Oxford Professor Viktor Mayer-Schönberger Inspires Concordia with Big Data Insights

You won’t believe who dropped by Concordia last week! Oxford Professor Viktor Mayer-Schönberger, a leading scholar and authority on big data and its societal implications, brought his thought-provoking seminar to our eager high school students and the Concordia community.

Invited by Dr. Peter Tong, Concordia’s Big Data Analytics teacher, Professor Mayer-Schönberger shared his insights after an enlightening and enriching meet-up at the ICBDE 2024 conference held in September at Oxford. The visit left our students inspired and sparked deep conversations about the future of data in society.

During his session, Professor Mayer-Schönberger captivated the audience with his deep knowledge and passion for the transformative power of big data, and its ever-evolving role in Generative AI. A truly humble and gracious scholar, he walked the audience through real-world examples, addressing how data analytics interacts with biases, what we need to do about them, the governance of ethical data collection, and the innovative power of data-driven insights in an increasingly digital world.

One of our high school students, Shreyas S. (Class of '25), shared his thoughts: “Prof. Mayer-Schönberger really brought a new perspective on tackling biases within large datasets – and using them to identify these biases in real life to address them.”

We were also joined by several parents at the seminar. Professor Shameen Prashantham, a Concordia parent and professor at CEIBS, called the experience “a world-class learning opportunity.”

He added, “One of the great things about living in Shanghai is that it’s not uncommon to cross paths with impressive people like Viktor who visit this great city — but what was unique about this interaction for me is that it didn’t take place at my illustrious business school or at a glitzy corporate event. It took place at my kids' high school!”

Before his time at Oxford, Prof. Mayer-Schönberger spent 10 years on the faculty of Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. He’s also the author of 11 books, including Big Data: A Revolution That Will Transform How We Live, Work, and Think, which is now a key textbook for Concordia's Big Data Analytics course taught by Dr. Tong.

And here’s the best part: He’s offered an exciting collaboration opportunity to one of our students! Iris L. (Class of ’26) will be illustrating one of Prof. Mayer-Schönberger’s books and working with him to develop a picture book for younger big data enthusiasts.

Prof. Mayer-Schönberger’s campus visit ended with a tour of our High School MakerSpace, where he was impressed by the Phoenix Squadron’s Unmanned Ground Vehicle (UGV) team, who are developing an autonomous electric vehicle.

A big shoutout to Dr. Tong for bringing visionaries like Viktor to our campus. These moments are pure gold, equipping our students with the analytical skills and future-focused mindset needed to thrive in an increasingly data-driven world.