Seven Swinburne startups to watch in 2024

Swinburne University of Technology’s Innovation Studio has unveiled its latest group of early-stage startups.

After a rigorous selection process, seven startups will embark on their transformative journey through Swinburne’s accelerator initiative, the Elevate Program.

The 2024 cohort of change-makers will lead the way in innovation across robotic automation, edtech, fraud prevention technology, Software as a Service (SaaS) platforms, and medtech.

Together, they’ll scale their startups with equity-free funding, insights from world-leading academics, collaborations with industry experts, and mentorship from established founders.

The program concludes with the Elevate Pitch Night on 19 November, an inspiring event where participants present their startups to a live audience of investors and startup enthusiasts.

Dr Werner van der Merwe, Vice President of Innovation and Enterprise at Swinburne, says the Elevate Program line-up reflects the university's dedication to nurturing diverse talent and fostering innovative businesses.

“Behind Swinburne’s newest startups are founders who embody the rich diversity and exceptional talent within our university. Drawn from across Swinburne’s community of students, staff and alumni, they’re about to make their mark through our vibrant entrepreneurial ecosystem,” says Dr van der Merwe.

Swinburne’s new startups for 2024 are:

Huddled

Founded by Swinburne student Davin Karunanayake and co-founders Dhruv Verma and Archer Simmonds, Huddled is transforming student retention and engagement in universities. Their cutting-edge SaaS platform seamlessly integrates with existing learning management systems, enhancing academic collaboration while fostering a vibrant student community.

“As we scale, our vision is to support students across the globe throughout every stage of their academic journey and well into their future,” says Dhruv.

“We're dedicated to our goal of becoming a household name in the realm of student experience, supporting the entire education sector.”

Assure Docs

Founded by Swinburne alum Navjeet Singh Nayyar, Assure Docs is at the forefront of combating the troubling rise in digital document fraud.

Addressing critical issues such as identity theft, admission fraud, and the proliferation of fake degrees and paper mills, Assure Docs provides an innovative solution to ensure document authenticity.

Leveraging advanced Hashgraph technology—a highly secure, lightning-fast communication system—combined with state-of-the-art Artificial Intelligence, Assure Docs delivers real-time, tamper-proof document verification. This powerful integration not only strengthens security but also offers a transparent and immutable audit trail, ensuring complete accountability in document handling.

“Assure Docs empowers organisations to mitigate risks, streamline operations, and confidently comply with regulatory standards,” says Navjeet.

“In today’s rapidly evolving digital landscape, protecting sensitive information is not just a necessity but a crucial imperative for every business.”

kandu sustainability

Swinburne alum Mariyam Sayers is addressing one of the world’s most pressing challenges – the gap between sustainable ambition and action.

Her startup, kandu sustainability, is a cloud-based SaaS platform that helps organisations embed sustainability into their operations through education and engagement.

"We believe that every job across all organisations can contribute to positive climate action, and kandu offers an impactful, relevant solution that makes taking action easier,” says Mariyam. 

“Early customers are seeing measurable impact within the first few weeks, which has been very exciting."

Arimsys

Founded by Swinburne alum Iman Avazpour and co-founder Arash Ataee, Arimsys is developing AM-Radar, a premier SaaS platform that provides end-to-end AI-driven insights, covering every stage of the additive manufacturing process—from raw material verification to final product quality assurance—all within a centralised system.

By seamlessly integrating data collection, material lifecycle management, and production, AM-Radar enables manufacturers to enhance quality, minimise costs, and streamline operations.

"Arimsys’ cost-effective no-code platform, featuring a user-friendly visual workflow and customisable templates, streamlines the process of tracking and managing materials throughout their lifecycle, boosting profitability by enabling the reuse of degraded materials," says Iman.

"By leveraging AI, our solution enhances sustainability, reduces R&D efforts and waste, and accelerates time to market."

Pulsatile Innovations

Founded by Elleesha King, a former participant of Swinburne Innovation Studio’s Initiate Program, Pulsatile Innovations' flagship product Pulse Tile is a cutting-edge medtech device designed to aid in suspected cardiac arrest cases. It quickly detects the presence—or absence—of a pulse, providing rescuers with immediate feedback on whether CPR is necessary.

Elleesha conceived this life-saving invention during her time as a paramedic, where she observed that delays in administering CPR drastically reduced patients' chances of survival and increased the risk of injury or disability. On the other hand, performing unnecessary CPR could prevent more appropriate life-saving treatments from being applied.

“Pulse Tile removes the uncertainty of manual pulse checks, significantly reducing delays to CPR and, ultimately, saving lives,” says Elleesha.

Fault Finder

Founded by Swinburne staff member Dr Mehdi Korki, Fault Finder is an advanced portable device that leverages vibration analysis to detect early electrical motor faults. These faults, if undetected, can lead to life-threatening power outages in hospitals, causing severe financial and operational disruptions.

“Our solution enables early fault detection, helping to prevent unexpected downtimes and costly repairs, while ensuring hospitals maintain continuous, safe operations,” explains Mehdi.

Nexobot

Founded by Swinburne student Dominic Lindsay and co-founder Nicholas Hunt, Nexobot is revolutionising the warehouse and distribution industry with the market’s fastest-to-implement autonomous robotic parcel sorting system.

Since winning the Student Award for their pitch at Swinburne’s 2023 Venture Cup Pitch Night, the duo has been tirelessly refining and developing their technology, while also securing their first customers and users, steadily building momentum behind the scenes.

“Our solution introduces an innovative approach to unloading cartons from a moving robot, setting a new standard in efficiency,” says Dominic.

“The modular system is locally designed and manufactured using 3D-printed components.”

Turn your idea into reality

The Innovation Studio is Swinburne’s entrepreneurial hub, dedicated to accelerating the development of startups. With robust industry connections, cutting-edge research capabilities, a focus on multi-disciplinary collaboration, and investment opportunities backed by Swinburne Ventures Limited, the Innovation Studio can help you make real-world impact.

Dr Joan Norton, Head of Programs and Operations at Swinburne Innovation Studio, says programs like Elevate support founders throughout every stage of their entrepreneurial journey.

“At the Innovation Studio, we’re committed to nurturing the entire entrepreneurial lifecycle,” says Dr Norton.

“Our goal is to assist founders to accelerate startup ideas that benefit society, our industry partners, and the broader community.”

Stay informed about the latest startup programs and events and discover how the Swinburne Innovation Studio can support your entrepreneurial journey by signing up to their newsletter and following them on LinkedIn.