Collaboration Fuels Innovation: A Q&A with Petr Adamek, CEO of Canberra Innovation Network

I’m the CEO of the Canberra Innovation Network (CBRIN), a not-for-profit organisation established to diversify the ACT economy and help entrepreneurs create meaningful social and economic impact. Since 2014, CBRIN has contributed more than $1 billion to the local economy by supporting innovators, connecting founders with researchers, investors and industry, and helping ideas become successful businesses.

My own background is in artificial intelligence. I was fortunate to learn about AI long before the current boom, and over the past three decades I’ve worked across Europe, Asia, New Zealand and Australia on innovation strategy, entrepreneurship and ecosystem development. What has stayed consistent throughout my career is the belief that innovation is never the work of one individual – it happens when talented people have access to the right ideas, partners, resources and opportunities.

Today, Canberra is home to one of the world’s leading innovation ecosystems, recognised globally in 2025 with second place in the Triple E Awards for Innovation and Entrepreneurship Ecosystem of the Year. At CBRIN, our role is to help more people discover what makes that ecosystem so powerful.

One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned is that innovation is rarely a solo pursuit. It’s easy to believe success comes from having the best idea, but in reality, it comes from having access to the right people, knowledge and opportunities at the right time.

The most successful founders I’ve worked with are deeply curious. They ask for advice, seek out different perspectives and build relationships long before they need them. They understand that collaboration isn’t a weakness but a competitive advantage.

As a leader, I’ve also learned that your role isn’t to have all the answers. It’s to create an environment where talented people can do their best work, challenge each other’s thinking and build something greater together than they could alone.