Nicola J Buttigieg – AI Research & Communication

Bridging AI, Research & Communication

Nicola is a Machine Learning/AI Engineer and Research Affiliate at the King's Institute for Artificial Intelligence. Her work focuses on building and analysing full-stack, multimodal AI systems and hybrid AI architectures, spanning retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), LangChain orchestration, multi-instrument signal processing, and containerised deployment pipelines. Currently pursuing a PhD focused on the transition from classical to quantum machine learning, her research investigates the technical and architectural constraints that shape hybrid classical–quantum workflows in real-world systems.

In 2026, Nicola presented a workload classification framework at the From AI to Quantum showcase at IBM's Innovation Centre. Designed to identify quantum-suitable computational problems and evaluate pathways toward quantum advantage, the framework explores hybrid classical–quantum architectures, feature-map encoding, variational circuit design, and hybrid optimisation strategies. The methodology provides a structured approach for assessing workload suitability across a quantum-readiness spectrum, including high-dimensional scaling and combinatorial optimisation complexity. Additionally, as part of the 2026 King’s Public Engagement Grant–funded project Quantum AI Horizons, Nicola delivered a FinTech-focused technical demonstration for industry stakeholders, executing a hybrid quantum–AI pipeline on IBM quantum hardware and comparing results against a zero-noise simulation baseline to assess performance under hardware constraints.

During her time at the institute, Nicola has served formally as an AI & Machine Learning trainer for the international King’s–Bolashak Programme, designing and delivering bespoke advanced AI training for interdisciplinary research cohorts spanning medicine, forensic science, and the technical sciences. Beyond her core research, she has an ongoing interest in developing and delivering applied machine learning prototypes using Earth observation and satellite datasets through technical seminars supporting space-sector outreach. Building on several years of work architecting AI and simulation workflows for the UKSEDS National Student Space Conference, she authored the 2025 technical series AI Software Tool Creation: Leveraging NASA MERRA-2 Data. Spanning data-centric optimisation and simulation tools, environmental forecasting, and physics-based modelling of aerospace-relevant systems, she has collaborated with NASA data specialists to present these prototypes at the NASA Goddard GES DISC Future of Giovanni forum and the NASA LaRC POWER GloCo Summit, focusing on the application of Earth observation datasets in machine learning and data analysis workflows.

Presentations & Outreach

Quantum Hybrid Fintech: PoC Blueprint Workshop (King's Bush House London, 2026)
- Evaluated and validated hardware-ready Proof of Concept from financial data cleaning to numerical matrix auditing
- Equipped machine learning practitioners with practical skills to apply quantum computing to quantitative finance
- Provided hands-on experience optimising a hybrid classical-quantum pipeline using IBM Qiskit Patterns and high-frequency LOB data
From AI to Quantum: Orchestrating the Next Frontier of Enterprise Technology (IBM Innovation Studio London, 2026)
- Demonstrated enterprise quantum workflows, including hybrid kernels, quantum regressors, and edge computing
- Showcased how quantum techniques solve classical bottlenecks like dimensionality explosions and combinatorial complexities
- Highlighted quantum applications in chaotic environments, featuring solar UAV atmospheric modeling and iceberg trajectory prediction
AI Software Tool Creation: Leveraging NASA MERRA-2 Data – AI-vision Seminar Series (2025)
- Hosted as Research Affiliate, King’s Institute for AI and Co-Founder of AI-vision
- Developed and showcased seven original ML prototypes leveraging NASA MERRA-2 reanalysis data
- Presented in collaboration with UKSEDS, NASA POWER, NASA DRCS/Biospheric Sciences Lab, OpeNDAP, RocketPy
Seeing the World Through AI – King’s Festival of Artificial Intelligence (2025)
- Live demonstrations of YOLO and CLIP in real-time computer vision applications
- Showcased YOLO-Mosaic Maker, Flask-based photomosaic web app prototype leveraging YOLO object detection
UKSEDS National Student Space Conference – Live AI Coding Workshops Integrating Python Toolkits
- AI Powered Aerospace Simulation & Launch Planning Practical Workshop (London, 2026)
- Flight Anomaly Detection for UAVs and Model Rockets with Machine Learning AI (Leicester, 2025)
- Model Rocketry & Aircraft Optimisation and Satellite Predictiive AI Simulations (Bristol, 2024)
Staffordshire University London – Engineering Optimisation, ML and QML Foundations with Python (2024)
- Coding masterclasses integrating NASA Earthdata Giovanni & AppEEARs, GPKit, RocketPy, Scikit-learn & Qiskit

Recent Roles

Research Affiliate AI/ML Engineer – King’s Institute for Artificial Intelligence (Nov 2024 – Present)
- Designed and deployed ML/NLP pipelines and multimodal LLM workflows for QA and sentiment analysis
- Delivered interactive prototypes and production-ready AI leveraging RAG, semantic search and summarisation
- Developed interactive prototypes for NASA POWER GloCo Summit & GES DISC Future of Giovanni and Race2Space
AI and Machine Learning Lecturer – King’s-Bolashak Programme, King’s College London (2025-2026)
- Delivered applied machine learning curriculum and led live coding sessions in Python for early-career scholars
- Training spanned predictive and clustering methods across supervised, unsupervised and reinforcement learning
- Introduced Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) for transparent document intelligence systems
- Investigated graph analytics and optimisation modelling
- Explored deep learning integrating explainability and adversarial robustness testing for digital forensics applications
Curriculum Writer – AI for Edge Computing: BCS Accredited Tech10 Certificate (2025)
- Authored for GDST in collaboration with Edge Impulse Inc., Cranfield University CranSEDS and National Space Centre
Technical Innovation Specialist Mentor – Boston University Spark! (2024)
- Innovation Program for Advanced-Stage Product Development, facilitated sprint planning, retrospectives & client demos

Awards

King's College London Public Engagement Grant 2025–2026, Quantum AI Horizons
King's College London AHSS Advanced Training Bursary 2025
Royal Society STEM Partnership Grant 2024, Project Lead
Women of the Future Awards 2022, Finalist (Mentor of the Year)