WTF: Why West Tech Fest might be the best technology conference in Australia
West Tech Fest is the crown jewel of Western Australia’s technology and innovation showcase, and Garry Williams takes you on a VIP experience.
WTF.
It was impossible to escape this (quite perfect) acronym in Perth this week, as West Tech Fest – the crown jewel of Western Australia’s technology and innovation showcase – showcased itself with aplomb, bringing in scores of local, interstate and global visitors to triumphantly sell out its biggest iteration yet.
With a beautiful mixture of warm hospitality for its many visitors – and a knowing nod that “yep, life’s pretty good here, bloody nice spot to build a business with some incredible sunsets!” – the only thing that wasn’t curated to perfection was the weather.
It was a little more ‘Melbourne’ and a little less ‘Rotto’ and honestly, the organisers really don’t need to keep apologising for that (or blaming me, a black-wearing-Melburnian for bringing it with him).
Now, you might have read those first two sentences and been mistaken with my fawning opening that there was some sort of nefarious behaviour going on here, to amp this joint and festival up thanks to a number of under-the-table payments, but alas, that is not the case here; everything is above board.
In my experienced-event-organiser personal opinion, this is the very best technology conference in Australia, and continues to grow in size, attendees, curated specialness, and interest.
A certain monolithic conference brand that converges in Sydney in October might wonder, for example, whether it is included in this comparison exercise.
The answer to that question is “yes” as I reflect on some of the incredible talks, pitches and people I’ve happened to interact with during the first three days of the festival, and look ahead to the centrepiece of the fest – West Tech Main – taking over the Perth Convention Exhibition Centre on its final and fourth day.
To quickly break down the curatorial efforts thus far: my main congratulations are always extended to the organisers/founding team: Danelle Cross, Kali Norman, Sarah Kahle, Rohan McDougall, Paula Taylor, Larry Lopez, and Bill Tai (we’ll get to Bill in a jiffy).
If you’ve ever attended a good conference, you’d know a bit why that was so. If you’ve ever attended a great one, you’d know pretty much why. And if you’ve ever organised one, then you’ll know exactly what excellence looks like – and how hard that is to curate for others to enjoy.
It’s bloody hard work organising conferences. We salute you.
So, let’s get into what has gone down, and spotlight a few of the WA folk I’ve had the pleasure of being in the vicinity of, as Perth and Fremantle Turned. It. On.
Day 0: Sunday
Yours truly arrived in the West, by way of the West of Melbourne, and found himself heading to Cottesloe Beach for an unofficial opening with a number of the festival organisers, as they took a deep breath prior to seeing their curatorial efforts unfold for the thousands of people who either know that a good thing is going on in WA, or are about to find out, and fast.
This is an organising team that is dialled in, knowing exactly what they have to do, as they again deliver Australia’s longest-running tech and innovation festival, which scales in ambition each year without not missing a beat.
As I attended said gathering, acquiring interstate folk like LinkedIn icon Sean Grealy in the process (as a Quokka would acquire dropped sausage rolls at the Rottnest Island bakery), one particular person caught my eye, and will henceforth capture many others’ attention over the course of the week: Bill Tai.
Legendary Silicon Valley investor, and to land the context for Australians: Bill led the seed investment into Canva.
He is a true first believer, but I won’t over-engineer the Bill and Canva story — you can go investigate that for yourself.
What’s a little less known for folks in general, is that Bill bloody loves kite-surfing and has followed the weather patterns and best conditions for it, around the world, for years now.
Perth’s best season hits in *checks notes* you got it: the start of December, right when West Tech Fest is on.
It’s a fun nod to the origins of West Tech Fest founding days, that Bill would roll through, and has somewhat influenced the activation continuing to amplify from its more modest days more than a decade ago.
Now, you can just go say g’day to Bill here, he’s everywhere.
But instead of just asking for money, ask Bill about his passion for sustainability solutions. Or kite-surfing.
Day 1: Monday
The first day of the festival kicked off early on Monday with West Tech Women – a part of the fest I was proud to speak at last year when repping Tractor Ventures.
It was a fantastic opening to the conference right next to Perth Zoo, with Main Sequences’ Elaine Stead giving a stirring and hard-hitting keynote to a full room on the power to overcome, and referencing the famed Adam Grant quote: “Authenticity means erasing the gap between what you firmly believe inside and what you reveal to the outside world”.
Next on the agenda was First Nations House, one of the many activations happening around the core week agenda, and oh wow, it was a very full one. Set in a pop-up structure next to the Supreme Court Gardens, a few hundred attendees dealt with the howling wind to lean in just a little closer, for some epic discussions about place, technology and humans — shining a spotlight on some unbelievable Indigenous entrepreneurs in the process.
With visiting representatives speaking from the US, Mexico and New Zealand, there was a noted continual reference to rich cross-cultural dialogues, and the importance of First Nations influence involved in every stage of decision-making, advocacy and action.
An epic day one, which may have concluded with yours truly somehow finding himself in the US Ambassador’s home, enjoying a little Perth soirée. As you do.
Day 2: Tuesday
Day two of West Tech Fest was all about ‘Coast’.
It was held at Port Beach in North Fremantle, which is the home of kite-surfing, and the venue, with its backdrop of the beach and spectacular waves (and wind this year in particular) provided an experience that…look, I’m a Melburnian, we’ve got nothing good to reference, beach-wise. Not like this.
Fittingly, the event was very focused on sustainability, ocean conservation, and the role technology and capital can play in influencing the rapid solutions we require now, both proactive and reactive.
What was extremely apparent was this activation had attracted a significant amount of international visitors, and guests from all over Australia, and there was a nice confluence of different messaging highlighting the strength of WA as a beacon of innovation, as it continues to produce solutions that don’t stick solely to the unaware’s first guess: mining.
The message? Come to WA, build a great business, and expand courtesy of a very supportive ecosystem. And then to the East or beyond.
Importantly (and plenty of past conference organisers would know this well), there is a very large and noticeable involvement from the WA Government’s Department of Jobs, Tourism, Science and Innovation, led ably by Minister Stephen Dawson, who is *strap yourself in, it’s a mouthful*: Minister for Emergency Services; Innovation and the Digital Economy; Science; Medical Research; Minister Assisting the Minister for State and Industry Development, Jobs and Trade.
I’d noticed how involved the Minister was last year, as he roamed around every event, completely approachable. He was happy to lean into storytelling about all the things to be proud of in WA, as part of the continued efforts to accelerate the state’s STEM influence and provide pathways for the introduction of more talent, and more investment.
Plus, it’s Coast. Everyone is in board shorts/dressed down, intentionally. Such is the casual, and confident, vibe of the Coast activation. On to another ‘Sundowner’ it is!
The highlight? Seeing the launch of the newly established GreenTech Hub, which aims to advance WA’s expertise and infrastructure in green technology and services to support WA’s energy transition toward net zero emissions by 2050.
The GreenTech Hub is one of five WA innovation hubs, established by the state government through the Department of Jobs, Tourism, Science and Innovation, which focuses on data science, cybersecurity, creative technologies and life science.
Day 3: Wednesday
There was a slower start to the day on Wednesday, but with plenty of satellite events happening, you’re most definitely not lacking in things to do.
The Freo Startup Festival at Freo Social – an epic music-venue-turned-startup-panel-and-pitch extravaganza – sees a large range of early-stage companies gather, sniffing around the numerous VCs who have made their way over East, and pitching to their heart’s content (both the startups and the VCs).
It was quite the epic bout of programming actually, with panels featuring some world-class data-focused founders, a (refreshingly) curated series of pitches from actual technologists (which can often be lacking in the meetup world), and then the pitch session itself, which was split into two parts.
First there was an investor reverse pitch to the strong crowd, masterfully won by Purpose Ventures’ Kylie Gerrard, and then on to the main course: the pitching startups themselves. The winner was Dr Emily Zhen of Materia Health, a WA-based medical technology company revolutionising the global standard of care in organ and tissue transportation.
Afterwards, startup folks did as startup folks do. We gathered together to mingle and talk excitedly, hands gesticulating all over the place, excitedly talking about plans and WA, and plans in WA, and continual references to “I’m going to bring X here next year”.
I should know. I was that person last year when I first attended, and now I continue to return each year, with a new group of people in tow, such is how good it is.
Next: West Tech Main on Thursday
As I lodge this story, dear reader, we are just about to head to the main course: West Tech Main at the Perth Convention Exhibition Centre. The Premier is giving an address, it’s a whole thing.
We’ll pick up the reporting with a focus on the builders themselves of some of these spectacular companies, as they showcase their spectacular visions and why it is that building them in Perth, the most remote major city in the world, is something that makes dollars and makes sense.
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