27 October 2026 · CANBERRA
AI:NEXTCANBERRATHE LEADERS' ROUNDTABLE
A curated room of approximately 50 leaders.
What should Australia build next?
The first major convening of the AI:NEXT journey. October 2026 · Canberra. Invitation-led · curated · cross-sector.
- Government
- Industry
- Capital
- Knowledge
- Builders
- International
A table, not a stage. Trust is the format.
- Not a conference.
- Not a panel marathon.
- Not a room built for speeches.
The first major convening of the AI:NEXT journey — a carefully balanced room across Australia's AI ecosystem, built for a high-trust leadership conversation.
- Where
- Australian Parliament House, Canberra
- When
- 27 October 2026
- Participation
- Invitation-led · curated participation
- Format
- Invitation-led · not recorded · no speeches
AI:NEXT is an independent initiative. Government participation, attendance or representation does not constitute government endorsement, sponsorship or partnership unless explicitly confirmed.
Not because it is the capital. Because the first room needs a different kind of room.
Canberra is where national capability, research, policy and international delegations already intersect — without the default conference energy of a larger city.
National conversation, small enough to trust
The Leaders' Roundtable is deliberately capped. Canberra suits a closed, invitation-led format where the quality of the room matters more than the size of the audience.
Research and capability nearby
Canberra sits close to national research institutions and the policy conversations shaping how AI is governed, funded and adopted — without turning the room into a government event.
International pathways
Delegations, embassies and bilateral conversations already move through Canberra. The first room can connect Australian capability to international markets before the wider Summit stage.
Distance from expo mode
The Roundtable is not built for booths, badges or passive audiences. Starting away from the default summit city keeps the format honest: one table, one question, one Signal.
Continuity into 2027
What is heard in Canberra is written down, connected and carried forward through the working period — then expanded at the AI:NEXT Summit in Sydney when the ecosystem is ready for a wider room.
Independence, stated plainly
AI:NEXT is an independent initiative. Venue use and participation by public sector leaders do not constitute government endorsement unless explicitly confirmed.
Sydney will host the wider ecosystem in 2027. Canberra hosts the first conversation — curated, high-trust and built to produce a Signal worth carrying forward.
What should
Australia build next?
Not a panel. Not a keynote. A conversation among people who can build, govern, fund, research and connect what comes next.
Six perspectives. One table. Nobody is here to present.
Hover a seat to see what that force brings into the room — and what it needs from everyone else.
AI is moving faster than the conversation around it.
AI:CANBERRA brings together people who see the future from different vantage points — government, industry, investment, research, technology, international markets and society.
The purpose is simple: to move from conversation to connection, from connection to opportunity, and from opportunity to action.
- 01
Listen
Understand what Australia and the world need.
- 02
Connect
Put the right people around the same table.
- 03
Identify
Surface opportunities, barriers and unanswered questions.
- 04
Commit
Define practical next steps.
- 05
Signal
Capture what matters and carry it into the wider AI:NEXT journey.
Five forces decide what gets built. One dimension connects them to the world.
- 01
Government
Policy. Procurement. Public value.Policy, public service, regulation and national capability.
- 02
Industry
Scale. Deployment. Workforce.Organisations deploying AI at scale, inside real constraints.
- 03
Capital
Investment. Scale. Growth.Investors and institutions deciding what actually gets built.
- 04
Knowledge
Research. Evidence. Talent.Universities, researchers and independent experts.
- 05
Builders
Technology. Products. Execution.Founders, engineers and the people shipping the systems.
- 06
International
Markets. Partnerships. Exchange.The dimension connecting Australian capability to the world.
Not an audience. A room.
A deliberately balanced room across Australia's AI ecosystem. Participation is curated — nobody is listed as confirmed until they are.
Participation is curated. An expression of interest does not guarantee a place, and the balance above is indicative until the room is built.
Everyone leaves with something nobody else could give them.
For government
Hear directly from builders, investors, researchers and international partners.
For industry
Bring real problems into a room capable of solving them.
For investors
Discover emerging Australian capability and international pathways.
For founders
Meet people who can help take Australian technology further.
For researchers
Connect research with capital, industry and international collaboration.
For international delegates
Discover Australian capability, partnerships, investment opportunities and market connections.
Canberra starts it. 2027 expands it.
Not a warm-up and a main event — the first room and the wider ecosystem.
The Room
- Curated
- Invitation-led
- Leadership conversation
- Approximately 50 participants
- High-trust
- Signal generation
The Summit
- Open ecosystem
- Broader participation
- Builders · Researchers · Investors
- Government · Founders · Creators
- Live experiences
- The Next 10 · AI Live · AI Tea
- The wider conversation
What leaves the room. Written down, then followed through.
The conversation does not end when people leave Canberra. It becomes the AI:NEXT Canberra Signal.
THE AI:NEXT CANBERRA SIGNAL
A published record of what the room surfaced — with Chatham House attribution unless permission is given:
- What we heard
- Where there was agreement
- Where there was tension
- What is missing
- Where the opportunity is
- What should happen next
- Questions for the Summit
90-day action path
Selected actions are followed through the working period and revisited at the Summit. AI:NEXT does not speak for government, and no commitment is published on anyone's behalf.
Follow the threadWhat the room unlocks. Not speeches — relationships.
Hover the network to see what happens when the right people share one table.
Hover the network
- Government
- Investor
- Founder
- Researcher
- Industry
- International
The conversation doesn't end at the table.
- 01
The Room
A deliberately curated group of leaders around one table in Canberra · 27 October 2026.
- 02
The Signal
The ideas, opportunities, barriers and disagreements worth carrying forward — published as the AI:NEXT Canberra Signal.
- 03
The Connections
The work between the rooms — founders, investors, researchers, government and international markets.
- 04
The Summit
The conversation expands to the wider ecosystem · Sydney · coming 2027.
- 05
The Insight
What the journey actually surfaced — not what was hoped for in advance.
- 06
The Action
What gets built, funded, governed or changed — tracked, not announced.
The conversation doesn't pause.
AI:NEXT does not go quiet between rooms. The period between Canberra and the Summit is when connections, signals and opportunities are followed through.
AI:NEXT Signals
PlannedPublished write-ups from Canberra and curated conversations.
Focused roundtables
ProposedSmaller rooms on specific themes — only when confirmed.
Founder conversations
ProposedIntroductions between builders, investors and operators.
International pathways
In developmentDelegation conversations where relationships exist.
AI Tea
PlannedIntimate tables as part of the wider programme.
The Next 10
In developmentDiscovery and preparation for emerging companies.
Put your name on the table. Applying is how the room gets built.
AI:NEXT Canberra Leaders' Roundtable is intentionally curated. Tell us what perspective, capability or opportunity you would bring into the room.
What happens next
- 01
Expression received
The programme team reads every submission.
- 02
Curated selection
The room is balanced across the five ecosystems.
- 03
Invitation or contact
We contact you either way once decisions are made.
- 04
Briefing
Participants receive the questions and format in advance.
- 05
Canberra conversation
27 October 2026 · Canberra.
- 06
AI:NEXT Signal
What the room surfaced, published as a Signal.
The Summit is the wider room.
The conversation begins around the table in Canberra. In 2027, it reaches the wider AI:NEXT stage.