Blog 2023
Pearcey events, news and blog items from 2023.
The 2023 Pearcey National Entrepreneur Award was presented to Didier Elzinga founder and CEO of Culture Amp, by Rick Harvey, National Awards Director of the Pearcey Foundation at the prestigious 2023 Pearcey National Awards gala dinner, in Sydney.
At the 2023 Pearcey National Awards gala dinner on Monday 30 October 2023 in Sydney, David and Aidan Tudehope, Richard White and Professor Jean Armstrong were elevated to the Pearcey Hall of Fame. The Pearcey Hall of Fame is an individual award that recognises a distinguished lifetime of achievement and contribution to the development and growth of the Australian ICT industry.
The Pearcey Medal, the most prestigious annual individual award in the Australian ICT industry, in its 25th year, was awarded to brothers, Aidan and David Tudehope. David and Aiden founded Macquarie Technology Group in 1992 and have guided their company to become a fully integrated carrier, supplying voice, mobile, data networks & managed hosting solutions to business & government users in Australia & Asia.
Brisbane, Australia – 18 October 2023 – The Pearcey Foundation today announced Yas Grigaliunas, founder and chief evangelist of Circonomy, as the recipient of the 2023 Queensland ICT Entrepreneur of the Year Award. The Pearcey Foundation also gave a highly commended award to Geoff Augutis.
At a special Pearcey Foundation roundtable event, Marcus Dawe was awarded the ACT Chief Minister’s Pearcey Entrepreneur Award by the ACT Chief Minister, Andrew Barr. Marcus is CEO of MCi Carbon, a clean energy scale-up that started in Canberra 17 years ago. Marcus has mentored many rising entrepreneurs over last 10 years. This year, the Pearcey Foundation is pleased to announce him as the 2023 ACT Chief Minister’s Pearcey Entrepreneur for his involvement in MCi Carbon.
25 years ago, the Foundation launched on its mission to celebrate, support and encourage Australians who engage in, and excel at, the
invention, development and use of information, communication and computing technologies (ICT) for the betterment of our society.
Building on the work of Dr Trevor Pearcey and his invention of the first digital computer in Australia, which put us at the global forefront
of the digital age, we have recognised outstanding Australians:
161 Pearcey Entrepreneur Awards
62 Pearcey Hall of Famers
24 Pearcey Medals
Peer-selection is the hallmark of the Pearcey awards. Selected by past award recipients, this is the community recognising the significant achievements of its peers.
A half-day gathering to review the findings from our seven national discussions. The Australia 4.0 discussion series and summit
are designed to open the door to substantial innovation and business opportunities throughout the Australian ICT sector.
These activities explore the profound changes required of the Australian electricity system to realise a Net Zero Australia. This outcome
demands significant collaboration between the energy and ICT sectors.
The Australia 4.0 Summit is intended to include diverse perspectives, across key stakeholders, exploring the opportunities
for the Australian ICT sector to contribute to the transition to Net Zero of the Australian electricity system.
The 2023 Pearcey Entrepreneur of the Year award for NSW was presented to Emma Weston, co-founder and CEO of AgriDigital, on 4 October at ASX. The award was presented by Wayne Fitzsimmons, OAM. Under Emma's leadership, AgriDigital has become a pioneering force in digitalising global agricultural supply chains, connecting farmers directly to consumers.
Ada Lovelace Day honours all the innovative women in STEM, commemorating their ingenuity that has changed the course of
history.
Proudly sponsored by the Pearcey Foundation.
The Monash University Faculty of IT is exploring the role of Australian women in early digital computing – and the opportunities in the
future. Join us for insightful speeches, a thought-provoking panel discussion and networking over a light lunch in our celebration ‘Australian
women in IT yesterday, today and tomorrow’
which will be opened by Professor Ann Nicholson, the first female Dean of our faculty. It will then venture into the life of Ada
Lovelace and how women can carry on her legacy of impact today and tomorrow.
The 2023 Victorian Pearcey Entrepreneur Award presented to Didier Elzinga, founder and CEO of Culture Amp. Award was presented at a special dinner in Melbourne, by the Honourable Ben Carroll MP, Minister for Industry & Innovation, State Government of Victoria. A flagship event of the Victorian Digital Innovation Festival and of the Melbourne Connect Innovation Week
In 1955, the first digital computer arrived in Australia in Melbourne, called CSIRAC. It is the world's oldest surviving first-generation
electronic computer and the first computer to produce digital music.
Our guest was the former Head of the Dept of Computer Science at the Uni of Melbourne and explains how CSIRAC led to the rapid adoption of
computing at the university and fostered the discipline.
Guest: Dr Peter Thorne, former Head of the Department of Computer Science, University of Melbourne, Chair, Heritage
Committee, The Pearcey Foundation.
Broadcast 3 Sep 2023
The 2023 WA Pearcey Entrepreneur Award was presented to Pia Turcinov AM, Director FundWA, at the 32nd WAITTA Incite Awards, Westin Perth, Friday 11 August 2023.
Many of us recall Harry as the crusty but jovial former head of TRL – Telecom Research Labs, for many years. His passing on 31 July at age 93 marks the end of an era when Telecom Australia dominated all aspects of Telecommunications in Australia.
Max was a graduate of the University of Melbourne and spent four years at Weapons Research Establishment in Salisbury (South Australia) before returning to Melbourne to start Digital Equipment’s Australian operations in 1967. Max was pioneer in the recognition and retention of our computing heritage and an authority on early Australian-made computers.