Amsterdam Data Science and Elsevier sign long-term collaboration agreement to boost local data science scene

Network organisation Amsterdam Data Science (ADS), of which the University of Amsterdam (UvA) is a founding  partner, today signed an agreement with scientific information solutions provider Elsevier aimed at advancing data science research and education in Amsterdam. Both parties are embarking on a number of joint projects that will enable data scientists to access and share data and use the latest technology to collaborate and advance the field of data science together.

Kajsa Ollongren, Alderperson and deputy mayor of the City of Amsterdam, supports the initiative: ‘The partnership between Elsevier and Amsterdam Data Science is great news for Amsterdam as it helps us to further develop the city as a hub in data science and attracting international technology talent.  Seeing our best educational and research institutes teaming up with Netherlands-based multinational science & health data company Elsevier will boost Amsterdam’s international competitive position and improve the overall data tech climate in the greater Amsterdam metro area.’

ADS and Elsevier will collaborate together on several fronts, including research and development, joint promotion of Amsterdam as a data science center, and data science talent development. This partnership marks the first long-term collaboration agreement signed by ADS, an initiative of the UvA, VU University, Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences and Centrum Wiskunde & Informatica.

Data sharing

‘Business and society are generating and storing more data than ever before’, said Prof. Marcel Worring, Director of the UvA’s Informatics Institute. ‘The most-heard questions across sectors are how to find and use that data to gain new insights and make informed decisions, but also how to enable reproducibility of the data, deploy semantic technologies and create a safe data sharing environment. Answering these questions requires a multi-stakeholder approach involving partners from academics, business and society. ADS bundles these forces. In Elsevier we’ve found a partner that has a proven track record in deploying technology to analyze data, enable data sharing and reuse and facilitate collaboration among researchers.’

International hub

‘As a global technology company, we’re engaging in data science and big data collaborations around the world’, said Michiel Kolman, Senior Vice President Global Academic Relations at Elsevier. ‘But our company has its roots and its head office in the Netherlands so it’s exciting to collaborate with ADS and local institutions to help develop our home city as a national and international data science hub, making it an even more attractive place for data science researchers. In addition to contributing to ADS’ goals ourselves, we’re looking forward to learn a lot from the companies and knowledge institutes that are part of the ADS network. Advancing data science is a multi-stakeholder endeavor.’

A number of projects have already started. These are focused on improving data search and reproducibility of research that will ultimately result in higher quality research outcomes.