Australian Department of Defence

SQC among 6 startups sharing $12.3 million in quantum grants

Six Australian quantum startups, including Silicon Quantum Computing and QuantX Labs, have received federal grants totalling $12.3 million under the Critical Technologies Challenge Program for projects in energy, health, biosecurity and logistics.

Defence Trailblazer fast-tracking new technologies to help Defence and Industry transition to clean energy

Defence Trailblazer funds emissions-reduction projects with Electric Motor Power, Ocius Technology and Praxis, and profiles renewable-technology ventures from its Entrepreneurial Foundations for Defence program.

Space monitoring startup scores NRF backing in $37 million Series B

Beaten Zone Venture Partners led a US$25 million Series B in HEO Robotics, which images other spacecraft, with the NRFC contributing $10 million; the piece also recalls earlier Series A and seed rounds.

Also Forbes Australia·Forbes Australia·Cut Through Venture·Startup Daily·Space Connect·This Week in Australian Startups·Dynamic Business

Q-CTRL completes milestone maritime vessel navigation without GPS using quantum gravimeter

Defence tech firm Q-CTRL reports a first-at-sea trial navigating a vessel with no satellite positioning, using a quantum gravity sensor hardened by software, reaching nautical-mile accuracy and extending its navigation product line.

Defence drone manufacturer Innovaero lodges prospectus with ASIC ahead of initial public offering

A Perth-based maker of military drones has lodged listing paperwork with the corporate regulator ahead of a planned sharemarket float; its current Defence Force munitions contract is worth $24.2 million.

Hanwha Group pitches preliminary offer for Austal's US operations

Hanwha's US subsidiary has made an indicative offer of US$1.05–1.20 billion for Austal's American business; the target's board approved a four-week due diligence window, with the proposal excluding its home-market operations.

Devoli appoints Kent Plummer to boost Australian channel commitment

Devoli has hired Kent Plummer from Aussie Broadband as channel manager for Australia, tasking him with helping the provider's MSP partners simplify how they run connectivity.

Seven ANZ startups that raised $17 million this week

Weekly roundup of seven Australian and New Zealand startup raises totalling $17 million, including two startups entering Y Combinator, plus a new QuantX Labs board director and SmartrMail's earlier sale to Relay Commerce.

Also Startup Daily·Startup Daily

Aurora Labs wins $544k Australian Defence grant to scale 3D-printed micro gas turbines for UAVs

Aurora Labs has received a Defence Industry Development Grant to help buy production equipment for its small gas-turbine engines used in drones, supporting its sovereign manufacturing push.

Beaten Zone Venture Partners Congratulates Arkeus on A$25M Series A as Portfolio Company Reaches Inflection Point

Arkeus has closed a A$25 million Series A with QIC Ventures leading, as early backer Beaten Zone Venture Partners returns alongside other existing backers; proceeds fund Queensland manufacturing and a doubled team.

Also Startup Daily·Defence Connect·SmartCompany·SmartCompany·Forbes Australia·@AuManufacturing

Our investment in Arkeus

Folklore Ventures announces it has joined Arkeus' A$25 million Series A with QIC Ventures, R+ VC and returning backers, describing the Melbourne defence-sensing startup's technology and growth plans.

Also Beaten Zone Venture Partners portfolio·Beaten Zone Venture Partners portfolio·arkeus.com·Forbes Australia·Cut Through Venture·SmartCompany·Dealroom

Federal government slips $12.7 million to 8 quantum projects tackling energy, minerals and health

Eight university- and company-led Australian quantum projects share $12.7 million in stage-two Critical Technologies Challenge Program grants, funding prototypes for data-centre cooling, medical imaging and rare-earth detection.

Our investment in Cortisonic: Computing with sound waves to power the Edge AI revolution

Main Sequence announces backing Cortisonic, a deep-tech startup coming out of stealth with phononic chips for low-power edge AI, plus an Australian defence contract and a Lockheed Martin partnership.

Also Forbes Australia

Michelle Toscan appointed APAC head at Advanced Navigation

Advanced Navigation has hired Michelle Toscan to lead its Asia-Pacific operations, tasking her with defence and government engagement as the navigation systems maker supplies primes including Rheinmetall and Boeing.

Defence Trailblazer backs clean-energy tech

Defence Trailblazer is advancing emissions-cutting defence technology projects pairing companies with university researchers, and names seven ventures in its Entrepreneurial Foundations for Defence program.

Is this the moment Aurora Labs (ASX: A3D) breaks into the defence export big leagues?

Aurora Labs raised A$5.5 million in a placement that brought drone-engine maker Sovereign Propulsion Systems in as cornerstone backer, and signed SPS to test and exclusively distribute its turbine engines across AUKUS countries.

Manufacturing news briefs — stories you might have missed

Roundup of Australian manufacturing items: gold-nanoparticle cancer diagnostics research, a medical research endowment's ten-year mark, a footballer's ambassador role, EU research program accession talks, a pectin producer's government grant, and battle-tank trainers.

Additional contract recipients announced for emerging, disruptive tech program

Defence's innovation accelerator has awarded three more contracts under its emerging and disruptive technologies program, funding quantum and information-warfare work at CSIRO, four universities and Silicon Quantum Computing, adding $9 million to the program.

Dr Marcus Tan Joins Integral As Executive Chair

Startup News reports Dr Marcus Tan, who founded and led HealthEngine, has taken the Executive Chair role at Perth leadership-development firm Integral, which earlier raised angel money including from Rayn Ong.

Defence sniffs audit trail, unleashes funding for lethal local industries

Australia's defence industry minister has begun handing out grants from a $169.1m program, with 58 local suppliers sharing $16.5m, days after a critical national audit of Defence's domestic industry performance.

archTIS acquires US-based Direktiv's assets in US$750K deal

Security software firm archTIS buys orchestration vendor Direktiv's assets, staff and customers for US$750,000 paid in tranches, with Direktiv's two founders taking engineering roles at archTIS.

Also ARN (ARNnet)

AUKUS partners agree to accelerate hypersonics development

$60m in defence quantum technology grants announced

Canberra is funding 21 quantum and counter-disinformation defence projects, awarding $60 million in grants through ASCA's Emerging and Disruptive Technologies programme to universities and companies nationwide.

Also Startup Daily·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·@AuManufacturing

Manufacturing news briefs – stories you might have missed

AuManufacturing roundup of brief industry news: Wide Open Agriculture banks a $7.5 million raise, Liontown adds a lithium offtake partner, Osteopore signs Zimmer Biomet for distribution, plus quantum, defence, rail and recycling items.

Defence’s tortoise or hare like progress to procurement?

AuManufacturing analysis weighing whether Defence's drone purchase shows procurement reform is working, tracing Sypaq's Corvo from 2018 concept work to selection alongside a German rival.

Manufacturing news briefs – stories you might have missed

Manufacturing sector roundup: Whyalla steelworks resumes production, Maggie Beer Holdings' chief executive to depart, ReNu Energy secures hydrogen funding, Defence names grant recipients, Orthocell gains Canadian approval, and AEA appoints its advisory board.

ADF invests $100m in new drones

Australia's federal government announced plans to buy two military drone systems — Germany's Quantum-Systems Vector and Melbourne maker SYPAQ's CorvoX — for the Army and Air Force, with deliveries expected in 2025.

Visionary Machines secures Defence contract for counter drone, sensor technology

Sydney computer vision firm Visionary Machines won a Phase 2 Defence technology demonstration contract for its Pandion counter-drone sensor after pitching at Army Innovation Day 2023 via the Advanced Strategic Capabilities Accelerator.

$51 million for CRC-P industry research collaborations

Federal grants roundup: 21 Cooperative Research Centres Projects awards worth $51 million in Round 15, with EQ Plastics, Optiscan Imaging and NEXSEN BioTech each receiving $3 million for product development.

Also RenewEconomy

Defence to trial drones in Innovation Incubation Challenge

Eleven companies will develop prototype drones for Defence's Sovereign UAS Challenge, run by ASCA, under contracts worth a combined $1.21 million, with demonstrations due in April.

Ukraine war propels DroneShield to new records

DroneShield's 2023 results hit record revenue and a first profit as war-driven demand for its counter-drone equipment surged, with strong cash receipts, a growing order backlog and expanded production planned in Sydney and Adelaide.

Advanced Navigation to manufacture photonic chip

Advanced Navigation received a $306,631 grant from the Australian Department of Defence's Sovereign Industrial Capability Priority program to develop local photonic chip manufacturing; its Boreas X90 will fly on a Space Machines orbital vehicle.

Also Defence Connect·@AuManufacturing·@AuManufacturing

$3.6 million backs defence industry capabilities

Ten local manufacturers split a fresh $3.6 million Defence grant pool, with each award itemised, to develop armour, sonar, test chambers, metrology and machining for defence and export markets.

Rosebank begins regional support for F-35 Program at Bayswater depot

Rosebank Engineering has started operating its Melbourne F-35 component repair depot, backed by a $2.26m federal grant, serving Indo-Pacific fleets; the business sits in ASDAM Group, which CPE Capital mostly owns.

Manufacturing news briefs — stories you might have missed

Manufacturing briefs roundup: LBT Innovations launches a $4.5m shareholder offer, AnteoTech collects a $3.77m research tax payment, with updates from Pact, Evnex, First Graphene, Austal, ASM and the University of Adelaide's space course.

Also @AuManufacturing

Defence funding to empower Speartooth UUV development

The Defence Department has granted C2 Robotics a third allocation of innovation money to advance its Speartooth underwater drone toward a second-generation prototype and a deployable container system.

Advanced Navigation, Quantx Labs among seven defence grant recipients

Seven Australian manufacturers, including Advanced Navigation and Quantx Labs, have received federal grants under two Defence capability programs, with individual awards from $150,000 to $830,665 supporting projects across four states.

Also Defence Connect

Lovitt Technologies awarded $1.5 million JSF-related grant

Melbourne precision machining firm Lovitt Technologies received a $1.5 million grant under Defence's Joint Strike Fighter Industry Support Program, funding new machining equipment, staff training and software upgrades.

Frigate combat system work to be done in Australia

Three defence contractors and Defence signed an agreement to integrate Navy combat systems locally, while Saab's Adelaide expansion, supported by a $22 million federal manufacturing grant, was also reported.

Australia is pouring $3.4 billion into a defence capabilities accelerator

Australia will create the Advanced Strategic Capabilities Accelerator, backed by a decade-long $3.4 billion commitment, to speed defence innovation and procurement; the news follows Fleet Space's recently revealed $6.4m Defence contract.