Gerald Rigdon

Software Engineering Fellow Boston Scientific Corporation

I have over 35 years of experience in safety critical software driven real-time embedded systems spanning multiple diverse industries, Process Control Instrumentation, Burner Controls, Dynamically Stabilized Balancing Machines, and Medical Devices. I spent 11 years leading the software development in a small private industrial instrumentation company, 2 years owning burner control projects, 6 years wearing numerous hats in a renowned startup company, and presently 18 years in a senior staff technical leadership position for a large publicly owned medical device corporation. Hands-on in all stages of the software development process in dynamic safety/security critical environments with breakthrough technologies.

Seminars

Thursday 23rd July 2026
Regulatory Implications of AI & Code Generation in Medical Device Software Development
9:00 am
  • Go through what teams must do to verify, validate, and keep traceability when AI tools help write software
  • How to manage tool reliability, version changes, and documentation so AI-generated code remains testable and compliant
  • Practical governance, human oversight, and documentation practices that allow safe use of AI while meeting regulatory expectations
Wednesday 22nd July 2026
Fishbowl Debate: Assistive vs. Autonomous AI: Where Should Humans Stay in the Loop?
4:30 pm

This dynamic fishbowl debate brings engineers, clinicians, and regulatory leaders into a rotating inner‑circle conversation, creating a rare, real‑time exchange between those designing AI systems, those deploying them, and those overseeing their safety. With audience members stepping into the discussion throughout, the session becomes a living model of the very human‑machine interaction it examines.

  • Discuss how assistive, decision‑support, and autonomous AI shift risk, validation, and oversight, enabling attendees to match autonomy levels to the appropriate regulatory and safety strategy
  • Examine where AI improves consistency and where it introduces over‑reliance or hidden errors, giving participants clearer judgment on when human review adds safety value
  • Explore how claims, labelling, and clinical context constrain autonomy, helping attendees align design decisions with regulatory positioning
  • Break down models for “human in the loop,” “on the loop,” and supervisory control guiding teams to design workflows, interfaces, and monitoring that meet regulator and clinician expectations
Gerald Rigdon