Design Groups Melbourne

Shipping with AI

// OVERVIEW The Shipping with AI meetup (formerly UX Design in SaaS) has partnered with the [Outlook AI Conference 2026](https://theoutlook.io/events/outlook-ai) to bring you an in-person evening as part of the conference activities. Shipping with AI is a meetup for designers, product managers and engineers who want to move past the hype and learn how AI is actually being used to build and ship real products. No theory-heavy keynotes. Just demos, real workflows and practical tips you can take back to your team the next day. // WHAT IS HAPPENING Our three speakers come at AI from different angles: delivery in regulated industries, engineering and AI agents, and design quality. They'll each share how their teams are shipping with AI right now. That includes the tools, the workflows, what's working, and what they've learned the hard way. Expect presentations, live demos, Q&A, drinks, food, games, prizes and plenty of time to network. // WHEN 6:00 – 8:30pm, Wednesday 11th November // WHERE Nintex Offices, Level 14, 530 Collins Street, Melbourne VIC 3000 // WHY COME ALONG * See it, don't just hear about it. Live demos of real AI workflows, not slides about the future. * Practical takeaways. Tips and tricks you can try with your team straight away. * Three perspectives in one night. Delivery, engineering and design, so you get the full picture of what it takes to ship with AI. * Ask the hard questions. How do you keep AI output on-brand? How do you bring AI into regulated businesses safely? How do you give coding agents the right context? * Meet your people. Connect with Melbourne designers, PMs and engineers working through the same challenges. * It's free, and there's food, drinks and prizes. // OUR SPEAKERS ANASTAS MANOJLOVSKI – Technical Director, Whitefox Cloud Consulting Anastas has spent 20 years where customers, sales and engineering meet. He specialises in turning messy problems into solutions that actually get delivered. At Whitefox he leads sales and delivery for clients in financial services, insurance, health and logistics, and oversees 25+ engineers across Australia and offshore. His work includes governed Claude adoption with human review and audit trails for financial advice provider Padua, and AI road-defect detection models running in production. Before Whitefox, he spent nine years at Whispir, including five as AU/NZ Head of Solution Architecture. Anastas brings a grounded view on getting AI into regulated businesses without creating new risk. TOM PETERSON – Co-Founder, ctxpipe.ai Tom is a builder who orchestrates local and cloud AI models to get things done, fast. He is co-founder of ctxpipe.ai, an open-source, Git-backed context layer for coding agents and software factories. He is also Head of Product at TRU Rec AI, building computer vision analytics with open-source models. With 15 years in tech across project management, business analysis, design, product and founding, Tom is passionate about developer experience and building tools that make engineers' lives easier. Previously, he co-founded Appear, an API discovery and automation tool. HAMISH O'NEILL – Founder, UI Rules Hamish is a multi-award-winning design leader with more than two decades in digital product design across retail, telecommunications, finance and digital marketplaces. He is the founder of UI Rules, a governance layer that serves brand and design system rules to AI coding tools like Cursor, Claude Code and v0, keeping AI-generated interfaces on-brand. Previously, Hamish was Head of Design Systems at Carsales, where he led the team behind the Torq design system. Before that he was Design Chapter Lead and Design Lead for the Brand & Design System at ANZ. // OUTLOOK AI CONFERENCE The [Outlook AI Conference 2026](https://theoutlook.io/events/outlook-ai) is on Thursday 12th November in Melbourne and is not to be missed. [Tickets are on sale now](https://theoutlook.io/events/outlook-ai#block-tickets-62bf87ad-1efc-4e26-91e6-cd62d9c8affb). // SPONSORS A big thank you to Nintex, our amazing sponsor, for making this event happen.

Shipping with AI - Live in-person event

Hi folks, Exciting news. The UX Book Club is sponsoring an awesome live in-person event, happening in Melbourne Australia on 11 November. The event is an AI meetup. RSVP quick! Details below. // OVERVIEW The Shipping with AI meetup (formerly UX Design in SaaS) has partnered with the [Outlook AI Conference 2026](https://theoutlook.io/events/outlook-ai) to bring you an in-person evening as part of the conference activities. Shipping with AI is a meetup for designers, product managers and engineers who want to move past the hype and learn how AI is actually being used to build and ship real products. No theory-heavy keynotes. Just demos, real workflows and practical tips you can take back to your team the next day. // WHAT IS HAPPENING Our three speakers come at AI from different angles: delivery in regulated industries, engineering and AI agents, and design quality. They'll each share how their teams are shipping with AI right now. That includes the tools, the workflows, what's working, and what they've learned the hard way. Expect presentations, live demos, Q&A, drinks, food, games, prizes and plenty of time to network. // WHEN 6:00pm – 8:30pm, Wednesday 11th November // WHERE Nintex Offices, Level 14, 530 Collins Street, Melbourne VIC 3000 // WHY COME ALONG * See it, don't just hear about it. Live demos of real AI workflows, not slides about the future. * Practical takeaways. Tips and tricks you can try with your team straight away. * Three perspectives in one night. Delivery, engineering and design, so you get the full picture of what it takes to ship with AI. * Ask the hard questions. How do you keep AI output on-brand? How do you bring AI into regulated businesses safely? How do you give coding agents the right context? * Meet your people. Connect with Melbourne designers, PMs and engineers working through the same challenges. * It's free, and there's food, drinks and prizes. // OUR SPEAKERS ANASTAS MANOJLOVSKI – Technical Director, Whitefox Cloud Consulting Anastas has spent 20 years where customers, sales and engineering meet. He specialises in turning messy problems into solutions that actually get delivered. At Whitefox he leads sales and delivery for clients in financial services, insurance, health and logistics, and oversees 25+ engineers across Australia and offshore. His work includes governed Claude adoption with human review and audit trails for financial advice provider Padua, and AI road-defect detection models running in production. Before Whitefox, he spent nine years at Whispir, including five as AU/NZ Head of Solution Architecture. Anastas brings a grounded view on getting AI into regulated businesses without creating new risk. TOM PETERSON – Co-Founder, ctxpipe.ai Tom is a builder who orchestrates local and cloud AI models to get things done, fast. He is co-founder of ctxpipe.ai, an open-source, Git-backed context layer for coding agents and software factories. He is also Head of Product at TRU Rec AI, building computer vision analytics with open-source models. With 15 years in tech across project management, business analysis, design, product and founding, Tom is passionate about developer experience and building tools that make engineers' lives easier. Previously, he co-founded Appear, an API discovery and automation tool. HAMISH O'NEILL – Founder, UI Rules Hamish is a multi-award-winning design leader with more than two decades in digital product design across retail, telecommunications, finance and digital marketplaces. He is the founder of UI Rules, a governance layer that serves brand and design system rules to AI coding tools like Cursor, Claude Code and v0, keeping AI-generated interfaces on-brand. Previously, Hamish was Head of Design Systems at Carsales, where he led the team behind the Torq design system. Before that he was Design Chapter Lead and Design Lead for the Brand & Design System at ANZ. // OUTLOOK AI CONFERENCE The [Outlook AI Conference 2026](https://theoutlook.io/events/outlook-ai) is on Thursday 12th November in Melbourne and is not to be missed. [Tickets are on sale now](https://theoutlook.io/events/outlook-ai#block-tickets-62bf87ad-1efc-4e26-91e6-cd62d9c8affb). // SPONSORS A big thank you to Nintex and the UX Book Club, our amazing sponsors, for making this event happen.

End of year drinks in Melbourne

Melbourne people, please join us for an in-person get-together to celebrate another year of working in content strategy and design. We have space reserved at Mr Wilkinson, a friendly, relaxed and accessible bar in Brunswick East. Pizza and snacks are available. For those outside Melbourne, sorry you'll miss out this time (unless you book a flight). We'll see you for more great online events from February 2027.

SEEK's CTO on AI transformation: a lunchtime fireside chat with James Ross

Join us for another exciting **in-person** Product Tank event! The event is free, but seats are limited—secure yours now for a fantastic opportunity to meet the speakers and connect with the community. **Event outline** James Ross, CTO of SEEK, sits down for an informal fireside chat on AI transformation. No slides, just questions: • What building with AI on the side has changed about how he thinks about engineering at seek • What's been tried, what's worked and what hasn't • Where it's hardest: people, process or tooling • The experiments he's most excited to run next • His advice to other leaders **About James** James has spent about half of his four decades in tech as a programmer and tech lead, and the other half as a senior manager and leader across startups, scale-ups and corporates. He's had more luck than he thinks is fair, and is one of the only people you'll meet who's written a book you can buy on Amazon, music you can listen to on Spotify and software you can buy online as well. He's very excited about getting his coding mojo back thanks to AI and although he failed to get either of his daughters into tech, he's going to try again with his two grandkids! Don’t miss this opportunity to gain invaluable insights and network with industry experts! **This is an in-person only event.** Doors open 12:15pm, core session from 12:30-1:30pm. See you there, Product Tank Melbourne Team

Fabulous 70s: Floor talk with fashion designer Jenny Bannister

Indian.

Art, Aesthetics, & Appetites: A Double Treat with Mei!

Gallery & Coffee Friend Outing

Join a small group for a relaxed gallery visit followed by coffee and conversation. This event is a great way to meet people without the pressure of constant talking. We’ll explore a gallery or exhibition together, take our time looking around, and then head to a nearby cafe afterwards to chat about what we saw. Art, design, and creative spaces naturally give people something to talk about, making this a great event if you want connection to feel more organic. You don’t need to know anything about art to join — curiosity is more than enough. Come solo, meet the group, and enjoy a thoughtful weekend activity with people who are also looking to make genuine friendships. The coffee afterwards is where conversations can continue and people can get to know each other more personally. **Perfect for:** creative people, gallery lovers, coffee lovers, quiet conversationalists, and anyone wanting a calm social experience. **Please note that downloading our app is a requirement for attending the event.** The app will be used throughout the event for prompts, activities, and other interactive content so having it ready will ensure you can fully participate. https://apps.apple.com/au/app/besocial/id6759604739 https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.appetiser.besocial&hl=en **Event photography and videography may take place at this event. Images and footage captured may be used in future BeSocial promotional materials.** **If you do not wish to appear in promotional materials, please notify Nexaro Group Pty Ltd before the event by emailing support@besocialapp.co, or let the event hosts know on the day.**

No 91 - From 352 pages to one dashboard using AI

**TEAMS LINK:** [https://teams.microsoft.com/meet/43970440298394?p=r98Ux35OWWA2t4wGbJ](https://teams.microsoft.com/meet/43970440298394?p=r98Ux35OWWA2t4wGbJ) **Details** Join us for networking, drinks and a good time catching up with fellow Power BI and Microsoft Fabric enthusiasts **Agenda:** 5:30PM - 6:00PM Welcome and Networking 6:00PM - 7:00PM Speaker Session **Topic:** From 352 pages to one dashboard: building a household survey report, leveraging AI **THE SPEAKER - Bernat Agullo** ### **Warren Dean** Warren Dean is the founder of DataTale, a Power BI consultancy for Australian government. He builds Power BI reports with AI agents and trains teams to do the same. **THE SESSION** #### Description How a 352 page household survey report became one interactive Power BI dashboard, built with AI agents. **Sponsors:** **Vivanti** A big thank you goes out to our sponsor, Vivanti, for their support of this Meetup; providing the venue as well as drinks for attendees. **GET AI** A big thanks to GET AI for sponsoring the food. We've built an AI powered service that can run your data platform. check out https://data.getai.com.au

A11y Allies Roundtable: Accessibility Horror Stories

Accessibility Allies monthly roundtable 2nd Tuesday of each month Proudly supported by [Builure](https://www.linkedin.com/company/builure/posts/) **Topic for November: TBA.** **Meet accessibility professionals and advocates.** * No presentations * Open discussion * Exchange ideas * Genuine connections **Tuesday 10 November 2026** **5:30 pm - 7:30 pm** **Free** Light refreshments provided (incl vegetarian and GF) **Location: Tank Steam Labs** Level 5, 440 Collins Street, Melbourne * Quiet exclusive space * Wheelchair access * Accessible toilet **Guest sign-in** Use the touch screen to right of the doors on level 5 to sign in as a guest. Or you can scan a QR code to use your mobile to sign in. Host name: Inshu Misra **Running late?** Post a message to let us know you'll be late with an ETA. We will come get you when you arrive. **Accessibility** Please contact us if you have any accessibility needs or questions not covered in the FAQs on the event registration page. We will do what we can to help you feel comfortable attending. Please contact us if you have any accessibility needs or questions about this event.

Physical AI Meetup - Year-ender

A premier platform to share insights, expand your network, and bridge the gap between Academia, Industry, and Suppliers. The Physical AI Meetup Melbourne brings together researchers, engineers, and industry practitioners working across artificial intelligence, robotics, embedded systems, sensing, and edge computing. Important: Please grab your[ FREE Eventbrite ticket to attend.](https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/physical-ai-meetup-melbourne-year-ender-tickets-2003999424224) Hear 4 expert talks, ask your questions in a panel Q&A, take the mic for an AI / hardware demo or announcement, and connect over pizza & drinks. A special thanks to the **La Trobe Business School** for hosting us, brought to you by **element14 Electronics** — our trusted electronic components distributor. Take the mic at our Community Open Mic! Bring your demo, prototype, or announcement — whether it is AI, hardware, robotics, embedded systems, sensing, or edge computing. All welcome. This is our last 2026 Physical AI Meetup in Melbourne, with more exciting topics and event formats in 2027! Agenda for this one: **5:30 – 6:00 pm \| Pizza & Networking** Enjoy pizza and drinks and connect with other attendees. **6:00 – 6:10 pm \| Welcome & Official Start** Hear a short welcome from the event hosts and an introduction to the Physical AI Meetup community. **6:10 – 6:30 pm \| Talk 1 – Practical case studies of Physical AI in Product Development** **Overview:** 2026 has been a wildly accelerated year in Physical AI. This talk dives into case studies on how the technology has evolved and is being used – from diagnostic medical imaging to battery-powered image recognition in the outback. **Speaker:** Blake Fuller, Head of Product Design and Engineering, Capgemini Australia Bio: Blake is the Head of Product Design and Engineering at Capgemini Australia. He has released more than 50 products to market and leads high-calibre product development teams. **6:30 – 6:50 pm \| Talk 2 – Technology and Innovation in Home\-Based Care Using Social Robot Matilda** **Overview:** Attendees will learn how social robotics and AI are transforming residential and home-based care. Key takeaways include: • AI & human-centred interaction: how emotional intelligence, facial/voice recognition, and multimodal communication enable human-like engagement. • Personalised care: how Matilda delivers cognitive stimulation, social connectivity, daily routine support, and health monitoring. • Supporting caregivers: reducing carer burnout, streamlining workflows, and enabling real-time analytics. • Ecosystem integration: combining companion robots with smart home devices and wearables for proactive, independent living. **Speaker:** Dr. Debbie Mei-Tai Chu, A/Prof, Director at Computer, Communication and Social Innovation Hub, La Trobe University Bio: Dr Debbie Mei-Tai Chu is an Associate Professor at La Trobe Business School and Director of the Computer, Communication and Social Innovation Research Hub. She was Program Director of the Master of Business Analytics and Master of Business Information Systems for over 10 years, and has more than 10 years of global industry experience, including as a knowledge management consultant across the public and private sectors. **6:50 – 7:10 pm \| Talk 3 – Beyond LLMs: Developing physical grounded agentic memory** **Overview:** As AI systems move beyond text generation toward autonomous decision-making in the physical world, memory becomes a critical missing capability. This talk explores how physically grounded agentic memory can enable AI agents to learn from real-world experience, retain context, and continuously improve their decisions. Drawing on Generative AI, embodied intelligence, edge computing, and adaptive reasoning, Dr Wei Peng will share insights into building agents that can perceive, remember, reason, and act in dynamic environments. **Speaker:** Dr. Wei Peng, A/Prof, Principal Research Fellow in AI, RMIT University Bio: Dr Wei Peng brings over 15 years of international experience bridging AI research and product innovation across academia and industry. After developing enterprise-scale Generative AI applications at global technology companies, he now leads industrial AI development at RMIT University. He has published at top AI conferences including ACL, CVPR, EMNLP, and NeurIPS, and holds multiple patents. **7:10 – 7:30 pm \| Talk 4 – Brain\-Inspired AI for Robotics: Visual Place Recognition on Neuromorphic Hardware** **Overview:** As robots become more autonomous, the computational demands of visual perception become a major challenge in energy-constrained environments. Can the human brain inspire more energy-efficient robotic intelligence? This talk shares recent research on neuromorphic computing for Visual Place Recognition (VPR), which lets robots recognise previously visited locations. The approach combines Vector Symbolic Architectures (VSA), Spiking Neural Networks (SNNs), and Intel's Loihi 2 neuromorphic processor, replacing conventional nearest-neighbour search with brain-inspired, event-driven computation. Experiments show lower power consumption than a conventional CPU implementation, with competitive recognition accuracy. **Speaker:** Dr. Vidura Sumanasena, Lecturer, AI and Analytics, La Trobe Business School Bio: Dr Vidura Sumanasena is a Lecturer in AI and Analytics at La Trobe University. He holds a PhD from La Trobe and a bachelor's degree in Electronic and Telecommunication Engineering from the University of Moratuwa, Sri Lanka. His research covers brain-inspired AI, neuromorphic computing, Spiking Neural Networks, and Vector Symbolic Architectures, including evaluating neuromorphic algorithms on Intel's Loihi research processors for autonomous robotic systems. **7:30 – 7:50 pm \| Panel Q&A** There will be no question portion after each talk. Please hold your questions for this session, so you can ask anything that may be answered by any and all of the speakers. **7:50 – 8:00 pm \| Community Open Mic** Take the mic and share with the group — from hardware demos and embedded prototypes to quick AI-at-the-edge announcements, project showcases, and calls for collaboration. Last reminder: Please make sure to register on Eventbrite for your free ticket: [https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/physical-ai-meetup-melbourne-year-ender-tickets-2003999424224](https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/physical-ai-meetup-melbourne-year-ender-tickets-2003999424224)

Photographing the Male Workshop