Data science isn’t dead. It’s just not what you think it is anymore
The techniques have changed, but the practice hasn’t gone away. The Fifth Elephant 2026 Winter Edition is where we rediscover what’s forming as data science right now — and what might emerge over the next three years.
📅 4–5 December 2026
📍 Venue - to be announced
🎟️ Tickets -
About this edition
A conference for data practitioners across industry, non-profits, society, economy, psephology, statistics, analytics, and more. No engineering talks.
This isn’t about data pipelines, infrastructure, or implementation stories for their own sake. It’s about the practice of working with data — the questions, methods, uncertainties, findings, failures, and judgments that shape it.
We’re not here for preservation or lament. We’re here for new ideas, classical problems, unfinished work, failed attempts, unexplained results, and datasets still looking for their questions.
Meet the editors
- Karthik Shashidhar — AI and data consultant; founder. LinkedIn
- S Anand — LLM Psychologist. LinkedIn
- Prasanna Bhogale — Founder at Romulan AI; author. LinkedIn
📣 Call for Data Problems and Proposals — open now
Five ways in:
- Classical Fifth Elephant data talks — what you learned, what failed, what you’re still trying to understand. Unfinished work welcome: failures, WIP, unexplained results.
- Showcase — an innovative idea, even pre-production. 20 minutes to make the case for why it’s cool.
- Problem wall — bring a problem you’re working on and the ideas, expertise, or collaborators you’re looking for. Strong submissions go up on the wall for the room to weigh in on.
- Birds of a Feather — facilitate a session. Whiteboard, flipchart, whatever you need to make the case in more than words.
- Poster sessions — show WIP or a project visually — applications of concepts to real problems across industry, society, and economy.
Not sure which fits? Submit anyway — you’ll get feedback and the right questions back.
Classical talks and showcase have 7 slots each — earlier is better.
⏳ Deadline: 11 October 2026
Want to think it through with someone first? Join the weekly sounding board call — Fridays, 12:00–12:40 PM. Join
💡 Why you should attend
- Discover new ideas that bring fresh creativity into your own work.
- Meet people and build networks — there’s a world of humans beyond Claude and ChatGPT. Find friends, collaborators, and co-conspirators.
📡 Want to host or sponsor this edition?
We’re still finalizing the venue for December — if your org wants to host, or you’d like to sponsor the Winter Edition, get in touch this week.
📧 sales@hasgeek.com
📞 Contact
📧 Email: info@hasgeek.com
📱 Call/WhatsApp: +91 7676332020