ilab UQ – THE NEWS
Thank you for reading and being part of our amazing community! In the news:
– A sold-out, standing room-only, Germinate 11 pitch night
– Sportstech startups go for $25k gold at Comm Games
– $11+ million in funding raised,
– And a host of other exciting news!
SOLD OUT! The Germinate 11 pitch night nobody wanted to miss
ilab is not just the first established incubator/accelerator in Queensland, it is also one of the top contributors to the startup population and success stories (160+ startups, $40+ million in aggregated funding). And so the story continued to be told recently. With the eleventh cohort of the “Germinate” accelerator program taking to the stage for the usual pitch night. A night to remember for the startups. A night of focus and opportunities in front of a full house made of investors, seasoned entrepreneurs and other eminent members of the entrepreneurial and education ecosystem. Keep reading!
The figures to remember: 160+ attendees, 10 startups on stage, 2,700 views on the livestream (reach of 6,500) and 530,000+ impressions on Twitter (a “trending topic” for Brisbane).
Relive the night through the video summary of the event and the startups’ pitches, on our YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLdUGYT4y484tJfxEHQI94_YDcvWHs4JdM) .
The Germinate 12 startup accelerator program applications will open on the 30th of April 2018. Stay tuned! (check out our social media and keep an eye out for our next newsletter).
Let the (startup) games begin!
UQ brought the HYPE SPIN accelerator (for sportstech startups) to Australia in January this year, offering a unique opportunity for innovative businesses working in and around the sports industry to benefit from world class networks, insights and advice with a chance to deliver their business pitch at the Commonwealth House during the Commonwealth Games 2018. On Monday, 9th April 2018, the dozen of startups part of the very first UQ HYPE SPIN Accelerator program will meet and pitch on the Gold Coast, vying to win a $25,000 prize.
HYPE UQ brings Uli Becker, past President of Reebok to town – 11 April !
A Journey From Big Brand to Startup: an Evening Event with Uli Becker
The University of Queensland and HYPE Sports Innovation invite you to a unique evening with our international guest Uli Becker, ex-CEO and President of Reebok as he reflects on his entrepreneurial journey from driving a mega global brand to working with startups and innovators. Free event. Limited places,register ASAP (https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/a-journey-from-big-brand-to-startup-an-evening-with-uli-becker-tickets-44347674087) .
MentorBlaze 10 coming up!
Do you need insight and advice regarding your startup project?
We are bringing together 30+ professionals in one room.
Entrepreneurs, developers, lawyers, investors, etc. Ready your questions and sign up for our MentorBlaze speed-mentoring sessions.
Open to all, students or not.
Apply HERE (https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/mentor-blaze-10-x-myriad-qlds-biggest-mentoring-event-registration-44818946676) !
ilab Startup Internships program. The Winter program is now open to expressions of interest from both students and startups. This is a great opportunity for students to get involved into the entrepreneurial ecosystem (http://www.ilabaccelerator.com/2018/04/the-top-5-ways-to-get-an-internship-in-a-startup-in-2018/), experience a new way of working, build up skills and confidence and prepare for the future of work and a great opportunity for startups to trial new talent and recruit UQ provides 30 days of workplace insurance for each student.
Students register interest here: http://bit.ly/2FJEEVw
Startups looking to hire interns for the Winter vacation period in June/July please apply here: https://bit.ly/2gVMCjb
MOVUS just announced a $4.8 million round of funding by Telstra, Blackbird Ventures and Scott Farquhar (Atlassian)
MOVUS, an alumnus from the Germinate 7 ilab UQ accelerator program, just announced that they raised $4.8 million from Telstra, Blackbird Ventures and Scott Farquhar (Co-founder of Atlassian).
MOVUS (https://www.movus.com.au/) is a Brisbane-based developer of industrial internet of things devices such as sensors equipped with machine-learning capabilities. They went through the ilab UQ Germinate 7 (http://www.ilabaccelerator.com/?portfolio=movus) startup accelerator program, 2 years ago, and remain active members and contributors to the startup and ilab UQ ecosystem.
In less than two years, the company has developed an industrial IoT sensor and software-as-a-service monitoring platform, known as FitMachine.
Read the announcement on the AFR (http://www.afr.com/technology/scott-farquhar-blackbird-ventures-and-telstra-back-industrial-iot-player-movus-20180321-h0xsbc) .
Microba, ilab UQ Germinate 9, raised $7 million!
They make it rain! Prior to MOVUS’ recent announcement, Microba took the stage during the opening of our Germinate 11 pitch night (on the 14th of March 2018) to announce the closing of a $7 million round of funding.
Microba (https://www.microba.com/learn-more/) has developed cutting edge technology to analyse the gut microbiome. Using this technology Microba will improve lives through a deeper understanding of the gut microbiome.
Dr Alena Pribyl, Senior Scientist and Research Officer at Microba and Bernie Woodcroft, ilab UQ Director during the ilab UQ Germinate 11 pitch night.
Advance Queensland Founders’ Fellowship awarded to UQ researcher and ilab UQ alumnus Microba’s Dr David Wood
University of Queensland researcher and ilab UQ (startup accelerator) alumnus Dr David Wood was awarded $100,000 from Advance Queensland as a founder at Microba Pty Ltd, for his project “Data mining the gut microbiome”.
Entrepreneurship and startups in demand as a career at UQ
The University of Queensland held its careers fair recently and we, ilab, contributed to a new addition to the mix of companies by helping bring in startups. Beyond a presence to champion the Entrepreneurship and Innovation initiatives at UQ, we were thrilled to welcome 10 startups in our Startup Laneway, offering a new path and opportunity to some of the 4,000 students attending the fair.
With a packed lane for the whole duration of the fair, one can only consider that it was a success and the demand, from students, is high for entrepreneurship and new career paths.
Startup Academy (https://entrepreneurship.uq.edu.au/startup-academy) has launched! The Startup Academy (SUA) is a totally new concept for creating and scaling new high growth innovation based startups, while providing an interactive learning opportunity. This program is open to current UQ students and UQ alumni. More on the Startup Academy page (https://www.business.uq.edu.au/startup-academy) .
Welcome to ilab UQBSPA!
ilab UQ is about more than nurturing entrepreneurs and startups. We strive to offer a welcoming space and community for all within the university. Introducing and explaining entrepreneurship is the first step in the right direction to help students progress in their discovery (and adoption, eventually) of the entrepreneurial journey.
Hence our commitment towards welcoming student groups and external organisations willing to gather and educate on innovation, technology and entrepreneurship.
Beyond the crowd in the room, the livestream of the night on the ilab UQ Facebook page reached 450+ views!
If you are an ilab UQ accelerator alumni and have some great news for us to share about an upcoming product launch, kickstarter or success you would like to celebrate, drop Bec or Sam a line on bec.mcintosh@ilabuq.com.au / sam.pavin@ilabuq.com.au
UQ Idea Hub Autumn session
Want to gain the network, mentors and skills required to startup your own business? Applications to the UQ Idea Hub (https://ideahub.uq.edu.au/) Autumn Session are now open with places filling up fast!
Apply here now (https://goo.gl/HgnzvT) :
UQ Idea Hub Startup LeadHers – applications are now open!
This is your opportunity to connect with and learn from female leaders in business, network with like-minded women at UQ, and be inspired. Starts Thursday 26 April. Places are limited apply here (https://goo.gl/nrPNvm) !
MYRIAD
Myriad (https://www.myriad.live/) is as much an inclusive cultural experiment, as it is an inspiring technological marvel. A celebration of the human beings who find themselves at the uncertain intersections of culture and industry and choose to make a difference. The once-a-year mega event bringing together the entrepreneurial, creative and innovative worlds. The event will run over 3 days, 16th to 18th May 2018 at the Royal International Convention Centre, Fortitude Valley QLD.
The UQ Entrepreneurship and Innovation team will be on site and we, UQ ilab, will be running our speed mentoring event, MentorBlaze on the Friday (18th) as a satellite event.
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ilab UQ is part of the global ‘Entrepreneurship and Innovation’ initiative at The University of Queensland. Get more details at:
https://entrepreneurship.uq.edu.au/
