Week
Melbourne Connect
INNOVATION WEEK
A five-day innovation festival delivered by the Melbourne Connect community.
This year’s Melbourne Connect Innovation Week, presented in partnership with Telstra, brings together the expertise of The University of Melbourne, industry, and government in Australia’s leading innovation precinct to unlock new and groundbreaking solutions to some of society’s biggest challenges.
Connect with a community of researchers, industry experts, startups, students, and creatives, and discover more than 30 events over five days. Running from 5 to 9 September, events will span from panel discussions and pitches, to workshops and demonstrations and a whole lot more.
EVENTS
SOME HIGHLIGHTS OF THE WEEK
Events
Community Partners
Interactive Live Streams
Venues
INNOVATION WEEK
EVENT SCHEDULE
Top Tech Trends Debate
Unlike any event in Australia, the Top Tech Trends Debate showcases the visions of five leading industry professionals and gives the audience the opportunity to debate ideas at the cutting edge of future tech. Each panelist pitches the idea they think is most likely to impact our lives in 3-5 years' time, and then the debate begins before the audience votes.
Emerging Tech Pitch Night
Join us for an electric pitch night where three Silicon Beach startups will showcase and sell their best ideas in front of a judging panel and a supportive audience.
3D Printing Exhibition
View a collection of exhibits that show the life cycle of a product from concept to completion. Each exhibit started as a sketch, was modelled digitally and has used one of a wide variety of 3D printing technologies, along with moulding, cleaning, assembly and painting to create intricate and detailed three-dimensional objects.
A Powerful Combination: Asset Management and the Digital Twin
So, how can you leverage the power of digital twins for your asset management? Join Jason Lancelot, Senior Solution Engineer at InEight, and the University of Melbourne’s Dr. Soheil Sabri, Project Lead for the Digital Twin project, as they explore and explain everything about digital twins, and how they can help you better manage your capital project assets.
Synthetic Biology: Emerging Opportunities in Food and Agriculture
Join Rocket Seeder, a startup accelerator, and Gingko Bioworks, a biotech company, as they discuss current and future opportunities of synthetic biology for the Australian food and agriculture sector and how they can generate economic, social and environmental benefits.
New/Old: Designing To Defy Ageism
This panel discussion invites three different innovators to explore how better design – of not just space but policy – can help us fight ageism and create the homes, communities and care we want for ourselves and our families. We’ll explore unconscious ageism and stereotypes, the roadblocks these create for contemporary seniors, and key solutions for designing more inclusive, empathetic, innovative communities.
Drawing with Fire: Boomerang Art-Burning Workshop
Join Indigenous artist, Mick Harding, for a unique hands-on workshop where you will learn the art of pyrography.
The Future of Human-Computer Interaction
Go on a guided tour of the Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) research group’s new state-of-art facilities and hear from HCI researchers about their research projects.
Drawing with Fire: Boomerang Art-Burning Workshop
Join Indigenous artist, Mick Harding, for a unique hands-on workshop where you will learn the art of pyrography.
Drawing with Fire: Boomerang Art-Burning Workshop
Join Indigenous artist, Mick Harding, for a unique hands-on workshop where you will learn the art of pyrography.
The Future of Human-Computer Interaction
Go on a guided tour of the Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) research group’s new state-of-art facilities and hear from HCI researchers about their research projects.
Towards Zero
Towards Zero focuses on how we can collectively accelerate and simplify our transition to zero emissions through real estate.
Building the World’s Best 5G Smart Apartment
Join this exciting interactive panel event as a group of Telstra graduates share their behind-the-scenes stories and insights from the project and reflect on their learning journey. Telstra’s Principal, EME Strategy, Governance and Risk Management, Mike Wood, will also reflect on the role of interactive learning and hands-on experience for the professional development of Australia’s future technology leaders.
Digital Health Validitron SimLab: Open House
Join us for an open house for the University of Melbourne's Digital Health Validitron SimLab.
Eel Trap Weaving Workshop
Join Sandra Aitken, Gunditjmara Weaver and Artist, as she guides you through the construction of traditional Gunditjmara eel traps, which represents an accumulation of generations of Indigenous knowledge.
Telstra Creator Space Tour
During this 40-minute tour and demonstration, you will be guided through two floors of equipment, space, amenities and services by a member of the Telstra Creator Space team. Learn about the quick and easy fabrication technique of casting and mouldings, and discover some of the projects that were created over the past year.
Bridging the Professional Skills Gap Between Academia and Industry
Discover how the School of Computing and Information Systems has been conquering the challenge of teamwork and communication skills!
Decision making is better left to machines than humans
Join us in this fun and entertaining debate hosted by Simon Pampena, standup comedian and mathematician, and watch a team of mathematicians, engineers, computer scientists and economists from OPTIMA as they battle out over whether a series of computer circuits make better decisions than the human brain.
Telstra Creator Space Tour
During this 40-minute tour and demonstration, you will be guided through two floors of equipment, space, amenities and services by a member of the Telstra Creator Space team. Learn about the quick and easy fabrication technique of casting and mouldings, and discover some of the projects that were created over the past year.
Melbourne Connect Oration: The Promises and Threats of AI for Society and Business
Prof. Eduard Hovy provides examples of how AI has helped society — and how it could easily go wrong. This keynote will explore the exciting new capabilities of deep neural networks that, if guided wisely, could unlock a host of new entrepreneurial and commercial opportunities.
The Future of Media: Digital Disruption in the Film and Entertainment Industry
Join ATOMOS and other content creation experts for a conversation about the impact of technology in the film and entertainment industry and how to reap the benefits of the digital era and revolutionise your workflow.
Eel Trap Weaving Workshop
Join Sandra Aitken, Gunditjmara Weaver and Artist, as she guides you through the construction of traditional Gunditjmara eel traps, which represents an accumulation of generations of Indigenous knowledge.
Three Minute Thesis (3MT) Grand Final
The Three Minute Thesis (3MT) Grand Final sees the University's Graduate Researchers communicate their research projects in three minutes or under to a broad audience.
The Future of Human-Computer Interaction
Go on a guided tour of the Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) research group’s new state-of-art facilities — the UX (User Experience) and IxT (Interactive Technologies) laboratories, and hear from HCI researchers about their research projects.
Making an Impact on Climate Change
In 2021, MCF established the Climate Research Accelerator (CRX) program to provide sapling funding to a diverse range of established projects that have a high likelihood of making an immediate impact on the climate problem. Join a panel of change-makers to hear the impact made by three CRX projects.
SWARM Curator’s Tour
Part exhibition, part experiment, SWARM uncovers what it means to be social. Presented by Science Gallery Melbourne, SWARM is an exploration of social connection and hive-mind behaviour.
Masterclass: Public Relations and Marketing for Startups
This masterclass run by the Melbourne Entrepreneurial Centre provides startups with a practical introduction to PR and marketing.
Emerging Innovators in Computing Research
Researcher Networking: Get to know and network with the emerging innovators in the School of Computing and Information Systems.
Developing Innovation as a Capability
Bring along your innovative thinking to discussion and hear how innovation as a capability is being developed and celebrated!
Robotic Technologies for Advanced Prosthetics
Discover some of the research outputs in advanced upper-limb prostheses using emerging robotic technologies, including 3D printed soft bionic arms for people with upper-limb loss, wearable tactile and biofeedback sensors that provide a sense of touch for prosthetic hand users, and virtual reality prosthetic training.
Innovation in a Hybrid World
How we work has changed, with millions of people seeking the new work-life balance. But how do we innovate in a hybrid world?
The Conversation: Behind the Curtain
Gain insights at a news conference and see The Conversation's editorial team in action.
Speed Date a Founder
Want to meet some startup founders? Come along to this fun and exciting speed-dating event where you will meet founders from The University of Melbourne’s entrepreneurial programs MAP, TRAM and InnovatEd and anyone involved in or interested in the startup ecosystem.
Protecting Australia’s Biodiversity; One Square Metre at a Time
Imagine if you could protect your very own square metre of vulnerable Australian land and engage a leading conservation organisation to help you protect it forever?
Building Blocks to Better Health
Discover how TAGC, a biomedical and economic powerhouse, uses genomics to create world-leading projects and businesses
How to Make a Medical Device
Take part in an informative and interactive session on the steps to develop, design, manufacture and commercialise a medical device.
Froebel Carlton Early Learning Centre Tour
Go on a tour of the award-winning Froebel Carlton and learn about their philosophy and vision for early childhood education.