Michael Cannon-Brookes (born 17 November 1979) is an Australian billionaire, the co-founder and co-CEO of the software company Atlassian. Cannon-Brookes often carries the epithet of accidental billionaire after he and his business partner Scott Farquhar founded Atlassian with the simple aim of replicating the then-typical graduate starting salary of A$48,000 at the big corporations without having to work for someone else.
He is also an adjunct professor at the University of New South Wales’ School of Computer Science and Engineering. Cannon-Brookes and Farquhar were recognised as the Australian IT Professional of the Year award in 2004, and Australian 2006 Entrepreneur of the Year. Cannon-Brookes was also honoured by the World Economic Forum as a Young Global Leader in 2009 and is a member of The Forum of Young Global Leaders.
