The full program for the 2026 Growth Summit in Melbourne is now live, promising expert insights, powerful leadership lessons, and fearless conversations tailored to Australian startups, scaleups, and SMEs.
Presented by SmartCompany and Startup Daily, in partnership with Xero, the Growth Summit will see the nation’s brightest entrepreneurs and innovators inspire a new generation of ambitious business leaders.
Leigh Jasper, the serial founder and startup luminary behind $1.6 billion success story Aconex, will share an insider’s view of Australia’s innovation landscape in his opening keynote address.
And Angad Soin, managing director AU/NZ and global chief strategy officer at Xero, will unpack what really makes a winning strategy playbook.
From there, the day will split into two streams.
Startup and scaleup attendees can expect practical tips on building the right team and organisational culture, through a conversation between Doug English, co-founder and CTO of employee engagement platform Culture Amp, and Jeanette Cheah, co-founder and CEO of education platform HEX.
Startup Daily editor Simon Thomsen will anchor an ‘Ask Us Anything’ session featuring top entrepreneurial talent, before four standout founders showcase their ideas at The Startup Network’s lunchtime pitch competition.
As Victoria reshapes its startup support systems, Lauren Morrey, COO of Breakthrough Victoria, Paz Pisarski, co-founder of The Community Collective, and Kirstin Hunter, CEO of crowdsourced funding platform Birchal, will address today’s challenges and tomorrow’s solutions in a session hosted by entrepreneur and Hype Man Media founder Dickie Currer.
And for founders ready to take on investment, leading figures from Antler, Rampersand, Square Peg, and Giant Leap will break down what investors really want to see in 2026.
The SME stream will see David Koch — media personality, finance commentator, and small business advocate — explain how he built and scaled Pinstripe Media, in conversation with SmartCompany deputy editor Tegan Jones.
Founders will hear the latest tips for practical artificial intelligence adoption in a panel session backed by Salesforce, before a brand development masterclass.
Sebastian Neylan, head of growth at Up, Jessica Hatzis, co-founder of creative branding agency Willow & Blake, and Justin Dry, co-founder of Vinomofo, will anchor that discussion.
Everyday strategies to protect the mental health of small business leaders will come to the fore in the afternoon, in a fireside chat between Janey Martino, the co-founder of Smiling Mind and CEO of Kic, and Deepak Singh, the founder of Mission + Rhythm.
Both streams will lead to 12 opt-in roundtable sessions, where delegates will cover everything from capital control, burnout management, SME hiring, and the perfect exit strategy.
Private Media CEO Will Hayward will close out the formal proceedings, before casual drinks and networking opportunities, hosted by MySMB.
For more information about the Growth Summit on February 25, including ticket sales, click here.
For sponsorship and partnership opportunities, please contact the SmartCo Media sales team.
