2025 Program

humAIn has been designed and curated for senior marketing and media professionals who want to harness the power of AI innovation.

10:00 AM Pre-conference registration

10:30 AM Applied AI for marketers workshop

A 2-hour session for marketers to explore AI integration in workflows, experiment with tools, and gain confidence in deploying AI within a responsible framework.

Overview:

30 minutes on “AI Strategy” (Identifying and overcoming common organisational challenges and barriers; practical company-level adoption strategies)
60 minutes on hands on experiment with tools
30 minutes problem solving Q&A

By the end of the workshop, attendees will leave with strategic insights for fast-tracking organisational adoption and hands on tips and tricks working with the latest AI tools.

Facilitator

Jason Ross, Co-founder, Time Under Tension

12:30 PM Conference registration opens

1:00 PM Opening remarks

Cat McGinn, Head of Curated & Commercial Content, Unmade

1:10 PM Augmented creativity showcase

AI Augmented Creative Showcase – A provocative exploration of AI as a collaborator in creativity, not a competitor. How creative industry professionals can use AI to enable creativity and avoid homogeneity and mediocrity.

Ben Cooper, Founder, BRAINSTRUST
Vinne Schifferstein, Managing Director, MADE THIS
Pip Bingeman, Co-Founder, Springboards.ai

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1.50 PM Navigating the future: Agentic AI for marketers

This session will focus on how AI is shifting from a tool to an autonomous agent—making decisions, adapting in real time, and fundamentally reshaping consumer interactions. But with these new capabilities come a host of ethical and practical challenges.

Carney, who leads technical strategy, advises enterprise and government clients on emerging technologies, and spearheads responsible AI initiatives at the technology giant, will break down the nuances of agentic AI, as distinct from generative AI and traditional automation, and lay out a framework for responsible implementation. Topics will range from risk mitigation strategies—addressing bias, misinformation, and trust erosion—to real-world applications like hyper-personalisation, AI-driven campaign management, and predictive engagement.

Marketers will also gain actionable insights into how to position their brands within AI ecosystems, ensuring relevance and discoverability as AI-driven agents become central to consumer decision-making.

Sarah Carney, National Chief Technology Officer, Microsoft ANZ

2:15 PM Finding the Gen AI sweet spot: Decisions at speed

Optus Case Study: Cam Luby, head of consumer marketing at Optus, will share real-world insights from years of testing and refining AI-driven solutions - from enhancing customer experiences, streamlining workflows, and unlocking data-driven insights.

Joining Luby are Matt Farrugia, co-founder, and Grace Gilbert, marketing scientist, both from Mutinex, for a discussion on when gen AI works, when it doesn’t, and how to find the "sweet spot" where it accelerates smarter decision-making.

Speakers

Cam Luby, Head of Consumer Marketing, Optus
Matt Farrugia, Co-founder, Mutinex
Grace Gilbert, Marketing Scientist, Mutinex

2:40 PM Afternoon tea roundtables and networking break

3:40 PM AI Upfronts

A dynamic, fun lightning pitch session:
The presentations will showcase a cross-section of new AI-powered services and products that have potential value to the media and marketing world.

Each presenter has 8 minutes to showcase the platform or AI capability and take audience questions.

Previous AI Upfront pitches have gone on to greatness. Catch them while they're hot.

Speakers

Michelle Gilmore, CEO and Co-Founder, Juno
Ben Gunn, Founder and Chief Revenue Officer, Fabulate
Abe Udy, Founder, Ethical AI Voice
Sarah Jones, Senior Manager, Head of Marketing (Asia-Pacific), Getty Images

4:25 PM AI vs agencies: who will survive and what will be left of them?

AI isn’t just changing how agencies work—it’s changing how they get paid. As automation and agentic AI takes over time-consuming tasks, the old-school billable hours model is looking increasingly shaky. So what comes next?

This session will explore how agencies can redefine their value in a world where AI handles everything from media buying to content creation. Should agencies shift to fixed fees, performance-based pricing, or even subscription models? How do they balance efficiency with creativity to stay indispensable? And most importantly, how do they ensure AI enhances—rather than erodes—client relationships?

We’ll examine:

Why AI-driven automation is making traditional agency billing models obsolete
The rise of new remuneration structures like performance-based and subscription models
How agencies can remain profitable while proving their worth in an AI-powered world
The human-AI collaboration sweet spot—where creativity and strategy still reign supreme
The client perspective: what brands now expect from agencies in the AI era
With AI reshaping agency economics, the industry faces a stark choice: adapt or risk irrelevance. This session will ask some tough questions and offer perspectives on the path forward for agencies looking to thrive in a radically different future.

Speaker:

Nathan McDonald Co-founder, We Are Social

4:50 PM Always be chatting

AI chatbots: the benefits for audience and customer engagement, internal communication.
A panel of experts present examples and share insights into when AI chatbots are the right solution, and when they're not; considerations like controlling for bias and manipulation, mitigating errors, and technical constraints.

Panel

Aaron Michie, Head of Marketing Operations, Foxtel
Shaun Davies, Ai Consultant, Bastion Digital
Parnell Palme McGuinness, Head of Strategy and Policy, Agenda C

5:30 PM humAIn: Adopt Or..? (principles update)

The insights and themes captured during the morning’s session to be shared with the aim of developing principles to offer marketers a practical framework to guide AI implementation in their organisations