Thirteen projects to share in $4M in funding

Published Friday, 22 March, 2024 at 02:00 PM

Minister for the Environment and the Great Barrier Reef and Minister for Science and Innovation
The Honourable Leanne Linard

Thirteen innovation precincts and places will share in more than $4 million in funding from the Miles Government’s Queensland Innovation Precincts and Places Fund.
The funding will help grow the precincts and places themselves and, by doing so, Queensland’s wider innovation ecosystem.
The government is investing $15 million over three years through the Precincts and Places Fund to drive innovative and create good jobs.

Thirteen innovation precincts and places will share in more than $4 million in funding to drive growth and create more good jobs in Queensland’s innovation sector.

Innovation Minister Leanne Linard today announced the successful recipients in the inaugural funding round of the $15 million Queensland Innovation Precincts and Places Fund.

The Underwood Innovation Precinct will receive funding to support the development of a South East Queensland-based National Drone Centre of Excellence. The centre will help drive high value jobs in drone-related businesses, including defence, aerospace manufacturing, aviation management, and transport and logistics.

The Gold Coast Health and Knowledge Precinct will use its funding to develop and grow businesses that will form the heart of new and exciting tech industries on the Gold Coast, including sports tech, creating new jobs and business opportunities in the future economy.

Cairns-based Launch Y(E)P will receive almost $1.3 million for two projects, including an upgrade of its facilities with state-of-the-art digital infrastructure to provide an enhanced space for collaboration among Far North Queensland innovators.

Queensland’s network of innovation precincts and places bring together business, industry and researchers to identify and develop new ideas, create new technologies and then look to commercialise them.

The Innovation Precincts and Places Fund was established to bolster technology innovation, boost productivity and stimulate competitiveness in Queensland’s innovation ecosystem.

Innovation is essential to Queensland’s economic future, with the Miles Government’s investments ensuring the state is a leader in the continued technological advances such as artificial intelligence, robotics, immersive technology, and new medical breakthroughs.

Quotes attributable to Innovation Minister, Leanne Linard:

“Innovation precincts and places are recognised around the world as engine rooms of economic growth and job creation and the Miles Government is proud to support them through our Queensland Innovation Precincts and Places Fund.

“Queensland has some of the world’s best in research, universities, manufacturing and tech, and we have a plan to see this sector thrive.

“Now it’s time to super charge our precincts and places and put them at the heart of accelerating Queensland’s innovation economy.

“These funds will help existing and emerging precincts get the strategic advice they need in the areas that matter to help create high-value jobs and drive Queensland’s innovation economy.

“We are supporting our innovation precincts and places across the state to bring businesses, entrepreneurs, researchers and investors together to discover and commercialise innovative solutions to market opportunities.”

Quotes attributable to Tara Diversi, Launch Y(E)P recipient:

"Advance Queensland Innovation Precincts and Places funding allows us to engage world-class local consultants in First Nations engagement, investment and partnerships.

“This will help us to build inclusiveness, sustainability and global competitiveness into our vibrant Tropical North Queensland innovation ecosystem.

"Launch Y(E)P will work with local contractors to transform our premises into a fit-for-purpose, modern innovation precinct.

“The TNQ precinct will be a place where startups, founders and supporting organisations have the space and support to start, do and grow their businesses, to run events and to collaborate among themselves and with other like-minded companies in other parts of the state through the use of state-of-the-art digital infrastructure.

“The Advance Queensland Innovation Precincts and Places Fund is a fantastic economic initiative, demonstrating true investment and value in the role that regional innovation ecosystems play in Queensland’s economic future.”

Further information:

Queensland Innovation Precincts and Places Fund inaugural funding round successful applicants:

Precinct or Place Name	Location	Funding	Project description
AATLIS Innovation Precinct	South West Qld	$119,908	The AgTech and Logistics Hub has rapidly evolved from a precinct that supports AgTech ecosystem development to a trusted regional advisor for agribusiness and innovation. This project will amplify this impact by plugging skills gaps across Queensland's regional workforce by providing an action plan to develop a National Future Skills Academy at the AATLIS innovation precinct.
Boggo Road Innovation Precinct	South East Qld	$300,000	The project aims to deliver an action plan that includes a mix of research translation capabilities with involvement from industry, entrepreneurs and technology companies.
Far North Queensland Health and Innovation Precinct - Dugurrdja Precinct	Far North Qld	$280,000	This project will focus on strategic advice and an action plan to position FNQHIP as a global innovation hub, enhancing research translation, commercialisation, and regional economic growth.
Frontier CQ	Central Qld	$258,680	Frontier CQ’s project will enable the innovation precinct to bring in the expertise needed to position Frontier CQ as an economic growth hub for the Central Highlands region.
Gold Coast Health and Knowledge Precinct	South East Qld	$295,000	For this project, the Gold Coast Health and Knowledge Precinct (and its partners) seek to develop a step-change sophisticated investment attraction strategy, leveraging existing expert advice identifying key opportunities.
Herston Health Precinct	South East Qld	$299,924	This project will enhance the development of the Herson Health precinct by creating optimal conditions for growth, collaboration, and by leveraging and complementing initiatives across the breadth of the Knowledge Corridor.
Launch Y(E)P	Far North Queensland	$290,000	The project will engage world-leading consultants to develop strategies that can be implemented by Launch Y(E)P to grow and sustain the TNQ innovation ecosystem.
Split Spaces	Central Qld	$77,500	This project will map the Mackay, Isaac and Whitsunday regional innovation ecosystem to determine how to work more cohesively with regional stakeholders to improve overall innovation outcomes. The project will seek input from key regional stakeholders to find gaps in innovation outcomes.
Springfield's Knowledge Precinct	South East Qld	$271,000	This project will be a transformative catalyst, accelerating the development and effectiveness of the Knowledge Precinct. It will enable the Precinct to leverage investments, foster critical mass, optimise resource allocation, and make informed decisions.
The Mill at Moreton Bay	South East Qld	$291,293	This project will obtain expert strategic advice and activities to inform their actions plans as part of the consultation of best-practice governance framework, investment attraction strategy, and operational assessment strategy.
TropiQ - Townsville Tropical Intelligence and Health Precinct	North Queensland	$280,000	This project will expedite the TropiQ precinct's growth and impact, fostering collaboration, advancing healthcare, technology, agriculture, aquaculture, and attracting vital cross-industry co-contributions.
Underwood Innovation Precinct	South East Qld	$252,560	The project involves the development of a SEQ based Australian/National Drone Centre of Excellence (DCoE) to grow the Queensland and Australian drone ecosystem with benefits including the accelerated development of high value jobs in drone related verticals including defence, aerospace manufacturing, aviation management and transport and logistics.
Launch Y(E)P	Far North Queensland	$1,000,000	The project will enable Launch Y(E)P to modify their premises to become a fit-for-purpose modern innovation precinct to activate the Tropical North Queensland ecosystem, provide a place for collaboration and partnerships and support startups, founders and ecosystem enablers with space to start, do and grow their businesses, to run events and to collaborate with our Southern colleagues and regional and remote founders through the use of state of the art digital infrastructure.

More information about the Queensland Innovation Precincts and Places Fund and funded projects is available here.

ENDS

Media contact: Scott Chandler – (07) 3719 7339