Over 30 defence technology innovators have completed the three-day Defence Trailblazer Entrepreneurial Foundations for Defence (EFD) Intensive event in Adelaide. The program is designed to accelerate learning, foster collaboration, and deepen engagement with the defence innovation ecosystem.
EFD is a three-month program commencing mid-year that gives innovators the tools they need to master defence markets. With a mix of webinars and onsite components in Adelaide and Canberra, the program covers Defence readiness, technology readiness and commercial readiness.
The program is competitive, with 20 ventures joining the 2025 cohort. These ventures have successfully completed earlier phases of the Defence Trailblazer’s DINAMIC commercialisation pathway programs and select participants will go on to the next stages.
Michael Turnbull, founder of information security startup Privacy Seal, is part of the latest EFD cohort. He said of the program so far: “The course has been invaluable, the staff are fantastic, and I’ve really enjoyed the networking opportunities with likeminded people.”
The EFD Intensive event featured a host of workshops, networking and sessions with subject matter experts. 20 mentors from defence industry and the innovation space, including several EFD alumni, lent their expertise to the program.
“The innovation coming out of this program proves what’s possible when you combine sharp minds with structured support,” said Jason Hardie, co-founder & CEO of Digital Village, who participated as a mentor. “Helping these ideas move from lab to market was not only rewarding but is how we future proof our economy and national resilience.”
EFD Intensive kicked off with a workshop on value proposition articulation, before a panel discussion on structuring businesses for Defence and investment. A key focus of EFD is preparing the innovators to engage confidently with Defence. The event included sessions on Test and Evaluation for Defence, de-risking products for Defence trials, and marketing to Defence, such as preparing Quad Charts and for trade show success.
Innovators tackled the Technical Readiness Level (TRL) Challenge and mapped out their development pathways, with further sessions in business model development and resourcing strategies.
Sylvia Tokic, co-founder and CEO of Electro Base, a Western Australian renewable energy company aligned with Defence needs, said of the sessions, “The Tech TRL exercise and establishing a tech roadmap was something I had been wanting to do with our engineers, and we found the process very helpful.”
“EFD Intensive provided a great opportunity to equip each team with the tools, insights, and connections needed to thrive in the defence innovation landscape,” said Liz Kobold, Innovation Portfolio Manager at Defence Trailblazer.
Experienced mentors shared tailored advice in a high-impact mentor connect session. “I find these one-on-one meetings most valuable for understanding the personal side of a person’s journey from good idea to taking bold action,” said Dr Catherine Bair, CEO of Bair Trax, who has been a mentor to several ventures across Defence Trailblazer’s innovation programs.
“The 1:1 mentoring sessions were a genuine highlight – engaging, thought-provoking, and full of potential,” said mentor and NVISIA Director Ash Langdon. “It was incredibly rewarding to support these forward-thinking businesses as they developed actionable plans to explore new market segments, strengthen governance, and take a more strategic approach to engaging with Defence.”
“It was a privilege to be involved as a mentor,” added Paul Smith, Business Development Manager at Australian Defence Consultancy Group. “I had the opportunity to engage directly with ten early-stage ventures bringing bold, innovative thinking to the defence sector. The calibre of ideas and the passion behind each startup were genuinely impressive and a strong indication of the emerging talent we’re seeing across Australia’s defence innovation ecosystem.”
Other highlights of EFD Intensive included a professional photoshoot and networking mixers, where innovators connected with defence industry representatives, local industry leaders, investors, mentors and Defence Trailblazer staff.
“Programs like EFD are critical for accelerating capability development and ensuring new ventures are well-positioned to contribute to Australia’s sovereign Defence objectives,” said Mr Smith. “It was inspiring to support these entrepreneurs as they explored opportunities in the defence supply chain and refined their commercial and technical readiness. I’m excited to see how this next generation of innovators will shape the future of the defence industry.”
Paul Daly, Entrepreneurship Program Manager at Defence Trailblazer, said of the program: “We are excited to create even more opportunities for growth, collaboration and impact as EFD continues, culminating in the EFD Showcase in Canberra on 1 August.”
Defence Trailblazer and SRC Aus partner on sovereign defence capability
SRC Aus has formed a strategic partnership with Defence Trailblazer to accelerate the commercialisation of electronic warfare capability through a Defence Trailblazer R&D project, the Trailblazer Electronic Warfare Support System (TESS), with a focus on the development of a future defence-ready workforce.
Defence Trailblazer aims to strengthen Australia’s sovereign defence capabilities through the commercialisation of new technologies and solutions, while also focusing on the development of specialised knowledge and skills for the current and future workforce to meet the needs of Defence. SRC Aus has engaged with multiple Defence Trailblazer programs to expand its capabilities across R&D, staff mobility and student workforce across the overarching TESS project.
“Our mandate is to accelerate capability and drive the job-ready skills of the future through strong engagement with industry, leveraging local university innovation talent and new entrants to the defence sector,” said Defence Trailblazer Executive Director, Dr Sanjay Mazumdar.
“We are so pleased SRC Aus is seizing the opportunity to access our full suite of programs to accelerate sovereign defence capability and prepare a future-ready defence workforce, this is exactly what the Defence Trailblazer program is all about!”
Driven by the motto Redefining Possible, SRC Aus works closely with the Australian Government to solve crucial electronic warfare (EW) challenges, developing next-generation solutions for the Australian Defence Force (ADF) and its allies. “The overarching goal of the TESS project is to address evolving real-world challenges in the spectrum warfare battle space,” said Richard Button, SRC Aus Technical Director.
With funding from the Defence Trailblazer’s Technology Development & Acceleration portfolio, SRC Aus have developed a working prototype of TESS for ADF operators. SRC Aus invested substantially in the project, applying research to develop a Machine Learning-enabled adaptive sensor, and an advanced radar signal processing system. The company is now building a compact, transportable version of the system for field test and military environment demonstrations.
“We aim to develop new methods for EW support, providing richer layers of sensor data and information for signal characterisation, identification and behaviour prediction,” said Mr Button. “We are currently implementing working artificial intelligence and machine learning solutions to the problem of operating in a complex contested and congested signal space.”
Michael List, SRC Aus Director of Strategy and Special Projects added: “TESS represents a paradigm shift—trusted, explainable AI designed with future targeting in mind. Unlike opaque black-box systems, TESS delivers transparency that aligns with ADF Rules of Engagement. The more data it ingests, the smarter and more adaptive it becomes. Simply put, it neutralises all the advantages of modern radar systems.”
Through the partnership, SRC Aus is sponsoring a Master of Philosophy (MPhil) student for two years under the Defence Trailblazer Industry Research Program. The scholarship provides the graduate student at the University of Adelaide with the opportunity to work on real-world applied machine learning defence challenges, developed in consultation with industry and leading academics.
The program offers University of Adelaide or UNSW Higher Degree by Research students a $50k per annum scholarship (pro-rata), academic supervision, industry mentorship and an on-site internship to enhance the student’s research experience and help deepen their knowledge and expertise, while also adding expertise and capability to the industry partner.
SRC Aus also supported University of Adelaide graduate Stacey Heng in two part-time internships over an eight-month period through the Defence Trailblazer Student Placements & Projects Program. A Space Science and Astrophysics graduate undertaking further studies in Mechatronics and Robotics Engineering, Stacey applied her skills and knowledge to support the TESS project during her internship, working on the engineering development, testing, and systems evaluation.
To provide senior level expertise and support to the TESS project, SRC Aus is participating in Defence Trailblazer’s Staff Mobility Program, enabling University of Adelaide Research Fellow Dr. Raja Abdullah from the School of Electrical and Mechanical Engineering to take part in a university secondment that has embedded him at SRC Aus for 22 months.
“Participating in the Staff Mobility Program with SRC Aus has been a transformative experience for me,” said Dr Abdullah. “Working alongside the SRC Aus experts and experienced engineers in their cutting-edge facilities has significantly enhanced my expertise in developing electronic systems that meet rigorous military standards.
“This powerful partnership between industry and academia produces critical defence outcomes and has laid a strong foundation for my future contributions in this field.”
The partnership showcases how Defence Trailblazer’s programs are integrating defence industry and academia to unprecedented levels. “It exemplifies how the Trailblazer Program is supporting the Defence Industry Development Strategy,” said Defence Trailblazer Project Manager Richard Williamson. “Currently no single other institution provides the level of targeted programs and initiatives to grow, support and engage with Australian defence industry.”
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