Daily Telegraph’s Power 100 2023: Sydney’s most influential people revealed

Pollies, sport stars, tech titans and celebs dominate Sydney’s movers and shakers for 2023. Find out the city’s most influential people here.

It was a battle for top spot in The Daily Telegraph’s Sydney Power 100 rankings for 2023.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and NSW Premier Chris Minns were in fierce competition to be numero uno.

In a literal one-two combination, the Labor duo knocked out last year’s list-leading Liberals Dominic Perrottet and Scott Morrison.

Scroll down to see who took out the top spot

Daily Telegraph editor Ben English said “the parallel rises of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and NSW Premier Chris Minns are evidence of a shift in attitudes across our voting population.”

Reserve Bank of Australia Governor Philip Lowe also ranked highly on the list. As his profile in the Power 100 magazine muses, if only he could get the inflation rate to be the same as his ranking.

NSW Premier Chris Minns.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. Picture: Sam Ruttyn

Arguably no-one has had more of a direct impact on households than Mr Lowe in the past 12 months.

New into the top 10 this year is Australian men’s cricket captain Pat Cummins.

He has delivered the one title missing from the nation’s trophy cabinet – the world Test championship. And then last week he scored the winning run in the first Ashes Test.

Others to record big advances included Atlassian CEO Mike Cannon-Brookes and Tesla Inc chair Robyn Denholm, who have shot up the list.

Mr Cannon-Brookes stopped the AGL demerger and took control of the $35 billion Sun Cable project.

Tech Council and Tesla chair Robyn Denholm. Picture: Supplied

Atlassian CEO Mike Cannon-Brookes.

Meanwhile Ms Denholm was recently re-elected to the Tesla board, amid evidence she is succeeding in getting him to focus more of his energy on the electric-vehicle maker and less on his $65 billion plaything, Twitter.

The highest-placed debutant on this year’s list is Latrell Mitchell.

The Telegraph chose to bring Mitchell into the rankings after forming the view that this year he, more than any other player, has the magic combo – both the potential and willingness to influence. While the South Sydney star polarises opinion, he is not the most controversial name in the 2023 power list.

Drug trafficker Hakan Ayik joins the rankings this year. The Telegraph’s crime reporting team advised that Sydney-born and raised Ayik wields enormous clout in this city’s underworld, despite living in Turkey.

Sydney drug trafficker Hakan Ayik.

Australian and Sydney Sixers cricketer Ash Gardner. Picture: Phil Hillyard

Above him and new to the list is Deputy Police Commissioner David Hudson.

Also making the cut for the first time is that quintessentially Sydney character, accountant to the stars Anthony Bell. Mr Bell – the first person some of the city’s biggest names call when they are in serious trouble – said he was just happy to be included in the list.

Several Indigenous Australians have stormed into the rankings.

Cricket sensation Ashleigh Gardner’s inclusion proved prescient, given her game-winning performance in this week’s Women’s Ashes test.

Meanwhile, growing debate over the Voice referendum paved the way for the addition of Yes campaigner Megan Davis and No advocate Warren Mundine.

There’s new blood from the business sector too: most notably brothers James and Robbie Ferguson, who along with friend Alex Connolly are the brains behind the wildly successful blockchain-based game-building company Immutable.

Not everyone can be a winner.

Among the biggest falls are wellness power couple Jess Sepel and Dean Steingold as the pair battled multiple challenges in their business, JSHealth.

But at least they are still on the list.

As is Erin Molan, the media personality who was instrumental in the creation of the Online Safety Act, which took effect last year.

Molan readily acknowledges she is a controversial pick. “Bring it on,” she said. “It provides great debate.”