Australia’s Trailblazer Program unlocks $549 million industry investment to fast-track innovation

The Australian Department of Education’s $370 million Trailblazer Universities Program (TUP) established six Trailblazers to focus on national priorities such as defence, space, food and beverage, recycling and clean energy, and resources technology and critical minerals.

Under the Trailblazer program, 14 Australian universities and 228 industry partners have also co-invested a total of $1.02 billion to build new research capabilities and drive commercialisation outcomes at speed and scale, to accelerate Australia’s innovation agenda.

The Trailblazers have joined forces to call for continued policy and investment support to extend the successful momentum of the Trailblazer Universities Program, as outlined in a joint submission to the Strategic Examination of R&D.

“The Trailblazer Program is uniquely positioned to accelerator innovation from Australia’s universities into the food and beverage industry. By fostering strong collaborations between academia and industry, the Trailblazer Program is driving the future of industry-led research in Australia,” said Dr Chris Downs, Director, Food and Beverage Accelerator.

Together, the Trailblazers have demonstrated the value of university-industry engagement in experimental development, or the translation of research into practical applications – an area where Australia has historically underperformed. Within 18 months of operation, all six Trailblazers have had significant achievements:
• unlocking more than $549 million co-investment from 228 industry partners
• establishing over 319 collaborative projects between industry and academia; and
• fostering early career industry pathways for students and academics through internships, industry sponsored PhDs and academic-industry secondments.

The joint submission to the Strategic Examination of R&D also highlighted several common themes:
• Establish long-term and large-scale commitment to areas of strategic priority – a national vision to guide R&D investment
• Support cultural reform by rewarding, recognising and incentivising university-industry R&D – encourage the commercialisation of research
• Create greater societal understanding of the benefits of R&D and innovation – build a “social license” for basic research, and encourage risk-taking in experimental development
• Create stable funding programs that incentivise industry participation in R&D and innovation – address the funding gaps between prototype development and commercialisation
• Create and promote measures that are aligned to the outcomes and impact of R&D investment – metrics to track the success of innovation-based products and services.