Kelly McJannett

Thought Leader - AI for Global Change, Co-Founder of Food Ladder

Kelly McJannett is a visionary social entrepreneur and global trailblazer harnessing AI technology for the greater good of humanity. Having pioneered highly scalable, place-based, turnkey agri-solutions to address food security and childhood malnutrition, Kelly is an experienced and passionate leader in multidisciplinary approaches to addressing societal challenges.

Kelly is the co-founder and CEO of Food Ladder, a social impact scale-up utilising AI and advanced agri-tech to address the global issue of food insecurity. With a laser-like focus on the next generation, Kelly and her team at Food Ladder employ the power of AI and machine learning coupled with the physical structure of hydroponic greenhouses in remote schools to promote education, health and economic participation with a holistic focus on wellbeing.

By leveraging cutting edge technology, including being a first mover in integrating Quantum technology to measure the therapeutic benefit of the program to young people, Kelly is an unparalleled trailblazer. Kelly’s goal? To address immediate human need, support critical environmental outcomes, assist in the automated production of food in remote communities, and prepare communities who are vulnerable to the effects of catastrophic climate change.

A captivating orator, Kelly holds a Bachelor of Communications from the University of Technology Sydney, and an MBA from The University of Sydney where she was awarded the David Anstice MBA Scholarship for Community Leadership. Kelly has also attended INSEAD for Executive Management in Social Entrepreneurship.

Accolades include The University of Sydney 2025 Alumni Award for Service to Humanity and the Dean’s Prize and Leadership Excellence Award. She was named in Australia’s 100 Most Influential Women by the Australian Financial Review and recently won the AACSB Global Influential Leaders Award. Kelly is also a member of the University of Sydney Business School Board of Advice. In June 2025, Food Ladder was named a finalist in the Australian Financial Review’s AI Awards in the Community Engagement Category, and was named in the Australian Financial Review’s BOSS 2024 and 2025’s Most Innovative Companies Award.