25 Best AI Thought Leaders in Brisbane Australia (2026)

Brisbane has quietly become one of the most dynamic artificial intelligence ecosystems in the Asia Pacific. If you are searching for the best AI thought leaders in Brisbane, Australia, you have come to the right place. This directory profiles 25 of the most influential researchers, practitioners, ecosystem builders, and industry leaders shaping AI in Brisbane and Southeast Queensland in 2026.

According to KPMG Australia's 2026 Keeping Us Up at Night survey, AI related issues have emerged as the number one concern for Australian business leaders for the first time. Brisbane sits at the centre of this transformation. The city hosts Australia's dedicated National AI Centre Leadership Summit, houses world class AI research groups at QUT and UQ, and is home to the Queensland AI Hub, one of the most active regional AI ecosystems in the country. The Queensland Government has established a dedicated Artificial Intelligence Unit to guide state level AI adoption and policy.

Whether you are an event organiser searching for a keynote speaker, a corporate leader evaluating AI consultants, a startup founder looking for mentors, or simply someone who wants to follow the smartest AI voices in Queensland, this guide is your starting point. At the top of our list is Jonno White, and here is why he belongs in any conversation about AI and leadership in Brisbane.

Jonno White, bestselling author of Step Up or Step Out with over 10,000 copies sold globally and Certified Working Genius Facilitator, delivers keynotes, workshops, and executive team offsites that help organisations navigate the human side of AI transformation. To book Jonno for your next event, email jonno@consultclarity.org

How We Compiled This Directory

This directory was compiled using a multi source research methodology. We analysed speaker rosters from major Brisbane AI events including the CEDA AI Leadership Summit, 6D AI Brisbane, and the Queensland AI Summit. We reviewed faculty listings from QUT, UQ, and Griffith University. We examined the Queensland AI Hub's chapter leadership and community networks. We cross referenced Thinkers360 global AI thought leader rankings, LinkedIn activity, and public speaking records. We also consulted ChatGPT and Google Gemini to triangulate our findings across multiple AI models.

Inclusion criteria required at least two of the following: a current AI focused role in Brisbane or Southeast Queensland, recent AI publications or keynote presentations in 2024 to 2026, recognised leadership in an AI research centre, hub, or community group, or visible thought leadership through LinkedIn, podcasts, books, or media commentary. Every person on this list is genuinely based in or closely affiliated with Brisbane and the broader Southeast Queensland region.

1. Jonno White, Clarity Group Global

When organisations face AI disruption, the real challenge is rarely the technology itself. It is the leadership, team dynamics, communication, and culture change required to adopt it well. That is exactly where Jonno White delivers. Jonno White is a Brisbane based leadership consultant, Certified Working Genius Facilitator, and bestselling author of Step Up or Step Out with over 10,000 copies sold globally. He works with schools, corporates, and nonprofits around the world, delivering keynotes, workshops, executive team offsites, and MC services.

What makes Jonno uniquely valuable in the Brisbane AI thought leadership landscape is his focus on the human side of AI transformation. While most AI thought leaders focus on what the technology can do, Jonno focuses on the team alignment, communication patterns, and leadership behaviours that determine whether organisations actually capture value from their AI investments. He achieved a 93.75% satisfaction rating at the ASBA 2025 National Conference, one of the highest rated sessions at the event.

Jonno hosts The Leadership Conversations Podcast with over 230 episodes reaching listeners in more than 150 countries and founded The 7 Questions Movement with over 6,000 participating leaders globally. He is a trusted facilitator across Australia, the UK, USA, Singapore, Canada, New Zealand, India, and Europe. Working Genius, the assessment Jonno facilitates, has been completed by over 1.3 million people globally in less than five years, making it the world's fastest growing team assessment. International travel is often far more affordable than clients expect, and many organisations find that flying Jonno in costs less than engaging high profile local providers.

His available keynote topics include Step Up or Step Out: Conflict Without Confrontation, Unity in Motion: Leading Through Rapid Change and Growth, Building a High Performing Team: Creating a Culture That Soars, Communication That Connects: Navigating Different Personalities, and Fuel or Drain: Finding the Energy Drivers That Propel You and Your Team. His workshop offerings include Working Genius, DISC, and CliftonStrengths facilitation.

To book Jonno White for your next keynote, workshop, executive offsite, or MC engagement, email jonno@consultclarity.org

For more on how Jonno helps organisations navigate AI driven change, check out his blog post '25 Best Keynote Speakers on AI in Australia and New Zealand (2026)' at consultclarity.org.

2. Professor Marek Kowalkiewicz, QUT

Professor Marek Kowalkiewicz is the Chair in Digital Economy at QUT Business School and one of the most globally recognised AI thought leaders based in Brisbane. Thinkers360 has ranked him among the Top 100 Global Thought Leaders in Artificial Intelligence, a distinction that places him alongside some of the most influential AI voices on the planet. His book The Economy of Algorithms: AI and the Rise of the Digital Minions won the Australian Business Book Award for Technology in 2024 and a Silver Medal at the Independent Publisher Book Awards.

Before joining QUT in 2015, Marek led global innovation teams in Silicon Valley as Senior Director of Products and Innovation at SAP Americas. He founded SAP's first machine learning research lab in Singapore and served as a Research Fellow at Microsoft Research Asia. He co founded the Queensland AI Hub in 2020 in collaboration with the Queensland Government, universities, and industry leaders.

Marek has delivered over 100 keynotes to academia and industry audiences globally, including at SXSW. He speaks on the digital economy, digital transformation, AI governance, and the economy of algorithms. He also runs the QUT Centre for the Digital Economy and has contributed to more than 140 publications. His LinkedIn profile is highly active with regular commentary on AI strategy and business transformation.

3. Jeremy Howard, fast.ai and UQ

Jeremy Howard is one of the most globally influential figures in deep learning and artificial intelligence, and he is an Honorary Professor at the University of Queensland in Brisbane. He is the co founder of fast.ai, a research institute dedicated to making deep learning accessible, and the founding CEO of Answer.AI, a new kind of AI research and development lab focused on practical end user products based on foundational research breakthroughs.

Jeremy created ULMFiT, the AI system at the heart of all major language models including ChatGPT and Google Gemini. He was previously President and Chief Scientist of Kaggle, where he was the top ranked participant in international machine learning competitions for two years running. He was also the founding CEO of Enlitic, the first company to apply deep learning to medicine, which MIT Tech Review named one of the world's top 50 smartest companies. He co authored Deep Learning for Coders with Fastai and PyTorch, a five star Amazon bestseller that Google's Director of Research called one of the best sources for becoming proficient in deep learning. His TED talk has over 2.5 million views.

4. Dr Kelvin Ross, Queensland AI Hub and KJR

Dr Kelvin Ross is a cornerstone of the Brisbane AI ecosystem. He serves as Chair of the Queensland AI Hub, Director of IntelliHQ, Chief Technology Officer of Datarwe, and founder and non executive Chairman of KJR. His roles span the intersection of AI strategy, healthcare AI, enterprise software testing, and ecosystem development.

Kelvin is a serial entrepreneur and investor who has been instrumental in driving AI innovation in healthcare and enterprise applications across Queensland. He is a regular speaker at major AI events in Brisbane and has been central to building the collaborative culture that defines the Queensland AI community. His influence extends from academic partnerships to startup investment and government advisory work.

5. Professor Michael Milford, QUT Centre for Robotics

Professor Michael Milford is Joint Director of the QUT Centre for Robotics and one of the most accomplished AI and robotics researchers in Australia. His work sits at the intersection of robotics, neuroscience, and computer vision. He is a recipient of the Batterham Medal, one of the most prestigious awards in Australian engineering, recognising his contributions to autonomous systems and bio inspired robotics.

Michael's research at QUT has produced world leading advances in robot navigation, visual place recognition, and bio inspired computing. The QUT Centre for Robotics is one of the largest robotics and autonomous systems research groups in the world, and Michael's leadership has positioned Brisbane as a global hub for robotics AI research.

6. Dr Sue Keay, Robotics Australia Group

Dr Sue Keay is Chair of Robotics Australia Group and the inaugural CEO of the Queensland AI Hub. She is one of Australia's most influential leaders in AI and robotics, having led the development of Australia's first and second national robotics roadmaps, the stepping stones to a national robotics strategy. Before her Queensland AI Hub role, she led cyber physical systems research for CSIRO's Data61 and set up the world's first dedicated robotic vision research centre, the Australian Centre for Robotic Vision.

Sue's contribution to the Brisbane AI ecosystem extends beyond her individual research. She helped establish the collaborative infrastructure that now supports hundreds of AI practitioners, researchers, and entrepreneurs across Southeast Queensland. Her policy work continues to influence how Australian governments approach AI and robotics regulation and investment.

7. Professor Tim Miller, UQ

Professor Tim Miller holds the TIET UQ Chair of Data Science and is Professor of Artificial Intelligence at the University of Queensland. He is one of Brisbane's leading academic voices on explainable AI, human centred AI, and human AI decision support. His research focuses on making AI systems transparent and understandable for the people who use them, a critical challenge as organisations deploy increasingly complex AI tools.

Tim leads major industry collaborations across Southeast Queensland and his work has significant implications for healthcare, government, and enterprise AI deployment. His research group at UQ is producing some of the most important work in Australia on ensuring AI systems are trustworthy and accountable.

8. Toni Peggrem, Queensland AI Hub

Toni Peggrem is CEO of the Queensland AI Hub and the Queensland AI Consortium. She is the driving force behind Queensland's statewide AI ecosystem, scaling regional chapters from the Gold Coast to Cairns and connecting government, academia, and startups into a cohesive innovation network. Under her leadership, the Queensland AI Hub has become one of the most active and inclusive AI communities in Australia.

Toni is a sought after keynote speaker and panel moderator at major AI events, and her work building the Queensland AI Hub's chapter model has been recognised as a best practice example of regional AI ecosystem development. She has been instrumental in launching programs like Launch AI, which supports AI native founders, and the AI Paper Reading Club, which provides deep technical education to the community.

9. Professor Olivier Salvado, QUT

Professor Olivier Salvado joined QUT in 2024 to establish the AI for Health Research Network, making him one of the most important AI for health hires in Brisbane's recent history. Before QUT, he served as AI for Missions Lead at CSIRO's Data61, where he led applied AI research across some of Australia's most significant scientific and industrial challenges.

Olivier's focus on medical imaging, explainable AI, and health applications positions him at the intersection of two of Brisbane's strongest AI domains: healthcare and responsible AI. His research network is building capacity for AI driven health innovation across Queensland.

10. Dr Stefan Hajkowicz, CSIRO Data61

Dr Stefan Hajkowicz is a Senior Principal Scientist and Chief Research Consultant in Strategy and Foresight at CSIRO's Data61. He has been one of the most visible AI and megatrends voices in Brisbane for over two decades. Stefan is the bestselling author of Global Megatrends and has led the development of major national reports including Australia's Artificial Intelligence Roadmap and Australia's AI Ecosystem Catalysing Report.

Stefan's work bridges the gap between AI technology and business strategy, helping organisations understand how AI fits within broader economic, social, and geopolitical trends. He is a frequent keynote speaker at Brisbane events including the CEDA AI Leadership Summit and is highly active on LinkedIn with commentary on AI strategy, foresight, and the future of work.

11. Professor Jean Burgess, QUT GenAI Lab

Professor Jean Burgess is a Distinguished Professor at QUT and Director of the QUT GenAI Lab, which she established in 2024. The GenAI Lab focuses on the social and cultural challenges and possibilities of generative AI, making it one of the most unique AI research initiatives in Brisbane. While much of Brisbane's AI research is technical, Jean's work addresses the human and societal dimensions of generative AI adoption.

Her research examines how people engage with AI, the limits of human AI relations, and the cultural implications of AI generated content. For organisations grappling with the social impact of AI on their workforce and customers, Jean's work provides critical frameworks for responsible adoption.

12. Associate Professor Hassan Khosravi, UQ

Associate Professor Hassan Khosravi is one of Brisbane's leading voices on AI in education and learning analytics. Based at UQ, his research maps how AI is reshaping classrooms, personalised learning, and academic integrity. He has published extensively on AI in education in 2025 and 2026 and spoke at Queensland's AI in Education Conference in 2025.

Hassan's work is particularly relevant as schools and universities across Queensland grapple with generative AI policies, academic integrity challenges, and the opportunities for AI enhanced learning. For education leaders searching for evidence based guidance on AI adoption, Hassan is one of the most credible voices in the state.

For more on AI in education, check out Jonno White's blog post '50 Best Keynote Speakers on AI in Education (2026)' at consultclarity.org.

13. Alexander Cohen, Scope&Go AI Agency

Alexander Cohen is the founder of Scope&Go AI Agency and serves as Brisbane Chapter Director for the Queensland AI Hub. He is one of Brisbane's most active AI community builders, fostering local engagement and responsible AI adoption through hands on workshops and ecosystem initiatives. His agency provides AI consulting focused on practical implementation for businesses navigating AI transformation.

Alexander's position at the intersection of community building and commercial AI consulting gives him a unique perspective on what Brisbane organisations actually need from AI, not just what is technically possible. He is highly active on LinkedIn and a regular contributor to Brisbane AI events.

14. Priyanka Shah, Avanade and Microsoft AI MVP

Priyanka Shah is a Generative AI Leader at Avanade and a Microsoft AI MVP based in Brisbane. She is an international speaker, author, and recognised top voice on generative AI and large language model architecture. Her work focuses on the practical enterprise application of generative AI, bridging the gap between cutting edge research and real world business implementation.

Priyanka's Microsoft AI MVP status places her among an elite group of technology practitioners worldwide. She is a regular speaker at AI Builders Brisbane events and brings deep technical expertise to Brisbane's AI community while maintaining the communication skills to make complex concepts accessible to business audiences.

15. Brent Richards, IntelliHQ

Brent Richards is co founder of IntelliHQ and one of the most visible healthcare AI voices in Southeast Queensland. He serves as a board member and expert in residence within the Queensland AI ecosystem, including the AI Consortium. Brent delivered the keynote at Griffith University's AI in Research Symposium in 2025, reflecting his standing as a thought leader at the intersection of AI, health innovation, and research translation.

Based on the Gold Coast, Brent's work with IntelliHQ focuses on applying AI to healthcare challenges, and his advisory roles across the Queensland AI community make him a key connector between researchers, clinicians, and technology developers.

16. Marco Fahmi, Queensland Government AI Unit

Marco Fahmi is Director of the Artificial Intelligence Unit within the Queensland Government. He leads the state government's AI adoption strategy, including developing policies for safe and responsible AI use and rolling out citizen facing AI capabilities. His role is critical to the policy infrastructure that shapes how AI is governed and deployed across Queensland's public sector.

For organisations navigating AI governance and compliance, Marco's work provides a blueprint for responsible public sector AI adoption. His influence extends to how government contracts, procurement processes, and public services incorporate AI, making him one of the most consequential AI figures in Brisbane despite operating behind the scenes.

17. Dr Niko Suenderhauf, QUT Centre for Robotics

Dr Niko Suenderhauf is Deputy Director of the QUT Centre for Robotics and leads research at the intersection of robotics, computer vision, and machine learning. He is a recipient of Amazon and Google research awards, recognising the calibre and impact of his work. His research focuses on enabling robots and autonomous systems to perceive and understand the world using AI.

Niko's work is fundamental to the advancement of autonomous systems, from self driving vehicles to warehouse robotics and agricultural automation. His position at one of Australia's leading robotics centres means his research has direct implications for Queensland industries including mining, agriculture, logistics, and defence.

18. Professor Janet Wiles, UQ

Professor Janet Wiles has been at the forefront of AI research in Brisbane for over 30 years. Based at UQ, she leads multidisciplinary teams co designing language technologies and social robots for healthcare, dementia support, and neuroscience. Her work sits at the intersection of human centred computing, AI, and healthcare, domains where Brisbane is building significant national and international strength.

Janet's long standing contribution to Brisbane's AI research landscape makes her one of the most experienced voices in the city. Her focus on AI for social good, particularly in health and aged care, positions her at the intersection of technology and the most pressing demographic challenges facing Queensland.

19. Syed Mosawi, Responsible AI Australia

Syed Mosawi is the founder and CEO of Responsible AI Australia and founder of Inventico and Joi, an AI powered legal and intellectual property platform. He is a strong emerging Brisbane voice in responsible AI, AI governance, and AI powered professional services. His work with Responsible AI Australia focuses on certification, governance frameworks, and practical compliance tools for organisations deploying AI.

As the responsible AI conversation matures in Australia, with the Australian Government proposing mandatory guardrails for high risk AI systems, Syed's focus on governance and certification positions him as an increasingly important figure in Brisbane's AI ecosystem.

20. Moji Ghadimi, QCIF

Moji Ghadimi serves as Head of AI and Quantum Algorithms at QCIF, the Queensland Cyber Infrastructure Foundation. He is an important bridge figure across academia, government, and industry in Brisbane's AI landscape. Moji spoke at 6D AI Brisbane 2026 and is a regular contributor to the technical AI community in Southeast Queensland.

His role at QCIF places him at the intersection of AI infrastructure and quantum computing, two domains that are converging rapidly. For organisations exploring the next generation of computational capability, Moji represents the cutting edge of what is being built in Brisbane.

21. Professor Guido Zuccon, UQ

Professor Guido Zuccon is a Professorial Research Fellow at UQ and AI Director of the Queensland Digital Health Centre. His research focuses on information retrieval and health data science, with significant implications for how AI is applied in clinical settings and health systems. His dual role as both an AI researcher and health informatics leader makes him one of the most important figures in Brisbane's growing health AI cluster.

Guido's work at the Queensland Digital Health Centre, alongside Professor Clair Sullivan, is helping to build the infrastructure for AI driven health transformation across Queensland. This concentration of health AI expertise is one of Brisbane's genuine competitive advantages nationally.

22. Denver Naidoo, Zeligate

Denver Naidoo is CTO and founder of Zeligate and serves as Gold Coast Chapter Director for the Queensland AI Hub. Zeligate is an AI workforce and automation platform that has raised funding and relocated its headquarters to the Gold Coast Health and Knowledge Precinct. Denver's dual role as both a startup founder and community leader makes him a key figure in the expansion of Brisbane's AI ecosystem beyond the CBD.

The Gold Coast's emergence as an AI hub alongside Brisbane is one of the most important trends in Queensland's AI landscape, and Denver is one of the people driving that growth. His work with Zeligate demonstrates the commercial viability of AI startups in Southeast Queensland.

23. Tom Pagram, Virgin Australia

Tom Pagram serves as Head of Artificial Intelligence at Virgin Australia, making him one of the most senior enterprise AI leaders in Brisbane. His appointment reflects the growing maturity of AI adoption in Queensland's corporate sector, with major Brisbane headquartered companies investing in dedicated AI leadership roles.

Tom's position at one of Queensland's flagship corporations provides a unique vantage point on how AI is being deployed at enterprise scale in aviation, customer experience, operations, and workforce management. For organisations looking to understand how large Brisbane businesses are approaching AI strategy, Tom represents the practitioner perspective.

24. Professor Shirui Pan, Griffith University

Professor Shirui Pan is based at Griffith University on the Gold Coast and is a Fellow of the Queensland Academy of Arts and Sciences. His research focuses on AI, data mining, and machine learning, with particular strength in graph neural networks and anomaly detection. He represents Griffith University's growing AI capability alongside colleagues working in computer vision, medical imaging, and intelligent systems.

Griffith's AI research complements the work happening at QUT and UQ, and Shirui's international publication record positions the university as a serious contributor to Brisbane's broader AI research ecosystem.

25. Karen Sutherland, UniSC and Queensland AI Hub

Karen Sutherland is a Senior Lecturer at the University of the Sunshine Coast and co director of the Queensland AI Hub's Sunshine Coast Chapter. She is a certified AI consultant specialising in AI for strategic communication and marketing, and an award winning author. Karen represents the important regional dimension of Brisbane's AI ecosystem, proving that AI thought leadership and practical application are not confined to the CBD.

The growth of AI chapters on the Sunshine Coast, Gold Coast, Logan, and Toowoomba is one of the defining trends in Queensland's AI landscape for 2026. Karen's leadership on the Sunshine Coast demonstrates how regional communities are building genuine AI capability and thought leadership.

Brisbane's AI Ecosystem: Research Centres, Hubs, and Community

Brisbane's AI ecosystem is anchored by several world class research centres and community organisations. The Queensland AI Hub, based in the Precinct in Fortitude Valley, serves as the beating heart of the community with chapters spanning from the Gold Coast to Cairns. CSIRO's Data61 maintains significant Queensland operations at Pullenvale and Dutton Park, housing one of the world's largest applied AI and robotics teams. QUT hosts the Centre for Robotics, the GenAI Lab, the XAMI Lab for explainable AI, and the AI for Health Research Network. UQ operates the AI Collaboratory, the Centre for Enterprise AI, and the Queensland Digital Health Centre.

The community infrastructure is equally impressive. AI Builders Brisbane hosts monthly developer focused meetups at Microsoft Brisbane. The Brisbane Data Analytics and AI Meetup provides practitioner level education. The Queensland AI Hub runs an AI Paper Reading Club for deep technical dives. AI Tinkerers Brisbane launched in 2025 as a builder focused meetup community. The State Library of Queensland runs public facing AI literacy workshops through its Digital and You program. This depth of community infrastructure is what separates Brisbane from cities with strong research but weak ecosystem connectivity.

Jonno White, Certified Working Genius Facilitator and trusted facilitator across Australia, the UK, USA, Singapore, Canada, and beyond, regularly works with Brisbane organisations navigating the leadership and team dynamics challenges of AI adoption. Email jonno@consultclarity.org to discuss how Jonno might support your team.

Key Trends in Brisbane AI for 2026

Several trends define Brisbane's AI landscape in 2026. First, the public sector has matured beyond experimentation. The Queensland Government's establishment of a dedicated Artificial Intelligence Unit signals a shift from hype to formal governance, and the QChat education trial demonstrates practical AI deployment at scale. Second, Brisbane is developing a pronounced healthcare AI concentration, with QUT's AI for Health Research Network, IntelliHQ, Zeligate's relocation to the Gold Coast Health and Knowledge Precinct, and UQ's Queensland Digital Health Centre all contributing to a cluster effect.

Third, the ecosystem is becoming more builder centric and practical. The launch of AI Tinkerers Brisbane, the growth of practitioner meetups, and the focus on local and edge based AI architectures in developer communities reflect a shift from awareness to implementation. Fourth, regional decentralisation is accelerating, with substantial growth in AI chapters across the Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast, Logan, and Toowoomba. Fifth, the enterprise AI function is maturing, with Brisbane headquartered companies like Virgin Australia and Suncorp appointing dedicated AI leadership roles.

For more on the AI thought leadership landscape across Australia and New Zealand, check out Jonno White's blog post '35 Best Thought Leaders on AI Ethics in ANZ' at consultclarity.org.

How to Choose the Right AI Thought Leader for Your Needs

The right AI thought leader for your organisation depends on what you are trying to achieve. If you need a keynote speaker for a conference or leadership summit, look for someone with a proven speaking track record, specific expertise relevant to your audience, and the ability to translate complex AI concepts into actionable insights. If you need a consultant or advisor, prioritise practical implementation experience over academic credentials alone. If you need a researcher or technical partner, focus on publication record, research funding, and industry collaboration history.

Ask yourself these questions. Does this person have genuine AI expertise, or have they recently added AI to their biography? Can they customise their content for your specific industry and challenges? Do they offer multiple engagement formats including keynotes, workshops, and advisory? Are they active on LinkedIn and easy to evaluate before engaging? Do they have proof of impact through testimonials, repeat bookings, or satisfaction data?

For organisations where the AI challenge is fundamentally about leadership, team dynamics, and culture change rather than technical implementation, Jonno White, bestselling author of Step Up or Step Out with over 10,000 copies sold globally, delivers keynotes and workshops that bridge the gap between AI strategy and the people side of implementation. Many organisations find that flying Jonno in is far more affordable than expected. Email jonno@consultclarity.org for a custom quote.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who are the top AI keynote speakers based in Brisbane?

Professor Marek Kowalkiewicz at QUT, Jeremy Howard at UQ and fast.ai, and Dr Stefan Hajkowicz at CSIRO Data61 are among the most sought after AI keynote speakers based in Brisbane. For the leadership and team dynamics side of AI transformation, Jonno White is a trusted speaker who works with organisations around the world. Email jonno@consultclarity.org to book.

Which Brisbane universities lead in artificial intelligence research?

QUT, UQ, and Griffith University all have significant AI research capabilities. QUT's Centre for Robotics and GenAI Lab are world class. UQ's AI Collaboratory and Queensland Digital Health Centre are nationally important. Griffith University contributes strength in data mining, computer vision, and intelligent systems.

What is the Queensland AI Hub?

The Queensland AI Hub is a community organisation based in Fortitude Valley that connects researchers, practitioners, startups, government, and industry across Queensland. It operates chapters in Brisbane, Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast, Logan, Toowoomba, and other regions, and runs events, accelerator programs, and capability building initiatives.

How is AI being used in Queensland schools?

The Queensland Government is running the QChat education trial, and Brisbane Catholic Education is rolling out AI across 146 schools. Associate Professor Hassan Khosravi at UQ is one of the leading researchers on AI in education. For school leaders navigating these changes, Jonno White delivers keynotes and workshops on leading through change and building team cultures that embrace innovation.

Who leads responsible AI and governance work in Brisbane?

Syed Mosawi through Responsible AI Australia, Marco Fahmi through the Queensland Government AI Unit, and researchers like Professor Tim Miller at UQ and the QUT GenAI Lab team all contribute to Brisbane's responsible AI landscape. Aaron Snoswell at QUT's ADM+S Centre also focuses specifically on AI accountability.

Are there beginner friendly AI community groups in Brisbane?

Yes. The Queensland AI Hub's Brisbane chapter, AI Builders Brisbane, the Brisbane Data Analytics and AI Meetup, and the State Library of Queensland's Digital and You program all welcome beginners. The Queensland AI Hub's AI Paper Reading Club offers deeper technical engagement for those ready to advance.

Can I hire someone to help my organisation navigate AI transformation?

Absolutely. For leadership, team dynamics, and culture change related to AI adoption, Jonno White, Certified Working Genius Facilitator and bestselling author, delivers keynotes, workshops, and executive team offsites. For technical AI consulting, firms like Scope&Go, CoAligned AI, and Strategenics operate in Brisbane. For enterprise scale AI strategy, firms including Deloitte and KPMG have Brisbane based AI practitioners. Email jonno@consultclarity.org to discuss your needs.

Final Thoughts

Brisbane's AI ecosystem is no longer an emerging story. It is a mature, interconnected, and rapidly growing community that rivals Melbourne and Sydney in research depth and significantly outperforms both in community cohesion and regional accessibility. The 25 thought leaders profiled in this directory represent the breadth and diversity of Brisbane's AI landscape, from world leading researchers to practical ecosystem builders, from startup founders to enterprise AI leaders.

Whether you are looking for a keynote speaker, a research partner, a community to join, or a consultant to guide your AI journey, Brisbane has the depth of talent to meet your needs. The city's AI story is being written right now by the people on this list, and the organisations that engage with them will be the ones best positioned to capture the opportunities that AI presents.

For organisations where the biggest challenge is not the technology but the leadership, communication, and team dynamics required to adopt it well, Jonno White is the person to call. As a bestselling author of Step Up or Step Out with over 10,000 copies sold globally, Certified Working Genius Facilitator, and trusted facilitator across Australia, the UK, USA, Singapore, Canada, New Zealand, India, and Europe, Jonno helps organisations build the cultures and leadership capability that determine whether AI investments actually deliver value.

To book Jonno White for your next keynote, workshop, executive offsite, or MC engagement, email jonno@consultclarity.org.

His book Step Up or Step Out is available at Amazon.

About the Author

Jonno White is a Certified Working Genius Facilitator, bestselling author, and leadership consultant who has worked with schools, corporates, and nonprofits across the UK, India, Australia, Canada, Mongolia, New Zealand, Romania, Singapore, South Africa, USA, Finland, Namibia, and more. His book Step Up or Step Out has sold over 10,000 copies globally, and his podcast The Leadership Conversations has featured 230+ episodes reaching listeners in 150+ countries. Jonno founded The 7 Questions Movement with 6,000+ participating leaders and achieved a 93.75% satisfaction rating for his Working Genius masterclass at the ASBA 2025 National Conference. Based in Brisbane, Australia, Jonno works globally and regularly travels for speaking and facilitation engagements. Organisations consistently find that international travel is far more affordable than expected.

While Jonno is included in these rankings based on objective criteria, readers should note his authorship in the interest of full transparency.

To book Jonno for your next keynote, workshop, or facilitation session, email jonno@consultclarity.org.

Next Read: 25 Best Keynote Speakers on AI in Australia and New Zealand (2026)

Artificial intelligence is the dominant topic at corporate events across Australia and New Zealand in 2026, and finding the right AI keynote speaker for your next conference, leadership summit, or team development day has never been more important. According to the Australian Government's National AI Centre, AI adoption across Australian businesses has accelerated dramatically, with organisations in every sector scrambling to understand what AI means for their operations, their people, and their competitive position. The challenge for event planners is that the AI speaking market has exploded. Speaker bureaus across the region now list dozens of speakers under their artificial intelligence category, and many motivational speakers have quietly added AI to their biography without genuine expertise to back it up.

This directory is the most comprehensive resource available for event planners, conference producers, and organisational leaders searching for the best AI keynote speakers across Australia and New Zealand.

Keep reading: https://www.consultclarity.org/post/keynote-speakers-ai-australia-nz