Government supports innovative new SMEs with $7.8 million grant

The Assistant Minister for Innovation Wyatt Roy has announced a $7.8million grant offer "to take bright Aussie ideas to the world".

Given to 17 fresh and forward-thinking Australian companies across multiple sectors, this grant offer is designed to allow for these new startups to better commercialise their products and bring more economic development to Australia as a result.

Overall, there have been 102 grant offers, consisting of a total of $54 million. Each individual grant offer in the latest round ranged from $69,000 to $1 million.

This is not the first time these grants have been offered and is in fact just one of multiple rounds of government investment through the Entrepreneurs' Programme. According to Mr Roy, this scheme has already helped "over 100 entrepreneurs get their ideas off the ground and into the global marketplace".

Some of the projects supported include a device designed to maximise gold recovery, software intended to assist with business development in the agribusiness sector, a cloud-based management system, 3D printing, solar cell manufacturing techniques and a diagnostic device that assesses the health of the human gut.

"This support will help the recipients commercialise their ideas to take advantage of global market opportunities and protect their intellectual property, ensuring Australia sees the benefits," said Mr Roy.

This assistance for SMEs is incredibly important for Australia as a whole, as it helps define Australia as a technological and innovation superpower. These government grants allow for startups that would've otherwise collapsed to contribute to the country and the world. 

"Without this government support we would struggle to survive in Australia," said xLabs CEO Joe Hanna to StartupSmart. Mr Hanna was a previous recipient of the grant, and now runs a successful Australian business.

Time will tell if the government's investment ultimately pays off.

To find out how you can strategise new business solutions for the commercialisation of your enterprise's product or service, speak to the experts at Wilson Porter.