The former Seven and Optus senior marketer, in partnership with industry veteran Vijay Solanki and M&C Saatchi Group, has launched a new InnovAItor series to connect the corporate sector, including senior marketers, with “an underworld of AI startups and scale-ups”.
Lucio Ribeiro, pictured above, is in a unique position in corporate Australia. He is one of the few senior executives who can combine the “thinking” about Generative AI strategies with the “doing” of creating solutions – a chasm that he observes is holding back Australian businesses.
Ribeiro, who until recently was director of marketing digital and innovation at Seven, where he was charged with using AI tech to improve Seven’s media and marketing efforts, told B&T there’s a there’s a gap between the wisdom from corporates in terms of governance and performance, and the street smarts of AI entrepreneurs and vibrant “underworld” or start-tups that know how make solutions but lack the discipline to implement them at scale.
“My gut feeling tells me there’s an AI transformation coming,” he said. “Right now there’s a lack of symmetry between the corporates and the people talking about AI and those that are actually doing it, such as the entrepreneurs, the startups, the one-man show builders.
“They’re the hackers, engineers and tech people building cool stuff, but they don’t have the discipline or the experience, the architecture from senior people who run corporations. Before I worked at Optus. I was really good at creating stuff, but I had no discipline.”
Ribeiro previously held a senior technology, innovation and activation role at Optus under former CMO Melissa Hopkins. He was responsible for product launches, strategic partnerships and innovative marketing using cutting edge technology like AI.
It was his experience at Optus that showed him the importance of governance and corporate structures to help get ideas off the ground.
Connecting InnovAItors
Ribeiro has partnered with Solanki – the pair connected at this year’s Cannes in Cairns event – to devise a series of sessions that bring together corporates and AI entrepreneurs.
The inaugural session on 3 October will explore the ethical use of data, models and governance in Gen AI, examining how governance can make or break your business and address key issues at the intersection of Gen AI, corporate governance, and startup agility.
Distinguished speakers including Lee Hickin, the AI technology and policy lead at Microsoft Asia, and Dr Kendra Vant, former AI leader at Xero and Seek, will lead the discussion, covering topics including how companies can navigate the complexities of Gen AI innovation, manage the non-deterministic nature of outputs, commit to continuous learning and adaptability, share examples of both good and poor practices, and provide guidance on actionable steps to consider.
“The InnovAItor series is not just about understanding AI; it’s about putting it into practice in a way that benefits both startups and established businesses. The mission is to use Gen AI to help better connect startups with corporate,” said Solanki, who has been mentoring and coaching industry talent after a distinguished career as a senior marketer and IAB Australia CEO.
Ribeiro added: “This is an opportunity for senior marketers to come in and see things in practice. There will be a short debate followed by a ‘shoe, don’t tell’ session where senior executives can see practical AI demonstrations.
Future sessions of the InnovAItor series will include topics such as AI and creativity, exploring the role of AI in content creation and distribution, and the relationship between AI and the board/investor.
