Wired for
Wonder
Sarah's first intrapreneurial venture — an annual innovation festival built inside the Commonwealth Bank of Australia that became one of Australia's most celebrated conferences, attracting global thought leaders and 9 years of national media coverage.
The Origin Story
In 2013, Sarah Pirie-Nally (then Sarah Roocroft) was working inside the Commonwealth Bank of Australia when she had an idea: what if a major corporation could create a space where innovation, science, art, and business collided — not in a boardroom, but in an experience?
Wired for Wonder was born. A two-day festival designed to open doors of understanding — bringing together the world's most provocative thinkers, scientists, entrepreneurs, and artists in a single room. Polar opposites. Unexpected connections. Wonder as a business strategy.
What started as an intrapreneurial bet inside a bank grew into a nationally recognised conference that ran for seven years, attracted speakers from Nolan Bushnell to Brené Brown, landed on the front page of the Huffington Post, and built a YouTube channel with over 40,000 subscribers.
It was the founding proof of concept for everything Wonder & Wander became.
The Journey
Seven years of wonder — each edition with its own theme, speakers, and story.
Nolan Bushnell (Founder of Atari) featured on Huffington Post front page. Rachel Botsman on trust and technology. Exploring the power of opposites.
Speaker Alumni
The world's most provocative thinkers, scientists, entrepreneurs, and artists — all on one stage.
What They Said
From Atari's founder to CBA executives — the voices that shaped the story.
"Having spoken at conferences all over the world I was immensely inspired and impressed by Wired for Wonder. I thoroughly enjoyed attending as much as speaking. The event was exceptionally well produced, highly informative and above all, fun."
"So great! So proud to be part of such a great event."
"It has a lot of heart."
"These people are changing the way that I'm thinking, and changing it for the better."
"I just wanted to say thank you so much for having me at Wired for Wonder. It was unlike any conference I'd been to before and was an absolute pleasure to be a part of. The people were great, the organisation was fantastic, and I feel like I learnt so much from the other speakers that will make me a better researcher and a better presenter too."
"Just huge congrats on Wired to you and the team this year — all of my Curious team and the clients I bought along have been stimulated, wowed and just massively grateful to have been invited...awesome stuff indeed!"
"It was without a doubt the best event I have attended in my 8 years with the Bank and possibly my 20+ years in IT. I simply cannot rate the event highly enough and still think about different aspects of the sessions on a daily basis. I have told everyone I can about it!"
"Just a quick note to let you know that I am now completely spoiled for all conferences and events moving forward. Unless they all have stunning backdrops, delicious food, yummy juices, incredible speakers, awesome music and brilliant light shows I'M NOT GOING!"
Watch the Wonder
124 videos · 40K+ subscribers — the full archive lives on the Wired for Wonder YouTube channel.
In the Media
National and international coverage across print, digital, and broadcast.
Profile interview with Nolan Bushnell — featured on the front page, Saturday 29 August
Featuring Galaxy research results, including a quote by Dr Fiona Kerr
Featuring Galaxy research results and Dr Fiona Kerr
Key takeouts from Guy Kawasaki's presentation from WFW Sydney
Featuring key takeouts from Jack Andraka's presentation from WFW Melbourne
Featuring key takeouts from Jack Andraka's presentation from WFW Melbourne
Featuring profile interview with Rachel Botsman
Featuring profile interview with Sam Gosling
Featuring a wrap-up news piece from WFW Melbourne
The Legacy Lives On
Wired for Wonder wasn't just an event — it was proof that wonder is a strategy. That curiosity is a competitive advantage. That bringing the right minds together in the right room changes everything. That proof of concept became Wonder & Wander.