18:00 – 19:30

Lavender Courtyard, Hyatt Hotel Canberra

8:50

 Welcome to Country

8:55

Welcome from ADM

Ewen Levick, Publisher, ADM

9:00

Introduction from the chair

Air Vice Marshal (Ret’d) Steven “Zed” Roberton, DSC, AM, ECEC Senior Advisor, Canberra, McKinsey & Co

9:05

MINISTERIAL VIDEO WELCOME ADDRESS |

The Hon Pat Conroy, Minister for Defence Industry

9:10

MINISTERIAL ADDRESS | Australia’s Strategic Defence Imperatives

The Hon Matt Thistlethwaite MP, Assistant Minister for Defence

9:30

KEYNOTE ADDRESS | Innovations in Australian Defence: Next generation weapons & guided ordnance

• Guided weapons and precision targeting
• Identifying challenges and opportunities
• Collaboration between industry, academia and defence

AIRMSHL Leon Phillips OAM, Chief Guided Weapons and Explosive Ordnance, Department of Defence

10:00

INDUSTRY KEYNOTE ADDRESS | Enhancing Australia’s national security: Defence industry’s role, collaboration and future innovation

• The current state of the Australian defence industry and it’s role bolstering national security
• Exploring how Australia’s defence industry collaborates across sectors and with international partners
• Risks and opportunities arising from growth and development
• Embracing emerging technologies and manufacturing techniques

Air Marshal (Ret’d) Warren McDonald AO, CSC, Chief Executive, Lockheed Martin Australia

10:30

Defence readiness and leadership empowerment in today’s Defence force

Laurence McHauser, Partner – London, McKinsey & Co

10:55

Welcome to Morning Tea

Geoff Camp, Executive Director – Defence, JLL Australia

11:00

Networking & Refreshments Break

11:30

PANEL | Military Innovation and Research: Shaping the Future of Defence with Advanced Technologies

• Exploring the Impact of AI, autonomous systems and space capabilities on modern Defence strategies
• Assessing the investment and collaboration between Defence, academia and industry
• How innovation in military technology can improve resource utilisation and readiness
• Global partnerships in research and innovation

Muhammad Usman, Team Leader – Quantum Systems, CSIRO’s Data61
Mel McDowall, Director, Defence Artificial Intelligence Research Network (DAIRNet)
William Infante, Innovation Lead – Digital Technologies, Navantia Australia
Moderator: Jake Kearsley, Managing Director, Para Bellum Solutions

12:05

Australia’s Defence Budget Dilemma

• Implications of the Defence Strategic Review (DSR)
• How are Defence budget constraints hindering strategic preparedness?
• Challenges of overprogramming in the acquisition budget
• Should there be an increase in the 2% of GDP allocation to Defence?

Bec Shrimpton, Director Defence Strategy and National Security, ASPI

12:30

PANEL | AUKUS Pillar 2: Jointly Developing Advanced Capabilities

• Developing next generation weapons technology
• Integrating AI into space capability
• Collaboration between the three AUKUS partners

Steve Moore, FAS AUKUS Advanced Capabilities, Department of Defence
Prof Emily Hilder, Head of the Advanced Strategic Capabilities Accelerator (ASCA), Department of Defence
David Nockels, FAS – Industry Policy Division, Department of Defence
Moderator: Kate Louis, Executive Director, AI Group

13:05

Networking & Lunch Break

14:00

PANEL | Global Security Challenges and Australia’s Position in the World

• Indo-Pacific dynamic, geopolitical tensions and alliances
• Emerging threats, instability, and environmental security
• Strategic interests, soft power, and diplomacy

Jennifer Parker, Expert associate National Security College ANU and adjunct fellow at UNSW
Dr Malcolm Davis, Senior Analyst, ASPI
AVM (Ret’d) John Blackburn AO, Chair, Institute for Integrated Economic Research – Australia
Moderator: Justin Burke, Senior Policy Advisor – National Security College, ANU

14:35

Leveraging Science for Defence Advancement

• CSIRO’s research focus areas and their relevance to Defence
• Successful collaboration and projects within the Defence sector
• Emerging technologies and trends

Dr Gareth Parker, Senior Principal Research Scientist, CSIRO

15:00

PANEL | Expanding Australia’s Defence Export and Investment Landscape

• Highlighting the key role Defence exports and investment play in the Australia’s economy and national security
• Government and industry driven initiatives
• Key markets and partnerships
• Regulatory challenges

Anthony Weymouth, Head of Defence, Advanced Manufacturing and Space, AUSTRADE
Andrew Dudgeon, Partner, McKinsey & Co
Kendell Kuczma, Director Business Development, Lockheed Martin, Rotary and Mission Systems Australia & New Zealand
Moderator: Kate Louis, Executive Director, AI Group

15:35

Networking & Refreshments Break

16:00

• Improving efficiency and cohesiveness
• Focussing on the wellbeing of Defence personnel
• Ensuring the best talent is retained

MAJGEN Wade Stothart, Head Military Personnel – Defence People Group, Department of Defence

16:25

PANEL | Empowering Growth: Strategies for Effective SME Engagement in Defence Industry

• How can SMEs contribute to technological innovation and adaptation
• How is current policy and initiatives supporting SMEs
• Ensuring accessibility for SMEs

Jeremy Satchell, Head of Industry Capability, BAE Systems Australia
Brent Clark, Chief Executive Officer, AIDN
Greg Barsby, CEO, Penten
Moderator: Stuart Althaus, CEO, Infogate Advisory

17:00

Closing Remark from the Chair

17:10

End of Conference

18:15

Buses depart the Hyatt for Charity Dinner