Government Innovation Showcase South Australia 2026

For executives in Digital Services, Customer Experience, and Service Design. Explore how to deliver intuitive, inclusive and citizen-centred services through human-centred design, digital tools, responsible AI and automation.

For leaders in Technology, Data, ICT, Architecture and Transformation. Learn how to modernise systems, embed AI, and leverage data to drive smarter, faster and more resilient government operations.

• Achieving a World Class Treasury and generational upgrade to deliver faster, more accurate, reformed financial services
• The logistics of modernising finance systems to help government make better-informed decisions, and allocate resources more effectively in the face of population and business growth
• Exploring the first pilot – Department for Correctional Services: how automation and improved insights can help lift productivity and deliver more value back to the state

Healthcare and human services sit at the heart of community wellbeing, shaping public trust and ensuring every South Australian can access the support they need. Each is undergoing major reform as digital systems, data and AI reshape how support is delivered. This session brings together leaders driving these transformations to explore how technology is improving outcomes for citizens, strengthening frontline capability and building public trust in government.

• From Care to Capability: Exploring how digital and data are transforming health and human services, and the intricacies of building trust in a digital age
• The impact of major AI and digital investments in health, including improvements in diagnostics, patient flow, clinician workload and system responsiveness, and the future model of digitally supported healthcare in SA
• The evolving role of data, technology and workforce capability across human services to deliver more integrated, proactive and citizen-centred support
• Statewide Electronic Patient Record: Implementation learnings from a large-scale health IT rollout and the roadmap for future enhancements and integrations

Alastair McDonald

Director, Strategy and Architecture, Digital Health SA, Department for Health and Wellbeing

Ruth Ambler

Deputy Chief Executive, Department of Human Services

Robyn Lindsay

Deputy Chief Executive, Clinical System Support & Improvement, Department for Health & Wellbeing

David Morris

Executive Director, SA Virtual Care Service, Department for Health and Wellbeing

With increasing complexity in client needs, seamless information systems are crucial to supporting vulnerable families and the community at large. This panel examines new data-sharing models, frontline tools, and the $14.9 million Digital Investment Fund investment toward improving the way information and data about families facing complex issues is managed.

This session will discuss the integration of tech systems, data-and AI driven approaches, and expanded care programs to strengthen family-based support, improve oversight, and enhance service delivery across the sector.

• Integrating AI and data to improve early intervention and risk assessment
• Improving the way information and data about families facing complex issues is managed
• Improving cross-agency data sharing for vulnerable cohorts and building ethical, transparent and responsible approaches to AI in social care
• Lifting digital and information capability across frontline teams
• Enhancing disability access and inclusion

Nikunj Mandlas

Chief Information Officer, Department for Child Protection

Shikha Sharma

Chief Information Officer, Department of Human Services

Kirsty Delguste

Executive Director, Disability and Specialised Services, Department of Human Services

Abdel-rahman Bassal

Executive Director, Research, Innovation and Digital Health, Women's and Children's Health Network

This fireside chat explores how co-design, cross-sector collaboration and a strong focus on children’s voice are reshaping service systems. It will highlight how government can design services with communities—particularly those experiencing vulnerability—to improve outcomes, equity and trust.

• Working differently for better outcomes for kids: Government as facilitators and enablers, collaborating and resourcing across sectors, and cultivating strong relationships and aligned mindsets
• Community-led decision making and co-design
• Exceptionalism and adaptability – working loose (in method) and tight (in principles)
• Elevating community and children’s voices and listening to what families say they need to align services and support
• Measuring what matters: experience, behaviours, and outcomes – nor just throughput.

Belinda Hallsworth

Executive Director, Children in the North, Department of Premier and Cabinet

Mauve Downs

Director, Nursing, Northern Adelaide Local Health Network

Liz Browne

Lead, Community Connection, Future Education Models, Department for Education

From policing and public safety to agriculture and justice, South Australian agencies are leveraging technology, data and AI to improve outcomes, streamline operations, and enhance decision-making. This panel explores how digital tools and AI are being integrated across complex systems to reduce administrative burden, strengthen frontline services, and drive evidence-based policy.

• Exploring how SAPOL is using AI and digital tools to enhance situational awareness, streamline operations, reduce administrative burden, and integrate legacy and modern systems for next-generation policing.
• Showcasing how PIRSA is using predictive AI, electronic identification, and modelling to enhance biosecurity, improve traceability, support drought response, and drive data-driven agricultural innovation.
• Highlighting how data models, digital tools, and cross-agency collaboration are being leveraged to modernise justice, streamline case management, and reduce system pressure.

Stuart Watt

Chief Information Officer, Department of Primary Industries and Regions

Vaiju Joshi

Portfolio Director, Mobility Transformation, SA Police

Linda Abrams-South

Executive Director, Corporate Services, Courts Administration Authority

• Shifting from "black box IT" to an engagement-based service model
• The value of relationships
• Where AI & Automation can help