Artificial Intelligence and Cyber Security are reshaping the foundations of government operations, service delivery, and national resilience. With rapid digital transformation across agencies, the stakes for building trust, strengthening security, and embedding responsible AI practices have never been higher.
This two-day conference brings together senior leaders, policy makers, cyber experts, technologists, and academics to explore the challenges and opportunities in applying AI responsibly while safeguarding Australia’s public sector against ever-evolving threats. From international insights to real-world case studies and forward-looking panel discussions, the program has been designed to equip delegates with actionable strategies and connections to navigate this fast-moving landscape.
8:30 Delegate Registration & Coffee
9:00 Opening remarks from the Chair
• Progress updates on the adoption of AI in the
Australian govt
• Current cyber security threats impacting the
government? What are the benefits and risks of
adopting AI? How to balance both for optimal
outcomes?
• Long term outlook
PANELISTS:
DR KRISTEN MOORE
Team Leader CSIRO Data61
DAMINDA KUMAR
CISO, Commonwealth Superannuation Corporation, CSC
KRITIKA JOON
Emerging Technologies and Innovation Leader, icare NSW
PANELLISTS:
JEFFERY GRIFFITH
Deputy CEO, Devonport
City Council
YVONNE BUTLER
Visiting Fellow, ANU Advisory Board Institute for Infrastructure in Society, Expert Associate National Security College
Representative
Digital Transformation
Agency, DTA
10:30 MORNING COFFEE & NETWORKING
• Why it is imperative to establish universal and interoperable standards and how achievable is it?
• Where is Australia positioned in progressing AI standards?
• Examples of Standards and where applied in the AI implementation lifecycle
MAHENDRA SAMARAWICKRAMA
Chief AI Officer, Institute for Sustainable AI, AI Standards Committee Member, IEEE
• How AI is impacting cyber security activities
• Types of AI utilised
• Budgetary considerations and alignment to strategic objectives
• Results to date
MANUEL MEDRANO
Director, Cybersecurity Monitoring and Operations, U.S. Department of State
TIM NEAL
Assistant Secretary of Commonwealth Security Policy, Dept Home Affairs
12:30 Lunch Break
This session will provide an overall summary and discussion on AI technology products & potential risks.
Designed for new and early entrants to AI strategic planning and implementation.
Agentic AI, Gen AI, Machine Learning, NPL, automation
including end to end, STP and DEP
• What is Agentic AI and how is it being applied in Govt?
• Readiness for it and steps to implementation and scaling
• Reasoning models, multi-agent workflow systems,
building robust RAG (Retrieval-Augmented Generation) pipelines
• Managing security, and governance
• Workforce considerations
14:30 AFTERNOON TEA
• Multi modal options
• Importance of laying solid operational foundations
when starting your AI journey
• Risk identification and mitigation
JEFFERY GRIFFITH
Deputy CEO, Devonport City Council
• Developing AI algorithms that can efficiently analyse vast datasets
• AI methodologies for protecting user data, including differential privacy, homomorphic encryption, and federated learning
• Driving a responsible data centered culture
MODERATOR:
ALEXIA HUNTER
Chief Executive Officer, Bluebird Advisory
PANELLISTS:
DR KIRAN KEWALRAMANI
Head of Tech, Gladstone Area Water Board
FELICITY TURNER
Data and AI Specialist, Microsoft
TAMMY BRAYBROOK
Senior Director | Data Capability and Analytics, IT Services, Corporate services, Australian Maritime Safety Authority
• Simulating real-world prompt injection attacks
• Demonstrating model exploitability and sandboxing
• How to build secure AI prompt governance
REMY COLL
Director & Principal Consultant, Redacted Information Security
MIRANDA RIDELL
Manager and AI Security Consultant
• Exploring incident response capabilities
• Detecting threats in real time
• Identifying anomalies across complex networks
• Implementing failsafe security guardrails, protocols and defense
Closing remarks from the Chair
17:10 End of day one
17:15- 18:15 1 Hour Networking drinks
• New skills needed in the AI-enhanced workforce
• How Gen AI augments cyber analysts and red teams
• Ethical and organisational culture considerations
• Tools and platforms shaping future roles
PHILIP WAGNER
Leadership Educator
• Managing public perceptions and misinformation
• Developing citizen-facing AI ethics frameworks
CRESSIDA WALL
Chief Executive, Project Delivery Agency, Victorian Department of Treasury and Finance, Office of Projects Victoria (OPV)
Recognising the benefits of progressing the adoption of AI across Govt in a cohesive and collaborative manner whilst addressing the significant challenges
MODERATOR:
ALEXIA HUNTER
Chief Executive Officer,
Bluebird Advisory
PANELLISTS:
DR PAUL HUBBARD
Ass Secretary, AI Co Lab
PETR ADAMEK
CEO, Canberra innovation Network
RITA ARRIGO
Strategic Engagement Manager, National AI Centre
10:50 MORNING COFFEE & NETWORKING
Protecting Australia’s essential systems such as energy, transport, water, and telecommunications, from cyber threats.
• Resilience planning, risk management, and using
advanced technologies
• Exploring how collaboration between government and the private sector can mitigate risks, strengthen security, and ensure service continuity
• How AI and automation are central to enhancing security and crisis response.
• Best practices in network architecture, cybersecurity, cloud management, and infrastructure optimization
MODERATOR:
ZOE THOMPSON
Director, Critical Infrastructure Resilience
PANELLISTS:
Representative
Australian Signals
Directorate Australian Cyber
Security Centre
YVONNE BUTLER
Visiting Fellow, ANU Advisory Board Institute for Infrastructure in Society, Expert Associate National Security College
MARK ANDERSON
National Security Officer, Microsoft
This presentation will explore how artificial intelligence is
transforming insider threats, both as a powerful tool for organisational efficiency and as a new vector for risk.
Areas of discussion will centre around how AI creates opportunities for faster decision-making, advanced monitoring and smarter security, but also introduces hidden dangers including shadow AI use, data leakage, manipulation and blind spots in leadership oversight. Boaz will highlight the need for leaders to balance innovation with accountability, building insider resilience that integrates both people and technology.
BOAZ FISHER
CEO, Australian Institute of Insider Threats, AIIT
12:30 NETWORKING LUNCH
• Leveraging AI to secure IoT ecosystems, mitigate vulnerabilities, and safeguard connected devices
• AI-powered approaches for device authentication, anomaly detection, and security protocols tailored for IoT environments
PROF FRANK DEN HARTOG
Cisco Research Chair in Critical Infrastructure,
Uni of Canberra
• Presenting a compelling value case for AI and its
capabilities
• Defining security problems needing AI solutions
• Determining an implementation timeline
14:30 AFTERNOON TEA
• Overcoming challenges of legacy system integration
• Adhering to compliance frameworks and protocols
• Developing scalable platforms that are robust and reliable
TIMOTHY PANOHO
Manager Architecture AI SRO, Digital Health Agency
• Benefits and drawbacks of utilising AI technology
• Combatting security challenges
• Use cases
DR JOSEPH SOALHEIRA
Shared Services, Global Business Services, Sessional Academic,
School of Information Systems, QUT University
• Latest innovations and advanced tools
• Zero-trust architectures
• Evolution of autonomous cybersecurity systems, quantum computing, pioneering research developments
• Developing roadmaps for further modernisation and development
MODERATOR:
JULIE GLEESON
Independent Industry Expert
PANELLISTS:
PROF FRANK DEN HARTOG
Cisco Research Chair in Critical Infrastructure, Uni of Canberra
KRITIKA JOON
Emerging Technologies and Innovation Leader, icare NSW
Closing remarks from the Chair
End of conference
