An AI keynote speaker is booked to explain artificial intelligence to a conference or leadership team, and the strongest back the talk with their own AI research or building. On a 60-point test of six criteria, Prof Toby Walsh scores highest at 51, ahead of Dr Sue Keay on 48 and Gihan Perera on 47.
The best AI keynote speakers in Australia, ranked
How each one scores
Points by test, scored 2 October 2026| Prof Toby Walsh | Dr Sue Keay | Gihan Perera | Ross Dawson | Steve Sammartino | Tracey Spicer AM | Simon Kriss | Adrienne Park | Dr Catriona Wallace | Anders Sörman-Nilsson |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hands-on depth10 points | |||||||||
| 7 of 10 | 7 of 10 | 4 of 10 | 7 of 10 | 4 of 10 | 0 of 10 | 7 of 10 | 10 of 10 | 3 of 10 | 0 of 10 |
| Speaking record10 points | |||||||||
| 10 of 10 | 7 of 10 | 7 of 10 | 9 of 10 | 10 of 10 | 10 of 10 | 8 of 10 | 6 of 10 | 5 of 10 | 8 of 10 |
| Verification10 points | |||||||||
| 9 of 10 | 10 of 10 | 10 of 10 | 8 of 10 | 8 of 10 | 10 of 10 | 5 of 10 | 6 of 10 | 10 of 10 | 8 of 10 |
| Published thinking10 points | |||||||||
| 5 of 10 | 4 of 10 | 8 of 10 | 8 of 10 | 6 of 10 | 5 of 10 | 7 of 10 | 3 of 10 | 5 of 10 | 6 of 10 |
| Recognition10 points | |||||||||
| 10 of 10 | 10 of 10 | 8 of 10 | 6 of 10 | 7 of 10 | 10 of 10 | 4 of 10 | 4 of 10 | 10 of 10 | 8 of 10 |
| Current Australian presence10 points | |||||||||
| 10 of 10 | 10 of 10 | 10 of 10 | 8 of 10 | 10 of 10 | 10 of 10 | 8 of 10 | 10 of 10 | 6 of 10 | 8 of 10 |
| Total scoreout of 60 | |||||||||
| 51 of 601st | 48 of 602nd | 47 of 603rd | 46 of 604th | 45 of 605th | 45 of 606th | 39 of 607th | 39 of 608th | 39 of 609th | 38 of 6010th |
1. Prof Toby Walsh
- Best for
- Conferences and boards that want the research view of what AI can and cannot do, from a scientist who has worked in the field for four decades
- Location
- Sydney
Toby Walsh has researched AI for more than 40 years and holds the Celestino Eureka Prize for Promoting Understanding of Science. His UNSW profile says he is working on an ARC Laureate project exploring trustworthy AI.
Toby Walsh has given over 100 talks on AI, at stages including CeBIT, World Summit AI and TEDx. In February 2026 he addressed the National Press Club of Australia on "AI, boom or doom". Five of his books explain AI for a general audience, the most recent The Shortest History of AI in 2025. His speaking site is run by Laurici, the speakers bureau that represents him.
- Beats the field on: speaking record, recognition and current Australian presence, full marks on all three.
- Loses on: published thinking, 5 against 8 for Gihan Perera and Ross Dawson. No newsletter, podcast or course appears on the pages read.
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Book a 30-minute call2. Dr Sue Keay
- Best for
- Mining, manufacturing and industrial audiences that want AI and robotics explained by someone who runs a university AI institute and shaped national policy on robotics
- Location
- Queensland
Sue Keay is the Director of the UNSW AI Institute and founded Robotics Australia Group, the peak body for the robotics industry. Her own site counts more than 30 years of leadership in emerging technologies.
AGSM published the recording of Sue Keay's 2025 keynote, AI Leadership in an Accelerating World. Fugro booked her for its Innovators Conference to speak on AI and robotics. She holds a PhD from the Australian National University and is a fellow of the Australian Academy of Technology and Engineering. She also teaches an eight-week Robotics for Business Leaders course at Monash College.
- Beats the field on: verification, recognition and current Australian presence, full marks on all three.
- Loses on: published thinking, 4. She has no book, and her podcast work is guest appearances.
3. Gihan Perera
- Best for
- Leadership teams that want an AI keynote followed by a masterclass or a longer AI program
- Location
- Leederville, Perth
Gihan Perera describes himself as a futurist, conference speaker, AI researcher and author, and dates his AI work to a university thesis in AI more than 30 years ago. The Marina Industries Association named him to give the Day 1 keynote at Marinas26, AI Future in Marinas & Boatyards, in May 2026.
Gihan Perera runs AI masterclasses and an AI Accelerator program for leaders. He holds the Certified Speaking Professional designation and was named one of the Top 30 Global Futurists in 2025. His media page lists Weekend Sunrise and Today Tonight among his TV appearances.
- Beats the field on: published thinking, 8, level with Ross Dawson.
- Loses on: hands-on depth, 4. His AI work is research and reports rather than a named system he built.
4. Ross Dawson
- Best for
- Large organisations that want an AI keynote on the future of work, followed by an AI strategy session for the board
- Location
- Australia, no city stated on his pages
Ross Dawson lists AI-focused keynotes for Deloitte, Mastercard, Microsoft and NASA. He founded Humans + AI, which publishes a weekly podcast on people working with AI.
At Asana's Work Innovation Tour in Sydney in 2026 he presented his Humans + AI framework for which tasks people lead and which AI leads. He has delivered keynotes and strategy workshops in more than 30 countries. His media appearances include CNN, Bloomberg TV, ABC TV and Sunrise.
- Beats the field on: published thinking, 8, level with Gihan Perera.
- Loses on: recognition, 6. His pages name no board, government or advisory role outside his own companies.
5. Steve Sammartino
- Best for
- Executive teams and large conferences that want an energetic talk on where AI and technology are taking business
- Location
- Australia, no city stated on his pages
Steve Sammartino has delivered more than 600 speeches in over 40 countries. Cbus credits his session on transformative AI themes with stretching its executives' thinking, and Vanguard and Visa are among the clients quoted on his testimonials page.
Steve Sammartino was the weekly guest on ABC radio's Techtopia segment in 2016, when it covered keeping up with artificial intelligence. His projects page names him as co-founder of the AI and robotics firm Macro 3D. He also sits on the NSW Innovation and Productivity Council.
- Beats the field on: speaking record and current Australian presence, full marks on both.
- Loses on: hands-on depth, 4. The Macro 3D entry is undated and no current AI build is stated on his pages.
6. Tracey Spicer AM
- Best for
- Organisations that want a talk on AI bias, inclusion and responsible use from a journalist who spent seven years researching it
- Location
- Australia, no city stated on her pages
Tracey Spicer researched artificial intelligence for seven years for her book Man-Made, which won the Social Responsibility category in the Australian Business Book Awards. In 2024 and 2025 she presented on AI for Tungsten Automation, National Disability Services and the Queensland Public Libraries Association's LEaD Conference. Tungsten Automation says her keynote was voted the most valuable part of its summit.
Tracey Spicer's bureau profile says she sits on the Global Advisory Board of For Humanity. She still writes on the subject, and her article on AI bias three years after the book is dated September 2026.
- Beats the field on: speaking record, verification, recognition and current Australian presence, full marks on all four.
- Loses on: hands-on depth, 0. Her pages describe research for a book, not building or researching AI systems.
7. Simon Kriss
- Best for
- Councils, government agencies and customer experience teams that want an AI adoption keynote and a hands-on masterclass
- Location
- Australia, no city stated on his pages
Simon Kriss co-founded Sovereign AI, a national initiative building ethics-led AI capability for Australia. He wrote about why he started it in October 2025.
Simon Kriss spoke at the United Nations in Geneva at the AI for Developing Countries Forum. A recording of that talk is on his keynote page, alongside testimonials from Matchboard and Knox City Council. Travel trade title Karryon reported his AI session at the Envoyage Summit 2026 in Cairns. His LG AI Launchpad masterclass teaches council staff where to start with generative AI.
- Beats the field on: none outright. Speaking record and current Australian presence, 8 each, are his best tests.
- Loses on: recognition, 4. No award or national media appearance is named on the pages read.
8. Adrienne Park
- Best for
- Audiences that want AI built live on stage, with the legal and privacy questions answered by a lawyer
- Location
- Admitted as a solicitor in NSW, with her named events in Seoul
Adrienne Park's keynotes can include live demonstrations of AI building websites and digital platforms on stage. Her speaker deck names her as CEO of Dungwool Inc., a firm she founded that specialises in AI platforms.
The deck lists a KAIST lecture on AI and business strategy and an invitation to Law Expo Seoul 2026. A recorded lecture from September 2025 covers who owns a work painted by an AI. Adrienne Park is a solicitor of the Supreme Court of NSW with a Master of Information Technology from the University of Queensland. She has no website of her own.
- Beats the field on: hands-on depth, 10, the highest score on the list.
- Loses on: published thinking, 3, and recognition, 4. No national media or award appears on her pages.
9. Dr Catriona Wallace
- Best for
- Boards and executive teams that want a talk on responsible AI and governance
- Location
- Australia, no city stated on her pages
Catriona Wallace co-authored Checkmate Humanity: the how and why of Responsible AI. Analyst firm Onalytica named her among the world's top keynote speakers in AI. Her publications page carries the Responsible AI Index, a study of more than 400 Australian organisations.
Catriona Wallace was CEO of Flamingo AI when it won a patent for its semi-supervised question answering machine, and she chairs the Boab AI venture capital fund. Her home page lists 96 clients she has presented to in recent years. She appeared as a Shark on Shark Tank Australia in 2023.
- Beats the field on: verification and recognition, full marks on both.
- Loses on: hands-on depth, 3, and speaking record, 5. Her pages show advice on AI today rather than building it, and none of the clients she lists is tied to a talk on AI.
10. Anders Sörman-Nilsson
- Best for
- Sales, partner and leadership conferences that want a futurist's read on responsible AI and where technology is taking customers
- Location
- Avalon Beach, Sydney
Anders Sörman-Nilsson is a global futurist who publishes the Decoding Tomorrow newsletter. The recording of his AI keynote for TD SYNNEX on responsible and explainable AI, published in May 2026, is on his own channel.
Anders Sörman-Nilsson's site quotes Meta, Gartner, Google, Microsoft, CPA Australia, QBE and PwC, and he has appeared on Sunrise and News Breakfast. His bureau profile calls him an awarded Keynote Speaker of the Year and lists three books on digital change, the latest Aftershock in 2020.
- Beats the field on: none outright. Speaking record, verification, recognition and current Australian presence, 8 each, are his best tests.
- Loses on: hands-on depth, 0. He is a futurist, and his pages do not say he builds AI or runs an AI workshop.
How they compare
The grid answers six questions a buyer asks before booking an AI keynote, from each speaker's own pages and from published coverage of their talks. None of the 10 publishes a keynote fee.
10 speakers, side by side
Checked 2 October 2026Builds or researches AI themselves?Their own pages say they build, implement or research AI nowProf Toby Walsh: Yes.Dr Sue Keay: Yes.Gihan Perera: Yes.Ross Dawson: Yes.Steve Sammartino: Not stated.Tracey Spicer AM: Not stated.Simon Kriss: Yes.Adrienne Park: Yes.Dr Catriona Wallace: Not stated.Anders Sörman-Nilsson: Not stated.
Names a client for an AI talk?An organisation or event named for a talk on AI, on a page they control or in press coverage of the eventProf Toby Walsh: Yes.Dr Sue Keay: Yes.Gihan Perera: Yes.Ross Dawson: Yes.Steve Sammartino: Yes.Tracey Spicer AM: Yes.Simon Kriss: Yes.Adrienne Park: Yes.Dr Catriona Wallace: Not stated.Anders Sörman-Nilsson: Yes.
| Speaker | Answer |
|---|---|
| Prof Toby Walsh | Yes. India Today Conclave, on the state and future of AI. |
| Dr Sue Keay | Yes. The Fugro Innovators Conference, on AI and robotics. |
| Gihan Perera | Yes. The Marinas26 conference, where he gave the Day 1 keynote, AI Future in Marinas & Boatyards. |
| Ross Dawson | Yes. Deloitte, Mastercard, Microsoft and NASA. |
| Steve Sammartino | Yes. Cbus executives, on transformative AI themes. |
| Tracey Spicer AM | Yes. Tungsten Automation, National Disability Services and the QPLA LEaD Conference, 2024 and 2025. |
| Simon Kriss | Yes. The United Nations AI for Developing Countries Forum in Geneva. |
| Adrienne Park | Yes. A KAIST lecture on AI and business strategy, and a Yangjae aT Center keynote on legal tech and AI. |
| Dr Catriona Wallace | Not stated. Lists 96 clients she has presented to, without naming which talks were on AI. |
| Anders Sörman-Nilsson | Yes. TD SYNNEX, an AI keynote on responsible and explainable AI recorded in May 2026. |
Offers AI training beyond the keynote?An AI workshop, course or program on their pagesProf Toby Walsh: Not stated.Dr Sue Keay: Yes.Gihan Perera: Yes.Ross Dawson: Yes.Steve Sammartino: Not stated.Tracey Spicer AM: Not stated.Simon Kriss: Yes.Adrienne Park: Not stated.Dr Catriona Wallace: Not stated.Anders Sörman-Nilsson: Not stated.
| Speaker | Answer |
|---|---|
| Prof Toby Walsh | Not stated. The pages read offer talks only. |
| Dr Sue Keay | Yes. An eight-week Robotics for Business Leaders course at Monash College. |
| Gihan Perera | Yes. AI masterclasses and the AI Accelerator program. |
| Ross Dawson | Yes. AI strategy sessions for boards and executive teams. |
| Steve Sammartino | Not stated. Offers boardroom briefings. No AI workshop is on the pages read. |
| Tracey Spicer AM | Not stated. Offers media and presentation training, not AI workshops. |
| Simon Kriss | Yes. AI workshops and the LG AI Launchpad masterclass for councils. |
| Adrienne Park | Not stated. Offers AI consulting to Korean companies. No AI workshop or course is on the pages read. |
| Dr Catriona Wallace | Not stated. No AI workshop on the pages read. |
| Anders Sörman-Nilsson | Not stated. No AI workshop or course on the pages read. |
Has written a book on AI?A book whose subject is AI, on their pagesProf Toby Walsh: Yes.Dr Sue Keay: Not stated.Gihan Perera: Not stated.Ross Dawson: Not stated.Steve Sammartino: Not stated.Tracey Spicer AM: Yes.Simon Kriss: Not stated.Adrienne Park: Not stated.Dr Catriona Wallace: Yes.Anders Sörman-Nilsson: Not stated.
| Speaker | Answer |
|---|---|
| Prof Toby Walsh | Yes. Books on AI for a general audience, the latest The Shortest History of AI (2025). |
| Dr Sue Keay | Not stated. No book on the pages read. |
| Gihan Perera | Not stated. Twelve books on leadership and change, plus AI reports. |
| Ross Dawson | Not stated. Latest book Thriving on Overload, not an AI title. |
| Steve Sammartino | Not stated. Books on careers and the digital economy, not AI. |
| Tracey Spicer AM | Yes. Man-Made, on how bias is built into AI (Simon & Schuster, 2023). |
| Simon Kriss | Not stated. A testimonial praises his book, but the title is not on the pages read. |
| Adrienne Park | Not stated. A bestselling book in South Korea in the IT category, not an AI title on the pages read. |
| Dr Catriona Wallace | Yes. Co-author of Checkmate Humanity: the how and why of Responsible AI. |
| Anders Sörman-Nilsson | Not stated. Books on change and the future, not AI titles. |
Publishes a keynote fee?A dollar figure for a keynote on their pagesProf Toby Walsh: Not stated.Dr Sue Keay: Not stated.Gihan Perera: Not stated.Ross Dawson: Not stated.Steve Sammartino: Not stated.Tracey Spicer AM: Not stated.Simon Kriss: Not stated.Adrienne Park: Not stated.Dr Catriona Wallace: Not stated.Anders Sörman-Nilsson: Not stated.
| Speaker | Answer |
|---|---|
| Prof Toby Walsh | Not stated. No keynote fee on the pages read. |
| Dr Sue Keay | Not stated. No keynote fee on the pages read. |
| Gihan Perera | Not stated. No keynote fee on the pages read. |
| Ross Dawson | Not stated. No keynote fee on the pages read. |
| Steve Sammartino | Not stated. No keynote fee on the pages read. |
| Tracey Spicer AM | Not stated. No keynote fee on the pages read. |
| Simon Kriss | Not stated. No keynote fee on the pages read. |
| Adrienne Park | Not stated. No keynote fee on the pages read. |
| Dr Catriona Wallace | Not stated. No keynote fee on the pages read. |
| Anders Sörman-Nilsson | Not stated. No keynote fee on the pages read. |
Based in Australia?An Australian base stated on their pagesProf Toby Walsh: Yes.Dr Sue Keay: Yes.Gihan Perera: Yes.Ross Dawson: Yes.Steve Sammartino: Yes.Tracey Spicer AM: Yes.Simon Kriss: Yes.Adrienne Park: Yes.Dr Catriona Wallace: Yes.Anders Sörman-Nilsson: Yes.
| Speaker | Answer |
|---|---|
| Prof Toby Walsh | Yes. Sydney. |
| Dr Sue Keay | Yes. Queensland. |
| Gihan Perera | Yes. Leederville, Perth. |
| Ross Dawson | Yes. Named one of the 40 biggest players in Australia's digital age and founded Bondi Innovation. No city is stated. |
| Steve Sammartino | Yes. Calls himself Australia's leading futurist. |
| Tracey Spicer AM | Yes. Australian journalist and speaker. |
| Simon Kriss | Yes. Calls himself Australia's leading business AI expert. |
| Adrienne Park | Yes. An Australian lawyer admitted in NSW. Her named events are in Seoul. |
| Dr Catriona Wallace | Yes. Named one of Australia's most eminent scientists. No city is stated. |
| Anders Sörman-Nilsson | Yes. Avalon Beach, Sydney. |
When another speaker is the better pick
your audience works in mining, manufacturing or heavy industry, where her robotics and AI work sits.
the keynote should lead into an AI masterclass or a longer program for your leaders.
the topic is the future of work and the board wants an AI strategy session after the keynote.
the room is a large conference and the brief is energy as much as content. He has given more than 600 speeches.
the topic is AI bias and inclusion, the subject of her book Man-Made.
you run a council or government agency and want the keynote followed by an AI masterclass for staff.
you want AI built live on stage with a lawyer's view of the risks.
the audience is a board that needs responsible AI and governance.
you want a futurist to open a sales or partner conference, the setting of his TD SYNNEX keynote.
you want the team to leave with its first AI agent scoped. He scores 35 and sits outside the top 10.
you want an AI keynote and role-specific AI training from one Sydney-based trainer. He scores 34 and sits outside the top 10.
A keynote changes what a room thinks. For ongoing advice beyond that, see the AI consultants in Australia who build what they recommend. If you need a team that builds and runs the system, go to the AI automation agencies, or to the AI agents if a product can do the job without either.
What to check before you book one
Three checks separate an AI keynote that changes what a team does from one that only informs it. The first is whether the speaker works with AI or only talks about it. Next comes the topic, which should match the audience's next decision. The last is what the booking costs once travel is added.
The first check carries the most weight, because a speaker can explain AI well without having built anything with it. This page's author is one example. In 2025 Michael Batko ran an AI roadshow for founders and gave a session on building with AI at SXSW Sydney. By his own account he was on stage with the slides before he had built a single thing. In six months of conferences he had asked maybe ten questions. In one day with Claude Code he asked hundreds. So ask every speaker on the shortlist what they have built this year. Then ask whether they will build something live in front of the team.
Leading AI keynote speakers in Australia
Australia's AI keynote speakers fall into four groups: researchers, futurists, journalists and broadcasters, and practitioners who build with AI. Toby Walsh and Sue Keay at UNSW, Genevieve Bell at the Australian National University, and Sandra Peter and Kai Riemer at the University of Sydney speak as researchers. Gihan Perera, Steve Sammartino, Ross Dawson, Anders Sörman-Nilsson and Mark van Rijmenam speak as futurists. Tracey Spicer AM and Adam Spencer come from journalism and broadcasting. Four describe building or deploying AI themselves: Adrienne Park, Simon Kriss, Gavin Reddrop and Rushi Vyas. On the hands-on depth test Park scores 10 and the other three score 7, level with Toby Walsh, Sue Keay and Ross Dawson.
A speaker's own pages are the quickest check. A named organisation that booked the speaker for a talk on AI is stronger evidence than a list of logos or a topic menu. Nine of the 10 ranked speakers have at least one, on their own pages or in coverage of the event.
A polished talk teaches a room the landscape, and it rarely gets a team building. Most people do not learn AI from a course, and a keynote is no different. They learn it by watching someone build one real thing from nothing. That is the idea behind the weekly live-build stream Startup Daily reported when Hourglass AI launched. The first Build Hour, in March 2026, had 60 to 90 people watching five AI projects built live in 50 minutes, with no slides. The landscape is what a researcher or a futurist gives a room. If the brief is getting a team started, book someone who builds, or put a builder in the room straight after the keynote.
Key topics addressed
AI keynotes in Australia cover three topics most often: practical implementation, the workforce, and ethics and governance. Practical implementation means moving a team from general awareness of AI to deploying agents and automated workflows. Adrienne Park's live builds and Gavin Reddrop's agentic teams talk sit here. Workforce talks cover job redesign and people working alongside AI, the ground of Ross Dawson's Humans + AI keynotes and Toby Walsh's Future of Jobs talk. Ethics and governance talks address bias, privacy and regulation. The federal government's AI Ethics Principles define that ground for Australian organisations, and Tracey Spicer AM's Man-Made and Catriona Wallace's Checkmate Humanity take it up on stage.
Practical implementation is the topic that moves a team, as long as it starts with the boring work rather than the shiny. The AI in the NDIS Summit at ICC Sydney in July 2026 shows the difference. Ability News previewed Michael Batko's session as the one on becoming genuinely AI-enabled. The talk opened on an audience that had just heard an hour about risk. It put a support worker's real end-of-shift notes on screen, about meals, meds and a cancelled physio appointment, then showed AI drafting the shift note for the team to check.
Ethics and governance still matter, and privacy works better as a design choice than as a blocker. Staff are often using AI before anyone has approved it, so a one-page policy on what data goes in beats a ban. The privacy regulator's guidance points the same way. It tells organisations to set policies for how staff use AI and to keep personal information out of public AI tools.
Booking and pricing
None of the 10 ranked speakers publishes a keynote fee. Fees are quoted on request, directly or through a speakers bureau such as ICMI, Saxton or Ovations. ICMI, an Australian bureau, groups keynote fees in four tiers, quoted before GST:
- $3,000 to $7,000 for entry-level speakers
- $7,000 to $15,000 for mid-range professionals
- $15,000 to $30,000 for high-end professionals
- $30,000 to $100,000 or more for celebrity speakers
Travel and accommodation are usually charged on top.
Whatever the fee, budget for the week after the talk as well. The content is rarely the problem. AI tutorials are free on YouTube, and most people who have watched a few still have not built the thing. Starting is easy with someone sitting alongside. The hard part is the next morning, when people open the tools alone, and that is where most of them stop.
So the NDIS talk closed with three small asks for Monday: one page of guardrails, a list of the team's 10 most repetitive tasks, and a two-week pilot on one of them. Batko's 2026 session for people leaders at the Startup People Summit was billed on the same point, rolling out with one team instead of a company-wide pilot that dies quietly. If the budget stretches, book a hands-on session in the same week as the keynote. Then the pilot starts with help in the room.
How this list is ranked
This list ranks individuals based in Australia who give keynotes on AI. Each was scored first from their own website, or an employer profile where they have no site, read on 1 October 2026. The read was then widened for every speaker, on the same three searches each, to press, podcasts, newsletters, event programs, bureau profiles and employer profiles, on 1 and 2 October 2026. The candidate set is everyone named in five Australian AI Overviews for AI keynote speaker searches, plus everyone whose own site ranks in the top 20 results for those searches. Each entry must name at least one talk client, event or checkable result on a page they control. Speakers based overseas, including Zack Kass and James Taylor, are not scored.
- Hands-on depth, 10 points. Points when the speaker's own pages say they build, deploy or research AI now, name an AI system, product or research program they built or led, and name the tools they use or build live.
- Speaking record, 10 points. Points for each named talk client or event, a named talk on AI, a recorded talk a buyer can watch, and 100 or more talks or 30 or more countries.
- Verification, 10 points. Points for the speaker's own live site, press or TV named on their pages, a checkable credential, and pages that agree with each other.
- Published thinking, 10 points. Points for a book on AI, a newsletter or podcast of their own, AI articles or research, and AI courses or workshops.
- Recognition, 10 points. Points for awards or rankings, national media, being named in an Australian AI answer, and board, government or advisory roles.
- Current Australian presence, 10 points. Points for an AI talk or AI work dated 2025 or 2026, years working in AI, and an Australian base stated on their pages.
Total score out of 60. Scored 2 October 2026.
Each of six tests counts once, scored 0 to 10, for a total out of 60.
Hands-on depth scores 4 when the speaker's own pages say they build, deploy or research AI now, 3 for a named AI system, product, company or research program they built or led, and 3 for named tools or live build demonstrations. Founding or running an organisation whose stated business is AI counts as building it now. A past role, or an undated page, earns only the 3 points for the named company.
Speaking record scores 1 point per talk client named on the speaker's own pages, up to 5, 2 for a named talk on AI, 1 for a recorded talk a buyer can watch, and 2 for 100 or more talks or 30 or more countries.
Verification gives 3 points for the speaker's own live site, 3 for press or TV named on their pages, 2 for a checkable credential such as a PhD or an Order of Australia, and 2 when the pages read do not contradict each other.
For published thinking, a book on AI earns 3, a newsletter or podcast of their own 3, AI articles, reports or research 2, and AI courses or workshops 2.
Awards or rankings add 3 to recognition, national media 3, a mention in an Australian AI Overview 2, and a board, government or advisory role 2. A bestseller claim counts as neither an award nor a ranking, and neither does a list of best speakers published by another speaker or by a bureau.
Current Australian presence scores 4 for an AI talk or AI work dated 2025 or 2026, up to 4 for years working in AI, and 2 when the speaker's pages place them in Australia. Where two speakers tie, the speaking record decides, then hands-on depth.
The wider read matters to the order. Sue Keay is second because of two facts that are not on her own site. UNSW's staff profile names her as Director of the UNSW AI Institute, and AGSM published her 2025 AI keynote. Ross Dawson's fourth place rests partly on his Humans + AI podcast and on a 2026 talk reported by an Asana partner. Anders Sörman-Nilsson is in the top 10 on a recorded AI keynote and an award named on his bureau profile. Before the wider read, Sue Keay was fifth, Ross Dawson seventh and Gavin Reddrop ninth.
The lead is three points. Toby Walsh leads Sue Keay on speaking record, 10 against 7, and on published thinking, 5 against 4. Sue Keay leads on verification, 10 against 9. Without the speaking record test, the two would be level on 41. Without any one of verification, published thinking, recognition or current Australian presence, Toby Walsh would still be first.
Hands-on depth is in the rubric because the Australian AI Overview for "ai keynote speakers" lists practical implementation, moving from awareness to deploying agentic AI, as the first topic buyers book for. Adrienne Park scores 10 on it. Among the top six, Toby Walsh, Sue Keay and Ross Dawson score 7, Gihan Perera and Steve Sammartino 4, and Tracey Spicer AM 0. Without the hands-on test, Tracey Spicer AM would be first on 45, ahead of Toby Walsh on 44. The test and its point rules were set before any speaker was scored.
The test also reflects a gap that is easy to miss from the audience. A speaker can describe agents without having run one. Michael Batko put the working lesson plainly as a guest on the Building Tech Teams podcast in June 2026: one agent given 100 jobs keeps breaking, and the fix is one agent doing one thing incredibly well.
Michael Batko, co-founder and CEO of Hourglass AI, wrote this page and is not ranked. As a speaker on AI himself, he is on the Saxton Speakers roster and has talked about building an AI company as a guest on the AI Down Under podcast.
Ross Dawson's own site blocks automated reads, so his pages were read from archived copies captured in April and May 2026 and from the live site of his company, Humans + AI. Genevieve Bell is scored on her Australian National University profiles, because the site in her name does not resolve.
Also scored: 10 more Australian AI speakers
The same six tests put 10 more speakers outside the top 10.
She established 3Ai at the Australian National University in 2017, presented the ABC Boyer Lectures and gave a TED talk on six ethical questions about the future of AI. She scores 10 on recognition.
He has delivered keynotes and workshops in 32 countries, publishes Synthetic Minds, a daily newsletter, and opened TEDxAthens with a talk on AI and deepfakes. He scores 10 on speaking record.
He runs his own business on a team of AI agents, teaches a six-week program on building them and wrote AI Tactix for Small Business. His pages name two talk clients, and neither talk is described as being on AI.
He builds custom AI tools, including the AI-me assistant for a UNSW symposium, and reports more than 400 UNSW Finance staff trained. His own pages give two different figures for his migrant support platform, 150,000 users and 139,000 people.
They direct Sydney Executive Plus at the University of Sydney and keynote as a pair, including a session at SXSW in March 2026 on the skills people need after AI. Sandra Peter co-authors the yearly Skills Horizon report.
She runs an AI keynote and a 90-minute AI Sprint Lab for leaders, hosts The Honest CEO Show podcast and has been twice honoured in the Telstra Business Women's Awards.
Her AI keynote shows audiences where AI adds value and where it is hype, and she has written for the Australian Financial Review.
A broadcaster and mathematician whose keynotes cover the ChatGPT revolution and cybersecurity. The Pharmacy Guild announced his AI session for its APP2026 conference.
She speaks on practical AI for marketing and small business, and delivered an AI session for WorldSkills Australia.
He speaks on AI adoption and why people resist it, hosts the Rise and Thrive podcast and draws on about 10 years of software development.
Related reading
- The Now What? of AI: inside the AI in the NDIS Summit talk, the full recap of the keynote named in the Key topics section above
- What an AI SDR actually does, on the gap between a talk about agents and a team running one
- A company AI brain is not a data warehouse, on what "deploying agentic AI" means in practice
- Where AI automation pays back for an Australian business, on the work worth automating first: tasks a person does the same way, many times a week
- OAIC guidance on commercially available AI products, the privacy ground rules behind the ethics and governance topic
References
- Toby Walsh - AI Author, Speaker and Expert (cited for Prof Toby Walsh)
- Scientia Professor Toby Walsh | UNSW Research (cited for Prof Toby Walsh)
- Speaking - Toby Walsh - AI Author, Speaker and Expert (cited for Prof Toby Walsh)
- Scientia Professor Toby Walsh - National Press Club of Australia (cited for Prof Toby Walsh)
- Books - Toby Walsh - AI Author, Speaker and Expert (cited for Prof Toby Walsh)
- Sue Keay (cited for Dr Sue Keay)
- DR SUE KEAY - Home (cited for Dr Sue Keay)
- AI Leadership in an Accelerating World | Sue Keay Keynote AGSM 2025 - YouTube (cited for Dr Sue Keay)
- About - DR SUE KEAY (cited for Dr Sue Keay)
- Speaking - DR SUE KEAY (cited for Dr Sue Keay)
- About Gihan Perera - Gihan Perera - Futurist Australia - Futurist Perth - conference speaker, author - AI, disruption, change, leadership, innovation (cited for Gihan Perera)
- Marinas26 Future Smart Conference program announced - Marine Business News (cited for Gihan Perera)
- Competing In The Age Of AI - Gihan Perera - Futurist Australia - Futurist Perth - conference speaker, author - AI, disruption, change, leadership, innovation (cited for Gihan Perera)
- In The Media - Gihan Perera - Futurist Australia - Futurist Perth - conference speaker, author - AI, disruption, change, leadership, innovation (cited for Gihan Perera)
- Keynote Speaker on AI - Ross Dawson (cited for Ross Dawson)
- Podcast Episode Archive: Humans + AI (cited for Ross Dawson)
- Insights and key takeaways from Asana's Work Innovation Tour Sydney 2026 (cited for Ross Dawson)
- About Ross Dawson - Ross Dawson (cited for Ross Dawson)
- Steve Sammartino - Technologist & Keynote Speaker (cited for Steve Sammartino)
- Testimonials - Steve Sammartino (cited for Steve Sammartino)
- Techtopia: Neuroscience, implants and keeping up with artificial intellige - ABC listen (cited for Steve Sammartino)
- Projects - Steve Sammartino (cited for Steve Sammartino)
- About - Tracey Spicer (cited for Tracey Spicer AM)
- speaking - Tracey Spicer (cited for Tracey Spicer AM)
- Tracey Spicer AM - Hire Keynote and Guest Speaker - ICMI (cited for Tracey Spicer AM)
- Tracey Spicer on AI Bias, Three Years On - Tracey Spicer (cited for Tracey Spicer AM)
- About Us | Simon Kriss (cited for Simon Kriss)
- Building Australia’s Ethical AI Future, A Personal Milestone - Simon Kriss (cited for Simon Kriss)
- AI Keynote Speaker | Simon Kriss (cited for Simon Kriss)
- Envoyage Summit 2026 rises in Cairns with big ideas, bold thinking and plenty of heart (cited for Simon Kriss)
- AI Keynote Speaker, Hobart (cited for Adrienne Park)
- Keynote Speaker AI, IT Lawyer Adrienne Park | PDF (cited for Adrienne Park)
- KnowledgePlus: Who Owns a Masterpiece Painted by an AI? | Australian Lawyer, Adrienne Park - YouTube (cited for Adrienne Park)
- Speaking - Dr Catriona Wallace (cited for Dr Catriona Wallace)
- About - Dr Catriona Wallace (cited for Dr Catriona Wallace)
- Publications - Dr Catriona Wallace (cited for Dr Catriona Wallace)
- Dr Catriona Wallace (cited for Dr Catriona Wallace)
- Swedish-Australian Futurist & Keynote Speaker | Anders Sörman-Nilsson (cited for Anders Sörman-Nilsson)
- AI Keynote Speaker | Responsible/Explainable AI & Ethical Growth - Anders Sörman-Nilsson TD SYNNEX - YouTube (cited for Anders Sörman-Nilsson)
- Book Anders Sorman-Nilsson for your next event | Saxton Speakers (cited for Anders Sörman-Nilsson)
- Genevieve Bell: 6 big ethical questions about the future of AI | TED Talk (cited for Prof Genevieve Bell)
- Ensuring a Thriving Digital Future in a Post-Truth World (cited for Dr Mark van Rijmenam)
- Gavin Reddrop, AI Keynote Speaker (cited for Gavin Reddrop)
- SXSW 2026 Schedule | Skills You’ll Need To Succeed in the Post-AI Age (cited for Dr Sandra Peter and Prof Kai Riemer)
- AI Expert Adam Spencer to speak at APP2026 - The Pharmacy Guild of Australia (cited for Adam Spencer)
- Simon Kriss
- AI Keynote Speaker Australia | Gavin Reddrop
- AI Keynote Speaker & AI Courses in Australia | Rushi Vyas
- How to build with AI - by Michael Batko - Batko OS
- SXSW Sydney 2025: Top Schedule Picks, Community Events & Music
- From Talking About AI to Building With It in 5 Weeks - Michael Batko - Michael Batko
- Former Startmate boss Michael Batko is back in founder mode building with Hourglass AI - Startup Daily
- Build Hour #1 - Building 5 AI Projects Live in 50 Minutes - YouTube
- Australia’s AI Ethics Principles | Department of Industry Science and Resources
- AI in the NDIS - abilityNEWS
- Guidance on privacy and the use of commercially available AI products | OAIC
- How Much Does a Keynote Speaker Cost in Australia? - ICMI
- The AI-Enabled CPO: Where to Start, How to Do It Well - Startup People Summit 2026
- Michael Batko on why your first hire isn't an engineer anymore · Building Tech Teams
- Book Michael Batko for your next event | Saxton Speakers
- The AI CEO Who Backed Startups... - AI Down Under - Apple Podcasts
Common questions
Who are the top AI keynote speakers?
Prof Toby Walsh is the top-ranked AI keynote speaker in Australia on this list, at number 1 with 51 out of 60 on a test of hands-on depth, speaking record, verification, published thinking, recognition and current Australian presence. Dr Sue Keay and Gihan Perera follow, on 48 and 47.
Who are some of the best keynote speakers in Australia?
The three highest-scoring speakers on this list are Prof Toby Walsh of Sydney, Dr Sue Keay of Queensland and Gihan Perera of Perth. Anders Sörman-Nilsson, 10th, is based at Avalon Beach in Sydney. Ross Dawson, Steve Sammartino, Tracey Spicer AM, Dr Catriona Wallace and Simon Kriss state Australia as their base without naming a city.
Who are the best keynote speakers for 2026?
Six of the 10 ranked speakers score full marks for current Australian presence: Prof Toby Walsh, Dr Sue Keay, Gihan Perera, Steve Sammartino, Tracey Spicer AM and Adrienne Park. Full marks means an AI talk or AI work dated 2025 or 2026, long experience in AI and a stated Australian base. Dr Catriona Wallace scores lowest on that test, at 6, because no AI talk dated 2025 or 2026 appears on the pages read for her.
What is the typical fee range for keynote speakers in Australia?
Keynote fees in Australia run from $3,000 for entry-level speakers to $100,000 or more for celebrity speakers, quoted before GST, on the four tiers published by ICMI, an Australian speakers bureau. None of the 10 speakers ranked on this list publishes a fee, so each one quotes on request, and travel and accommodation are usually added on top. The Booking and pricing section above lists all four tiers.