Welcome to a very special episode of Labnotes!

For our 50th edition of the show we recorded LIVE from the Future Health Expo at the University of New South Wales, diving into the world of spinouts and deep tech investment with a panel of three guests from the Venture Capital and Angel Investment sector.

Join us to hear how Alejandra Romero (Main Sequence Ventures), John Kurek (UniSeed) and Mian Bi (Australian Medical Angels) find, fund and foster big ideas and entrepreneurial researchers emerging from Australian universities.

GUESTS :

Alejandra Romero https://www.linkedin.com/in/alejandra-romero1/

Dr Mian Bi https://www.linkedin.com/in/mian-bi/

Dr John Kurek https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-kurek-ba19a54/

UNIVERSITY OF NSW : https://www.unsw.edu.au/

FUTURE EXPO SERIES : https://www.innovationcommunity.unsw.edu.au/futures-expo-series

EON LABS : https://www.eonlabs.org/

HOST : Dr. Leo Stevens https://www.linkedin.com/in/leostevensinc/

MUSIC : Purple Planet Music https://www.purple-planet.com Mixed by Dr. Nat Harris

Until recently you might have called James a typical scientist, working away in the labs of the University of Melbourne to understand the way that muscle tissues develop and how new therapies might improve the lives of patients.

But in 2019 his career took a dramatic turn when a curiosity about culturing meat as an alternative to farming livestock brought James to the attention of George Peppou and Tim Noakesmith. The co-founders of Vow were on the hunt for a Chief Scientist as one of their first employees, and James fit the bill perfectly.

What has followed is a fabulous case study in the transition from research scientist to start-up executive, and a ride well worth following.

GUEST : Dr. James Ryall https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-ryall/

VOW : https://www.vowfood.com/

INNERVATION LAB : https://innervationlab.com.au/

EON LABS : https://www.eonlabs.org/

HOST : Dr. Leo Stevens https://www.linkedin.com/in/leostevensinc/

MUSIC : Purple Planet Music https://www.purple-planet.com Mixed by Dr. Nat Harris

What does it take to be an effective entrepreneur?

Mark Swinnerton is the founder and CEO of the energy storage startup Green Gravity, but he comes to this role with a tremendous depth of skills earned over two decades rising through the ranks of one of Australia’s largest companies, BHP.

It's a personal resource that Mark draws on daily as he builds a team to help tackle the climate crisis. And while Mark is not an academic himself, he has made a point of deeply engaging with university partners to validate the technical, social, and economic foundations of his energy storage solution, ultimately shaping this promising idea into the world-beating technology Mark knows we need.

GUEST : Mark Swinnerton https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-swinnerton/

GREEN GRAVITY : https://greengravity.com/

BHP: https://www.bhp.com/

EON LABS : https://www.eonlabs.org/

HOST : Dr. Leo Stevens https://www.linkedin.com/in/leostevensinc/

MUSIC : Purple Planet Music https://www.purple-planet.com Mixed by Dr. Nat Harris

As the world strives for net-zero there are many tough questions to solve, but among the toughest is the need to replace the literal foundations of our built environment.

Clare Tubolets is the CEO of SmartCrete, a Cooperative Research Centre that brings together research and industry to tackle the challenge of decarbonising concrete, the ubiquitous and indispensable building material that currently accounts for almost 8% of global CO2 emissions.

Join us as Clare recounts the steep learning curve of the construction sector, and shares how research, policy and industry must adapt in parallel to meet our objectives for the planet.

GUEST : Clare Tubolets https://www.linkedin.com/in/clare-tubolets-09944556/

SMARTCRETE CRC : https://smartcretecrc.com.au/

FOOD AGILITY CRC : https://www.foodagility.com/

EON LABS : https://www.eonlabs.org/

HOST : Dr. Leo Stevens https://www.linkedin.com/in/leostevensinc/

MUSIC : Purple Planet Music https://www.purple-planet.com Mixed by Dr. Nat Harris

For much of the 20th century Bell Labs was a nursery of ambitious research, helping to usher in the information age with practical innovations including the transistor, lasers and photovoltaics.

Prof. Ben Eggleton is one Bell Labs alumni who has continued its culture of applied innovation, and the Eggleton Lab at the University of Sydney is now known as a global leader in optical physics, photonic computing, sensors and microwave signal processing.

Ben's ability to bridge the gap between fundamental science and tangible technology is one of the factors that has seen Prof. Eggleton and his collages awarded sought after research grants including an ARC Centre of Excellence and multiple Laureate Fellowships, as well as awards including a Eureka Prize, and Ben's election to the Australian Academy of Science in 2016.

Today Prof. Eggleton continues to lead his research team, is co-director of the NSW Smart Sensing Network, and has recently taken up the post of Pro-vice chancellor (Research) at the University of Sydney where he is now responsible for shaping research policy at this world-class academic institution.

Join us to hear Ben's take on forging a career in applied research.

GUEST : Prof. Ben Eggleton https://www.linkedin.com/in/benjamin-eggleton-4250127

EGGLETON LAB : https://eggleton-group.sydney.edu.au/

UNIVERSITY OF SYDNEY : https://www.sydney.edu.au/

NSSN : https://www.nssn.org.au/

EON LABS : https://www.eonlabs.org/

HOST : Dr. Leo Stevens https://www.linkedin.com/in/leostevensinc/

MUSIC : Purple Planet Music https://www.purple-planet.com Mixed by Dr. Nat Harris

No sector has a monopoly on innovation and the focus on universities and startups often overlooks a major group driving research and development in Australia, the SMEs. Daniel Gronowski is a management consultant charged with delivering the Entrepreneurs Programme, the nation's flagship program to drive growth and innovation among small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs).

Dan brings a great deal of experience to the role as a former founder, investment manager and university commercialisation expert based at UNSW. By bridging the gap between research and industry Dan has helped bring a diverse array of technologies to market from image software to photovoltaics and quantum computing.

Plug in to hear how collaboration between universities and SMEs is a key pathway for Australian innovation and competitiveness.

GUEST : Daniel Gronowski https://www.linkedin.com/in/danielgronowski/

ENTREPRENEURS PROGRAM https://business.gov.au/grants-and-programs/entrepreneurs-programme

DELLOITE https://www2.deloitte.com/au/en/pages/about-deloitte/articles/home.html

EON LABS https://www.eonlabs.org/

HOST : Dr. Leo Stevens https://www.linkedin.com/in/leostevensinc/

MUSIC : Purple Planet Music https://www.purple-planet.com Mixed by Dr. Nat Harris

Exuberant and irrepressible, Cheryl Mack has been making a splash in the Australian startup ecosystem from the day she arrived.

After moving to Sydney in 2013 the Canadian-Australian introduced herself to the local startup scene through diligent networking and her leading role in establishing StartCon, a national convention for founders, investors and innovators backed by Freelancer.com. She has since mentored, invested and worked across a swathe of startup-focused organisations including the Sydney Startup Hub, The Founder Institute, SheStarts, Stone and Chalk, Air Tree and The Macquarie University Incubator.

Cheryl is now bringing this network together to help launch Aussie Angels, a new venture focused on smoothing the investment process and increasing capital flows to the ideas that deserve it.

Plug in for a masterclass in networking, and a sneak peak at the future of the Australian investment ecosystem.

GUEST : Cheryl Mack https://www.linkedin.com/in/cherylmack

AUSSIE ANGELS : https://www.aussieangels.com/angels

EON LABS : https://www.eonlabs.org/

HOST : Dr. Leo Stevens https://www.linkedin.com/in/leostevensinc/

MUSIC : Purple Planet Music https://www.purple-planet.com Mixed by Dr. Nat Harris

In 1999 a team of ANU researchers founded Seeing Machines based on their shared insight that robots and humans would need to understand one another. The idea was prescient, but the process of turning that idea into a commercial reality proved harder than any of the founders had imagined.

Ultimately, the Seeing Machines board turned to the serial entrepreneur Ken Kroeger to revive this troubled spinout, and help set the company on a path to global adoption within the automotive industry.

Join us today to hear Ken's remarkable career journey both inside and outside of Seeing Machines.

GUEST : Ken Kroeger https://www.linkedin.com/in/kkroeger

SEEING MACHINES https://seeingmachines.com

EPICORP http://www.epicorp.biz

EON LABS : https://www.eonlabs.org/

HOST : Dr. Leo Stevens https://www.linkedin.com/in/leostevensinc/

MUSIC : Purple Planet Music https://www.purple-planet.com Mixed by Dr. Nat Harris