Sydney’s AI Revolution
The AI landscape is flourishing globally, with Sydney being a major player. According to Professor Toby Walsh, Scientia Professor of AI at the University of New South Wales (UNSW Sydney), “Sydney is the capital of AI startups for Australia and this part of Australasia”. The city is home to more than half of Australia’s AI companies, offering associations the chance to connect their events with a rapidly growing industry. Sydney also boasts the highest number of tech firms in the country, with 81 digital technology companies listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX).
Sydney’s universities play a critical role in this success, with UNSW Sydney, the University of Sydney (USYD), and the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) at the forefront of AI research. Collectively, these institutions produced over 1,000 peer-reviewed publications in AI in 2021, making them a leading source of expertise.
“Sydney is Australia’s innovation hub: it is home to some of the world’s leading academic institutions and innovation companies and a highly skilled workforce,” says New South Wales Chief Scientist & Engineer Professor Hugh Durrant-Whyte.
Sydney’s AI ecosystem is backed by initiatives like the National AI Centre (NAIC), which supports SME’s and offers invaluable resources for trusted, secure and responsible artificial intelligence. Through a free online course for beginners, numerous webinars and best practice guidance, NAIC is helping Australian businesses implement the Australian Government’s 8 AI ethics principles.
The AI industry in Sydney is not just confined to academic corridors. Startups and large enterprises are embedding AI into real-world applications. For instance, Harrison.ai, a healthcare technology company, has developed advanced AI systems to perform complex diagnostic tasks in producing world-leading clinical decision support for chest X-rays.
“Canva is a famous unicorn that came out of Sydney. In the last year, it has started to adopt AI and it has introduced its Magic Studio, which uses generative AI,” says Professor Walsh.
Quantum Computing: The Next Frontier
Sydney’s quantum ecosystem is equally impressive and with the Australian Government’s backing, the quantum sector is projected to create 8,700 jobs by 2030. Professor Durrant-Whyte, emphasises Sydney’s unique position: “We’ve invested in quantum for 20 years, and we have some of the best people at the Quantum Academy in Sydney.”
At the heart of Sydney’s quantum advancements is the Centre of Excellence for Quantum Computation and Communication Technology at UNSW Sydney. Led by BESydney Global Ambassador, Professor Michelle Simmons AO, the centre is pioneering efforts to build the world’s first practical supercomputer. Simmons’ groundbreaking work in atomic electronics, which earned her the Australian Prime Minister’s Prize for Science in 2023, has pushed Sydney to the front of the global quantum race.
As Simmons noted, “Twenty years ago, the ability to manipulate individual atoms and put them where we want in a device architecture was unimaginable. We can now not only put atoms in place but can connect complete circuitry with atomic precision—a capability developed entirely in Australia”.
Associations that host events in Sydney can take advantage of this pioneering spirit by connecting with world-class researchers and companies. The Australian Centre for Quantum Growth, part of the National Quantum Strategy, offers a key focal point for quantum industry collaboration. Events held in Sydney can benefit from partnerships with startups like Silicon Quantum Computing, Quantum Brilliance, Diraq and Q-CTRL, which are all innovating within this field. Sydney is also home to some of the world’s largest tech firms and an extensive network of innovation hubs, such as the Cicada Innovation Hub and the Optus 5G Innovation Hub.
Sydney is a leading destination for AI and Quantum conferences and events. The annual Women in AI Asia Pacific Conference is held in Sydney each year. Additionally, the 34th International Conference on Machine Learning (ICML) was held in Sydney in 2017, RoboCup 2019, IEEE International Symposium on Mixed and Augmented Reality (ISMAR) held in 2023, as was SIGGRAPH 2023 Asia and The Pacific-Asia Conference on Knowledge Discovery and Data Mining (PAKDD) will be held in Sydney in June 2025.
BESydney’s Board Chair, Professor Mary O’Kane AC, explained the city’s strengths in both academia and infrastructure: “Sydney has a great wealth of scientific and research institutions. When people come here for scientific and research conferences, they can experience world-leading facilities and hold special meetings that attach to the conferences”.
Join BESydney on the innovation frontier in Sydney, the premier destination for science and engineering business events. Download the BESydney ebook on Science and Engineering and meet the changemakers propelling Sydney into the future. Visit besydney.com.au.
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