“The real risk isn’t runaway AI. It’s that we’re not applying it fast enough to solve real human problems.” That’s how former Google CEO Eric Schmidt framed the challenge in a recent podcast interview on Diary of a CEO, and he’s right.
Today’s capital is flowing rapidly toward AI that monetises attention, deepens behavioural addiction, and fuels social fragmentation. Products are optimised to hijack dopamine loops, to generate envy and disappointment, to spread misinformation, increase anxiety and simulate intimacy.
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These aren’t theoretical harms; they’re visible in our social feeds, our classrooms, and increasingly, in our political institutions. The result is more polarised communities, more fragile economies, and greater risk embedded in the cities we live in.
This is especially the case in the Australian VC landscape, where we are seeing much of the current AI hype cycle focused on capitalising on the AI gold rush through short-term upside; tools that offer immediate benefits but are easy to fast-follow. These ventures are prone to commodification and replication. They can deliver returns, yes, but they are also structurally exposed to disruption and fatigue.
This isn’t a debate about ethics versus returns. It’s about recognising where the next generation of defensible, high-value businesses will emerge.
In contrast, sectors like healthcare and education are massive but remain inefficient and consistently underserved.
This is largely due to structural barriers such as outdated systems, bureaucracy and slow-moving regulations. These industries weren’t built for rapid innovation, which has made progress difficult. But for the first time, the potential within them can be unlocked; both commercially and for the broader benefit of society. Demand is growing fast, driven by demographic shifts like ageing populations, rising chronic disease, and a youth surge across emerging markets.
AI offers a rare chance to rethink how these services are delivered by lowering costs, scaling expertise, and creating new models of care and learning. For mission-driven founders and long-term investors, this is a unique window of opportunity.
In Australia, the case is especially compelling. Healthcare and education account for more than 15% of the national GDP. We have world-class research, regulatory infrastructure, and strong data governance. In sectors where trust, privacy, and measurable outcomes are key to value creation, Australian innovation can lead.
We need to back founders building AI-augmented doctors and teachers, not just AI-generated girlfriends. We need investors who can tell the difference between scalable novelty and scalable value.
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Because great private market investing has never been about chasing the loudest trend. It’s about supporting exceptional builders solving complex, long-term problems. That requires patience. It requires a generational mindset. And it requires understanding that trust, defensibility, and real-world distribution are more important than viral growth.
Institutional investors and LPs also have a part to play. When capital commits for the long term, it enables the kind of patient innovation that genuinely shifts systems. It gives founders room to navigate regulation, earn public trust, and build responsibly, and it also ensures a condition for an environment to support members in their twilight years, financially as well as in a safe, functioning, and thriving society.
Capital is a force multiplier. It either compounds resilience or accelerates fragility. In a time of overlapping global risks, from climate instability to labour displacement, the most valuable companies won’t just be those that ride the latest wave. They’ll be the ones who lay the deepest foundations.
If we want AI to serve society, we need to stop asking what’s possible—and start funding what’s necessary.
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