Sydney Motorsport Park became the focal point for a day of high-speed excitement and an exchange of ideas on the future at this year’s 2024 Audi x Vogue Codes Drive Experience Day. This unique event, driven by a shared vision of progress and excellence, brought together thought leaders, tech enthusiasts, fashion’s elite and aspiring women in STEM for a day of dynamic learning, high speeds, and exhilarating experiences.

Hosted by Audi Brand Director Jeff Mannering and Vogue Australia's Jessica Montague, the event aimed to push boundaries and inspire participants to think outside the box. Audi Ambassador and Chief Driving Instructor Steve Pizzati, set the tone for a day of high-speed adventure and skill-building by providing participants with an opportunity to take on a dynamic track day driving course and to test the limits of Audi's precision engineering in a safe and controlled environment.

Participants had the chance to explore Audi's performance, handling, and design, across some of fastest vehicles within the fleet – the elite RS models with both traditional internal combustion power and the all-electric RS e-tron GT. 

The event provided a unique opportunity to learn crucial driving skills like emergency braking and evasive manoeuvres – typically scenarios drivers hope to avoid. Under the expert tutelage of Steve Pizzati and his team of highly skilled instructors, guests experienced firsthand the myriad of technologies that ensure efficiency and safety in every Audi. This was an invaluable lesson in mastering the capabilities of their vehicles and gaining confidence in handling unforeseen situations.

Audi Ambassador, Journalist and Media Personality Melissa Doyle encapsulated the day's spirit perfectly. “More than anything today has been so much fun, but so valuable to experience a car at these speeds, on a skid pan, slamming on the brakes, going as fast as you can and then learning how to control it. The skills are hopefully ones I’ll never have to use in real life, so it’s a nice safe place to experience them and to get a little bit of confidence that, dare anything should happen, you know what the car’s capable of and you’ve felt it before.”

In addition to fast cars and adrenaline, the Audi x Vogue Codes Drive Experience was geared towards fostering a community of women in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics). The event featured a lunch with Audi Ambassadors and Vogue Codes speakers, including Tech Entrepreneur Shivani Gopal, Founder of Elladex, a business offering personal, financial and professional mentoring and advice for ambitious women. Gopal's insights into the evolving landscape of STEM, particularly the impact of AI, resonated deeply with the audience.

“The biggest change for women in STEM is AI,” she said. “AI is everywhere, most people are using it, and from a STEM perspective it is going to change everyone’s world. What’s really exciting about this for women is that AI is automating so much. Yes there is conversation around this and perhaps anxiety around what that means for the future and what it means for jobs, but generally speaking women are inherently really good at synthesising and collaborating and building relationships. One thing that AI cannot do is build a relationship, but it’s really good at automating the other stuff.” 

What I get excited about is that it will take away from some of the mental load and the life admin that we can now automate … so we can capitalise and spend time in the areas that fully enrich us and enrich other people, and I think that will help us progress.”

She continued, “I’d love to see more and more women move into STEM-based careers. A clear takeaway from some of the work that I’m doing with the Women’s 20 which is a taskforce of the G20, is that women want to make an impact in the world and there are two key areas that by and large we care about. We want to create some level of social good and we all care about the environment. Moving into a STEM based career allows you to make social impact, it allows you to have an impact on the environment … These are some of the things we can have an impact on when we think of STEM simplified, demystified.” 

And at the cornerstone of that is AI. “I’m really keen to see where AI takes us,” Gopal said. “There are so many shifts happening, but I’d like to see how we can better fuel technology for social good. And as a result of that social good, uplift ourselves and uplift the world around us.” 

With both Audi and Vogue Codes committed to driving progress in technology and supporting women, Melissa Doyle best summed up the significance of the event. 

“I’m here with my daughter, (and) we’re both going to come out of today feeling so much more capable and educated … and that’s what Vogue Codes is all about, championing women, letting them know they’re not the only ones out there fighting the good fight, particularly in STEM. We talk about driving progress and that’s what Vogue Codes has done a brilliant job of in championing women in fields that haven’t necessarily had the fanfare that they deserve, and by Audi getting behind it, it’s certainly (driving progress).”

One of the Audi Foundation's charitable partners, the Country Education Foundation of Australia (CEF) also attended alongside Emily – a CEF and Audi Foundation supported student currently in her first year of Mechanical Engineering at UTS. Inspired by Audi's commitment to driving progress in STEM, Emily shares a dream of one day working in Formula One: her presence at the event highlighting the significant impact of Audi's support in nurturing future talent in STEM fields.

The Audi x Vogue Codes Drive Experience was a testament to the power of collaboration, the thrill of innovation, and the unwavering commitment to celebrating women in STEM. While participants left with newfound driving skills as well as a renewed sense of purpose and inspiration, the event underscored the importance of stepping outside one's comfort zone, whether on the racetrack or in the realm of technology and progress. As we look to the future, events like these remind us that growth is not just about technological advancements but also about uplifting and inspiring the next generation of leaders.

The Audi x Vogue Codes Driver Experience Day served as a precursor to the much-anticipated 2024 Vogue Codes Summit, themed ‘Technotopia: Designing the World of Tomorrow’. This year's summit delved into the endless possibilities of AI, the future of food and advancements in the medical field, alongside discussions on sustainability in the fashion and beauty industries.