IndustryBen JacksonFri 12 Jun 26
Sessions, Speakers, Experiences: First Look Urbanity-26 Program Revealed
The property industry is moving faster than at any point in a generation. AI is rewriting feasibility. Construction is being rebuilt from the ground up. Capital is chasing new sectors.
Urbanity-26 is where those conversations happen—three days at The Star Gold Coast with more than 500 developers, investors, architects, builders and city leaders from across the Asia Pacific, and a program built around the ideas, people and projects shaping what comes next.
Here is what has been confirmed so far.
Day 1: Wednesday, July 22: Site tours, welcome party
Most conferences start with a panel. Urbanity-26 starts with access.
Four curated site tour streams run from 11am to 3.30pm, taking delegates through projects being delivered across the Gold Coast right now.
Luxury Residential A: inside the projects setting new benchmarks in premium urban living
Luxury Residential B: inside the projects setting new benchmarks in premium urban living
Mixed Use and Placemaking: exploring the precincts transforming how we live, work and connect
New Communities: exploring the developments putting people and place at the centre
There will be two to three projects per stream with the people building them on hand to walk you through the decisions.
It is the kind of grounding you won't get from a slide deck.
From 4pm, the official Urbanity-26 Welcome Party opens at a private Gold Coast Hinterland location, bringing together more than 400 developers, investors, designers and city leaders in a Palm Springs-inspired setting with premium hospitality and live entertainment.
It will set the tone for the two days of conversation to follow.
Day 2: Thursday, July 23: Conference day one
The day begins early. The HERbanity Breakfast, presented by Yarraport, open at 7am, creating a dedicated space for women across the property and urban development sector ahead of the main program.
QUT Centre for Robotics director Michael Milford opens the main stage at 9.15am with a keynote explaining how cities will function in the age of robots and agents, and what it means for the people building them.
Six sessions have been confirmed to date for the main stage:
Looking Beyond: Perspectives from the Top
JLL head of residential project sales Freya Watson, Mosaic founder Brook Monahan and Urbis chief executive Benjamin Pollack will explore how Asia Pacific's urban leaders are anticipating the future and leading through dramatic change.
Finding Value in a Volatile Investi-verse
Hickory and Mirrastone chair Benni Aroni, Pembroke senior regional director Joe Fitzpatrick, CBRE senior managing director Ingrid Filmer and MA Financial managing director of real estate credit Cathy Houston discuss real value is being found across a market defined by geopolitics, interest rates and shifting capital.
AI and Robotics in Real Estate and Construction
Kapitol head of modular Andrew Morrison, Building 4.0 CRC research director Chris Knapp and McNab head of robotics Georgina North on what automation and technology actually look like in the development process today.
Smart Cities, Future Mobility and Powering AI
ResetData joint chief executive Marcel Zalloua, Ollo chief executive Luke Rust and Cross River Rail lead innovation officer Russell Vine explore how cities and precincts are becoming platforms for data, digital infrastructure and emerging technology.
Urbanity-26 Big Ideas Showcase
Short, sharp case study presentations from across the industry. Snohetta managing director Gumji Kang has been confirmed and more speakers will be revealed soon.
Closing day 1 of the conference are two standalone Q&A sessions—Sobha Realty Australia chief executive Rajeev Ramprakash discussing the UAE developer's Australian expansion play, followed by Sustainable Concrete Group managing director Oscar Ledlin explaining why he is backing a construction future built from recycled glass, plastic and desert sand.
Networking drinks in the Market Hall from 4pm close the formal program; then from 7pm its UrbanityxUPLate, presented by Projx, taking things into the evening.
Day 3: Friday, July 24: Conference day two
Gotham Park co-founder Rosa Chang opens the final day with a keynote outlining the transformation of an overlooked space beneath the Brooklyn Bridge into a landmark community park, described as the next High Line. A session about what is possible when civic ambition meets developer thinking.
Five panels to follow have been revealed so far:
The Magnetic Power of Human-Led Precincts
AILA architect Glen Power, Cadre founder Chris Tyas and Retail Strategy Group founder Angela Bonnefin on what actually makes people want to be somewhere and how to build it.
From Tourism to Lifestyle: The Reshaping of the Gold Coast
Palm Valley Gold Coast founder Luke Altshwager, Durack co-owner Bianca Durack, Drew Group managing director Jonathan Drew and Lewis Land head of development Michael Long discuss a city evolving faster than most of the country realises.
The Rise and Rise of Co-Living
Pro-invest Group chief executive Tim Sherlock will be among speakers exploring whether housing affordability has created a generational institutional opportunity and what it takes to build and operate flex-living at scale.
The Outperformers: Inside Real Estate's Growth Sectors
Hub co-chief executive Rebekah Murphy, StoreLocal chief executive Hans Pearson, Jeckra director Daniel West and Palm Lake general manager of development Suzy Jensen discuss why self-storage, flex workspace, social infrastructure and land lease have outperformed through a difficult cycle.
CityShaper 2026: In conversation with Maha Sinnathamby AM
The conference closes with Springfield City Group chairman Maha Sinnathamby AM and deputy chairman Bob Sharpless in conversation with The Urban Developer's Adam Di Marco. Sinnathamby built Greater Springfield from scratch—2800ha of former forestry land that became Australia's first masterplanned city since Canberra. The recipient of this year's Lachlan Webb Lifetime Achievement Award, this session will be a true standout moment for a conference filled with hightlights.
Closing out the conference from 12.30pm will be the Urbanity After Party, presented by Kapitol.
Beyond the main stage
Running across both conference days will be interactive workshops, the Urbanity Live Studio in the Market Hall, and industry-led case studies. Sessions and speakers willl be revealed for all three streams soon.
Three days. Five hundred-plus delegates. One of the country's best conference venues. And a program still adding names.
More speakers and sessions will be confirmed in the coming weeks.
Tickets are on sale now. Second Release pricing is available and will not last long.
