Sarah Murray has been a pioneer in the meta-verse space since 2017. Her leadership on the topic lead to the first application of computer games and virtual technology for social impact affordable housing in the United Kingdom, United States and early work in Australia.
Current Work:
A people and purpose-focused, global design and technology leader across Start-up, Financial Services, Telco, Proptech and most recently IBM Consulting, Sarah has the perfect mix of large-scale corporate leadership experience with the fast-moving and rigorous start-up and design and tech consulting pedigree.
Sarah is ahead of her time when it comes to exploiting applied virtual reality to real-world problems, a topic she captured popular imagination on with her 2018 TED Talk which has over one million views. Since then she has spoken globally on the topic for the World Bank and others.
One of her core passions is the application of technology for good which lead to the creation of PLACE Technologies, who work with organisations across the world seeking to leverage metaverse-like technologies to improve social outcomes, specifically in the area of housing affordability.
Sarah’s passion for the topic and background in corporate consulting and innovation, lead her to create a framework called ‘Going Meta’ that can be understood simply and applied to any industry looking to leverage the potential of an inevitable meta future. Not just the what, but the how, Sarah explains how to use modern innovation techniques to embrace this change. Her framework was published in a short work of the same name in 2022.
Talking Points
Future Trends that will Change how we Live and Work
A detailed trends report shared in a dynamic and inspirational way, about 45 mins long that motivates the audience to embrace the change all around them in areas such as property technology, urban development, Construction and Engineering, Technology. Future Trends that will Change how we Live and Work
Highlighting how trends in consumer behaviour and industry technology adoption are converging to create a world we have never seen before and most of us can’t imagine.
A Gamified Future
80% of working adults play games 4 hours a day, and Facebook sold 1M VR headsets over Christmas connected to their billions of users…. yep…. we are not as far from a VR revolution as you might think. As a computer game designer and virtual reality designer, let me take you inside and explore some of the world you will soon live, work, love and lose in.
A Gamified Future
Corporate Transformation and Change
Now more than ever companies need to think and act differently. Sarah takes you on a journey of how some of Australia's largest organisations have approached that change, and what it means and how you might help your business survive into the 20’s. Change is no longer coming, it has arrived!
Corporate Transformation and Change
Uncharted Islands - A Bespoke Virtual Event Experience
In this immersive interactive virtual experience, the team at PLACE Technologies digitally represent your event. digitally represent your event. In this experience, attendees create an avatar of themselves and move around in the digital event space interacting with other Speakers and attendees.Uncharted Islands - A Bespoke Virtual Event Experience
Event organisers have the option to assign quests to attendees, such as finding Speakers who are 'hidden' in the virtual world and learning something about them to unlock prizes or badges. These spaces can be customised to your event goals and needs, from a literal representation of your event space to something unique and imaginative.
The options to customise this experience are endless, including hosting recordings from the live event virtually for attendees to re-visit online for as long the event is hosted.
Video
A Playful Solution to the Housing Crisis | Sarah Murray
Frustrated by her lack of self-determination in the housing market, Sarah Murray created a computer game that allows home buyers to design a house and have it delivered to them in modular components that can be assembled on-site. Learn how her effort is putting would-be homeowners in control of the largest purchase of their lives -- as well as cutting costs, protecting the environment and helping provide homes for those in need.How to Craft the Perfect Pitch | Sarah Murray
Learn how to craft the perfect pitch Sarah Murray is the Head of Innovation Ventures at Westpac; overseeing a value creation portfolio of $400M across areas such as reg-tech, cybersecurity, property, energy, marketplaces, and health.She is the founder of PLACE Technologies that provides its users an open playground to design, finance and purchase their dream home from a gamified marketplace of developers.Sarah Murray at World Bank 2019 Affordable Housing Conference
The PLACE game, therefore, tackles the affordable housing problem by showing the actual cost of each design component. So, for example, when you add that new room for little Bobby, the game automatically computes how much it’s going to cost you, and displays that information. Just like e-commerce makes the consumer culture affordable by cutting out the middleman, PLACE makes housing affordable by making costs transparent. In order to do this, the PLACE game relies on modular building components. While these may not be everyone’s cup of tea, they do have a relatively long and storied history in the building industry. After all, a forerunner of these components - called “pre-fabricated homes” - was what allowed many WW2 veterans to become homeowners in the Levittown of the US. Murray even highlights how her own father-in-law benefited from the UK’s similar Project Hawick while growing up in Scotland. Besides, advocates of modular construction components believe they have the potential of decreasing construction costs by 20 percent, and reducing environmental waste by 15 percent. Finally, Murray calls her brand of digital housing development “urban tech”. To her, the fundamental difference from all the other technology catchphrases is that it puts the individual - the human being - at the center of the technology ecosystem.Uncharted Islands - A Bespoke Virtual Event Experience| PLACE Play ACT Play Symposium
Sarah kept the audience riveted. Her presentation was thought-provoking. It was the buzz of the conference and online chatter for weeks. ... keep reading Griffith University
Sarah was smart, brilliant and engaging, it was an absolute pleasure to see her speak.
Sarah was phenomenal! I wish I had given her a full hour, she took my audience of senior executives and politicians on an expertly well crafted journey of consumer, tech and industry technology trends culminating in how they might use these trends to improve community outcomes in their respective Countries.
Thanks again for making the trip to Hobart. The way that you engaged with our clients Board and Senior Management on the requested theme of digitisation was excellent. I could tell that they were fully invested and energised in the presentation and subsequent discussion where you were able translate these concepts to areas of focus for our clients business. Post the presentation, the follow up discussion and subsequent thanks from key Board members and Executive members was evidence of your insight energy and impact and certainly adds significant value to one of our valued clients.
Sarah was so helpful working together with us, on the development of the content and delivery of our first ever on-line event, resulting in really positive feedback from our audience. Some of the comments from our audience included, “So many thoughts - great Sarah, really appreciated” , “Great discussion and ideas thanks” and “Great presentation Sarah”. She was Great!
