A visionary is ousted, the board is panicking, and the future is already here. Definitely not based on real events.

Two acts. Two San Francisco luxury apartments. Two war rooms.

In one: the founder of a fictional AI company — bratty, worshipped, and feared — plots his revenge with an inner circle of advisors and true believers.

In the other: a boardroom of Substack writers, ex-CIA operatives, Zoomer coders, and corporate Judases scramble to enjoy their final hours in charge, knowing you can’t actually fire a founder. (Remember when Apple fired Steve Jobs in the ’80s?)

Industry Panel — 7th September, Tom Mann Theatre

AI-pocalypse Now? Australia’s AI Industry is a live discussion following the matinee performance of Doomers on Saturday 7 September, 3:30–5:00pm at the Tom Mann Theatre, Surry Hills.

In keeping with the play’s themes, questions will be posed by the actors as provocations drawn directly from the script, inviting our panel to respond in turn. Each panellist will have around five minutes to reflect on how far Australia has come since 2023, considering issues of governance, risk, ethics, and equity.

Prompts include:

• What role should non-technical experts play in fast-moving AI development?
• How do we decide what’s “weird but harmless” versus “weird and catastrophic”?
• Should we focus more on preventing global catastrophe, or on cutting down everyday suffering?
• Is utopian language a distraction from asking who profits and who loses in Australia’s AI economy?

Hear from:

• Alana Maurushat — Professor of Cybersecurity and Behaviour at Western Sydney University, specialising in cybercrime, privacy, and digital risk, with extensive experience advising industry and communities.
• Gareth Roberts —AI researcher and cognitive neuroscientist with over 15 years’ experience in human-centred design, psychometrics, generative AI, and technology governance.
• George Matthews — Digital transformation leader with 20+ years’ experience across healthcare, telco, and banking, focused on scaling AI from pilot projects to measurable business value.
• Jay F. — Privacy and AI policy specialist with experience across consulting, finance, and regulatory sectors, bringing a multidisciplinary background in neuroscience, data governance, and risk.

The session will conclude with open discussion and shared takeaways, bridging the gap between artistic imagination and real-world AI futures.