A key point of business accelerator programs is the “Demo Day”, a point in time the founders work towards to show the culmination of their efforts. Each participant gives their five minute pitch, covering off the challenge they are solving, the solution, their business model and how they make money, their market and competition, their traction or sales to date, and what they need next. There is usually judging of some form, sometimes Q&A, and occasionally a prize to keep things interesting.

The pitch event defines the quality of the program in its ability to attract appropriate enterprises, help them realise outcomes in a short period of time, and prepare them to clearly communicate a compelling narrative about their impact and ask.  Dozens of similar pitch events happen across Australia each year.

These pitch events are a primary indicator of startup activity in a region. Often in the audience will be scouts for investors, corporations, government agencies, and other accelerator programs. The networking after the event is where connections are made, relationships start or continue towards longer-term partnerships.

I reflect on this process having just returned from a pitch event. My own perspective is one of mapping and measuring what is happening in the innovation ecosystem. A main driver of my focus on creating a platform to help hubs and spaces do what they do better is to find a way to better map what is happening across Australia. I simply cannot be everywhere at once to capture the information, or afford to employ enough people to do the same. There are also low incentives for the startups themselves to add their information. The goal is to provide value in the programs and hubs to profile their participants as part of the operational activities of their business.

We will have this for the nation within 12 months.