AIR Pass

We consider ventures that demonstrate understanding and ownership of your product's business case, and that care deeply about solving your customer's problems.

Suitability

Startups and SMEs will benefit most from the program if they:

• fit within the Air Pass program’s venture viability assessment (otherwise they should highlight this as a key weakness with a plan to address this during the program if their application is successful)
• can show some validation of the product-market fit by:
• collating early customers together to agree that a problem clearly exists and believe that you are competitive enough to solve it, or
• introducing an early minimum viable product that has been tested with customers, or
• gathering extensive insight through existing industry expertise or quality customer interviews
• have passionate customers who will readily get on the phone to complain about the problem or advocate for your proposed solution and be happy to purchase it
• can frequently attend Swinburne University of Technology’s Hawthorn campus in-person to engage in prototyping and program's events at short notice
• are willing to focus and adapt rapidly to change
• deeply care about the problem, the customers and their experiences
• are committed to growth and creating a viable venture that involves Australia as a base
• remain tenacious in the face of adversity
• are open, honest and vulnerable about successes and failures
• have clarity about what they hope to gain from the program

Eligibility

You must have a company registered in Australia.

Availability

The prototype engagement is expected to be done in-person.

Closing dates for applications in 2022 are:

• Round 1 (closed) – Monday 8 August, 5pm AEST
• Round 2 (closed) – Monday 5 September, 5pm AEST
• Round 3 (closed) – Monday 10 October, 5pm AEDT 

No, the program is only open to proprietary limited (Pty Ltd) companies as we are looking to develop robust and high-growth businesses.

Yes. We believe we can provide help to any company that has not yet raised more than A$1 million (if you do not otherwise have sustainable revenues). SMEs that have an existing established business are encouraged to apply if they are looking to start a new product venture.

Possibly. Some startup accelerators focus on customer discovery and development, problem articulation, building a board and investment pitching. The AIR Pass focuses on making your immediate customers delighted with a prototype.

It is important that your problem is well-articulated to ensure the construction of a prototype makes sense. However, we accept this is an iterative process. If you can dedicate a serious concerted effort to your prototype development during your AIR Pass program, we will consider your application.

We are interested in engaging with SMEs that have a new venture within their existing business.

Yes. We are passionate about growing Australia’s entrepreneurial participation in aviation and aerospace. One of the best ways to gain customers is to have local access to a portion of the market, so ideally you should have at least some customers based in Australia.

Hardware prototyping and testing is best done in-person, so you must frequently participate in-person at Swinburne’s Hawthorn campus to move your prototype along. If you are not based in Melbourne, you must demonstrate how you can participate in-person. 

The best way to engage with Swinburne, uphold a high level of project progress and maintain alignment of expectations is by regular in-person interaction. If you believe your prototype development can thrive using another mechanism, please let us know and we can discuss it further. 

Yes. However, your team must be actively involved in solving the problem you have identified. In most cases, this requires technical expertise, but we are willing to hear about the circumstances where this does not apply. We can help connect you with technical expertise during the project.

The program will be open with perpetual rounds until the funds have been committed. We are expecting to complete between four to eight projects.

It is possible we could commit all projects in the first round, so we propose that you apply for the earliest round possible if the program is of interest to your venture. The rounds have been designed to minimise delay between waiting for the round to close and your project being approved.

AIR Pass focuses on ventures that fit within our scope and resources of a six-month timeframe and up to A$200,000 funding. If you have a bigger mission, please select a critical feature that must be demonstrated to achieve customer buy-in as your proposal for your six-month project. The requirements for a clear customer touch point are still essential.

Your project does not need to focus on the capabilities of the Swinburne-CSIRO National Industry 4.0 Testlab – we encourage projects with broader focus. However, it is beneficial if your focus fits within Swinburne's total capabilities as we are looking to establish an ongoing relationship with your venture.