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Worried about AI changing your job, or do you feel like you should be using it, but don’t know where to start?

In this live podcast episode of Emerging Tech Unpacked, host Lucy Lin speaks with Lee Hickin, Executive Director of Australia’s National AI Centre, about Australia’s AI future, the skills we need and what AI adoption looks like for small businesses.

From getting time back to helping teams navigate change, Lee challenges the way we talk about AI at work. Is “productivity” really the benefit people care about? Does responsible AI need to mean complicated governance? And how do we move beyond fear without ignoring the risks?

We explore:

• Getting started with AI when you’re already stretched for time.

• Why AI confidence involves more than learning how to use ChatGPT.

• The jobs debate, and the difference between changing tasks and changing roles.

• Practical AI safety, transparency and accountability for small businesses.

• The Office of AI and the National AI Centre’s role in supporting adoption.

• Whether Australia should build its own AI models, and where we could lead.

Plus, Lee shares a revealing story about a car repair business whose AI experiment stalled, not because the technology failed, but because the people weren’t on board.

This conversation was recorded live in front of an audience at Cremorne Digital Hub, in collaboration with SMEC AI.

What’s holding you back from using AI at work: time, confidence, skills or something else? Tell us in the comments.

For more information, visit our website: https://www.emergingtechunpacked.com/

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Chapters

00:00 Meet Lee Hickin, Executive Director, the National AI Centre

01:16 Australia’s Office of AI: what’s its role?

03:10 “Where do I start?” The biggest AI adoption hurdle

05:05 How the National AI Centre helps businesses

08:06 What’s holding Australia back from embracing AI?

12:13 Forget productivity - can AI give you time back?

20:17 Less jargon, better habits: rethinking AI governance

21:31 Is AI taking jobs, or changing how we work?

23:46 From AI fear to confidence: changing the conversation

24:28 When AI works, but your team isn’t on board

26:58 AI skills beyond prompting: learn the limitations

29:58 Should Australia build its own AI models?

32:44 Where Australia could lead in applied AI

35:29 Deepfakes, disclosure and being transparent with customers

37:34 Why the AI conversation needs more humanity

40:17 What comes next for Australia’s AI adoption?

42:25 Final takeaways: keeping humans in the loop

Support the show

🎙️ Website: https://www.EmergingTechUnpacked.com/
🎙️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@emergingtechunpacked
🎙️ Apple Podcast: https://apple.co/4d6Hfoi
🎙️ Spotify: https://spoti.fi/49TS1LG

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Sooner or later, many of us will face a confronting question: is it time for Mum, Dad or a grandparent to get more long-term support? Aged care can feel overwhelming, emotional and full of unknowns, but it is far more than a “nursing home.”

In this honest conversation, host Lucy Lin sits down with registered nurse and Care Window co-founder Fiona Symons, who explains what aged care really looks like today. From support at home to residential care, while unpacking loneliness, dementia, family decisions, nursing, and the technologies helping older people stay connected to the ones they love.

Together, Lucy and Fiona explore:

• What nurses really do in hospitals and aged care, and why they are essential clinical decision-makers, advocates and educators
• Fiona’s career pivot from law to nursing, and how both careers centre on helping people navigate difficult systems
• When families may need to consider aged care, including after falls, mobility changes, stroke, dementia or cognitive decline
• The differences between home care, assisted living and residential aged-care facilities
• What daily life in a modern aged-care home can look like
• Loneliness and social isolation among older people, including why being surrounded by people does not always mean feeling connected
• Gender stereotypes in nursing, the invisible emotional labour of care, and the nursing workforce challenge
• How technology can support, not replace, human care
• The story behind Care Window, a simple, dementia-friendly video-calling device Fiona co-founded with her brother after their father entered residential aged care
• AI in healthcare, digital literacy, and the future of aged care innovation

Fiona’s central message is simple: aged care is not as scary as people think, but families need to talk about it before a crisis forces the conversation. If you are caring for ageing parents, supporting a loved one with dementia, considering home care or residential aged care, working in healthcare, or interested in the future of health technology, this episode is for you.

With special thanks to the CSIRO ON Innovation Program for sponsoring this important episode! 🙏

For more information, visit our website: https://www.emergingtechunpacked.com/

Connect with us: https://bio.site/emergingtechunpacked

*Subscribe to our YouTube channel:* http://www.youtube.com/@emergingtechunpacked?sub_confirmation=1

*Follow us on our social media channels to get the latest news:*

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🔔 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@emergingtechunpacked

*Chapters*

00:00 Aged & Elder Care Introduction

01:42 Meet Fiona Symons

02:58 Lawyer to Nurse Career Pivot

07:45 Law Skills in Nursing

10:07 What Nurses Really Do

19:29 Healthcare Burnout and Staff Shortages

25:03 Gender Bias in Nursing

29:27 When to Move into Aged & Elder Care

35:48 Home Care and Assisted Living

41:12 Inside Aged Care Homes

44:44 Understanding Social Isolation

52:47 Care Window Introduction

57:15 The Realities of Founder Life

01:03:27 Quick Fire Career Skills

01:08:05 AI Tech Future Healthcare

01:10:58 Reframing Aged Care Family Conversation

Support the show

🎙️ Website: https://www.EmergingTechUnpacked.com/
🎙️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@emergingtechunpacked
🎙️ Apple Podcast: https://apple.co/4d6Hfoi
🎙️ Spotify: https://spoti.fi/49TS1LG

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Ovarian cancer is one of the most lethal women’s cancers because it’s often diagnosed too late and there’s still no routine screening test like a mammogram or Pap smear.

In this episode of Emerging Tech Unpacked, host Lucy Lin sits down with Associate Professor Michelle Hill, a biochemist, scientist‑entrepreneur, and founder/CEO of Proseek Bio, to unpack one of the most shocking realities in women’s health: right now, the only way to definitively diagnose ovarian cancer is to surgically remove the ovary and send it to pathology. That means many women undergo major surgery, sometimes losing an ovary, just to find out whether a mass was cancerous or completely benign.

In this conversation, we cover:

• What ovarian cancer is and why it’s called a “silent killer”
• Key ovarian cancer symptoms to watch for (bloating, pelvic pain, feeling full quickly, frequent urination, fatigue)
• Why today, definitive diagnosis often still requires surgery
• How Michelle’s company Proseek Bio is developing multi‑biomarker blood tests to help decide: “Do I really need this surgery?”
• The bigger picture of women’s health, medical gaslighting, and Michelle’s journey from scientist to health‑tech entrepreneur

With special thanks to the CSIRO ON Innovation Program for sponsoring this important episode! 🙏

For more information, visit our website: https://www.emergingtechunpacked.com/

Connect with us: https://bio.site/emergingtechunpacked

Subscribe to our YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/@emergingtechunpacked?sub_confirmation=1

Follow us on our social media channels to get the latest news:

🔔 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/emergingtechunpacked

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🔔 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/Emerging-Tech-Unpacked/100090565331236/

🔔 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@emergingtechunpacked

Chapters

00:00 Ovarian Cancer Wake-up Call

01:03 Meet Associate Professor Michelle Hill

04:04 Cake Lab

05:08 Why Diagnosis Needs Surgery

08:20 Silent Killer Explained

09:17 Why Detection Is Hard

12:07 Early Detection Saves Lives

17:03 Women Left Out Of Medical Research

20:09 Medical Gaslighting Reality

22:12 Symptoms You Can't Pin Down

34:29 Proseek Bio Origin Story

36:42 How The Blood Test Works

39:22 From Academia To Founder

42:54 Raising Capital Lessons

48:32 Future Skills For Scientists and Founders

53:22 Femtech And Women's Health

55:48 Practical Health Actions

Support the show

🎙️ Website: https://www.EmergingTechUnpacked.com/
🎙️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@emergingtechunpacked
🎙️ Apple Podcast: https://apple.co/4d6Hfoi
🎙️ Spotify: https://spoti.fi/49TS1LG