A visionary entrepreneur and technology leader, Danu Abeysuriya has built a career turning complex technical challenges into human-centred solutions that reshape industries.
Growing up with a passion for technology and problem-solving, Danu founded RUSH as a garage start-up, steadily transforming it into a thriving company of more than 100 people. Under his leadership, RUSH has delivered world-first digital solutions used by millions worldwide, earning recognition for both innovation and workplace culture. The company has consistently ranked among the top 5% of tech workplaces globally, and was named one of Stuff’s Best Places to Work in 2024.
Danu’s people-first approach underpins his work, driving the creation of transformative projects such as the NZ COVID Tracer App and the UK NHS Test & Trace programme, along with other national contact tracing initiatives. His ability to combine technical vision with deep human insight has made RUSH a trusted partner in tackling complex societal challenges.
Alongside growing his company, Danu has led RUSH’s expansion into Artificial Intelligence, focusing on product development in Health & Safety. His collaborations include working with organisations like New Zealand’s Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC), Downer Group, Will&Able, and Wilson Technology Group, helping develop best practice for enterprise and SME AI adoption to improve workplace safety.
Danu’s expertise spans AI engineering, enterprise technology, and the practical realities of implementing and governing emerging technologies such as Generative AI in corporate environments. He has partnered with global leaders including Google, Microsoft, UNICEF, and UNESCO, using his “nudging giants” methodology to drive market shifts and deliver innovative solutions that balance technological advancement with responsible deployment.
From starting out with a bold idea in a garage to shaping national and global digital projects, Danu Abeysuriya exemplifies the power of combining technical mastery with human empathy to build solutions that leave a lasting impact.
Talking Points
Future Ready with Generative AI
As Generative AI reshapes business landscapes, organisations are grappling with crucial decisions about implementation, security, and compliance. This session cuts through the hype to deliver practical, actionable guidance for medium to large enterprises. Leaders will learn proven frameworks for identifying genuine business value, clear strategies for navigating enterprise compliance requirements, and real-world implementation approaches that work. Whether you're starting your AI journey or scaling existing initiatives, you'll gain concrete tools for assessing AI opportunities, managing security concerns, and driving successful adoption across your organisation. This isn't a theoretical overview – learnings and advice are from direct application and success and is a practical roadmap backed by real enterprise case studies that will equip you to confidently lead your organisation's AI transformation while avoiding costly missteps.
Future Ready with Generative AI
Scaled Innovation - The culture of how take Innovation out of the lab and into the real world, fast.
RUSH Founder & CTO Danu Abeysuriya reveals his philosophy and repeatable methodology for consistently delivering world-first innovative technological applications at enterprise and nation scale. His framework centers on building a high-performance culture and change management that emphasises accountability without toxicity and a flexible application of risk taking and process adherence. Danu explains and demonstrates how the key to managing innovation risk lies in his "surface area reduction" approach - isolating a single technical challenge while using proven components for all other aspects, allowing teams to focus resources and paranoid planning on the core innovation. This methodology has repeatably enabled Danu &RUSH to deliver complex world firsts and world-beating technology like the NZ COVID Tracing App, Z Energy's Patented Fastlane and ShareTank, and RUSH's own AI computer-vision based Health & Safety product.
Scaled Innovation - The culture of how take Innovation out of the lab and into the real world, fast.
Technology to better serve humankind
In this thought-provoking keynote, Entrepreneur and RUSH founder, Danu Abeysuriya challenges traditional business paradigms by sharing how his company successfully merges profit with purpose - with an mission statement of "technology to better serve humankind" Danu has helped large organisations like Z Energy's(AMPOL) transition to clean energy faster, through to building world-leading, life-saving pandemic tech like the NZ COVID Tracer app and UK NHS Test & Trace. Drawing inspiration from Robert Bosch's legacy of "doing good by doing good business," Abeysuriya presents a practical framework for how companies can tackle global challenges through purposeful organisation culture, leveraging true innovation, conscious risk-taking, and the power of small, deliberate actions compounded over time.
Technology to better serve humankind
Danu Abeysuriya is an outstanding speaker who absolutely nailed the brief for our recent Leaders Worth Following Foodstuffs event. Danu was able to turn his Business experience and AI knowle ... keep reading Foodstuffs