A new report from Deloitte Access Economics has found the Victorian startup sector has the potential to play a major role in the state's post-COVID-19 economic return.
The report, commissioned by Victoria's startup agency LaunchVic, found the State's early-stage startup sector was worth $4.6 billion in 2019, representing almost 19,000 jobs.
Deloitte Access Economics' modelling of the economic impact of increased startup density shows that the industry has the potential to create, on average, an additional 15,000 jobs each year to the broader Victorian economy over the next 20 years.
According to LaunchVic CEO Kate Cornick these findings demonstrate the value Victoria's startup sector has to the State's post-COVID-19 economy
"Our latest research shows the Victorian startup ecosystem has great potential for job creation over the coming years, and we see innovation the startup ecosystem as a key pillar of economic stimulus post-COVID-19," says Cornick.
"The report shows that startups are creating thousands of high skilled jobs year on year. As the startup sector grows, it will only become more valuable to our economy from a revenue and jobs perspective."
"Some of the world's largest tech companies such as Airbnb, Slack, Instagram & LinkedIn were all once startups tiny companies conceived around the time of the last global financial crisis. In approximately ten years, they have created hundreds of thousands of jobs and trillions of dollars of value - this is evidence that startups have a huge role to play in our economic recovery and wealth and job creation."
Deloitte Access Economics found that while startups challenge existing business models, they ultimately create more high skilled jobs through their growth and business lifecycle.
Further, the impact of startups on job creation is a net increase over time as job creation spills over to existing businesses due to innovation and increased competitiveness.
Cornick says the report shows that with the right care and attention to grow the ecosystem, startups could become a very important part of Victoria's future economy.
"The risk is that we become a purchaser of global technologies developed overseas rather than a creator and lose the high-skilled jobs that come with this," says Cornick.
Read the full report here.
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