E177 - Blackbird’s Sunrise 24 (part 1) Ft. Adam Gilmour, Kristen Durham, Tova Angsuwat, Bronwen Clune

In his fourth appearance on Open the Pod Bay Doors, ARENA CEO Darren Miller sits down with Ian Gardiner for a special retrospective episode. Looking back at their past chats from 2019, 2021, and 2022, they reflect on what predictions aged well, what took the sector by surprise, and how the climate tech conversation has transformed over the last seven years. From solar's relentless drop down the cost curve to wind’s unexpected price doubling, and the shift from green hydrogen hype to AI-driven data center demand, Darren offers a pragmatic state-of-the-nation on Australia's energy transition. Plus, they discuss ARENA’s newly launched $30M Launchpad initiative for early-stage climate tech startups and incubators, the push for green steel, and what to expect as Australia edges closer to 80% renewable grid penetration. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Recorded live at Venture Down Under on the Gold Coast, Ian Gardiner sits down with Jonathan Yip, Managing Director and Head of Innovation Banking, Asia at HSBC Innovation Banking. Jonathan’s career with HSBC began as an intern in 2008 and has since taken him across the UK, Hong Kong, San Francisco, New York and Korea. Today, he leads HSBC’s Innovation Banking business across Asia, supporting venture capital firms and the high-growth companies they back. In this episode, Jonathan explains what “HSBC Innovation Banking” is, how HSBC Innovation Banking built a global platform following its acquisition of Silicon Valley Bank UK, and why the next wave of innovation will require much more than traditional venture capital. They cover: What HSBC Innovation Banking banking offers founders, scale-ups and venture capital firms Why Australia’s closely connected startup ecosystem stands out globally The growing international interest in Australian founders in HSBC Innovation Banking and frontier technology How Asia’s innovation markets differ across India, China, Hong Kong and Southeast Asia Why venture funding is growing but becoming increasingly selective The shift from financing software to financing “atoms” The infrastructure behind AI, including energy, data centres and semiconductors Where Australia can compete within the global AI stack The opportunity across quantum, climate tech and advanced infrastructure Why the current innovation cycle requires venture capital, sovereign capital, bank credit and venture debt working together See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of Open the Pod Bay Doors, Ian Gardiner sits down with Ella Greer, AI Customer Engineer at Google Cloud, for a deep dive into how AI is actually being built, deployed, and scaled inside real businesses today. Ella works hands-on with some of Australia’s leading companies — from startups to enterprise — helping them design and implement AI roadmaps. This conversation cuts through the hype and focuses on what’s really happening on the ground: from early experimentation to production-scale AI systems. They cover: The shift from AI experimentation to real-world deployment and scale What an “AI Customer Engineer” actually does inside Google Why startups are still the most exciting (and fastest-moving) AI adopters What “agents” and “agentic systems” really mean — explained simply How companies are moving from proof-of-concept to real business outcomes Why the SaaS model is under pressure — and what replaces it Where the new “moats” are in an AI-first world (data, verticalisation, expertise) The rise of usage-based pricing and token-driven business models How AI is reshaping product development, engineering, and startup costs Why great engineers still matter — and what skills actually endure How founders should think about AI today (and why it’s no longer optional) They also explore: The future of AI pricing — why intelligence gets cheaper, but better models cost more Whether AGI is close (and why definitions matter) The role of DeepMind as Google’s research engine Why AI adoption is still uneven — and why most people aren’t using it deeply (yet) How founders and investors should evaluate AI companies in a noisy market Ella brings a practical, engineering-first perspective with clear takeaways for founders, operators, and investors navigating the AI shift. Quick Fire Round 📚 Book recommendation – Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro 🎧 Podcast recommendation – Latent Space (AI engineering deep dives) 🗞️ News source – Alpha Signal (AI research + repo summaries) 👩‍💼 Favourite leader – Lila Ibrahim (COO, DeepMind / Chief AI Readiness Officer) 🛠️ Productivity tool – Gemini CLI (with strong context engineering) 📺 TV / entertainment – Married at First Sight (pure brain-off viewing) A sharp, grounded conversation on where AI is actually delivering value — and what to do about it. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of Open the Pod Bay Doors, Ian Gardiner sits down with long-time friend and tech leader Matt Loop, now Head of Asia Pacific at Rippling. Matt has been at the heart of SaaS for two decades. From opening Salesforce’s first Australian office out of his Bondi apartment, to helping LinkedIn scale across Asia and the US, guiding Slack through the chaos of COVID, and now leading Rippling’s rapid expansion across APAC — Matt has lived through (and helped build) some of the most iconic software companies of our time. They cover: Opening Salesforce AU with nothing but a laptop and a dream

In this episode, Ian sits down with Evan Walden, CEO of Getro—a startup rethinking how VCs support their portfolio companies through meaningful connections and talent networks. From his early days at General Assembly to leading a platform used by top-tier VC firms, Evan shares candid insights on leadership, founder relationships, startup career pathways, and why authentic networking matters more than ever. Whether you're a founder, investor, or ecosystem builder, this conversation is packed with practical ideas and fresh perspectives on value creation in venture capital. 🔑 Key Conversation Highlights: From Philosophy to Tech: Evan’s unconventional path from studying philosophy to building tech platforms that empower communities and ecosystems.