Investor · 15 deals
Canberra, ACT
Every published round Defence Innovation Hub took part in, and every parcel of existing shares it bought off another holder. Deals we hold but haven't published yet are not counted.
Companies Defence Innovation Hub has backed in a published round, and companies whose existing shares it bought off another holder.
| Company | What it does | First invested | Rounds | Led |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saber Astronautics | 28 Oct 2019, Grant | 2 | 2 | |
| DEWC Systems | 29 Apr 2020, Grant | 1 | 1 | |
| Inovor Technologies | 5 Apr 2019, Grant | 2 | 1 | |
| Myriota | 29 Jul 2022, Grant | 1 | 1 | |
| Penten | 16 Jun 2020, Grant | 1 | 1 | |
| Quasar Satellite Technologies | 17 Mar 2023, Grant | 1 | 1 | |
| QuintessenceLabs | 16 Jun 2020, Grant | 1 | 1 | |
| Sentient Vision Systems | 7 Apr 2022, Grant | 1 | 1 | |
| Solar Sailor | 16 Jun 2020, Grant | 1 | 1 | |
| The University of Sydney | 16 Jun 2020, Grant | 1 | 1 | |
| UAV Vision | 16 Jun 2020, Grant | 1 | 1 | |
| Consunet | 16 Aug 2019, Grant | 1 | 0 | |
| Solinnov Pty Ltd | 16 Aug 2019, Grant | 1 | 0 |
Fund closes reported for Defence Innovation Hub, as distinct from the investments it has made.
Companies Defence Innovation Hub has backed that another company then bought. An exit for the holding, not a deal Defence Innovation Hub did.
| Name | Role | Sources |
|---|---|---|
| Andrew Hodgkinson | Assistant Secretary Defence Capability and Innovation | @AuManufacturing |
| Melissa Price | Defence Industry Minister (former) | @AuManufacturing (Thu 7 Apr 2022), @AuManufacturing (Fri 8 Oct 2021), @AuManufacturing (Mon 12 Oct 2020), ARN (ARNnet), @AuManufacturing (Wed 27 Nov 2019), @AuManufacturing (Fri 16 Aug 2019), @AuManufacturing (Thu 15 Aug 2019) |
| Steve Ciobo | Defence Industry Minister | @AuManufacturing |
Stories naming Defence Innovation Hub. Where several outlets covered the same round, they are bundled under whichever ran the fullest account.
A directory of fifteen Canberra investors backing deep tech, noting ACTivate Capital's fund first close, several government-backed company raises, an incubator's alumni, and one portfolio acquisition.
Kord Defence's RACU device, developed with the Australian Army, is used by Ukrainian forces. The company received past Defence Innovation Hub grants and signed an $11 million deal with US forces.
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.
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.
AuManufacturing reports the CSIRO-linked satellite startup Quasar unveiling digital multibeam ground stations, recalling its 2021 seed raise, a NSW Physical Sciences Fund grant and a Defence Innovation Hub contract.
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.
A weekly roundup reporting six Australian startups that raised a combined $19 million, including Quasar, Nexl, MoreGoodDays, DAS and Our Cow, plus Our Cow's earlier acquisition of delivery startup Voly.
Also Startup Daily·SmartCompany·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·Forbes Australia
A roundup of Australian defence industry items: submarine build plans reaffirmed, missile supply contracts for Kongsberg and Lockheed Martin, DroneShield purchase orders, an F-35 warehouse deal, and questions over a shipbuilding college closure.
Australia's science agency received a Defence Innovation Hub grant to build a CBRN respirator with two manufacturers and a university.
A defence innovation agency showcases funded companies: one gained a $1.74m contract and an industry award for its optical radar pod, another secured naval export orders, in a publisher series backed by a defence contractor.
Also @AuManufacturing
A Sydney space incubator, a joint venture of TCG Group and Saber Astronautics, hosts six startups; three collaborate on an earth observation project supported by a manufacturing grant and university engineering help.
Nine companies received Defence Innovation Hub contracts totalling $19 million to develop technologies for the Australian Defence Force, with RFTEQ winning the largest single award of $5.31 million.
Also @AuManufacturing
Australia's Defence Innovation Hub has granted ten companies defence contracts totalling $23 million, the largest being $5.88 million to A.W. Bell Machinery, in an announcement made by minister Melissa Price.
Canberra announces ten Defence Innovation Hub contracts worth $10 million for companies building artificial intelligence for defence, including Lumination, Droneshield and Real Response, each receiving an individual grant for a specific technology project.
Two Victorian companies win Defence Innovation Hub grants: QinetiQ receives $5.4 million for a deployable battlefield micro-grid with the University of Melbourne, while DMTC Limited gets $3 million for protective suit technology.
Satellite IoT firm Myriota won a $5.48 million Australian government Defence contract via the Defence Innovation Hub, weeks after a Spire Global partnership and an insurance-sector investment from IAG's venture arm.
Australia's Defence Innovation Hub announced ten new innovation contracts worth nearly $20 million, including a $2.7 million award to Western Australia's Mission Systems Australia, as forward defence spending passes $300 billion.
Sydney startup Spiral Blue sent its Space Edge Zero computers into orbit aboard SatRevolution satellites via Virgin Orbit, and holds an Australian Space Agency Moon to Mars grant and a Defence Innovation Hub contract.
Also @AuManufacturing·SmartCompany·SmartCompany·@AuManufacturing
Two unmanned aircraft tender finalists have each chosen a Melbourne imaging company's camera gimbal, which earlier received Defence Innovation Hub investment, with a government platform decision expected later this year.
Roundup of Australian manufacturing news: federal defence funding for a watercraft builder, a completed Tasmanian bus contract, diagnostics certification, cannabis sales growth, a biotech raise, an acquisition and positive Covid drug trial data.
Commentary argues defence spending since 2016 is driving Australian SME innovation, spotlighting Ron Allum Deepsea Services' Deep Ray autonomous undersea glider, built under a $2.8 million Defence Innovation Hub contract, with two patent applications lodged.
Thales Australia obtained a Defence Innovation Hub grant to build its Blue Sentry unmanned marine system, integrating its sonar onto Ocius Technology's Bluebottle autonomous vessel platform.
Silentium Defence wins a $3.2m Defence contract for its passive space radar, plus a $1.46m Space Agency award for an observatory; Prism Systems receives a $925,000 grant for Navy-related work.
Australia's Defence Innovation Hub has awarded 28 million dollars in grants across nine new contracts, including over seven million to BlueZone Group for maritime vehicle technology and 4.8 million to QinetiQ for submarine air-quality systems.
Eight Australian organisations received Defence Innovation Hub contracts worth over $21 million, funding work on imaging systems, unmanned vessels, data protection, aerial video systems, hull repair research and pilot training simulation.
Several Australian security and technology firms, including Penten and Quintessence Labs, received Defence Innovation Hub contracts totalling over $21 million, with individual grants detailed.
Also @AuManufacturing
Adelaide defence firm DEWC Systems won a $3.1 million government contract to develop a CubeSat electronic warfare sensor constellation, having earlier bought engineering firm AES to build its own hardware.
Melbourne drone company AVT Technologies received a $5.2 million Defence Innovation Hub grant to improve drone image quality, following an earlier $2 million grant for a lightweight stabilised imaging gimbal.
Two drone technology companies received Australian defence grants totalling 8.6 million dollars, announced by the industry minister at a Canberra conference, with one recipient previously funded for earlier work.
Two defence-sector companies received Defence Innovation Hub contracts announced by the minister: one for bridge monitoring technology, the other for space traffic management data solutions.
A defence research body has signed a multi-million-dollar government contract covering four collaborative projects to lift industrial capability, from land vehicle design to additive manufacturing of aerospace parts.
Four South Australian defence SMEs, including Inovor, Solinnov and Consunet, plus QinetiQ's Adelaide office, have won Defence Innovation Hub contracts for satellite, radio and electromagnetic technologies.
Fifteen companies received defence innovation grants totalling $28 million through the Defence Innovation Hub, including Carbon Revolution for Chinook helicopter wheels; the Geelong firm also completed a convertible note raising in June.
Also @AuManufacturing
An autonomous vessel maker has proven its wave-powered prototype can navigate and hold position unaided in sea trials, backed by a defence innovation grant for surveillance technology development.
Adelaide satellite firm Inovor Technologies wins a Defence Innovation Hub grant to test its satellite stabilisation algorithm, aiming at Defence adoption and later international customers.
Also @AuManufacturing