Children ask questions constantly. Then something changes.

As we grow older, education, expertise and workplace culture often reward knowing the answer rather than having the courage to say, “I don’t know, let’s find out.”

At exactly the moment AI is making answers almost infinitely accessible, Michelle Dickinson argues that curiosity is becoming one of our most valuable human capabilities.

Part science experiment, part personal story and part interactive experience, this keynote explores what happens inside our brains and organisations when we become curious, and why curiosity sits behind innovation, learning, creativity and adaptability.

Michelle draws on her own journey from a struggling, hands-on learner to PhD engineer, technologist and global science communicator to challenge the idea that the smartest person in the room is the person with the most answers.

Through surprising experiments and audience participation, she demonstrates how quickly our assumptions limit what we see, and how powerful the simple act of asking a better question can be.