Featured speakers

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  Josephine Teo

  Minister for digital development and information and minister-in-charge of Smart Nation and cybersecurity, Singapore

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  Josephine Teo

  Minister for digital development and information and minister-in-charge of Smart Nation and cybersecurity, Singapore

  As minister for digital development and information and minister-in-charge of Smart Nation and cybersecurity, Josephine Teo leads the Singapore government’s efforts in digital development, public communications and engagement, Smart Nation strategy, and cybersecurity. Ms Teo is concurrently the second minister for home affairs and a member of the Future Economy Council. She serves as chairperson of the board of governors of the Ong Teng Cheong Labour Leadership Institute, as well as chairperson of the council of advisers of the ST Engineering Staff Union. Ms Teo was the minister for manpower from 2018 to 2021. She previously served in the Prime Minister’s Office and the Finance, Transport and Foreign Affairs Ministries. During the pandemic years, she was also a member of the National Jobs Council, which oversaw efforts to support and rebuild jobs for Singaporeans in the wake of covid-19. A member of parliament since 2006, Ms Teo was formerly chair of the Government Parliamentary Committee for Education and assistant secretary-general of the National Trades Union Congress. She was concurrently chief executive of the not-for-profit organisation Business China, a platform to strengthen Singapore’s bicultural foundation. She graduated from the National University of Singapore and obtained a master of science in economics from the London School of Economics.

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  Rob Francis

  Sr. vice president and chief technology officer, Booking.com

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  Rob Francis

  Sr. vice president and chief technology officer, Booking.com

  As SVP & Chief Technology Officer, Rob Francis leads Booking.com’s full stack technology strategy to support the company’s continued growth as a global technology leader in travel, working to create an even more seamless end-to-end experience for travelers. With a history at high-performing organizations in the e-commerce and consumer technology space, Rob’s expertise in legacy modernisation, engineering, software development, corporate systems and evolving tech infrastructure helps to drive the Booking.com vision for products and technology that enable travelers to experience the world.

  Previously, Rob held leadership roles at Sonos – where he led the evolution from project-based mindset to engineering platforms, in addition to establishing a software development function in Customer Care and an Enterprise Information Security function – and prior to that at Amazon.com. Rob spent the early part of his career in application engineering and enterprise architecture at financial institutions including JP Morgan and Lehman Brothers.

  Rob holds a bachelor’s degree in Computer Science from Indiana University and currently lives in Amsterdam.

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  Rodrigo Pizarro

  Chief transformation officer, SAPMENA region, L’OREAL

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  Rodrigo Pizarro

  Chief transformation officer, SAPMENA region, L’OREAL

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  Ayumi Nakajima

  Senior director and head of Asia Pacific, content, Pinterest

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  Ayumi Nakajima

  Senior director and head of Asia Pacific, content, Pinterest

  Ayumi Nakajima has 20 years of experience in consulting, consumer tech and international expansion. She has worked in Tokyo, Hong Kong, London and now Singapore, where she leads the content business at Pinterest for the APAC region. Prior to joining Pinterest, Ms Nakajima was an early employee at Facebook (Meta) to launch the ads business in APAC. Before venturing into consumer tech she spent her initial years at Nielsen, where she consulted Fortune 100 CPG companies on their go-to-market strategy in greater China and Japan.

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  Sachin Tonk

  Deputy chief data officer, GovTech Singapore

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  Sachin Tonk

  Deputy chief data officer, GovTech Singapore

  Sachin Tonk leads talented data and analytics teams as deputy chief data officer for the Government Technology Agency of Singapore (GovTech). For the past 17 years, Mr Tonk has established global data and analytics teams for organisations across India, Singapore, the United Kingdom and the Middle East. He has an outstanding track record in automation, artificial intelligence, data analytics, business intelligence, innovation, business transformation, governance and architecture. He holds an MBA from the National University of Singapore and Anderson School of Management. Mr Tonk has successfully launched his podcast, Making Data Speak, where industry leaders discuss the latest data- and AI-related topics, and he has won several data and analytics awards including the Indian Achievers Award.

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  Kara Hinesley

  Global head of public policy and government affairs, Canva

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  Kara Hinesley

  Global head of public policy and government affairs, Canva

  Kara Hinesley is Canva’s global head of public policy and government affairs, leading the company’s engagement with governments, regulators and civil society on tech and digital issues. Previously, she was Twitter’s director of public policy for APAC, leading initiatives like the Christchurch Call and the global #DataforGood programme. She also shapes technology policy as a board member of the Information Technology Industry Council and as a delegate for the Australian American Leadership Dialogue. She holds dual legal qualifications in the US and Australia, with degrees from Texas A&M, the University of Sydney and the Australian National University.

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  Peter Morrison

  Digital science principal, BP

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  Peter Morrison

  Digital science principal, BP

  Peter Morrison is a digital science principal in the Asia-Pacific at BP. He is part of a group charged with thought leadership, technology scouting and research, with a mission to bring frontier digital technology to the firm. This wide remit covers businesses in trading, shipping, hydrogen, wind, undersea operations, geophysics and more. Mr Morrison’s background is in mathematics and software engineering, which he has pursued at several investment banks and trading organisations.

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  Ralph Ostertag

  Director, digital and technology, Asia-Pacific, Heineken

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  Ralph Ostertag

  Director, digital and technology, Asia-Pacific, Heineken

  As a passionate digital and technology leader for the APAC region at Heineken, Ralph Ostertag creates business value by focusing on innovation and growth. With nearly 25 years’ experience in Europe, Africa, Asia-Pacific and the Americas, Mr Ostertag drives digital transformation of the business by implementing digital strategies, developing and rolling out digital platforms and fostering a digital mindset within the company. With experience in the automotive, financial services and FMCG industries, Mr Ostertag has a strong passion for agility, speed and disruptive innovation. Known as an outstanding innovator and networker, he collaborates globally to bring the smartest people together to work with him on game-changing ideas and initiatives, leveraging exponential technologies like internet of things, metaverse and generative AI. His achievements in the context of digital transformation have been acknowledged by numerous CIO awards in the APAC region.

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  Stephanie KC Hung

  Chief information officer, Asian Development Bank

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  Stephanie KC Hung

  Chief information officer, Asian Development Bank

  Stephanie King-Chung Hung is the chief information officer of the Asian Development Bank and director-general of the bank’s information technology department. Ms Hung is responsible for ADB’s digital strategies and transformation, as well as its IT infrastructure, operations and talent spanning across more than 30 countries. She has 25 years’ experience leading and delivering technology solutions and innovation. Her technology leadership at IBM, Hewlett-Packard, Microsoft and ST Engineering involved servicing clients from a wide variety of industries, including banking, financial services and the public sector. Ms Hung also founded Alitheia Partners, a private limited company providing business advisory to startups and consultancy to enterprises and academia on business transformation and innovation. She holds a master’s degree in business administration with high honours from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, where she was recognised as a Wallman Scholar. She holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration with a concentration in finance from the Chinese University of Hong Kong.

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  Lawrence Fong

  Director, digital and IT, Cathay

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  Lawrence Fong

  Director, digital and IT, Cathay

  Lawrence Fong was appointed director of digital and information technology in 2021, responsible for Cathay Pacific Group’s digital transformation and IT functions. Prior to taking up this position, Mr Fong was the group general manager of digital and IT. He has also held multiple managerial positions in Cathay Group, including as commercial director at Global Logistics Systems, country manager for Benelux and Scandinavia, manager of e-business, director and general manager of Vogue Laundry, and general manager of IT. Mr Fong joined Cathay Pacific in 1990. He graduated from the University of Hong Kong with a bachelor’s degree in engineering, and he has a master’s degree in business from the University of Michigan and a master’s degree in information management from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. He is an advisory council representative of SITA, a member of the AWS Global CIO Advisory Council and a member of the advisory committee for the Department of Aeronautical and Aviation Engineering of Hong Kong Polytechnic University.

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  Cristal Hui

  Head, data governance and analytics, AIA Hong Kong and Macau

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  Cristal Hui

  Head, data governance and analytics, AIA Hong Kong and Macau

  Cristal Hui is a seasoned data and AI strategist with a career spanning over 20 years in the banking sector. At AIA, she has spearheaded data culture, governance, data and AI initiatives, aligning them with business goals. Ms Hui established an analytics hub, embedded data organisation into business, developed a customer master database and led cloud-based analytics platform operations, achieving business and operational efficiency improvement. Her leadership in data management and analytics has driven impactful business transformations and enhanced customer experiences across multiple financial institutions, including HSBC, NAB, ANZ and ABN AMRO. Ms Hui’s expertise lies in leveraging data and AI to foster innovation and operational excellence in the banking and insurance sector.

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  Prerit Mishra

  Head of analytics, Asia-Pacific, DHL

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  Prerit Mishra

  Head of analytics, Asia-Pacific, DHL

  Prerit Mishra is a data visionary and leader who spearheads the application of artificial intelligence (AI) and data analytics at DHL Asia-Pacific. With over 12 years of experience, he fosters a data-driven culture by collaborating with business units and customers to leverage AI for smarter decision-making. Combining expertise in AI, product development, strategy and software development, Mr Mishra champions innovative solutions that address critical business needs. While sustainability remains a core value, his focus has shifted to harnessing the power of AI to optimise operations, enhance customer experiences and drive overall business growth. A sought-after speaker and thought leader, he actively contributes to industries through insightful podcasts and his role on the industry advisory panel of a prestigious university. He is passionate about shaping future generations with the skills needed to thrive in the AI-driven future.