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Australia has experienced a remarkable surge in AI enterprise during the past decade. Significant AI research and commercialization concentrated in Sydney drives the sector’s development nationwide and influences AI trends globally. The city’s cutting-edge AI sector sees academia, business and government converge to foster groundbreaking advancements, positioning Australia as a key player on the international stage.

Sydney – home to half of Australia’s AI companies

Sydney has been pinpointed as one of four urban super-clusters in Australia, featuring the highest number of tech firms and the most substantial research in the country.

The Geography of Australia’s Digital Industries report, commissioned by the National Science Agency, the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) and the Tech Council of Australia, found Sydney is home to 119,636 digital professionals and 81 digital technology companies listed on the Australian Stock Exchange with a combined worth of A$52 billion.

AI is infusing all areas of this tech landscape. According to CSIRO, more than 200 active AI companies operate across Greater Sydney, representing almost half of the country’s 544 AI companies.

“Sydney is the capital of AI startups for Australia and this part of Australasia”
—Toby Walsh, UNSW Sydney

With this extensive AI commercialization and collaboration in progress across Sydney, AI startups are flourishing.

“Sydney is the capital of AI startups for Australia and this part of Australasia,” according to Professor Toby Walsh, Scientia Professor of Artificial Intelligence at the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at the University of New South Wales (UNSW Sydney).

He cites robotics, AI in medicine and fintech as three areas where Sydney leads the world in AI innovation.

“As a whole, Australia punches well above its weight in the AI sector,” Professor Walsh says. “We’re easily in the top 10, and by some metrics, we’re in the top five in the world. For a country of just 25 million people, that is quite remarkable.”

Sydney’s universities at the forefront of AI research

A key to Sydney’s success in the sector is the strength of its universities, which are producing outstanding research.

In 2021, the University of Sydney (USYD), the University of New South Wales (UNSW Sydney), and the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) collectively produced more than 1000 peer-reviewed publications in artificial intelligence, contributing significantly to the field’s development.

According to CSIRO, Australia’s research and development sector has higher rates of AI adoption than global averages, with Sydney presenting the highest AI publishing intensity among Australian universities and research institutes.

Professor Aaron Quigley, Science Director and Deputy Director of CSIRO’s Data61 and Head of School in Computer Science and Engineering at UNSW Sydney, says Sydney’s AI prowess is supported by a robust educational pipeline that supplies skilled graduates to a wide range of industries that are rapidly adopting AI technologies.

“Sydney’s AI sector is backed up by the fact that you have such a large educational environment with universities like UTS, USYD and UNSW Sydney,” he says. “They rank in the top five of AI locations in Australia.”

UNSW Sydney is a heavy hitter, with more than 300 researchers applying AI across various critical fields such as hydrogen fuel catalysis, coastal monitoring, safe mining, medical diagnostics, epidemiology and stress management.

UNSW Sydney has more than 300 researchers applying AI across various critical fields such as hydrogen fuel catalysis, coastal monitoring, safe mining, medical diagnostics, epidemiology, and stress management.UNSW

UNSW Sydney’s AI Institute also has the largest concentration of academics working in AI in the country, adds Professor Walsh.

“One of the main reasons the AI Institute exists at UNSW Sydney is to be a front door to industry and government, to help translate the technology out of the laboratory and into practice,” he says.

Likewise, the Sydney Artificial Intelligence Centre at the University of Sydney, the Australian Artificial Intelligence Institute at UTS, and Macquarie University’s Centre for Applied Artificial Intelligence are producing world-leading research in collaboration with industry.

Alongside the universities, the Australian Government’s National AI Centre in Sydney, aims to support and accelerate Australia’s AI industry.

Synergies in Sydney: where tech titans converge

Sydney’s vortex of tech talent has meant exciting connections and collaborations are happening at lightning speed, allowing simultaneous growth of several high-value industries.

The intersection between quantum computing and AI will come into focus with the April 2024 announcement of a new Australian Centre for Quantum Growth at the University of Sydney. This centre will aim to build strategic and lasting relationships that drive innovation to increase the nation’s competitiveness within the field. Funded under the Australian Government’s National Quantum Strategy, it aims to promote the industry and enhance Australia’s global standing.

“There’s nowhere else in the world that you’re going to get a quantum company, a games company, and a cybersecurity company in such close proximity across this super-cluster arc located in Sydney”
—Aaron Quigley, UNSW Sydney

“There’s a huge amount of experience in the quantum space in Sydney,” says Professor Quigley. “Then you have a large number of companies and researchers working in cybersecurity, so you have the cybersecurity-AI nexus as well. Then you’ve got a large number of media companies and gaming companies in Sydney, so you’ve got the interconnection between gaming and creative technologies and AI.”

“So it’s a confluence of different industry spaces, and if you come here, you can tap into these different specialisms,” he adds “There’s nowhere else in the world that you’re going to get a quantum company, a games company, and a cybersecurity company in such close proximity across this super-cluster arc located in Sydney.”

A global hub for AI innovation and collaboration

In addition to its research and industry achievements in the AI sector, Sydney is also a leading destination for AI conferences and events. The annual Women in AI Asia Pacific Conference is held in Sydney each year, adding much-needed diversity to the mix.

Additionally, the prestigious International Joint Conference on Artificial Intelligence was held in Sydney in 1991.

Overall, Sydney’s integrated approach to AI development, characterized by strong academic output, supportive government policies, and vibrant commercial activity, firmly establishes it as a leader in the global AI landscape.

To discover more about how Sydney is shaping the future of AI download the latest eBook on Sydney’s Science & Engineering industry at besydney.com.au

This sponsored article is brought to you by Purdue University.

The CHIPS America Act was a response to a worsening shortfall in engineers equipped to meet the growing demand for advanced electronic devices. That need persists. In its 2023 policy report, Chipping Away: Assessing and Addressing the Labor Market Gap Facing the U.S. Semiconductor Industry, the Semiconductor Industry Association forecast a demand for 69,000 microelectronic and semiconductor engineers between 2023 and 2030—including 28,900 new positions created by industry expansion and 40,100 openings to replace engineers who retire or leave the field.

This number does not include another 34,500 computer scientists (13,200 new jobs, 21,300 replacements), nor does it count jobs in other industries that require advanced or custom-designed semiconductors for controls, automation, communication, product design, and the emerging systems-of-systems technology ecosystem.

Purdue University is taking charge, leading semiconductor technology and workforce development in the U.S. As early as Spring 2022, Purdue University became the first top engineering school to offer an online Master’s Degree in Microelectronics and Semiconductors.

U.S. News & World Report has ranked the university’s graduate engineering program among America’s 10 best every year since 2012 (and among the top 4 since 2022)

“The degree was developed as part of Purdue’s overall semiconductor degrees program,” says Purdue Prof. Vijay Raghunathan, one of the architects of the semiconductor program. “It was what I would describe as the nation’s most ambitious semiconductor workforce development effort.”

Prof. Vijay Raghunathan, one of the architects of the online Master’s Degree in Microelectronics and Semiconductors at Purdue.Purdue University

Purdue built and announced its bold high-technology online program while the U.S. Congress was still debating the $53 billion “Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors for America Act” (CHIPS America Act), which would be passed in July 2022 and signed into law in August.

Today, the online Master’s in Microelectronics and Semiconductors is well underway. Students learn leading-edge equipment and software and prepare to meet the challenges they will face in a rejuvenated, and critical, U.S. semiconductor industry.

Is the drive for semiconductor education succeeding?

“I think we have conclusively established that the answer is a resounding ‘Yes,’” says Raghunathan. Like understanding big data, or being able to program, “the ability to understand how semiconductors and semiconductor-based systems work, even at a rudimentary level, is something that everybody should know. Virtually any product you design or make is going to have chips inside it. You need to understand how they work, what the significance is, and what the risks are.”

Earning a Master’s in Microelectronics and Semiconductors

Students pursuing the Master’s Degree in Microelectronics and Semiconductors will take courses in circuit design, devices and engineering, systems design, and supply chain management offered by several schools in the university, such as Purdue’s Mitch Daniels School of Business, the Purdue Polytechnic Institute, the Elmore Family School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, and the School of Materials Engineering, among others.

Professionals can also take one-credit-hour courses, which are intended to help students build “breadth at the edges,” a notion that grew out of feedback from employers: Tomorrow’s engineering leaders will need broad knowledge to connect with other specialties in the increasingly interdisciplinary world of artificial intelligence, robotics, and the Internet of Things.

“This was something that we embarked on as an experiment 5 or 6 years ago,” says Raghunathan of the one-credit courses. “I think, in hindsight, that it’s turned out spectacularly.”

A researcher adjusts imaging equipment in a lab in Birck Nanotechnology Center, home to Purdue’s advanced research and development on semiconductors and other technology at the atomic scale.Rebecca Robiños/Purdue University

The Semiconductor Engineering Education Leader

Purdue, which opened its first classes in 1874, is today an acknowledged leader in engineering education. U.S. News & World Report has ranked the university’s graduate engineering program among America’s 10 best every year since 2012 (and among the top 4 since 2022). And Purdue’s online graduate engineering program has ranked in the country’s top three since the publication started evaluating online grad programs in 2020. (Purdue has offered distance Master’s degrees since the 1980s. Back then, of course, course lectures were videotaped and mailed to students. With the growth of the web, “distance” became “online,” and the program has swelled.)

Thus, Microelectronics and Semiconductors Master’s Degree candidates can study online or on-campus. Both tracks take the same courses from the same instructors and earn the same degree. There are no footnotes, asterisks, or parentheses on the diploma to denote online or in-person study.

“If you look at our program, it will become clear why Purdue is increasingly considered America’s leading semiconductors university” —Prof. Vijay Raghunathan, Purdue University

Students take classes at their own pace, using an integrated suite of proven online-learning applications for attending lectures, submitting homework, taking tests, and communicating with faculty and one another. Texts may be purchased or downloaded from the school library. And there is frequent use of modeling and analytical tools like Matlab. In addition, Purdue is also the home of national the national design-computing resources nanoHUB.org (with hundreds of modeling, simulation, teaching, and software-development tools) and its offspring, chipshub.org (specializing in tools for chip design and fabrication).

From R&D to Workforce and Economic Development

“If you look at our program, it will become clear why Purdue is increasingly considered America’s leading semiconductors university, because this is such a strategic priority for the entire university, from our President all the way down,” Prof. Raghunathan sums up. “We have a task force that reports directly to the President, a task force focused only on semiconductors and microelectronics. On all aspects—R&D, the innovation pipeline, workforce development, economic development to bring companies to the state. We’re all in as far as chips are concerned.”

This sponsored article is brought to you by Purdue University.

Companies large and small are seeking engineers with up-to-date, subject-specific knowledge in disciplines like computer engineering, automation, artificial intelligence, and circuit design. Mid-level engineers need to advance their skillsets to apply and integrate these technologies and be competitive.

As applications for new technologies continue to grow, demand for knowledgeable electrical and computer engineers is also on the rise. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, job outlook for electrical and electronics engineers—as well as computer hardware engineers—is set to grow 5 percent through 2032. Electrical and computer engineers work in almost every industry. They design systems, work on power transmission and power supplies, run computers and communication systems, innovate chips for embedded and so much more.

To take advantage of this job growth and get more return-on-investment, engineers are advancing their knowledge by going back to school. The 2023 IEEE-USA Salary and Benefits Survey Report shows that engineers with focused master’s degrees (e.g., electrical and computer engineering, electrical engineering, or computer engineering) earned median salaries almost US $27,000 per year higher than their colleagues with bachelors’ degrees alone.

Purdue’s online MSECE program has been ranked in the top 3 of U.S. News and World Report’s Best Online Electrical Engineering Master’s Programs for five years running

Universities like Purdue University work with companies and professionals to provide upskilling opportunities via distance and online education. Purdue has offered a distance Master of Science in Electrical and Computer Engineering (MSECE) since the 1980s. In its early years, the program’s course lectures were videotaped and mailed to students. Now, “distance” has transformed into “online,” and the program has grown with the web, expanding its size and scope. Today, the online MSECE has awarded master’s degrees to 190+ online students since the Fall 2021 semester.

“Purdue has a long-standing reputation of engineering excellence and Purdue engineers work worldwide in every company, including General Motors, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon, Texas Instruments, Apple, and Sandia National Laboratories among scores of others,” said Lynn Hegewald, the senior program manager for Purdue’s online MSECE. “Employers everywhere are very aware of Purdue graduates’ capabilities and the quality of the education they bring to the job.”

Today, the online MSECE program continues to select from among the world’s best professionals and gives them an affordable, award-winning education. The program has been ranked in the top 3 of U.S. News and World Report’s Best Online Electrical Engineering Master’s Programs for five years running (2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024).

The online MSECE offers high-quality research and technical skills, high-level analytical thinking and problem-solving skills, and new ideas to help innovate—all highly sought-after, according to one of the few studies to systematically inventory what engineering employers want (information corroborated on occupational guidance websites like O-Net and the Bureau of Labor Statistics).

Remote students get the same education as on-campus students and become part of the same alumni network.

“Our online MSECE program offers the same exceptional quality as our on-campus offerings to students around the country and the globe,” says Prof. Milind Kulkarni, Michael and Katherine Birck Head of the Elmore Family School of Electrical and Computer Engineering. “Online students take the same classes, with the same professors, as on-campus students; they work on the same assignments and even collaborate on group projects.

“Our online MSECE program offers the same exceptional quality as our on-campus offerings to students around the country and the globe” —Prof. Milind Kulkarni, Purdue University

“We’re very proud,” he adds, “that we’re able to make a ‘full-strength’ Purdue ECE degree available to so many people, whether they’re working full-time across the country, live abroad, or serve in the military. And the results bear this out: graduates of our program land jobs at top global companies, move on to new roles and responsibilities at their current organizations, or even continue to pursue graduate education at top PhD programs.”

Variety and Quality in Purdue’s MSECE

As they study for their MSECE degrees, online students can select from among a hundred graduate-level courses in their primary areas of interest, including innovative one-credit-hour courses that extend the students’ knowledge. New courses and new areas of interest are always in the pipeline.

Purdue MSECE Area of Interest and Course Options

• Automatic Control
• Communications, Networking, Signal and Image Processing
• Computer Engineering
• Fields and Optics
• Microelectronics and Nanotechnology
• Power and Energy Systems
• VLSI and Circuit Design
• Semiconductors
• Data Mining
• Quantum Computing
• IoT
• Big Data

Heather Woods, a process engineer at Texas Instruments, was one of the first students to enroll and chose the microelectronics and nanotechnology focus area. She offers this advice: “Take advantage of the one credit-hour classes! They let you finish your degree faster while not taking six credit hours every semester.”

Completing an online MSECE from Purdue University also teaches students professional skills that employers value like motivation, efficient time-management, high-level analysis and problem-solving, and the ability to learn quickly and write effectively.

“Having an MSECE shows I have the dedication and knowledge to be able to solve problems in engineering,” said program alumnus Benjamin Francis, now an engineering manager at AkzoNobel. “As I continue in my career, this gives me an advantage over other engineers both in terms of professional advancement opportunity and a technical base to pull information from to face new challenges.”

Finding Tuition Assistance

Working engineers contemplating graduate school should contact their human resources departments and find out what their tuition-assistance options are. Does your company offer tuition assistance? What courses of study do they cover? Do they cap reimbursements by course, semester, etc.? Does your employer pay tuition directly, or will you pay out-of-pocket and apply for reimbursement?

Prospective U.S. students who are veterans or children of veterans should also check with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to see if they qualify to for tuition or other assistance.

The MSECE Advantage

In sum, the online Master’s degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering from Purdue University does an extraordinary job giving students the tools they need to succeed in school and then in the workplace: developing the technical knowledge, the confidence, and the often-overlooked professional skills that will help them excel in their careers.

This is a sponsored article brought to you by BESydney.

Australia plays a crucial role in global scientific endeavours, with a significant contribution recognized and valued worldwide. Despite comprising only 0.3 percent of the world’s population, it has contributed over 4 percent of the world’s published research.

Renowned for collaboration, Australian scientists work across disciplines and with international counterparts to achieve impactful outcomes. Notably excelling in medical sciences, engineering, and biological sciences, Australia also has globally recognized expertise in astronomy, physics and computer science.

As the country’s innovation hub and leveraging its robust scientific infrastructure, world-class universities and vibrant ecosystem, Sydney is making its mark on this burgeoning industry.

The city’s commitment to quantum research and development is evidenced by its groundbreaking advancements and substantial government support, positioning it at the forefront of the quantum revolution.

Sydney’s blend of academic excellence, industry collaboration and strategic government initiatives is creating a fertile ground for cutting-edge quantum advancements.

Sydney’s quantum ecosystem

Sydney’s quantum industry is bolstered by the Sydney Quantum Academy (SQA), a collaboration between four top-tier universities: University of NSW Sydney (UNSW Sydney), the University of Sydney (USYD), University of Technology Sydney (UTS), and Macquarie University. SQA integrates over 100 experts, fostering a dynamic quantum research and development environment.

With strong government backing Sydney is poised for significant growth in quantum technology, with a projected A$2.2 billion industry value and 8,700 jobs by 2030. The SQA’s mission is to cultivate a quantum-literate workforce, support industry partnerships and accelerate the development of quantum technology.

Professor Hugh Durrant-Whyte, NSW Chief Scientist and Engineer, emphasizes Sydney’s unique position: “We’ve invested in quantum for 20 years, and we have some of the best people at the Quantum Academy in Sydney. This investment and talent pool make Sydney an ideal place for pioneering quantum research and attracting global talent.”

Key institutions and innovations

UNSW’s Centre of Excellence for Quantum Computation and Communication Technology is at the heart of Sydney’s quantum advancements. Led by Scientia Professor Michelle Simmons AO, the founder and CEO of Silicon Quantum Computing, this centre is pioneering efforts to develop the world’s first practical supercomputer. This team is at the vanguard of precision atomic electronics, pioneering the fabrication of devices in silicon that are pivotal for both conventional and quantum computing applications and they have created the narrowest conducting wires and the smallest precision transistors.

“We can now not only put atoms in place but can connect complete circuitry with atomic precision.” —Michelle Simmons, Silicon Quantum Computing

Simmons was named 2018 Australian of the Year and won the 2023 Prime Minister’s Prize for Science for her work in creating the new field of atomic electronics. She is an Australian Research Council Laureate Fellow, a Fellow of the Royal Society of London, the American Academy of Arts and Science, the American Association of the Advancement of Science, the UK Institute of Physics, the Australian Academy of Technology and Engineering and the Australian Academy of Science.

In response to her 2023 accolade, Simmons said: “Twenty years ago, the ability to manipulate individual atoms and put them where we want in a device architecture was unimaginable. We can now not only put atoms in place but can connect complete circuitry with atomic precision—a capability that was developed entirely in Australia.”

The Design Futures Lab at UNSW in Sydney, Australia, is a hands-on teaching and research lab that aims to inspire exploration, innovation, and research into fabrication, emerging technologies, and design theories.UNSW

Government and industry support

In April 2024, the Australian Centre for Quantum Growth program, part of the National Quantum Strategy, provided a substantial four-year grant to support the quantum industry’s expansion in Australia. Managed by the University of Sydney, the initiative aims to establish a central hub that fosters industry growth, collaboration, and research coordination.

This centre will serve as a primary resource for the quantum sector, enhancing Australia’s global competitiveness by promoting industry-led solutions and advancing technology adoption both domestically and internationally. Additionally, the centre will emphasise ethical practices and security in the development and application of quantum technologies.

Additionally, Sydney hosts several leading quantum startups, such as Silicon Quantum Computing, Quantum Brilliance, Diraq and Q-CTRL, which focus on improving the performance and stability of quantum systems.

Educational excellence

Sydney’s universities are globally recognized for their contributions to quantum research. They nurture future quantum leaders, and their academic prowess attracts top talent and fosters a culture of innovation and collaboration.

Sydney hosts several leading quantum startups, such as Silicon Quantum Computing, Quantum Brilliance, Diraq, and Q-CTRL, which focus on improving the performance and stability of quantum systems.

The UNSW Sydney is, one of Sydney’s universities, ranked among the world’s top 20 universities, and boasts the largest concentration of academics working in AI and quantum technologies in Australia.

UNSW Sydney Professor Toby Walsh is Laureate Fellow and Scientia Professor of Artificial Intelligence at the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at the University of New South Wales. He explains the significance of this academic strength: “Our students and researchers are at the cutting edge of quantum science. The collaborative efforts within Sydney’s academic institutions are creating a powerhouse of innovation that is driving the global quantum agenda.”

Sydney’s strategic investments and collaborative efforts in quantum technology have propelled the city to the forefront of this transformative field. With its unique and vibrant ecosystem, a blend of world-leading institutions, globally respected talent and strong government and industry support, Sydney is well-positioned to lead the global quantum revolution for the benefit of all. For more information on Sydney’s science and engineering industries visit besydney.com.au.