Joël Kalmanowicz is a product leader focused on trust and safety in innovation. Joël led the Cloud Developer Platform at Atlassian and drove multiple products at Google across consumer and enterprise, spanning hardware, software, AI/ML, voice, maps, social, and mobile. A two-time startup cofounder, Joël mentors and advises startups and nonprofits, speaks at public and private events, and has supported government teams to innovate in education, safety, and security. Joël’s sweet spot is designing products that advance business goals while building in safety from day one.

Rami Mukhtar is an inventor, entrepreneur and investor passionate about using AI and data to build products and businesses that make a difference. From founding SaaS companies to designing automated grow systems and piloting high-speed drones, Rami brings technology, nature and purpose together in unexpected ways.

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Damian Kassabgi is Chief Executive Officer of the Tech Council of Australia (TCA), where he champions the growth and development of the nation's technology sector. He has a strong background in both the private and public sectors.  

As a senior policy adviser to two former prime ministers Damian provided strategic direction on Australia’s digital economy, critical tech infrastructure and the country’s emerging tech ecosystem. Damian has held senior leadership roles with global tech companies Afterpay, Uber and Google working in Australia, Asia and the United States.  

Damian is passionate about advancing the nation's dynamic tech industry and creating opportunities for Australians from all backgrounds to pursue meaningful careers in tech.

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Nicole Gibson is the founder and CEO of inTruth Technologies, a company building world-first biometric emotion AI to transform emotional health into measurable, actionable insights. Formerly Australia’s youngest Federal Mental Health Commissioner, Nicole has spent over a decade as a globally recognised speaker and advocate for emotional intelligence, ethical technology, and data sovereignty. Her work bridges cutting-edge science with humanity’s most timeless needs, empowering individuals and organisations to make conscious, high-impact decisions. With partnerships spanning Garmin, Neuroscape, and UNSW, Nicole is shaping a future where emotional mastery becomes as integral to wellbeing and performance as physical health.

- Ethical use of biotechnology
- Human vs AI incentive alignment
- Data sovereignty and why it matters

Pauline Fetaui leads ACS Labs, home to Brisbane’s River City Labs, Maroochydore’s Ocean City Labs, and a national virtual program connecting entrepreneurs across Australia. Co-Founder of Something Fest and Something Tech., she is passionate about emerging technology and helping people live consciously and fully. A mentor to emerging tech companies and Host of the Perspective X podcast, Pauline draws on two decades in digital transformation, tech strategy, and regulatory change to guide founders in building impactful, purpose-driven innovation.

Hilary Cinis is a human-centred digital transformation consultant with Salesforce ANZ where she works with enterprise business leaders to identify and move forward on AI opportunities. Hilary’s strengths are in design thinking and systems thinking and co-design to deliver easily understood strategies for AI and the data stewardship that underpins it. She is passionate about establishing holistic data cultures, social good and ethical and responsible AI. She is a member of the Salesforce Trusted AI Services Program, was a working member of the National AI Centre Think Tank and a member of the AICD.

Dave is co-founder of Kinde, a platform powering the next generation of SaaS companies with auth, billing, and feature flag services. A full-stack developer with a product-first mindset, he leads a global remote team while still writing code himself. Based in Byron Bay with his family, Dave is passionate about simplicity, deep work, and building calm, high-output teams.

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Mike Nedelko is a product leader and CPO with 15 years in product management, AI research, and startup mentorship. He brings global experience from the Bay Area to Australia, including work with Y Combinator–backed RAGAS.io and other AI-native companies. Mike champions Evaluation-Driven Product Development and Automation-Driven Process Design, helping top startups and FAANG teams turn non-deterministic AI into reliable, scalable products. His focus is on designing systems that scale intelligently, reduce operational drag, and deliver measurable business outcomes; advising founders and product leaders on strategy, evaluation, and go-to-market for AI products.

Simon Cant is Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Reinventure, a founder-first corporate VC launched in 2013 with $150m under management and Westpac as primary investor. Reinventure has backed 35+ companies across fintech and adjacent sectors. Simon sits on the boards of Valiant, OpenAgent, Kepler Analytics and Forte, and led key investments including Coinbase in 2014, which returned over $500m to Westpac. He founded and served as inaugural President of FinTech Australia and helped shape the federal fintech reform agenda. Earlier, he worked across Social Ventures Australia, Tinshed Angel Group, Ninemsn and AustLII, and began his career at Allens.