Programme
humAIn 2026: AI Marketing and Creativity Conference, Sydney
13–14 October 2026, Sydney
The Collider and Stone & Chalk, 477 Pitt Street, Sydney
- Stela Solar
- Cat McGinnFounder and curator, humAIn
In this session, R/GA will explore the rise of Intelligent Brand Systems, an operating model that unifies brand intelligence, adaptive experiences, and generative storytelling.
- Robin ForbesGlobal CEO, R/GA
- Marie ConleyExecutive Strategy Director, APAC, R/GA
- Kent BoswellCo-Founder, Head of Production, AiCandy
- Marcus TesorieroCo-Founder, Head of Creative, AiCandy
Lessons from 1,000 AI projects across 45 countries.
- Marie-Céline Merret WirströmCreative Director, MC&V
- Vinne Schifferstein VidalStrategy & Partnerships, MC&V
The biggest con in AI right now isn't a scam. It's a seduction. AI sounds authoritative, looks polished, and moves fast enough to bypass critical thinking.
- Pip BingemannCo-Founder, Springboards.ai
Three practitioners, three bets on what AI does to creative work.
- Kent BoswellCo-Founder, Head of Production, AiCandy
- Marie-Céline Merret WirströmCreative Director, MC&V
- Pip BingemannCo-Founder, Springboards.ai
By 2030, much of what marketing teams do today - from research and production to media buying, optimisation and personalisation - will sit with machines. The teams that remain are likely to be smaller, flatter and hybrid. So what happens to the person in charge?
- Louise CumminsCEO and Co-Founder, Australian Centre for AI in Marketing
- Bronwyn HeysChief Marketing Officer, Zambrero
- Aaron MichieDirector, Global Marketing Operations & Strategic Programs, DAZN Media
So many AI talks focus on what the technology can do, but ignore what organisations need to do to make it work.
- Lou CompagnoneDirector of AI, Datacom
AI can make people faster. But can it also make them less capable?
- Lou CompagnoneDirector of AI, Datacom
- Dr Patrick AouadFounder & CEO, CU Health
Twenty-seven brands. More than 200,000 AI responses. Eight platforms. Two markets. One burning question: what makes AI recommend one brand over another?
- Celia HardingFounder, LEOPRD
- Oren FixlerExternal Channels & Media, Telstra
- Stu WraggChief Strategy Officer, Herd MSL
- Megan OrmsbyHead of Communications, Devices & Services, Amazon
Five founders each get eight minutes to pitch an AI product built for media, marketing or the creative industries. Then a panel of start-up, scale up and innovation leaders gives live feedback.
- Stela SolarCEO, Stone & Chalk
- Annie LiaoFounder & CEO, Build Club / Solaris
- Sam GarvenFounder, Hello Canopy
AI generates the statistically probable, not necessarily an accurate reflection of the world. As AI becomes embedded in marketing, the brands that treat this as a creative and commercial problem, not just an ethical one, will outperform those that don't.
- Sam TurleyInvention Lead, Mindshare
- Kate WestgateHead of Marketing for Home Care, Unilever ANZ
- Annie KoniecznyAustralia National Chapter Lead, Unstereotype Alliance, UN Women
- Sneha RathodHead of AI Capabilities & Solutions, SBS
Generative AI’s automation of routine execution presents a critical inflection point for creative industries: how do we mentor and safeguard the growth of emerging talent?
- Mandie van der MerweChief Creative Officer, Saatchi & Saatchi
- Hilary BadgerExecutive Creative Director, Leo Burnett Australia
- Ross ColebatchExecutive Producer, Photoplay Photography
- Rhys Delios CallananSenior Creative, We The People
Every marketer has the same models, so "we used AI" stopped being a differentiator the day everyone else did too.
- Lucinda BarlowHead of International Marketing, Uber
- Ben CooperFounder, Brainstrust
- Tea UglowCMO and AI consultant
- Bridget ClearyCo-founder and CEO, BRX
Held under the Chatham House Rule.
Whose version of reality does AI recreate?
How do we identify and reduce bias in AI systems, creative work and marketing decisions? What does responsible AI look like in practice?
When everything can be faked, is proof the product?
Who owns AI-assisted work? How do brands manage copyright risk? Will provenance become a competitive advantage as synthetic content becomes ubiquitous?
Can responsible AI survive contact with commercial pressures?
How should organisations balance innovation with compliance? What governance frameworks are actually working, and how do brands maintain trust in an AI-mediated world?
Is sustainable AI possible?
How do we balance the potential for AI to help reduce emissions or create innovation against its enormous energy needs and environmental footprint?
If we try to weigh the environmental cost vs benefit, how might that impact procurement and pitching? Do we even have the right data to make an informed decision, as well as to support Scope 3 reporting and reduction strategies?
Are we training our own replacements?
How are roles changing? Which skills become more valuable? How do organisations build capability, preserve expertise and create meaningful careers in an AI-first workplace?
AI gives marketers and creatives a new kind of agency: the ability to turn ideas into working products, apps and websites at speed.
- Tara IwamotoCo-founder, Vibe Coding Lab
How to design, test and contain an AI agent before it touches your brand, your customers or your budget.
- Jason RossFounder and digital innovation leader, Time Under Tension
How do you turn a film, character, brand or idea into an experience people can take part in?
- Emma BarbatoCreative Director, Hyperfiction Magazine
touch grass. make something.
- Ashlea VallanceFounder, Screen Swap by The Screenery
AI can improve margins, accelerate delivery and create new products. It can also commoditise capabilities, flatten differentiation and make a business easier to replicate or price down.
- Julia VargiuDirector, Australia, SI Global
Learn how human-AI cognition is changing consumer behaviour, and how to redesign the path to purchase.
- Matt PlantHead of Behavioural Science and Ai, Thinkerbell
Most marketing teams now use AI tools, but few have redesigned their workflows around them.
- Annie LiaoFounder & CEO, Build Club / Solaris
Turning AI adoption into real marketing advantage
AI is already embedded in marketing teams, workflows and technology stacks. The task now is turning all that activity into measurable growth; knowing where AI creates real advantage, and how human judgement, creativity and trust remain essential to making brands worth choosing.
AI search, brand visibility and the future of customer choice
The humAIn 2026 programme tackles the questions marketing, media and creative industry leaders are confronting in practice. How does brand visibility change when search, shopping and recommendation are mediated by AI, and by agents acting on the customer's behalf? How do you remain distinctive when every competitor can produce more content, faster and cheaper? Which parts of the marketing operation should be automated, augmented or kept deliberately human?
The future of marketing teams, creativity and work
The programme also examines what AI means for the economics of agencies, creative production and in-house teams; where judgement, taste and craft still earn their keep; and how the role of the CMO is changing.
It takes on the future of work directly: how marketing roles are changing, which skills matter, and how the industry develops the talent it will need in 2030.
Synthetic media, AI influence and the future of brand trust
Trust is a central theme: how brands maintain credibility as synthetic content becomes ubiquitous, the role of artificial influencers and hyperfiction in entertainment, how audiences respond to AI influence, and whether authenticity can still create competitive advantage.
For the leaders shaping the future of AI in marketing
humAIn is built for the people making these calls: 250 marketing, media, agency and technology leaders in one room. You'll leave with a clearer view of the choices ahead, the trade-offs involved and how your peers are turning AI into meaningful results.