Gold Coast Insider

Prominent Gold Coast real estate developer Stephen Harrison was born in country Victoria, but fell under the Gold Coast spell on a family holiday as a child. Not only did he made GC his home, he has been a passionate advocate, leader and visionary for our sunny region,  managing projects to revitalise Surfers Paradise and Hope Island during his tenure at the City of Gold Coast, creating signature...

The Gold Coast is the small business capital of Australia, and Martin Hall, President of the Gold Coast Central Chamber of Commerce with 300+ members, is someone with his finger on the pulse of our local economy. A strong voice for small business and a well-known figure in the Australian bus industry, Martin has great insights into the future of transport on the Gold Coast as we aim for net zero,...

Amanda Bulow grew up on a farm in Ipswich where there were no ‘girl jobs' and ‘boy jobs' – just jobs (and you got them done!). That formative experience of equality undoubtedly had an influence on her career trajectory. Straight out of uni (and with some chutzpah), she seized an early career opportunity to move into the male-dominated construction industry, forging a path in estimating and...

Gold Coast resident Dr John Zakos calls himself a technologist with an entrepreneurial drive. An internationally recognised Artificial Intelligence (AI) pioneer, researcher, business founder and now Honorary Professor at UTS, John says he has been 'thinking about thinking machines' for his entire career. In this fascinating interview, find out how John's passion for AI was ignited way back in his...

How did the Gold Coast go from zero biotech companies 20 years ago, to an industry powerhouse for pharmaceuticals, vaccines, medical devices and biotech in 2023, not to mention the largest regional city in Australia for the delivery of clinical trials? Griffith University's Institute for Glycomics here on the Gold Coast has been absolutely foundational to this exponential biotech growth, and our g...

In a broad-ranging discussion, Estella and Dan cover ground such as the Gold Coast's unique benefits and opportunities compared to other large cities, our challenges, including transport, housing affordability and workforce shortages, and a really interesting examination of how the 2032 Olympics can be a generational catalyst for making the Gold Coast a better city, and what exactly we could look...