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EVENT BACKGROUND AND KEY TOPICS
Over the next 20 years, machine learning, the internet of things, artificial intelligence, robotics , big data
and quantum computing will fundamentally change the way we work and do business. Driverless cars
and smart cities will overhaul traditional industries. The speed at which countries can reskill existing
workforces and educate new ones is a crucial factor in whether they will adapt successfully.
Given its sophisticated education system, robust infrastructure and long-term investment outlook,
Australia should stand a chance at commercialising technology faster than its Asian counterparts—but
will it? Asia had a burning appetite for Australia’s ores, but does it have the same appetite for its ideas
Addressing the theme of Innovation as Competition,: Australia’s Asian Future Summit 2017 will bring
together policymakers, leaders in regional and Australian business, academics and pioneering
entrepreneurs to debate the role Australia can play in boosting Asia’s capacity for innovation. How can
Australia compete with Asian countries that significantly outspend it in research and development
(R&D)? How can the country export its capabilities in biotech, fintech and agribusiness, along with the
strengths of its sophisticated health-care system, to a varied region that in some places has already
leapfrogged it? And what can Australia learn from pioneering Asian entrepreneurs about how to
capture value from some of the largest markets in the world?
KEY TOPICS:
•
Australian innovation in a drawbridge-up world
•
Technology and the transformation of Australia’s economy
•
Australia v Asia: Finance disrupted
•
Fail to prepare, prepare to fail
•
“Austech” and the driving force of new industries such as biotech, health tech and e-tech
•
Collaboration between the private sector and academia to commercialise new technologies
PROGRAMME AGENDA*
8.00am
Registration and refreshments
8.30am
Chair’s opening remarks
8.35am
Keynote interview: Australian innovation in
a drawbridge-up world
• Julie Bishop, minister for foreign affairs,
Australia
9.00am
The World If: Australia’s future
• Mark Palmquist, managing director and
chief executive, Graincorp
9:45am
Insights from Asia
11:45am
Australia v Asia: Finance disrupted
• Kelly O’Dwyer, assistant treasurer and
minister for revenue and financial services,
Australia
• Greg Moshal, founder and joint chief
executive officer, Prospa
• Gerd Schenkel, chief executive officer, Tyro
Payments
12:30pm
Questions, crowd-sourced
12:35pm
Networking lunch break
1:45pm
To biotech and beyond
• Alan Mackay-Sim, emeritus professor, Griffith
University and 2017 Australian of the Year
2:15pm
Australia’s future “hayday”
• Wendy Umberger, professor, agricultural and
food economics, The University of Adelaide
2:45pm
Networking break
3:25pm
Ask The Economist: Technology and the
transformation of Australia’s economy
3.45pm
Panel discussion: Insights from Australia
4:30pm
Wrap-up and closing remarks
In this session, an Asian entrepreneur will
showcase how they have successfully
disrupted different markets in the region.
9:55am
Networking break
10:25am
Insights from Asia
10.35am
Rotating exchange: Fail to prepare,
prepare to fail
• Larry Marshall, chief executive, CSIRO
• Charlie Day, chief executive officer,
Office of Innovation and Science
Australia
11:20am
Fireside chat: The development of
Australia’s future industries
• Mathias Cormann, minister for finance,
Australia
*For the full programme and speaker line-up, visit
innovationascompetition.econmomist.com. All topics and speakers are subject to
change.
AUDIENCE PROFILE
Why attend?
•
Network with 160+ senior executives who are driving the innovation agenda in Australia
•
Discover how technology is disrupting Australia’s economy
•
Learn how Australia can use innovation to pioneer new industries
•
Hear success stories from public-private partnerships that have led the commercialisation of new
technologies
•
Showcase your competitive advantage and find new partnerships that will help your grow
internationally
WHO ATTENDS?
Innovation as Competition: Australia’s Asian Future Summit 2017 will bring together 150+ policymakers,
leaders in regional and Australian business, academics and pioneering entrepreneurs to debate the role
Australia can play in boosting Asia’s capacity for innovation.
AUDIENCE PROFILE OF
THE SUMMIT 2016
“The event has
been well organised
with diversified and
rich contents”
Vice-president, IT Asia-Pacific, Resmed
HEAR FROM EXPERTS INCLUDING
Mathias Cormann
Minister for finance
Australia
Julie Bishop
Minister for foreign affairs
Australia
Kelly O’Dwyer
Assistant treasurer and
minister for revenue and
financial services
Australia
Larry Marshall
Chief executive
CSIRO
Mark Palmquist
Managing director and chief
executive
Graincorp
Alan Mackay-Sim
Emeritus professor
Griffith University and 2017
Australian of the Year
Charlie Day
Chief executive officer
Office of Innovation and
Science Australia
Greg Moshal
Founder and joint chief
executive officer
Prospa
Wendy Umberger
Professor, agricultural and
food economics
The University of Adelaide
Gerd Schenkel
Chief executive officer
Tyro Payments
Australia’s Asian Future Summit 2017
Innovation as competition
September 1st 2017•Four Seasons Hotel Sydney, Australia
8.00am
Registration
8.30am
Chairman’s opening remarks
8.35am
Keynote interview: Australian innovation in a drawbridge-up world
Australia is one of the world’s most open economies, and has long been an advocate of free trade. But a resurgence in populist
nationalism has put globalisation on the back foot and could threaten Australia’s prospects for growth.
Both trade and technology can put people out of jobs. In the past, many have been willing to accept the upheaval if it has meant
benefiting from new efficiencies. But the global order has changed; if they are no longer confident of finding new roles, will the next
generation of displaced workers be so accepting? And to what extent will “technonationalism” affect Australia’s international position
in exporting innovation?
Speaker
Julie Bishop, minister for foreign affairs, Australia (confirmed in principle)
9.00am
The World If: Australia’s future
This session will bring together three leading thinkers and ask them to consider three fictional but plausible scenarios. What will Australia
be like in 2040 if:

automation replaces 40% of the country’s jobs in labour-intensive sectors?

climate change irreversibly affects its ability to grow crops?

its brightest scientists have left the country for highly paid jobs in China?
Speaker:
Mark Palmquist, managing director and chief executive, Graincorp
9.45am
Insights from Asia
In this session, an Asian entrepreneur will showcase how they have successfully disrupted different markets in the region.
© 2017 The Economist Events
This is a confidential draft programme for the conference mentioned in this document. All topics and speakers are indicative and subject to change.
9.55am
Networking break
10.25am
Insights from Asia
In this session, an Asian entrepreneur will showcase how they have successfully disrupted different markets in the region.
10.35am
Rotating exchange: Fail to prepare, prepare to fail
Australia wants to sell its ideas instead of just its commodities. Yet R&D spending, as a percentage of GDP, is at its lowest since 1978.
What policies are in place to increase Australia’s commitment to R&D? How can the private sector work with academia to develop
and commercialise new technologies? How can venture capital and other sources of investment collaborate with key stakeholders?
And, given that countries such as China, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan spend up to eight times as much as Australia on R&D,
proportional to their GDP, how can the country compete?
The Economist Events’ moderator will start the session by interviewing a panellist who will, in turn, begin a conversation with the
panellist to their left. The session will rotate until the moderator is fielding the questions.
Speakers
Larry Marshall, chief executive, CSIRO
Charlie Day, chief executive officer, Office of Innovation and Science Australia
11.20am
Fireside chat: The development of Australia’s future industries
Speaker
Mathias Cormann, minister for finance, Australia
© 2017 The Economist Events
This is a confidential draft programme for the conference mentioned in this document. All topics and speakers are indicative and subject to change.
11.45am
Australia v Asia: Finance disrupted
According to EY, a consultancy, one in five fintech businesses in Australia expects revenue to grow more than 500% over the next year.
The country has a favourable regulatory environment, a growing pool of capital and an eager consumer base. Australia’s financialservices powerhouses all support the development of fintech. Yet China’s internet finance sector, according to McKinsey, was worth
$2 trillion at the end of 2015. In India, innovative companies are leapfrogging traditional payment methods at a rapid rate. How can
Australia compete?
This panel will pit leading fintech experts from around Asia against their Australian rivals. Which country is best positioned to be the
region’s fintech hub? Via live polling, the audience will decide who makes the best case. The session will open with a one-on-one
interview with the minister of revenue and financial services.
Speakers
Kelly O’Dwyer, assistant treasurer and minister for revenue and financial services, Australia
Greg Moshal, founder and joint chief executive officer, Prospa
Gerd Schenkel, chief executive officer, Tyro Payments
12.30pm
Questions, crowd-sourced
In the lead-up to the summit, we will ask participants to tell us their three biggest challenges in adopting innovative strategies in their
business. The findings will be revealed before lunch, to form the basis of discussion for the day’s closing session.
12.35pm
Networking lunch break
1.45pm
To biotech and beyond
According to Australasian Biotechnology, a scientific journal, the market capitalisation of Australian life-science companies is $94
billion. Investment in early-stage companies and clinical trials is healthy, and the sector has a bright future—but it faces stiff
competition. America, France, Switzerland, Korea, Japan, Germany and Denmark all invest more in life-science industries than
Australia does, according to the OECD.
How can investors, businesses, policymakers and academics collaborate to create a globally competitive biotech industry? And how
can the private sector develop technologies that give the industry a competitive advantage in Asia?
Speaker
Alan Mackay-Sim, emeritus professor, Griffith University and 2017 Australian of the Year
© 2017 The Economist Events
This is a confidential draft programme for the conference mentioned in this document. All topics and speakers are indicative and subject to change.
2.15pm
Australia’s future “hayday”
Technology is changing the foundations of Australian agriculture. Australian farms are slowly adopting driverless tractors, crop
monitoring and other innovations. Digital solutions offer great potential for growth. But to compete effectively, such businesses must
also find ways to brand their products and promote the “made in Australia” message to buyers abroad.
How can innovation give Australia an advantage in food exports, against South Africa, South America and the United States? What
are the skills required to infuse agriculture with new technology and digital solutions? How should Australian businesses such as
winemakers and cattle farmers brand their products to give Asian buyers a sense of what it is to buy Australian? And how can
Australian agritech capitalise on the growth of automation on Asian farms?
Speaker
Wendy Umberger, professor, agricultural and food economics, The University of Adelaide
2.45pm
Networking break
3.25pm
Ask The Economist: Technology and the transformation of Australia’s economy
In this audience-led session, The Economist’s editors will take questions on the key issues that have shaped the day’s discussions.
3.45pm
Panel discussion: Insights from Australia
Throughout the day we will have heard from entrepreneurs from Asia make the case for their respective countries. In this session,
Australia’s most innovative business leaders will discuss how the country can export its innovation to the wider region, how the country
is in a unique position to do so, and how it can overcome the barriers of succeeding in Asia.
4.30pm
Wrap-up and closing remarks
© 2017 The Economist Events
This is a confidential draft programme for the conference mentioned in this document. All topics and speakers are indicative and subject to change.
Register today and before June 16th to save US$720
@EconomistEvents #AusInnov
innovationascompetition.economist.com