New fund to take ideas from workshop to shopfront

Clever ideas and innovations that will improve the lives of Queensland families now have a better chance of getting to the market with the State’s new $1.5 million grant program.

Science and Innovation Minister Ian Walker said the Government’s Accelerate Ideas grant program aimed to encourage people from throughout Queensland and industry to work together on turning good ideas into commercial reality.

Mr Walker said the funding was aimed at Queensland individuals, businesses and university researchers who often found the leap from workshop to shopfront financially challenging.

“Grants of between $25,000 and $50,000 will be given to successful applicants who are at the point of demonstrating the commercial viability of their innovations. So, for example, they’ve developed a prototype and need support to validate their product to get it to the next stage along the commercial pipeline,” Mr Walker said.

“If they can successfully demonstrate the commercial viability of their innovation, this will help them attract commercial allies including industry collaborators and investors.”

The program is seeking projects that are close to market entry, are demand driven, contribute to business growth, overcome barriers to commercialisation, and provide potential investment opportunities.

Mr Walker said applicants would need to match the Government’s grant to show they had some skin in the game and were fair dinkum about driving their idea to market.

“We want to see good, genuine ideas that have the potential to succeed in the marketplace, but also benefit Queensland taxpayers through the potential for creating new jobs and attracting investment in the Queensland economy,” Mr Walker said.

“We’ll use Queensland taxpayers’ money to turn brilliant ideas into products or research that not only have the potential to improve the lives of Queensland families and many others, but will also help get them to market to get a return on Queenslanders’ investment.”

The Accelerate Ideas program is part of the Government’s $8.75 million Accelerate Program in the Queensland Science and Innovation Action Plan.

Applications can be submitted on-line. Applications will be assessed on a quarterly basis with the first deadline on 31 August. For more details visit www.qld.gov.au/accelerateideas

[ENDS] 23 June 2014

Media Contact: Monica Rostron 0409 126 332