The CSIRO has announced a $20 million investment to provide small to medium enterprises (SMEs) with greater access to research and development (R&D) opportunities to accelerate their growth.
The funding will allow the CSIRO’s SME Connect team to support up to 750 SMEs through a range of programs and initiatives that provide facilitation, training, dollar-matched funding and support to start-ups and SMEs seeking to engage in company-led research projects.
One of the programs being supported is SME Connects’ flagship program, CSIRO Kick-Start. Since its inception in 2017, the Kick-Start program has facilitated over 280 company-led R&D projects, with alumni companies collectively holding a market value exceeding $2 billion.
CSIRO Chief Executive Dr Doug Hilton emphasises the significance of this investment and the transformative impact it will have for Australia’s critical SME sector.
“SMEs are crucial drivers of Australia’s future and so often the engine room of new, innovative thinking and solutions to many of the challenges our society faces,” he says.
“CSIRO’s fundamental role as the national science agency is to create benefits for Australia and that includes helping to drive SME’s productivity, sustainability and growth through greater access to R&D opportunities and conducting research to support a more resilient and diverse economy.
“CSIRO is committed to its role within the innovation ecosystem of supporting SMEs in embracing research and providing access to the resources, knowledge, and support they need to flourish.”
The CSIRO’s SME Connect team has supported start-ups and SMEs across a broad range of industry sectors including technology, manufacturing, agriculture, mining, energy and health and biosecurity.
For more information, visit csiro.au/en/work-with-us/funding-programs/SME.