For the first time, The University of Queensland’s Ventures ilab Accelerator is partnering with the Momentum Accelerator to offer a one-of-a-kind experience for UQ-affiliated startups. This combined program supports two distinct streams, each with unique goals and funding opportunities to help get their ideas off the ground.
The ilab stream is designed for early-stage ventures, typically at or near product-ready stage and pre or early revenue. Participants in this stream receive a $15,000 SAFE note through the UniQuest Extension Fund and benefit from structured mentorship and workshops. ilab is one of the longest-running accelerator programs in Australia and has supported 350+ startups, creating over 1,550 jobs and attracting ~$435 million in investment and grant funding.
The Momentum stream, funded by the QIC’s Venture Capital Development Fund (VCDF) and delivered by UQ Ventures, targets later-stage technology startups that are product-ready, in-market, and demonstrating revenue or traction. One venture from this stream will have the opportunity to receive a $100,000 investment from UniQuest.
Together, the streams form a cohesive pathway for startups, providing stage-specific guidance that drives sustainable growth and amplifies impact.
Acting Head of Entrepreneurship, Dr Veronica Nolan has said,
“What an exciting opportunity, bringing all these bright minds together into the one cohort. This pooling of creativity and determination not only amplifies each founder’s potential development through access to diverse perspectives and shared learnings.”
Dr Nolan also stated that combining forces through our partnerships with QIC and UniQuest has also given rise to the upcoming inaugural ScaleUP Showcase, lighting the spark for greater connection, growth and impact for our founders right across our ecosystem.
“Such collaborations enhance the value that all our contributors bring to the table in building the entrepreneurial infrastructure for Queensland and beyond, not just for today but well into the future.”
ilab accelerator manager Tyson Jennings and Momentum program manager Yazz Krishna are both excited to welcome a new Entrepreneur-in-Residence (EiR), Vanessa Garrard, to the inaugural combined accelerator program. They all bring unique and invaluable expertise and perspectives to the program.
"We’re thrilled to announce the 2025 ilab x Momentum Accelerator cohort — a group of visionary founders who represent the future of Queensland’s startup ecosystem. By combining early-stage support through ilab with the growth capital and backing of Momentum, this program gives founders the runway to scale faster, smarter, and with impact. This year’s cohort is one of our strongest yet, and I can’t wait to see the incredible ventures they’ll build." Tyson Jennings, ilab Accelerator Manager
Meet the Teams
The 20 teams selected for this unique accelerator experience are working to innovate solutions to a diverse range of issues throughout several industries.
- Accurment: A behavioural decision engine that helps marketers craft research-backed strategies and earn stakeholder trust through a proprietary, expert-curated behavioural science database.
- activATAR: A high-performance study platform that helps students maximise their ATAR with expert-designed resources, smart analytics, and motivation systems that work.
- Algeåe: An algae-based dermatological start up.
- Custodia Labs: A search engine for your digital identity, empowering AI to understand you and act as a personalised assistant, not just a source of generic answers.
- EchoCare: A seamless ecosystem designed to enhance efficiency, expand reach, and elevate the quality of ultrasound services with a focus on musculoskeletal disorder prevention in sonography.
- Healthtrition: A premium supplement range with science-backed, practitioner-designed highly bioavailable ingredients to optimise fertility and pregnancy for both men and women.
- Heuris Tech: Intelligent automation at scale.
- Innara.ai: Meal planning app for people who experience chronic conditions.
- Kurnell: Understand how students use AI on campus.
- Mouthful: Restaurant logging app, reinventing star ratings.
- Neurov AI/Arena: AI CRM for health insurance SMS marketing utilising AI-powered agents that turn your cold, aged leads into booked appointments - 24/7, without manual outreach or compliance headaches.
- PillFlow: A secure, real-time platform that connects GPs, pharmacies, and care teams to ensure medication changes are validated, tracked, and error-free across care settings.
- Qreative AI: Turns QR codes into trackable, artistic marketing, transforming every QR code from a functional afterthought into an intelligent, high-performing lead generation engine.
- Quantive: A platform to help technical jobseekers get truly ready for the interview process.
- Quokka Games: Award-winning indie studio crafting simple games.
- Rise Health: Simplifies NDIS compliance for care providers.
- Sepal: A digital platform that connects organisers, stallholders, and customers to simplify market bookings, increase visibility, automate admin tasks, and bring local markets into the digital age.
- Streaks: Unifies café loyalty cards for online stores.
- Tripzy: Turn reels and TikToks into travel plans and itineraries. Discover, map, and share trips with friends — smarter, faster, and all in one place.
- Ventriko: A professional platform built to accelerate the growth of startups by combining community insight and investor access.
This unique program provides $15,000 to each of the 10 ilab stream teams and offers all 20 of the participants across the combined cohort, the opportunity to participate in a pitch event with a $100,000 prize. They also receive access to UQ’s global mentoring and investor network, benefits from industry partnerships, structured workshop sessions conducted by industry experts, guidance from UQ’s Entrepreneurs-in-Residence, and co-working space.
The program culminates in TWO pitch events showcasing the team’s innovations — the qualifying round at our StartUP Showcase on campus on Saturday 18 October, and the grand finale at our ScaleUP Showcase on Tuesday 21 October.
Be sure to save the date for both events and see our startups in action!
For more information about Ventures and related opportunities, please contact Tyson at t.jennings@uq.edu.au or ventures@uq.edu.au.
