HIDE THE VEG

Maya is a developer. And really talented.

The prototype she's just built at the AI Summit Hackathon is the cleanest thing she's ever made.

She wants funding. She wants a co-founder. She wants people to take her seriously.

And she's about to walk into a room full of judges and investors who will decide in the first ninety seconds whether she's worth listening to.

The pitch she's rehearsed is precise, comprehensive… and utterly forgettable.

What Maya doesn't know yet is that the pitches that win aren't the most sophisticated. They're the ones that make the audience feel something.

The ones that let the data do its work quietly, wrapped inside a story people want to pass on.

When Maya learns to structure her pitch as a human story, something shifts.

The judges stop taking notes and start leaning forward.

A potential co-founder feels the ping of serendipity.

A connection has been forged that will form a foundation for the many conversations required to bring her prototype to the world.

ABOUT THE SESSION

This workshop is delivered by Launch Pad Creative's Creator-in-Residence Si Dikkenberg, a specialist in narrative frameworks for creative and entrepreneurial innovation. Si has led masterclasses and facilitated innovation programs internationally, and has spent years working at the intersection of storytelling and business strategy. This session draws on the same frameworks used with founders, filmmakers, and entrepreneurs across Western Sydney's growing creative industries.

THIS IS IDEAL FOR:

• Hackathon participants who want to present their work with the same passion that they built it
• Developers and designers who feel more at home in a codebase than in front of a microphone
• Anyone who knows their idea is good but freezes when asked to explain why anyone should care
• Founders and proto-founders who want to be remembered after they've left the room

YOU WILL WALK AWAY WITH:

• A clear narrative structure for your pitch — tested and refined in the room
• Techniques for humanising technical concepts without dumbing them down
• A framework for identifying the emotional core of any data-led proposal
• Practical ways to make your idea travel — stories that your audience will share after you've gone
• New connections made during the session and the networking opportunity that follows

WHERE & WHEN:

April 23, 2026 5.30-8pm

Level 1, 6 Hassall St, Parramatta

Presented by Launch Pad Creative in partnership with Western Sydney Tech Innovators | Part of the AI Summit Australia program at

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Host or Publisher Western Sydney Tech Innovators