Artificial intelligence (AI) expert and Flamingo Ai Founder and Executive Director Dr Catriona Wallace is set to share her insights on what we can look forward to in a world with more advanced AI, at this year's CEBIT expo. The keynote, titled'AI: Human Machine: Who gets the upper hand?' will explore developments in AI, how it's being used and how it will transform the business world and life as we know it. "AI, described as the most powerful force equal in impact to the discovery of fire and the invention of electricity, will increasingly become the primary power driving the massive changes that [climate change and disruptive technologies] will bring," Wallace said. "With AI set to replace 40% of jobs and 30% of business interactions in the next five years, and the time of'singularity', where machines may become'smarter' than humans possibly just 20 years away, the onus will be on people to successfully navigate the Fourth Industrial Revolution." NSW Minister for Jobs and Investment Stuart Ayres said CEBIT Australia will provide an international forum for technology companies to do business and discuss the future, including the impact of AI and how it can be harnessed to secure new jobs.

For many founders the road to raising capital usually takes months, if not years, but for Flamingo founder Dr Catriona Wallace the latest part of her journey took just 12 minutes. The artificial intelligence fintech startup, which is listed on the Australian Securities Exchange through its holding company Cre8tek, raised $5.1 million last month via a share placement to new and existing institutional, professional and sophisticated investors. The oversubscribed round closed after just 12 minutes, with $10 million in bids vying for the 128.1 million in shares that were on offer for 4c each. "There's recently been a lot more interest and conversation [in Australia] around artificial intelligence, and this is reflected in the success of this raise," Wallace tells StartupSmart. "Like all startup founders I know that raising money is always a difficult task -- we were very pleased that the $5.1 million was oversubscribed and mainly our feeling was of happiness and confidence. It gives us a really significant runway into 2018 to prove our next key milestones."