Released 29/11/2024
The Canberra Innovation Network’s (CBRIN) new Scale Up Hub is officially open, providing a new space to accommodate Canberra’s growing entrepreneurial community.
CBRIN is a not-for-profit innovation network founded in 2014 to help diversify the ACT economy and drive business growth in Canberra.
The organisation is celebrating 10 years this month and has played a major role in shaping the city's booming innovation economy and ecosystem during that time.
The ACT Government has enabled the allocation of additional space in the Government owned Moore Street building for CBRIN to double the size of its lease to accommodate an extra 170 entrepreneurs.
The Scale Up Hub provides a dedicated space for Canberra-based start-ups and small-to-medium enterprises to collaborate and grow.
The ACT Government supports start-ups in a number of ways, including the ICON grants program, and will launch a new venture capital fund in 2025. The venture capital fund will support small businesses and start-ups within our knowledge intensive sectors to realise their potential, and support growth that will create new jobs in the ACT.
Quotes attributable to ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr:
The new Scale Up Hub is another step towards fostering Canberra start-ups and innovative SME’s that are helping us grow our economy and support our jobs target of 300,000 jobs by 2030.
We’ve seen CBRIN create and become a vital part of Canberra’s innovation and entrepreneurial community this last decade, and its impact is evident by the world-class businesses they’re supporting.
The ACT Government has been proud to support CBRIN over the past 10 years and the Scale Up Hub is one more step toward nurturing an innovation ecosystem and start-up culture in Canberra’s business landscape.
Our new venture capital fund, which will launch next year, will further support start-ups, the innovation ecosystem, and the commercialisation of ideas generated by ACT-based tertiary education, research and business sectors.
Quotes attributable to Petr Adámek, CEO of CBRIN:
Expanding level four to house up to an extra 170 entrepreneurs and staff in 22 serviced offices is a key milestone in delivering CBRIN’s mission of connecting, growing and promoting the ACT's innovation ecosystem.
Our focus on scaleups and innovative small-to-medium enterprises shows that this ecosystem is maturing.
CBRIN support now extends across the lifecycle of companies from an idea to funding, scale up and becoming an established innovation company.
This is important as we try to contribute to the diversification of the Canberra economy away from overall dependence on the public sector.
Emergence and growth of innovation companies is an important indicator of the future vibrancy and health of our economy.
- Statement ends -
Andrew Barr, MLA | Media Releases