The Open Summit AI one-stage operator format
We use one stage and a shared programme to bring business owners, founders, operators and senior leaders into the same conversation. The emphasis is on applying AI inside a business: what was deployed, what it required, what it cost and what happened in practice.
That format gives a team a common body of material to discuss. Colleagues can hear the same speakers and compare the implications for operations, customers, investment and implementation. A technical background is not required, and there are no parallel tracks in the core programme.
Runtime: the stage programme and the wider day
Join us in Adelaide or Brisbane, with doors from 11am and a main programme from noon to 3pm. The three-hour stage block sits within a wider day that includes registration and networking. We also have evening activities planned from 5pm, subject to the activity and ticket arrangements.
Our Melbourne and Sydney events in 2027 also have 11am doors and a noon-to-3pm programme. We haven't yet announced session times or total runtime for New York, Chicago or Dallas. Each city has its own programme, so an example from one event should not be used as another city's final schedule.
The distinction matters when planning attendance. A noon stage start is different from an 11am arrival window; a 3pm programme finish is different from the end of all networking activity. Check the event timetable and your ticket inclusions together.
A completed afternoon: Sydney, 23 July 2026
Here's how we ran our Sydney afternoon at Sydney Town Hall in 2026. It is a historical example, separate from the upcoming Sydney 2027 programme.
| Time | Recorded Sydney 2026 session | Runtime |
|---|---|---|
| 11am | Doors and registration | Before the main programme |
| 11:15am | Networking | Before the main programme |
| Noon | Welcome from Kate Save | 5 minutes |
| 12:05pm | Toby Walsh: Where AI Is Actually Heading | 27 minutes |
| 12:32pm | Clayton Cross: Where Capital Meets Code | 26 minutes |
| 12:58pm | Jack Bear: Getting Found in the Age of AI | 24 minutes |
| 1:22pm | Intermission | 15 minutes |
| 1:37pm | AI in Practice: operators' panel and audience Q&A | 54 minutes |
| 2:31pm | John McGiffin: From Hype to Real Value | 29 minutes |
| 3pm | Main programme ended | Three hours from the welcome |
Kate Save hosted the afternoon. Georgie Healy hosted the operators' panel, with Thomas Tyack among its panellists. We also held VIP networking drinks after the programme and an offsite evening networking gathering. Those historical arrangements do not establish the inclusions of a future ticket.
The run sheet demonstrates the balance of the afternoon: focused individual talks, a break, a substantial panel and time for audience questions. The panel's 54-minute runtime is specific to that event rather than a universal Open Summit duration.
The range of business perspectives
Research perspectives, such as Toby Walsh's, help establish the direction and capabilities of AI. Operating and investment perspectives, such as Clayton Cross's, connect those capabilities with the systems a business needs to build. Customer discovery, explored by Jack Bear, asks how a business appears when people use AI to search for information. Enterprise adoption, explored by John McGiffin, concerns the move from ideas and pilots to practical value.
The Sydney deck collection offers examples of that substance. The presentations cover token economics and task-based routing, an enterprise maturity model and roadmap, and buying behaviour when agents do the searching. The presentations provide material to examine beyond a speaker's title or biography.
Prepare a question worth discussing
You can make the shared format more useful by arriving with a real decision from your business. Describe the workflow or customer problem, what happens today and what you want to understand about changing it.
For example, a team evaluating a pilot could ask which dependencies remain before it can run in daily operations. A marketing lead could examine what information customers and agents need to find the business. An owner could consider the resources required and the evidence that would justify further investment.
These are preparation suggestions. The programme does not promise that every speaker will answer every question or that a particular business result will follow. They give you a useful lens for listening and for conversations with other attendees.
Attend as a team and continue the work
Before the event, agree on the questions that matter across your roles. During the programme, record the examples and assumptions that are relevant to your business. Afterwards, compare notes and select a next step that can be assessed against your own costs, constraints and results.
Networking provides another opportunity to examine an idea with people facing similar decisions. Booked attendees can use the portal with their booking email for programme information, tickets and attendee connections.
To plan a specific event, explore Adelaide, Brisbane or our full tour. The city page and your ticket confirmation provide the practical details for that edition. Programme information last updated 22 September 2026.