"Game On" for Best and Brightest Minds in Bionics

Bionics Gamechangers Australia applauds Minister for Industry and Science, Hon. Ed Husic MP’s announcement of the $392.4 million Industry Growth Program to fund and scale up our nation’s world-leading innovations.

Australia’s next array of medical bionic breakthroughs (devices, implants, treatments and hybrid technologies) are underpinned by six of Australia’s Critical Technologies: artificial intelligence, biotech, robotics, quantum computing, advanced manufacturing and advanced information communication technologies.

With a direct link to these critical growth drivers, medical bionics is not only an industry and jobs creator, but an innovation ecosystem builder, a pathway to savings in the national health budget, and a pipeline of innovations succeeding locally and globally.

It truly is “game on” for our best and brightest minds in bionics (Melbourne-based Bionics Institute plus universities, hospitals, clinical and healthtech innovators nationwide) to lead the charge, capitalising on the Industry Growth Program to emulate the success of Cochlear, Control Bionics and more recently, Synchron whose implantable brain-computer interface (the Stentrode device) is poised for global market success.

A first-ever National Bionics Innovation Leaders’ Summit in Brisbane this month marked the start of a multi-state collaboration to identify Australia’s next grand challenge in bionics, and develop and roll out a first-ever National Roadmap for Medical Bionics Innovation, Commercialisation and Growth.

The Hon. Ed Husic MP’s announcement inspires us to fast track our endeavours.