Dr Samantha Pillay OAM — Keynote Speaker

Surgeon. AI Filmmaker. Social Impact Storyteller.

From the operating theatr, to the AI editing suite, Dr Samantha Pillay’s story is a compelling blueprint for reinvention, resilience, and purpose-driven innovation. As the first woman to train as a urological surgeon in South Australia, she forged a path where none existed. Today, she is breaking new ground once again; not with a scalpel, but with generative AI, amplifying her mission of advocacy and education through cinematic storytelling.

In just one year, driven by the need to create a simple health awareness video, Dr Pillay taught herself the complex art of AI filmmaking. This journey led her to create award-winning short films and found AIFilm4Good, the world’s first AI film studio dedicated to social impact. Her story proves that a powerful mission, not a map, is all you need to navigate the future, and that embracing difficult new challenges can be the ultimate antidote to burnout.

Popular Keynote Topics

Signature Keynote: From Continence to Cannes: A Surgeon's Story of AI for Advocacy

What happens when a full-time surgeon with no filmmaking background decides to make a video about a taboo health topic? You get a global mission. In this captivating talk, Dr Pillay shares her unexpected journey from making her first AI-generated video for World Continence Week to receiving a nomination at an international film festival in Dubai just months later. This is a story about using technology to give a voice to silent crises, turning limitations into magic, and proving that purpose is the most powerful tool for innovation.

Find Your Compass, Not Your Map: Navigating Your Career in an Age of Disruption

On a map, the paths of a surgeon, author, filmmaker, and business owner look like they are in different worlds. But with a compass, they all point in the same direction. Using lessons forged from a pioneering surgical career and a leap into AI, Dr Pillay shares her four core principles for navigating a career with purpose:
•    Self-belief is your superpower.
•    She who hesitates is lost.
•    Turn tragic into magic.
•    Take your dream, double it, and double it again.

Creative Courage: The AI Advantage for Purpose & Productivity

As a surgeon, Dr Pillay's impact was linear; one patient at a time. Today, her health resources reach thousands in over 170 countries, and her films travel the world while she sleeps. This talk reveals how she used generative AI as a "lever" to multiply her mission a thousand-fold. Dr Pillay makes a powerful case that learning new, hard things isn't a drain on productivity; it's a creative outlet that keeps the mind sharp, prevents burnout, and is essential for staying relevant in the age of AI.

Download Speaker One Sheet

Dr Pillay is a recipient of the Order of Australia Medal (OAM) and a member of Professional Speakers Australia. A dual-category finalist in the Telstra Best of Business Awards 2023, and finalist SA Australian of the Year 2022, her presentations are designed to inspire action, whether you’re leading change, embracing new technologies, or finding the courage to amplify your own voice in a noisy world.