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  • TechTalks Edinburgh #7 – AI Agents, MCP & Threat Intelligence

    TechTalks Edinburgh #7 – AI Agents, MCP & Threat Intelligence

    We’re now hosting TechTalks at CodeBase Edinburgh instead of Clockwise.

    💡 Why you’ll want to join us

    AI Agents & Threat Intelligence — from how systems act to how organisations respond to real-world cyber and geopolitical threats. Two practical talks covering modern AI systems, security, and real-world engineering challenges.

    🎤 Talks

    AI Agents Explained: Skills, Loops, and MCP

    Oleksandr Piekhota

    In this talk, we’ll break things down in simple terms:

    • what an AI agent actually is
    • how agents work (skills + loops)
    • how models interact with tools
    • and why MCP matters

    We’ll use OpenClaw as a concrete example to show how this works in practice — including how agents use tools, maintain context, and make decisions step by step.

    Cameron Cottam – Inside Threat Intelligence: Tracking Global Cyber, Geopolitical & Emerging Threat Actors

    Cameron Cottam

    Explore how organisations confront global cyber, geopolitical, and physical threats, and how security teams track, analyse, and respond to emerging threat actors. A practical look at how threat intelligence works in real environments — from detection to response and continuous improvement.

    🌟 Speaker Spotlight

    Oleksandr Piekhota – Principal Software Engineer

    Principal Engineer at Teaching Strategies with experience building APIs, platforms, and scalable systems. Co-organiser of TechTalks Edinburgh, focused on practical engineering and AI topics.

    Cameron Cottam – Security Operations Analyst

    Certification-driven cybersecurity professional with around 3 years of experience across managed security service providers and internal financial services teams. Cameron specialises in threat intelligence and detection engineering, focusing on proactive defence, analysing emerging threats, and improving security posture in real-world environments.

    🗓 Agenda

    • 17:45 – 18:30 — Welcome & networking
    • 18:30 – 19:15 — Talk 1
    • 19:15 – 19:30 — Break
    • 19:30 – 20:15 — Talk 2
    • 20:15+ — Networking / afterparty

    📍 Details

    • Location: CodeBase Edinburgh, 37a Castle Terrace, Edinburgh EH1 2EL
    • Date & Time: Thursday, Apr 23 · 5:45 PM to 8:45 PM BST

    🤝 About TechTalks Edinburgh

    TechTalks is a community-driven meetup focused on practical engineering topics — no fluff, just real experience, ideas, and discussions.

    🎙 Want to speak?

    We’re always looking for speakers.

    [email protected]

    🍕 Extras

    • pizza & drinks included
    • friendly crowd
    • open discussions and networking
  • TechTalks Edinburgh #6 – Nix & Robotics

    TechTalks Edinburgh #6 – Nix & Robotics

    When: Tuesday, Mar 10 · 5:45 PM to 8:45 PM GMT

    Where: Clockwise Edinburgh Leith, Commercial Quay, 84 Commercial St, EH6 6LX

    Why you’ll want to be there

    • Packaging 128 programming languages with Nix by Noon van der Silk – We will explore the world of Nix and package management/development environments by building the famous quine-relay program!

    • Integration is the hardest part: making robots usable on-site by Daniela Shchegelskaya – Integrating robots on-site is where most projects break. Daniela will share real-world lessons on deploying robots in live environments — from mounting hardware and monitoring flows to handling site constraints and switching between manual and semi-autonomous control.

    • Pizza, pints & people – mix with Edinburgh’s Tech People, enjoy cold drinks, have fun.

    Agenda

    Time What’s happening
    17:45-18:30 Welcome • grab a drink •  take some pizza •  have a quick chat
    18:30-19:15 Noon van der Silk – Packaging 128 programming languages with Nix
    19:15-19:30 q&a • chat break
    19:30-20:15 Daniela Shchegelskaya – Integration is the hardest part: making robots usable on-site
    20:15-20:30 q&a • beverages • networking

    Speaker spotlight

    Noon van der Silk – https://www.linkedin.com/in/noonsilk/ – is a programmer originally from Australia. He has worked in many industries and technologies, and is presently getting enjoyment out of being able to achieve development environment perfection 🙂

    Daniela Shchegelskaya – https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniela-shchegelskaya-a60b76202/ – is an electronics and robotics engineer working on autonomous systems for industrial and safety-critical environments. Her work focuses on control systems, autonomous navigation, and deploying robots beyond lab conditions into real-world infrastructure such as power substations and hazardous zones. She specialises in making autonomy reliable in practice — addressing connectivity constraints, real-time diagnostics, and system-level decision-making. Alongside her professional work, Daniela builds independent robotics projects and explores how AI can augment human capability in complex environments.

    Partners:

    • Dougray
    • Clockwise
    • Scottish Technology Club
    • Beyond Tech

    Location:

    Clockwise Edinburgh Leith – Coworking & Office Space, Commercial Quay, 84 Commercial St, Leith, Edinburgh EH6 6LX

    Disclaimer:
    We will take pictures and videos of the event for our social pages. If you prefer not to be in any photos or videos, please let us know.

    👉 Interested in speaking at next TechTalks? Get in touch at [email protected] or message us on social media.

    Follow us on LinkedIn

    https://www.linkedin.com/company/adhoc-space/about/
    , YouTube
    https://www.youtube.com/@adhocSpace
    Meetup
    https://www.meetup.com/techtalks-edinburgh/
    , and Instagram
    https://www.instagram.com/adhoc_space/
    to stay in the loop.
    See you at the next TechTalks!

  • TechTalks Edinburgh #5

    TechTalks Edinburgh #5

    Meetup.com join url: https://www.meetup.com/techtalks-edinburgh/events/312849886/

    When: Thursday, 29 January · 5:45 PM to 8:45 PM GMT

    Where: Clockwise Edinburgh Leith, Commercial Quay, 84 Commercial St, EH6 6LX

    Why you’ll want to be there

    • From Keywords to Context: How Elasticsearch Became an AI-Powered Search Engine by Emmanuel Demey – Remember when search meant matching keywords? Those days are over. Elasticsearch now understands what you mean, not just what you type. In this session, I’ll walk you through the AI revolution happening inside Elasticsearch: semantic search with zero configuration, hybrid search that combines the best of both worlds, and practical patterns for building conversational AI applications. No PhD required — just bring your curiosity and leave with working code.

    • Doing 0→1 by Illia Kucheriavyi – learn from more than decade of software engineering experience distilled advices and examples of doing startup, working with critical money infrastructure, leading teams and teams of teams

    • Pizza, pints & people – mix with Edinburgh’s Tech People, enjoy cold drinks, have fun.

    Agenda

    Time What’s happening
    17:45-18:30 Welcome • grab a drink •  take some pizza •  have a quick chat
    18:30-19:15 Emmanuel Demey – From Keywords to Context: How Elasticsearch Became an AI-Powered Search Engine
    19:15-19:30 q&a • chat break
    19:30-20:15 Illia Kucheriavyi – Doing 0→1: learn from more than a decade of software engineering experience!
    20:15-20:45 q&a • beverages • networking

    Speaker spotlight

    Emmanuel Demey – freelance consultant based in Edinburgh, Scotland, with over 15 years of experience building web applications – https://www.linkedin.com/in/emmanueldemey/. He specializes in Elasticsearch consulting and training, web accessibility audits (RGAA), and Green IT. Emmanuel has worked with major clients including RATP, Back Market, and Métropole Nice Côte d’Azur. He co-organizes DevLille, one of France’s largest developer conferences, and runs the Edinburgh JavaScript meetup. He also hosts the Tech Ethic podcast exploring the intersection of technology and ethics.

    Illia Kucheriavyi – Senior Software Engineer, Revolut –https://www.linkedin.com/in/illia-kucheriavyi-8ba1a0148/. 13 years of experience in software engineering and software engineering leadership. From Computer Science-related R&D to enabling organisations with Lean Portfolio building and managing scalable teams of teams. Creator of numerous iOS and Software Engineering trainings, giving engineers the ability to achieve results with less time spent

    Partners:

    Location:

    Clockwise Edinburgh Leith – Coworking & Office Space, Commercial Quay, 84 Commercial St, Leith, Edinburgh EH6 6LX

    Disclaimer:
    We will take pictures and videos of the event for our social pages. If you prefer not to be in any photos or videos, please let us know.

    👉 Interested in speaking at next TechTalks? Get in touch at [email protected] or message us on social media.

    Follow us on LinkedIn

    https://www.linkedin.com/company/adhoc-space/about/
    , YouTube
    https://www.youtube.com/@adhocSpace
    Meetup
    https://www.meetup.com/techtalks-edinburgh/
    , and Instagram
    https://www.instagram.com/adhoc_space/
    to stay in the loop.
    See you at the next TechTalks!

  • TechTalks Edinburgh #4

    TechTalks Edinburgh #4

    When: Wednesday, Dec 10 · 5:45 PM to 8:45 PM GMT

    Where: Clockwise Edinburgh Leith, Commercial Quay, 84 Commercial St, EH6 6LX

    Why you’ll want to be there

    • UX Without Rituals: Building Human-First Digital Support with Zero BS by Dr Ziwei Wang – learn why “best practice” in UX isn’t always best. This talk shows how to build impactful, user-centred products without the usual rituals, templates, or big budgets — drawing on the real story of designing Pathlight, a grief-support platform for young people.

    • Teaching (Yourself and Others) with Claude: Experiments and Reflections by Jon Minton – learn how Claude and Claude Code can accelerate your own learning while helping you build clear, engaging teaching materials for others. From prompting Claude to take evidence-based stances on complex topics to co-designing visual guides, generating statistical animations, and even creating full simulated codebases for training, this talk offers a practical look at AI-assisted learning in action.

    • Pizza, pints & people – mix with Edinburgh’s Tech People, enjoy cold drinks, have fun.

    Agenda

    Time What’s happening
    17:45-18:30 Welcome • grab a drink •  take some pizza •  have a quick chat
    18:30-19:15 Dr Ziwei Wang – UX Without Rituals: Building Human-First Digital Support with Zero BS
    19:15-19:30 q&a • chat break
    19:30-20:15 Jon Minton – Teaching (Yourself and Others) with Claude: Experiments and Reflections
    20:15-20:45 q&a • beverages • networking

    Speaker spotlight

    Dr Ziwei Wang – Strategic insights lead / product manager – https://www.linkedin.com/in/drziweiwang/
    Specialises in turning complex user needs into decision-ready frameworks and building digital support tools under real-world constraints. With a background in behavioural science, combines evidence rigour with inventive delivery — from research galleries to journey systems — to align user insight with product strategy and organisational mission. Advocates for contextual, purpose-driven design that challenges standard UX rituals and delivers impact where it matters.

    Jon Minton – Senior Statistician – https://www.linkedin.com/in/jon-minton-09480b13a/
    Senior biostatistician with a very eclectic background and interests. He turned from AI sceptic to believer after watching The Thinking Game and seeing AIs evolve from playing Atari games to winning a Nobel prize in under a decade, and when Claude started arguing against him. See also his GitHub and Blog.

    Partners:

    Location:

    Clockwise Edinburgh Leith – Coworking & Office Space, Commercial Quay, 84 Commercial St, Leith, Edinburgh EH6 6LX

    Disclaimer:
    We will take pictures and videos of the event for our social pages. If you prefer not to be in any photos or videos, please let us know.

    👉 Interested in speaking at next TechTalks? Get in touch at [email protected] or message us on social media.

    Follow us on LinkedIn

    https://www.linkedin.com/company/adhoc-space/about/
    , YouTube
    https://www.youtube.com/@adhocSpace
    Meetup
    https://www.meetup.com/techtalks-edinburgh/
    , and Instagram
    https://www.instagram.com/adhoc_space/
    to stay in the loop.
    See you at the next TechTalks!

  • TechTalks Edinburgh #3

    TechTalks Edinburgh #3

    When: Thursday, November 6, 2025
    5:45 PM to 8:45 PM BST

    Where: Clockwise Edinburgh Leith, Commercial Quay, 84 Commercial St, EH6 6LX

    Why you’ll want to be there

    • De-Risk Your Dream: A Founder’s Guide to Building & Testing an MVP by Yana Varankova and Nadia McKay – learn how to validate ideas early, uncover what users truly need, and align UX with QA to build the right product faster and with confidence. You’ll walk away with practical tools to de-risk your roadmap and make smarter testing decisions.

    • Pizza, pints & people – mix with Edinburgh’s Tech People, enjoy cold drinks, have fun.

    Agenda

    Time What’s happening
    17:45-18:30 Welcome • grab a drink •  take some pizza •  have a quick chat
    18:30-19:15  Yana Varankova – De-Risk Your Dream: A Founder’s Guide to Building & Testing an MVP (Part 1)
    19:15-19:30 q&a • chat break
    19:30-20:15 Nadia McKay – De-Risk Your Dream: A Founder’s Guide to Building & Testing an MVP (Part 2)
    20:15-20:45 q&a • beverages • networking
    20:45 Official close (but the bar next door awaits)

    Speaker spotlight

    Yana Varankova – UX Strategist & Founder – https://www.linkedin.com/in/yana-varankova-ux-research/
    Yana helps ambitious founders in tech and games de-risk their roadmap by
    architecting the entire customer ecosystem. She uses practical frameworks like User Story Mapping to translate deep user insights into a clear product strategy. With her background in Psychology, Yana ensures teams build the right thing, right – from a user’s first click to becoming a loyal fan.

    Nadia McKay – QA Expert & Founder of Nexa IQ – https://www.linkedin.com/in/nadia-mckay-a441796/
    With over 30 years of experience in Information Technology, Nadia is a specialist in leading high-performing teams and helping organisations build quality software with confidence. As the founder of Nexa IQ, she advises startups and scaleups on quality strategy, delivery, and risk reduction, ensuring her clients not only ‘build the thing right’ but also build the right thing.

    Partners:

    Location:

    Clockwise Edinburgh Leith – Coworking & Office Space, Commercial Quay, 84 Commercial St, Leith, Edinburgh EH6 6LX

  • TechTalks Edinburgh #2

    TechTalks Edinburgh #2

    When: Thursday, September 25, 2025
    5:30 PM to 8:30 PM BST

    Where: Clockwise Edinburgh Leith, Commercial Quay, 84 Commercial St, EH6 6LX

    Why you’ll want to be there

    • AI in quantitative trading  by Ruslan Malsagov – hear how quants tackle noisy market data, provide liquidity and price discovery, and use modern AI modeling to solve engineering challenges in financial markets.

    • From Microservices to Microagents: Architecting Systems That Think for Themselves by Oluyemi Olususi – hear how autonomous agents can supercharge microservices, adapt to failures in real time, and why microagents may be the next big shift in system design.

    • Pizza, pints & people – mix with Edinburgh’s Tech People, enjoy cold drinks, have fun.

    Run‑of‑show

    Time What’s happening
    17:30-18:15 Welcome • grab a drink •  take some pizza •  have a quick chat
    18:15-19:00 Ruslan Malsagov – “AI in quantitative trading”
    19:00-19:15 q&a • chat break
    19:15-20:00 Oluyemi Olususi – From Microservices to Microagents: Architecting Systems That Think for Themselves
    20:00-20:30 q&a • beverages • networking
    20:30 Official close (but the bar next door awaits)

    Speaker spotlight

    Ruslan Malsagov – Quantitative Researcher / Trading Strategist, https://www.linkedin.com/in/ruslan-malsagov/.

    8 years in quantitative trading across Crypto and TradFi. Builds fully automated trading strategies by combining pricing models, machine learning, and statistical arbitrage with execution at scale. Led quant and dev teams to design trading systems from scratch and optimise existing infrastructure – bridging research with production-grade trading.

    Oluyemi Olususi – Senior Software Engineer – https://www.linkedin.com/in/yemiwebby.

    Senior Software Engineer with nearly a decade of experience building distributed systems across fintech, banking, HR, and hospitality. A leading CircleCI blog contributor, Oluyemi makes complex cloud-native and event-driven concepts practical and accessible through knowledge sharing with engineers worldwide.

    Partners:

    Location:

    Clockwise Edinburgh Leith – Coworking & Office Space, Commercial Quay, 84 Commercial St, Leith, Edinburgh EH6 6LX

  • TechTalks Edinburgh #1

    TechTalks Edinburgh #1

    When: Thursday 21 August 2025, 17:30 – 20:30 

    Where: Clockwise Edinburgh Leith, Commercial Quay, 84 Commercial St, EH6 6LX

    Why you’ll want to be there

    • RAG-Driven Translation Assistant: Lessons Learned by Oleksandr Piekhota – hear how they automated human translation pipelines with OpenAI‑powered RAG workflow—without sacrificing quality.

    • Trustworthy Tests for an AI Future by Ramsay Ashby.

    • Pizza, pints & people – mix with Edinburgh’s Tech People, enjoy cold drinks, have fun.

    Run‑of‑show

    Time What’s happening
    17:30-18:15 Welcome • grab a drink •  take some pizza •  have a quick chat
    18:15-19:00 Oleksandr Piekhota – “RAG-Driven Translation Assistant: Lessons Learned”
    19:00-19:15 q&a • chat break
    19:15-20:00 Ramsay Ashby – Trustworthy Tests for an AI Future
    20:00-20:30 q&a • beverages • networking
    20:30 Official close (but the bar next door awaits)

    Speaker spotlight

    Oleksandr – Senior Software Engineer / Tech Lead, Teaching Strategies https://www.linkedin.com/in/oleksandr-piekhota-b675ba53/ .

    12 years shipping products, Golang and PHP back‑ends, Cloud‑Native Architectures,  R&D, and AI. Recently led a push to automate large‑scale content localisation with ChatGPT, RAG, and prompt engineering tricks—achieving near parity with a human translation team.

    Ramsay – Senior Engineering Lead, Ex-Skyscanner – https://www.linkedin.com/in/ramsayashby/.

    15 years of experience, the last 7 of which have been largely focused on helping teams and organisations to work more effectively and perform at their best. A thought leader in applying observability within the SDLC itself, Ramsay helps teams focus their continuous improvement efforts on the areas that bring the most significant, sustainable impact and, in turn, helps them better serve their customers.

    Partners:

    Location:

    Clockwise Edinburgh Leith – Coworking & Office Space, Commercial Quay, 84 Commercial St, Leith, Edinburgh EH6 6LX