ScaleUP Showcase: UQ Ventures launches Queensland’s new scaleup event in Brisbane

UQ Ventures is proud to present ScaleUP Showcase 2025, a new full-day program on Tuesday 21 October, from 9:00AM to 9:00PM at the Plaza Auditorium, Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre. This inaugural Showcase unites investors, industry executive, more than 30 founder-led ventures, and UQ alumni startups for a comprehensive day dedicated to connecting, learning, and scaling Queensland’s innovation ecosystem.

ScaleUP Showcase offers a platform featuring live founder showcases across sectors such as biotech, AI, health and medtech, cleantech, SaaS, enterprise solutions, creative tech, and more. The program includes actionable keynotes, expert panels, breakout sessions on scaling challenges, and curated sector showcase walkthroughs to foster targeted engagement with investors and corporate partners.

The day culminates in the ilab x Momentum Accelerator Pitch Night, marking the combined Pitch Night for UQ Ventures’ merged accelerator programs. While Pitch Night has been a celebrated annual event for several years, this marks an exciting chapter delivering a grand finale where the top 10 startups from the larger accelerator (both iLab’s early-stage and Momentum’s later-stage tracks) will pitch live for the opportunity of investment of up to $100,000 as well as industry recognition.

A blueprint for success

The ScaleUP Showcase will shine a spotlight on inspiring journey stories such as ViceBio’s record-breaking $1.6 billion university-led biotech exit - Australia’s largest -illustrating the scale of commercial and social impact possible from Queensland innovation. Attendees will explore how such achievements can be replicated through stronger collaboration between universities, government, industry, and investors to advance a scalable, sustainable innovation future.

Supported by the QIC Venture Capital Development Fund, UniQuest, UniQuest Extension Fund, Everest Engineering, Pitcher Partners, Google Cloud, The Product Bus, and Dare Capital Australia, the Showcase symbolises the deepening ecosystem and collaborative infrastructure propelling Queensland startups to global markets.

Keynote Spotlight

We’re excited to welcome Vinnie Lauria, Founding Partner of Golden Gate Ventures, as our keynote speaker to kick off the morning at ScaleUP Showcase on 21 October.

Vinnie is a two-time Silicon Valley entrepreneur turned venture capitalist who has helped shape global startup ecosystems for over a decade. Founded in 2011, Golden Gate Ventures manages US$300 million across 100+ investments, including unicorns Carro and Carousell, with early stakes in Stripe and AngelList, and guidance for startups like Lomotif to IPO on the NYSE.

Alongside building two Silicon Valley startups and founding the Silicon Valley NewTech meetup, Vinnie has served as a guest lecturer at Stanford, Berkeley and the National University of Singapore. His keynote, “Scaling Queensland to the World: A Global Perspective,” opens our day by setting a global lens on scaling opportunities and challenges.