The United States Studies Centre hosted a keynote address and Q&A with Microsoft President Brad Smith.

Mr Smith used the occasion to discuss artificial intelligence, ethics and governance, and the use of facial recognition technology in Australia and the United States.

In this role as president and chief legal officer, Smith is responsible for Microsoft's corporate, external, and legal affairs. He leads a team of more than 1,400 business, legal and corporate affairs professionals working in 55 countries. In 2013 he was named by the National Law Journal as one of the 100 most influential lawyers in the United States. In 2014, The New York Times called Smith “a de facto ambassador for the technology industry at large”.