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From metal printing rockets to monitoring overexertion in firefighters, a dozen innovative startups have been selected for the University of Queensland’s (UQ) 2023 Ventures ilab Accelerator, which awards $10,000 in capital to help founders launch their early-stage ventures.
One of the longest-running accelerator programs in Australia, ilab has supported 230-plus startups, attracting roughly $107 million in investment funding since UQ took over the project from the Queensland Government in 2012.
Previous alumni include Eclipse founder Siobhan Coster, who is utilising the expertise of the CSIRO to commercialise a synthetic version of lactoferrin, an immune-boosting protein found in breast milk that is rarely included in baby formula as it takes 10,000 litres of cow's milk to produce just 1kg.
Other notable graduates include hearing tech company Audeara (ASX: AUA), deployment automation software group Octopus Deploy, and gut microbiome life sciences company Microba – which recently sold a 20 per cent holding to global medical diagnostics giant Sonic Healthcare (ASX: SHL) for $17.8 million.
Andrew Barnes, co-founder of Go1, also went through the accelerator with another startup before starting the edtech unicorn to-be.
The founders of three companies from this year's cohort were selected as finalists in the Brisbane Young Entrepreneur Awards - Siobhan Coster of Eclipse, Andy Epifani & Shafali Gupta of Uuvipak, and Hailey Brown of Vacayit.
University of Queensland head of entrepreneurship Nimrod Klayman says the new teams will start on a three-month intensive program from this week.
“The founders are eager to embark on their new journey,” he says.
“We are excited to support the newest innovators through the ilab program, celebrate their successes and see how they have grown on the other side. This will be a truly transformative experience for all involved.”
Meet ilab accelator’s 2023 cohort:
- Tera – Pioneering distributed carbon capture and use
- Alpha Outdoors – Augmented Reality rock climbing guide app
- Expera – A travel blog for everyone
- IntelVest –A device that monitors overexertion in firefighters
- RÉÉ – Coffee positive impact platform
- toki – Humanising app dating using psychology
- Gutrition – The world’s first low FODMAP meal kit
- Herik Labs – Metal 3D printing the most efficient rocket engine
- ExtrasJar – A FinTech that blends insurance and investing
- AutoPricer – Car buying app for new cars with instant results
- CodexTag – Smart tagging the retail industry
- HalalBee – A fully integrated platform listing all the halal food options available
The ilab Accelerator program will run from December 2022 to March 2023.
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