Johanna Weaver, Zoe Jay Hawkins and Sunita Kuma have come together to form the Tech Policy Design Insitute, dedicated to technology policy making and shaping tech for the benefit of humanity through research, education, public commentary and community building.
The launch of the think tank on Monday in Canberra is Australia’s first independent body dedicated to tech policy. Now operating as an independent not-for-profit, it builds on three years of incubation as the Tech Policy Design Centre at the Australian National University.
It comes as Australia is grappling with artificial intelligence regulation, as well as privacy and how to hold digital platforms accountable. It also comes as tech development races are on between countries and geopolitical tensions are rising.
As such, TPDi aims to design best practices and research-based policy, establish a pipeline of leaders that design good policy, foster informed debate on tech policy and convene multi-stakeholder communities to co-design practical tech policy solutions.
Co-founder and CEO Johanna Weaver says the think tank will provide an informed and independent voice bringing society, security, economic and environmental perspectives on tech and how it’s impacting our lives.
Australia’s first independent tech policy think tank receives strong backing from government, industry and civil society.
“Young people’s use of social media, digital identity, cyber security, and technology’s impact on democracy, are just some of the tech policy issues on the national agenda in 2025,” she said.
The think tank is backed by a Tech Policy Design Fund, with founding members including government departments, as well as Adobe, Amazon, Apple, Atlassian, the Australian Computer Society, Microsoft, and Salesforce.
It’s also unveiled a board and group of advisors that include CEO of the Tech Council of Australia Kate Pounder, Australia’s first Ambassador for Cyber Affairs and Critical Technology Dr Tobias Feakin, and Head of Global Policy and Regulatory Affairs for Atlassian David Masters.
Special advisres include Brett Solomon, co-founder of global digital rights not-for-profit Access Now; Professor Rod Sims, former Chair of the ACCC; Audrey Tang, Taiwan’s inaugural Digital Minister, now Cyber Ambassador; Professor Elanor Huntington, CSIRO Executive Director; Julie Inman Grant, Australia’s eSafety Commissioner; and Frances Haugen, Facebook whistleblower and online safety advocate.
Zoe Jay Hawkins, co-founder and TPDi Chief Strategy Officer, said the institute will support more informed and empowered public conversations about harnessing policy to shape technology.
“Technology impacts every aspect of our lives. Given its rapid evolution, it’s easy to feel like we have little control over where technology is headed, but we don’t have to passively accept the status quo. We can – and must – shape technology through the power of policy,” sh said.
The three co-founders bring diverse experience to the new initiative, with Weaver taking on the CEO role having previously set up the precursor to the TPDi, the Tech Policy Design Centre. She was previously Australia’s independent expert and chief cyber negotiator at the United Nations.
Zoe Jay Hawkins take the Chief Strategy Office role, having extensive experience designing tech policy across government, big tech, academic and think tank perspectives.
And Sunita Kumar will be Chief Operating Officer, bringing her entrepreneurial and leadership experience to the role, and decades of experience in operations, governance, policy, implementation and people management across different sectors.
Photo above: (From left) Zoe Hawkins, Johanna Weaver, Sunita Kumar. Photo credit: Paul Chapman