In the spirit of reconciliation Sohn Hearts & Minds acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.

About

Bringing together the very best investment, scientific and philanthropic minds globally to maximise medical research funding in Australia

2022
2019
2018
2018
2022
2018

The Sohn Hearts & Minds Conference is an annual one-day event which brings the investment community together for philanthropic purpose.

The conference is a rare opportunity for industry heavyweights, global thought leaders, fund managers, Chief Investment Officers/Chief Executive Officers and investors to be in one room, to network and access exclusive insights, whilst raising money for Australian medical research.

Each year the Hearts & Minds curatorial team, working under the creative direction of Delorean, strive to create a revelatory and memorable experience. With deliberately disruptive programming, the event includes lightning stock pitches, panels of industry titans, international keynotes, medical research scientists, entertainers, as well as surprise guests and unexpected moments!

History of Hearts and Minds

In 2016, Matthew Grounds AM had just taken over as Chairman of the world-renowned Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute and, alongside the Board, he was seeking sustainable funding solutions for the Institute. Around the same time, Dr Gary Weiss AM, a fellow Director, had recently returned from the Sohn Conference in New York, and inspired by its success, proposed hosting a similar event in Australia.

The idea quickly gained traction. Gary and Matthew first went to Ian Narev, the then CEO of Commonwealth Bank of Australia, and separately to Len Ainsworth, with a ‘blank piece of paper’ outlining what it could look like. Both provided substantial early support. Matthew then enlisted his long-time business partner, Guy Fowler OAM, to help bring the concept to life, and the Sohn Hearts & Minds Conference was born.

The founding team grew to include Creative Director Jonathan Pease (JP), Michael Walsh, Maggie O’Neill and John Du Vernet (JD) who transformed this vision into reality. Together, they continue to create unexpected experiences each year.

Australia's Premier Investor Conference

The inaugural Sohn Hearts & Minds event, held at the iconic Sydney Opera House, featured Howard Marks of Oaktree Capital as the keynote, addressing a sold-out audience shortly after the 2016 US election. This first conference was a resounding success, raising $4 million for medical research organisations: the Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute, Black Dog Institute, MS Australia, and JDRF Australia.

Now Australia's premier investment and philanthropy event, Sohn Hearts & Minds gathers industry leaders for a dynamic day of exclusive idea-sharing, all in support of medical research. Over the years, Hearts and Minds has hosted industry legends like Ray Dalio, Charlie Munger, Dan Loeb, Cathie Wood and Bill Ackman, luminaries such as longevity expert Peter Attia MD, Red Notice author Bill Browder, entrepreneur Prof Scott Galloway and behavioural scientist Prof Dan Ariely and entertainers including Andrew Denton, Daryl Braithwaite and The Mark Seymour Trio of Hunters & Collectors.

Inspired by the successful format of the Sohn New York Conference, Hearts and Minds is proud to be the exclusive Australian affiliate. The Sohn Conference Foundation was established in 1995 by Evan Sohn in memory of his brother Ira, a Wall St banker who passed away prematurely. The Foundation raises funds for medical research through annual events held in ten cities worldwide.


Listed Investment Company (HM1)

Impressed by the high-performing stock picks presented at the inaugural conference, a special purpose vehicle (SPV) was established by Guy and Matthew for family offices to invest in the ideas pitched at the 2017 conference. Returns over 8% were split evenly between investors and medical research organisations, resulting in a $1 million donation.

Off the back of this strong performance, Guy and Matthew set about establishing a listed investment company, Hearts and Minds Investments Limited (HM1). Supported by Australia's largest families, universities, and high net worth individuals, HM1 was listed on the ASX following an oversubscribed IPO in November 2018, with Chris Cuffe AO as Chairman.

HM1 is a unique global investment portfolio of 25-30 positions, recommended by selected managers from each Sohn Hearts & Minds Conference, as well as seven Core Fund Managers. These managers each provide their high conviction stock recommendations pro bono, allowing HM1 to donate typical management fees to leading Australian medical research organisations.

A Win-Win-Win Model

Today, Hearts and Minds is proud to be one of Australia's top corporate philanthropists, having contributed over $70 million to Australian medical research since its inception. You can learn more about Hearts and Minds’ impact here.

Hearts and Minds is only possible thanks to our many supporters who have dedicated their time, expertise, networks and capital over the years.

Why support medical research?

Development of new medicine

Every person in Australia has benefited from the results of medical research, from the development of new drugs, vaccines, or procedures to prevent or treat diseases and safety testing of products.

Australia is a world-leader

Australian scientists are responsible for some of the world’s most important and life-changing medical discoveries. Australia is ranked 8th in the world for producing the top scientific publications per capita (ahead of the U.S. and the U.K). **

Excellent return on investment

Investment in medical research between 1993 and 2005 is estimated to have returned a net benefit of $29.5 billion to Australia. Every dollar invested in medical research returns on average $2.17 in health benefits.*

Support a new generation of researchers

To tackle the clinical problems of today, and those yet to come, we must find a way to support medical research and encourage our best and brightest minds to follow a career in science.

*Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). (2015). OECD Science, Technology and Industry Scoreboard 2015. Section 2.6.1 The quantity and quality of scientific production. Geneva OECD. Available from http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/888933273656 (per capita data derived from OECD dataset) ** Access Economics. Exceptional returns: The value of investing in health R&D in Australia II. Canberra: Australian Society for Medical Research; 2008. Available from: www.asmr.org.au/ExceptII08.pdf

Medical research institute partners have included

Menzies Institute for Medical Research
Centre for Population Genomics
GI Cancer
Ingham Institute for Applied Medical Research
Shake It Up
Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute
Brain Cancer Collective
Black Dog Institute
JDRF
Cerebral Palsy Alliance Research Foundation
The Florey
Kids Critical Care Research
Orygen
MS Research Australia
Pain Management Research Institute
RPA Green Light Institute
Murdoch Children's Research Institute
Victor Chang
Walter and Eliza Hall Institute (WEHI)

Conference videos

 Highlights
Watch 2023 Highlights
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Watch 2022 Highlights
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Watch 2019 Highlights
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Watch 2018 Highlights
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Watch 2017 Highlights
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Watch 2016 Highlights
 Highlights
Watch Hearts & Minds Impact Video
+$65M
DONATED
169
speakers
7200
attendees
220
partnerships