Entrepreneur Nikki Meller’s career has spanned nursing wards, higher education and the fast-moving world of artificial intelligence (AI).
It hasn’t been the most traditional career path but it’s one that’s led her into business ownership at the critical intersection of technology, human intelligence, and capability building. A nurse by background, Meller is now a well-respected voice in Australia on how we can better include and elevate women and girls in the AI sector.
Her instinct for care eventually led Meller into education, where she taught nurses and eventually stepped into roles including Director of Academic Programs for a nursing school and later Deputy Director of Technology-Enabled Learning across an entire university.
It was here, at the intersection of education, compliance and technology, that a turning point emerged.
Meller wanted to help businesses to support their employees to learn better, while easing the often-heavy burden of compliance and regulation.
“That's where the idea of CREDuED started. I bootstrapped myself and started a business knowing nothing—zero,” she tells Women’s Agenda.
Meller is now the founder and CEO of CREDuED, a modern learning, development and knowledge management company.
While starting the business, Meller also began building her own AI SaaS product, called DocuCRED, a solution that automates document comparison processes to give businesses faster and more accurate results.
“That was born out of a problem that I experienced in higher education. When you're doing things such as writing curriculum and doing highly compliance driven and governed documentation, you have to meet certain standards and guidelines,” Meller explains.
“It's a very manual process. So, I built an AI product that does that in an automated way.”
Meller says she went into business with a lot to learn about AI, but she made a commitment to teach herself and learn as much as she could from others. Leaning on mentors and saying ‘yes’ to as many networking events as she could were key to her early success, she says.
“I thought, okay, [I can] hire people to help me with the technical stuff and I can absorb this information,” she says.
“I also really like problem solving, and so I'll find a solution and then share how I learn that. That's that natural teacher in me, and that care that I have is from my nursing as well.”
Meller says an open mindset and letting go of perfectionism have been crucial learning curves as an entrepreneur in tech.
“With tech and building tech products, there's always going to be changes,” Meller explains.
“There's always going to be iterations. You just have to be flexible. And I think it really does come back down to that open mindset. It's really helped me.”
“I also really like problem solving, and so I'll find a solution and then share how I learn that. That's that natural teacher in me, and that care that I have is from my nursing as well.” – Nikki Meller, Founder and CEO of CREDuED
‘I want to be on an equal playing field’
More recently, Meller has been one of the driving forces behind Women in AI Australia, a not-for-profit committed to advancing the leadership, inclusion and participation of women in AI.
“We want to make sure that we are advocating and advising, but also that women can actually see themselves in these areas, and there's someone there that they can talk to, that they can have a trusted conversation with, and help with that confidence boost,” Meller said.
The Tech Council of Australia found that women make up just 20% of highly technical roles, like AI researchers or ML engineers, and are leaving the tech industry at almost double the rate of men.
There is also a large gap in the use and trust of generative AI in the workplace, with 50% of women engaging with the technology, compared to 70% of men, according to Deloitte.
From classrooms to boards, Women in AI Australia is determined to shape the future of AI with the voices of diverse women. It’s a deeply personal mission that drives Meller to keep going, even when it feels hard.
“My tagline is: ‘from underrepresented to just represented’. I don't want to be under anyone anymore. I want to be on an equal playing field,” Meller says.
“What if we can change the way we have conversations or just start to nudge ahead in a positive direction.”
The VC funding gap that needs to shrink
Above and beyond getting more women into the AI workforce, Meller is also concerned about the venture capital funding gap that exists for women founders. It’s a problem she’s confronted in her quest to secure funding for her businesses.
“I've been knocked back at least 40 times for VC funding, because they can't see the vision of the product,” Meller says.
“The more I talk about it to women, and the more I talk about having a seat at the table, the more I’m determined to help uplift women.”
In 2026, Meller is focused on expanding her businesses and pursuing funding for her AI product, DocuCRED, to transform it into a global platform. She’s also got her sights set on spending more time in the US, where she can bring back knowledge to the Australian market.
She also wants to continue supporting women who are pursuing a new idea in AI or embarking on a career pivot like she did.
“If someone really wants to do something, then they should have that right of choice to pursue that, and [it’s critical] for more people to help uplift and support them.”
