More than an AI expert: Meet the founder helping creativity thrive
If you've ever spent some time around the Tamworth SRI coworking space, there’s a good chance you've met Owen Smith.
Owen is our resident AI and data expert (all things computer-related expert, to be very honest!) and the founder behind a series of practical workshops held recently to help local businesses understand and embrace AI technology.
But that's only one side of Owen.
Away from data, dashboards and AI, Owen is an award-nominated songwriter, country music artist and passionate advocate for Australia's songwriting community. And recently, he brought those two worlds together by hosting the Tamworth Songwriters Hub during the Hats Off to Country Festival.
Across the weekend of 11th & 12th July, 58 participants - from UNE students and local songwriters to visitors from South Australia, Victoria and Queensland - came together to learn, collaborate and develop their craft through a series of songwriting workshops, masterclasses and artist development opportunities.
The program featured a songwriting masterclass with ten-time Golden Guitar winner Lyn Bowtell, collaborative co-writing sessions, a Sharing Circle led by acclaimed songwriter Anne Fraser, and an artist development showcase designed to give emerging artists a safe space to test and refine original performances.
For Owen, creativity and innovation have always gone hand in hand.
Whether he's helping organisations understand artificial intelligence or helping songwriters discover their voice, the common thread is creating opportunities for people to learn and connect.
The feedback from the Songwriter’s Hub Weekend participants speaks for itself.
"If you get a chance to go to any writing workshop, it is a real eye opener. I am always in awe of people who can write and where it all comes from." — Kaz
"Way better than I ever expected. My cup is overflowing and I'm so, so blessed. So many talented co-writers and artists." — Pammi
"A beautiful bunch of like-minded folk sharing from the soul!" — Anne
One of the weekend's biggest success stories actually began months earlier.
The first artist development show, Straight from the Heart, piloted through the Songwriters Hub in January, has now secured a place in next year's Hats Off to Country Festival program, achieving one of the Hub's core goals of helping emerging artists build the confidence and skills to create and deliver their own ticketed shows.
At the SRI, we’re big believers that innovation isn't limited to technology or business. It also happens through creativity, connection, and the confidence to bring new ideas into the world.
We're proud to support founders like Owen, whose work reminds us that thriving regions need spaces where people can learn, collaborate and create, whether that's through AI, entrepreneurship or, in this case, something creative and cup-filling, like songwriting.