Grants in Information Technology

The Ignite Ideas Fund offers funding for commercialising highly innovative products or services, at or beyond the minimum viable product stage. This fund serves as a companion program to the Advance Queensland Ignite Spark Program, which supports projects in advancing highly innovative products or services from prototype development through testing and validation to market readiness.

With a $20M funding pool, this initiative aims to support eligible businesses with high growth potential across advanced manufacturing, health and medical sectors, circular economy, digital technology, and agribusiness. By collaborating with commercial lenders, the fund will facilitate the establishment of loan facilities to empower innovative Victorian start-ups and scale-ups.

The Manufacturing Technology Adoption Program (MTAP) supports South Australian manufacturers in boosting productivity and global competitiveness. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) can apply for up to $50,000 in matched funding to adopt innovative Industry 4.0 technologies, including AI, machine learning, data analytics, blockchain, AR/VR, additive manufacturing, IIoT, and optics.

The Department of Jobs, Tourism, Science and Innovation has released the Local Capability Fund, which provides grants to help small and medium enterprises to enhance their competitiveness and secure work on large-scale projects in Australia and overseas. The Digital Transformation Round of the Local Capability Fund opened on 26 July 2024 and will close on 13 September 2024. This round of funding round aims to empower SMEs to embrace digital technology. The program encourages businesses to adopt digital and data solutions that boost productivity, competitiveness, resilience, safety, and sustainability.

The Australian Defence Industry Development Grants Program (DIDG) announced it will award grants as part of the Defence Industry Development Strategy, offering $153.6 million over four years from 2024-25 to 2027-28 to support businesses in areas critical to national defence. The Defence Industry Development Grants Program's Security Stream provides funding to strengthen national security through the development of advanced Defence capabilities.

The Priority Sector Collaborative Grants provide funding to Northern Territory business groups to develop common-use infrastructure, services, or data. These grants may offer up to 50% matched funding to consortia of three or more businesses to advance sector-wide initiatives that enhance local industry capability, innovation, and business development in priority sectors.

The METS Innovation Program aims to support research initiatives spearheaded by Mining, Equipment, Technology, and Services (METS) companies servicing to WA’s mining sector. With a $3 million funding allocation, the program offers a targeted grant scheme providing matched funding of up to $250,000 for qualifying grant recipients, along with project facilitation support for collaborative ventures. It focuses on advancing technologies in MRIWA’s strategic areas, including low-emissions technologies, precision and low-impact mining, critical minerals, and innovative uses of tailings and waste.

The Defence Ready Initiative (DRI) aims to financially support SMEs in Western Australia engaged in the Defence sector, enhancing their business capability, capacity, and competitiveness. The goal is to enable these businesses to serve as suppliers for products, services, and works aligned with Defence requirements.

Screen Queensland's Games Grants program supports the growth of the local digital games industry by providing funding to Queensland developers and studios. With grants of up to $200,000 available for projects spanning prototype, early access, and full launch, the uplift in the Games Grants program enables projects to secure a maximum of $300,000 in funding throughout their lifecycle.