Bright minds, founders, and innovative companies are set to converge on the Hunter to explore the technologies and ideas poised to disrupt industries and change the way we work and live.
The Hunter Innovation Festival, which will be held on 17 October 2024, will provide a stage for those working in advanced manufacturing, clean energy, technology, wellness at work, and more to make valuable connections and engage in discovery.
As a national innovation hotspot, the Hunter has a thriving startup ecosystem, fostered through initiatives such as the Hunter Innovation Festival.
Hunter Innovation Festival Chair, Alex Brennan said “We know that building a strong innovation ecosystem is fundamental to success. It can make or break a new business idea. The Festival was born 22 years ago out of a desire to build a community around innovation, and we’re proud to see that now flourishing here in the Hunter.”
“Innovations coming out of the Hunter are supporting Australia’s environmental, social and economic wellbeing and increasingly, the Festival is drawing participation and engagement from capital cities and interstate. Moving forward, our objective is to become a destination festival, attracting strong visitation from outside the region,” Alex said.
Alex said the Hunter was an exciting region to watch and had incredible prospects as a global innovation epicentre.
“The Hunter is a fantastic market to pilot ideas. Its industry and skills base are incredibly diverse. Our population is big enough to provide scale, yet not overwhelming. It’s within easy reach of Sydney but offers greater affordability for businesses starting or scaling up. Looking into the near future, with plans for a dedicated container terminal at the Port, international links through Newcastle airport, and High Speed Rail, Newcastle will be hard to beat,” he said.
“Clever businesses will be alert to this opportunity, and we’ll be looking to develop our program in response. The SXSW model has been incredibly successful in this regard, and the Hunter is ideally placed to develop out a similar platform,” he said.
The Hunter Innovation Festival is the largest event connecting industry, innovators and start-ups to grow the Hunter economy. It includes, a conference and showcase on 17th October (Newcastle City Hall), a week long roadshow commencing on 21st October and a post-festival action summit on 31st October.
IMAGE | Hunter Innovation Festival 2023. Photo credit: EL Photography
