025

Join us for the University of South Dakota’s 7th Annual Artificial Intelligence Symposium—formerly known as the Data Harnessing Symposium (2018–2019)—sponsored by IEEE and held in conjunction with the inaugural South Dakota Biomedical Computation Consortium (SDBCC).

This premier event brings together thought leaders from academia, industry, and government to explore the forefront of artificial intelligence, data engineering, quantum computing, cyber threats, risk management, sustainable agriculture, healthcare, and biomedical computing.

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Event Details

Location

USD Sioux Falls
Avera Hall
4801 N. Career Ave.
Sioux Falls, SD 57107

OR
Zoom (link will be provided through registration)

Date and time

June 26 - 27, 2025

This event is free, but registration is required to attend.

📌 Registration link: https://events.vtools.ieee.org/event/register/487885

🎓 Sign up, attend, and receive a certificate of participation immediately after the event!

🎤 Speakers

  • George Awad, Computer Scientist/Project Leader, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)
  • Pete Doucette, Director, EROS Center
  • Joseph J. Schueder, Senior Technical Fellow, Collins Aerospace
  • Joseph Engler, Chief AI Scientist, Collins Aerospace
  • Chris Reuter, Sr. Principal AI Engineer, Collins Aerospace
  • Gopi Challagolla, Software Engineer, Microsoft
  • Kinchel C. Doerner, Director, SD EPSCoR
  • Carson Merkwan, Director of Business Development, Direct Companies
  • Eric Freer, Representative, Sterling
  • Dan Klosterman, Representative, Edge Team
  • Rajesh Kavasseri, South Dakota State University (SDSU)
  • David Zeng, Dakota State University (DSU)
  • Douglas Lauffenburger, Full Professor and Founding Chair, Dept of Biological Engineering, MIT
  • Kaifu Chen, Associate Professor, Harvard Med School / Boston Children's Hospital
  • Yinglong Miao, Associate Professor, University of North Carolina Chapel Hill
  • Kara McCormick, Executive Director, South Dakota Biotech
  • Sujit Sakpal, Avera
  • KC Santosh, University of South Dakota / SDBCC
  • William Chen, University of South Dakota / SDBCC
  • Jeffrey S. McGough, South Dakota School of Mines and Technology / SDBCC

… more coming soon.

Our Sponsors

We're grateful to the following organizations for their support of the AI Symposium 2025. Their partnership enables us to provide world-class content and experiences for our attendees.

Bronze Sponsors
Direct Companies
Silver Sponsors
SterlingIEEE USA
Gold Sponsors
Dakota
Partners
IEEEGeneric PartnerSD BCC
TimeSessionDetails
8:30 AM - 9:00 AMRegistration & Breakfast NetworkingCheck-in, coffee, and light breakfast
9:00 AM – 9:30 AMOpening RemarksSpeakers: President (USD), Vice-President (Academic Affairs), Vice-President (Office of Research), Dean (College of Arts & Sciences), Chair (Department of Computer Science)
9:30 AM - 10:30 AMKeynote AddressNIST GenAI: Text-to-Text Evaluation - Dr. George Awad, Computer Scientist/Project Leader, NIST
10:30 AM - 10:45 AMBreak / Networking-
10:45 AM - 11:30 AMBlitz TalkAI: Now and Zen - Dr. Pete Doucette, Director, EROS Center
11:30 AM - 12:15 PMWorkshopSpeakers: Joseph J Schueder (Senior Technical Fellow), Joseph Engler (Chief AI Scientist), Chris Reuter (Sr. Principal AI Engineer), Collins Aerospace
12:15 PM - 2:00 PMLunchBuffet + Networking Lounge
2:00 PM – 2:45 PMWorkshopAI in the Workplace: Productivity & Creativity – Navigating the New Era of Work with Artificial Intelligence - Gopi Challagolla, Microsoft
2:45 PM - 4:00 PMPanel: AI and Workforce Development in South DakotaPanelists: Kinchel C. Doerner (SD EPSCoR), Carson Merkwan (Direct Companies), Joseph Engler (Collins Aerospace), Eric Freer (Sterling), Dan Klosterman (Edge Team), Rajesh Kavasseri (SDSU), David Zeng (DSU); Moderator: Jose Lira (Vermillion Unplugged)
4:00 PM - 5:00 PMEvening ReceptionLight hors d’oeuvres, social hour, and sponsor booths
📥 Download Full Schedule (PDF)

Organizing Committee

  • KC Santosh, Chair & Professor, University of South Dakota (Founding Chair, AI Symposium & Co-Chair, SDBCC)
  • William CW Chen, Assist. Professor, University of South Dakota (Chair, SDBCC)
  • Jeffrey McGough, Head & Professor, South Dakota School of Mines (Co-Chair, SDBCC)
  • Rodrigue Rizk, Assist. Professor/Grad Coord, University of South Dakota (Co-Chair, AI Symposium)
  • Robert Burke, Conference Committee Chair, IEEE Region 4

Symposium Secretary

  • Rodrigue Rizk, University of South Dakota, USA

Publicity Committee

  • Isaiah Cohen, University of South Dakota, USA
  • Rodrigue Rizk, University of South Dakota, USA
  • Travis Loof, University of South Dakota, USA
  • William Chen, University of South Dakota, USA
  • Longwei Wang, University of South Dakota, USA
  • Dipankar DasGupta, University of Memphis, USA
  • Yaoi-Chiang, University of Minnesota, USA
  • Aobo Li, UC San Diego, USA
  • Kurtis Van Gent, Google, USA
  • Naveen Rokkam, Mygo Consulting Inc, USA
  • Hubert Cecotti, California State University, USA
  • Vishnu Pendyala, San Jose State University, USA
  • Yashbir Singh, Mayo Clinic – Rochester, USA
  • Szilard Vajda, Central Washington University, USA
  • Alice Othmani, Universite de Paris-Est, France
  • Laurent Wendling, University of Paris, France
  • Mickael Coustaty, University of La Rochelle, France
  • Aaisha Makkar, University of Derby, UK
  • Anas Aboud El Kalam, Cadi Ayyad University, Morocco
  • AbdelKrim Haqiq, Hassan First University of Settat, Morocco
  • Jitendra Kumar, NIT Tiruchirappalli, India
  • Satish K Singh, IIIT Allahabad, India
  • Surbhi Vijh, Amity University, India
  • Ravindra Hegadi, Central University of Karnataka, India
  • Deepika Koundal, UPES, India
  • D S Guru, University of Mysore, India
  • Marzieh Khakifirooz, Tecno de Monterrey, Mexico
  • Md-Rafik Bouguelia, Hamlstad University, Sweden
  • Antoine Vacavant, Univ Clermont Auvergne, France
  • Djamila Auoada, University of Luxembourg, Luxembourg
  • ChakChai So-In, Khon Kaen University, Thailand
  • Xi-Zhao Wang, ShenZhen University, China
  • Sunil Aryal, Deakin University, AUS
  • Ameni Boumaiza, Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Qatar
  • Debasmita Ghosh Roy, Banasthali Vidyapith, India
  • Priti Rai, University of Delhi, India

Logistics & Operations

  • Ryan Oines, Chief Operating Officer, USD Discovery District
  • Marc-Antoine Niamba, Biotech Development, USD Discovery District
  • Laura Wiemers, Management Analyst, University of South Dakota
  • Cassie Stolpe, Administrative Assistant, University of South Dakota
  • Kirby Fuglsby, Technology Transfer Officer, University of South Dakota
  • Hanna DeLange, Public Relations & Content Strategist, University of South Dakota
  • Alissa Matt, Assist VP for Marketing & University Relations, University of South Dakota

Advisory Board Members

  • Sheila Gestring, President, University of South Dakota
  • Jay Perry, Vice President, University of South Dakota – Sioux Falls
  • Dan Engebretson, Vice President, Research & Sponsored Programs, University of South Dakota
  • Kurt Hackemer, Vice President for Academic Affairs & Provost, University of South Dakota
  • John Dudley, Dean, College of Arts & Science, University of South Dakota
  • Tim Ridgway, Vice President of Health Affairs and Dean of the Sanford School of Medicine, University of South Dakota
  • William Mayhan, Dean, Biomedical Sciences, University of South Dakota

Past Events

Learn more about our past Artificial Intelligence Symposiums.

AI Symposium 2024
AI Symposium 2023
AI Symposium 2022
AI Symposium 2021

Why Attend

Collaborate

Work with experts to brainstorm solutions in healthcare, cybersecurity, quantum computing, agriculture and risk management.

Learn

Gain insights from established AI professionals through engaging symposium sessions.

Connect

Build valuable connections with like-minded individuals both in-person and virtually.

Discover

Learn about the latest advancements in AI and how they can impact your field.