In this high-impact session at EDGE 2026 in Sydney, David Roberts reframes AI not as a tool, but as a systemic replacement of organizational thinking itself.

Drawing parallels between the Industrial Revolution, electricity, the printing press, the microchip and the internet, Roberts argues that AI represents all of these revolutions combined — compressed into a single decade. He challenges CEOs to abandon incremental transformation models and recognize that AI collapses execution layers, eliminates structural friction, and removes traditional scale advantages.

This is not about augmentation. It is about architectural redesign.

Key Takeaways:
• AI is not a productivity tool — it restructures execution itself.
• Competitive advantage shifts from talent to system architecture.
• Leadership in the AI era requires adaptability, courage and moral clarity.