Highlights of the Program

2 days business program:

Learn from real-world case studies by industry leaders.

SHOWCASING INNOVATION:

Discover the latest technology and techniques from across the industry.

leaders talk:

Hear from top-level experts about how to stay ahead in a fast-changing industry.

MULTIPLE STREAMS:

A business program that is multi-disciplinary, giving you a broad view of the industry.

SMART TECHNOLOGIES:

Explore the latest smart and AI-driven solutions, and see how they can be used in your business.

roundtable discussion:

Join talks with industry peers. Share ideas, make connections, and find new partners.

Program

Day 1 :
Monday, JULY 13, 2026
08:00 - 09:00
REGISTRATION AND MORNING REFRESHMENTS
09:00 - 09:10
OPENING ADDRESS
09:10 - 09:35
TECHNOLOGY INNOVATION UNIT (TIU) STATUS UPDATE AND NEXT STEPS
Donald Rocha
Valley Water

Donald Rocha

Valley Water

  • Identifying workforce needs, market solutions, and external-technology partnerships
  • Deploying AI, ML, and predictive models for dam safety, rainfall forecasting, and operations
Kevin brown
Valley Water

Kevin brown

Valley Water

  • Scaling pilots into full solutions and expanding IT upgrades to drive water-management impact
  • Enhancing cross-agency collaboration to align innovation efforts and maximize ROI outcomes
09:35 - 09:40
Q&A SESSION ON ADVANCING AI AND INNOVATION IN WATER UTILITY OPERATIONS
09:40 - 10:10
SPEED NETWORKING SESSION
  • Exchange business cards and get connected in short one-to-one meetings
  • Start the conversation to arrange a more formal meeting later on in the conference
  • Share your professional background and discuss your biggest business issues - don't forget your business cards!
10:10 - 10:30
MORNING COFFEE BREAK IN THE EXHIBIT AREA
10:30 - 11:00
PANEL DISCUSSION ON WATER AI
11:00 - 11:25
AI POWERED OPTIMIZATION OF THE WATER CYCLE
Michael Espejo
SUEZ

Michael Espejo

SUEZ

  • Monitoring distribution and treatment processes with AI analytics to pinpoint energy inefficiencies
  • Optimizing plant operations and process control for energy savings in treatment facilities
  • Controlling stormwater and collection systems with AI models to reduce energy use by thirty percent
11:25 - 11:30
Q&A SESSION ON AI FOR ENERGY EFFICIENT WATER MANAGEMENT
11:30 - 11:55
AI, IOT, AND MODELING INNOVATIONS: THE FUTURE OF INTELLIGENT WATER SYSTEMS
Sudhir Kshirsagar
Global Quality Corp.

Sudhir Kshirsagar

Global Quality Corp.

  • Exploring IoT-driven real time monitoring trends across drinking, source, storm and wastewater
  • Assessing real time physics based modeling feasibility for predictive control in water systems
  • Investigating physics informed neural networks and agentic AI platforms for water insights
11:55 - 12:00
Q&A SESSION ON REAL TIME AI AND IOT CONTROL WITH PHYSICS INFORMED MODELS
12:00 - 13:00
NETWORKING LUNCH AND VISITING THE WATER AI EXHIBITION
13:00 - 13:25
REDUCING TREATMENT COSTS: EXPLORING AI-DRIVEN WATER QUALITY AND ENERGY MONITORING
Thobekile Gambu
uMngeni-uThukela Water

Thobekile Gambu

uMngeni-uThukela Water

  • Tracking water quality and energy use in real time to address key treatment-cost drivers
  • Optimizing chemical dosing and power consumption using AI to reduce operational waste
  • Supporting efficient, sustainable service through smarter data and compliance monitoring
13:25 - 13:30
Q&A SESSION ON HARNESSING AI TO CUT COSTS IN TREATMENT OPERATIONS
13:30 - 13:55
COMMON CONCERNS ABOUT AI RISK PREDICTIONS
James C. Fitchett
VODA.ai

James C. Fitchett

VODA.ai

  • Assessing data readiness and quality challenges that hinder reliable AI risk prediction accuracy
  • Clarifying model interpretability to dispel black box concerns and foster stakeholder confidence
  • Mitigating cost and resource constraints by demonstrating ML accuracy and offering staff upskilling
13:55 - 14:00
Q&A SESSION ON ADDRESSING AI RISK PREDICTION CHALLENGES
14:00 - 14:25
USING COMPUTER VISION AND LARGE LANGUAGE MODELS FOR QA/QC OF DRAWINGS
Bob Loncar
Ulteig

Bob Loncar

Ulteig

  • Automating drawing analysis and reporting through AI, computer vision, and LLM solutions
  • Streamlining quality control with a reusable platform for orchestrating review workflows
  • Leveraging cloud-hosted tools to improve QA/QC speed, accuracy, and operational insights
14:25 - 14:30
Q&A SESSION ON AUTOMATING DRAWING REVIEW WITH AI VISION AND LLM TOOLS
14:30 - 15:00
AFTERNOON COFFEE BREAK IN THE EXHIBIT AREA
15:00 - 15:25
VERTICAL–AI FOR WATER: TRANSFORMING CUSTOMER AND WORKFORCE EXPERIENCES
Deepak Garg
SEW

Deepak Garg

SEW

  • Improving customer touchpoints with AI for leak detection, billing, and proactive service
  • Upgrading workforce operations through predictive AI insights and faster field response
  • Overcoming challenges such as data silos and governance to drive adoption and trust
15:25 - 15:30
Q&A SESSION ON ADVANCING UTILITY SERVICE THROUGH VERTICAL AI SOLUTIONS
15:30 - 15:55
PREDICTIVE MAINTENANCE MODEL DEVELOPMENT – PREDICTING THE HEALTH STATE OF A WATER PUMP
Dipendra Wagle
STV

Dipendra Wagle

STV

  • Developing a machine-learning model to assess pump health using real-time sensor data
  • Improving maintenance scheduling and reducing failure risks in water-system operations
  • Validating the model to ensure accuracy and support long-term deployment and uptime
15:55 - 16:00
Q&A SESSION ON IMPROVING PUMP RELIABILITY THROUGH SMART MAINTENANCE
16:00 - 16:25
THE MOST OVERLOOKED WAY TO OPTIMIZE WATER OPS WITH AI? YOUR TEAM
Yvette Brown
Xpromos

Yvette Brown

Xpromos

  • Showing how non-technical staff can drive AI value through role-based prompt design
  • Building foundational AI literacy to reduce friction and increase operational efficiency
  • Sharing real-world prompts for leak detection, forecasting, and compliance reporting
16:25 - 16:30
Q&A SESSION ON TURNING YOUR TEAM INTO AN AI-POWERED WATER FORCE
16:30 - 17:30
NETWORKING DRINKS RECEPTION
Day 2 :
TUESDAY, JULY 14, 2026
08:30 - 09:00
MORNING REFRESHMENTS
09:00 - 09:10
OPENING ADDRESS
09:10 - 09:35
UNLOCKING OPERATIONAL VALUE WITH AI ADOPTION IN NEXT GENERATION UTILITIES
Jeffrey Maccarella
Veolia

Jeffrey Maccarella

Veolia

  • Leveraging Veolia’s secure ChatGPT to streamline compliance reviews and optimize workflows
  • Transforming manual review into predictive processes for efficient compliance verification
  • Outlining a workforce upskilling roadmap to enable scalable AI adoption and utility resilience
09:35 - 09:40
Q&A SESSION ON SCALABLE AI FOR OPERATIONAL COMPLIANCE
09:40 - 10:05
AI-DRIVEN THREAT DETECTION FOR WATER TREATMENT & DISTRIBUTION SYSTEMS
Peter Morin
PwC

Peter Morin

PwC

  • Establishing AI-assisted baselining of SCADA and PLC communications to reveal subtle network threats
  • Detecting manipulations in chlorine, ozone, and UV dosing through advanced AI-driven anomaly analysis
  • Identifying pressure and flow irregularities in distribution networks with ML-based predictive monitoring
10:05 - 10:10
Q&A SESSION ON AI-BASED CYBER DEFENSE FOR WATER SYSTEMS
10:10 - 10:35
OBJECTIVES AND PRINCIPLES OF DATA-DRIVEN AND AI-BASED WATER MANAGEMENT
Omer Bab
IOSIGHT

Omer Bab

IOSIGHT

  • Investigating core objectives and foundational principles in AI and data-driven water management
  • Presenting essential strategies for deploying and managing data-centric projects
  • Demonstrating the effectiveness of data-focused methodologies through real-world case studies
10:35 - 10:40
Q&A SESSION ON DATA-DRIVEN AND AI STRATEGIES IN THE WATER SECTOR
10:40 - 11:00
MORNING COFFEE BREAK IN THE EXHIBIT AREA
11:00 - 11:25
OPTIMIZING POWER MANAGEMENT WITH SMART TRANSFORMERS
Jeff Somerville
Hammond Power Solutions

Jeff Somerville

Hammond Power Solutions

  • Enhancing performance through smart monitoring and real-time transformer-data analytics
  • Optimizing asset utilization to improve efficiency and reduce operational overhead
  • Detecting anomalies early to support preventive maintenance and extend equipment lifespan
11:25 - 11:30
Q&A SESSION ON BOOSTING MAINTENANCE PERFORMANCE THROUGH SMART MONITORING
11:30 - 11:55
AI FOR WATER UTILITIES: REAL-TIME ENGAGEMENT, LEAK DETECTION & CONSERVATION
Amit Sharma
AQUATRAX

Amit Sharma

AQUATRAX

  • Generating leak alerts with AI, deploying behavioral nudges and water budgets to boost conservation
  • Blending analytics with AMI infrastructure and customer systems to deliver integrated intelligence
  • Designing dashboards for real time usage tracking, trend analysis and customer segmentation
11:55 - 12:00
Q&A SESSION ON USING AI FOR CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT AND REDUCING WATER LOSS
12:00 - 12:25
AGENTIC AI - POSSIBILITIES & CHALLENGES IN WATER TREATMENT, SUPPLY & COMPLIANCES
Hemanshu Rai
Mercury International P. Ltd.

Hemanshu Rai

Mercury International P. Ltd.

  • Integrating AI agents into SCADA for real-time distribution monitoring and network control
  • Reducing manual oversight by automating water parameter checks to ensure safety and compliance
  • Advancing leak and contamination detection through AI analytics that support proactive demand forecasting
12:25 - 12:30
Q&A SESSION ON POTENTIAL AND LIMITATIONS OF AGENTIC AI IN WATER OPERATIONS
12:30 - 13:30
NETWORKING LUNCH AND VISITING THE WATER AI EXHIBITION
13:30 - 13:55
AI’S ROLE IN SECURING CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE
Dylan Coiro
Darktrace

Dylan Coiro

Darktrace

  • Distinguishing AI types, including supervised, unsupervised, and generative, for cyber defense
  • Identifying strengths and limitations of each model in detecting known and unknown threats
  • Evaluating AI vendors using critical questions about data, modeling, and transparency
13:55 - 14:00
Q&A SESSION ON DEMYSTIFYING AI MODELS FOR CRITICAL SYSTEM SECURITY
14:00 - 14:25
AI-POWERED DIGITAL WATER MANAGEMENT FROM SOURCE TO SUPPLY CONTEXT
Amruta Kar
Vassar Labs

Amruta Kar

Vassar Labs

  • Integrating digital twins and IoT sensors to deliver real-time supply monitoring and analysis
  • Securing water systems through AI-driven insights across distribution, reservoir, and flood forecasting
  • Demonstrating deployments powering SDG-aligned decision making across urban and rural contexts
14:25 - 14:30
Q&A SESSION ON INTELLIGENT WATER SYSTEMS USING AI FROM SOURCE TO DISTRIBUTION
14:30 - 14:55
WATER EQUITY & AI: LESSONS FROM THE JACKSON WATER CRISIS TO BUILD HEALTHIER, RESILIENT COMMUNITIES
Trovon Williams
NAACP

Trovon Williams

NAACP

  • Highlighting Jackson’s water crisis to underscore infrastructure neglect and systemic inequity
  • Implementing predictive analytics with monitoring to prevent failures, provide early warnings
  • Ensuring equitable AI deployment with bias mitigation, data transparency, and community engagement
14:55 - 15:00
Q&A SESSION ON EQUITABLE AI FOR RESILIENT WATER ACCESS
15:00 - 15:15
FEEDBACK & RAFFLE DRAW
15:15 - 15:30
CLOSING REMARKS

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