RIVER CITY LABS is now seeking submissions for the next RiverPitch event on May 17 – where investment-ready ‘tech entrepreneurs’ pitch to a pre-screened selection of Australia’s leading investors.

A River City Labs CEO Peta Ellis spokesperson said applications would remain open until April 15 for the next RiverPitch being staged at the Royal International Convention Centre at Bowen Hills, Brisbane. 

Ms Ellis said it was the biggest venue yet “and a sign of how the event has grown since its first edition in November 2012”.

RiverPitch seeks to reconceptualise how investors and members of the startup mobile-web-internet community might meet and form mutually beneficial relationships. RiverPitch differentiates itself from Angel Investment groups by having no formal requirements for how investment may occur.

As River City Labs founder and Ten’s Shark Tank investor Steve Baxter is fond of saying, RiverPitch exists “to bring two parties together in a social setting to potentially have a million-dollar conversation”.

Applicants are asked to submit a short form and 90-second video via the F6S online platform. Submissions are reviewed by a committee of RiverPitch members, who will invite the top 10-15 applicants for an interview at River CityLabs the following week. Up to six finalists will then be selected, who will attend a series of practice sessions in the lead-up to the May 17 event.

Ms Ellis said RiverPitch was the next phase in River City Labs’ goal of placing Brisbane at the forefront of a technology boom in Australia. Trading off River City Labs’ nationally recognised brand-name in the start-up sector, and with sponsorship from McCullough Robertson and Morgans, RiverPitch’s goal is no less grand than to “change the way investing is done in Brisbane.”

Past alumni of RiverPitch include Audeara, the ‘world’s first full fidelity headphones, designed by doctors and engineers’ which has garnered rave reviews on Boss Hunting and the Australian Financial Review; and SiteSee, which uses drone footage and machine learning to map, manage and analyse critical infrastructure projects.

Selected applicants will pitch at Startup Invest which is being staged in conjunction with the Myriad Festival – now Brisbane’s biggest annual startup festival.

RiverPitch applications close on April 15.

Startups can apply through the F6s portal: http://F6s.com/riverpitch2018/about

PITCHING IN SINCE 2012

River City Labs has fostered the growth of startup companies wanting to solve big problems since 2012 in Brisbane. It provides resources to empower, support and connect entrepreneurs.

“Central to everything we do is a focus on collaboration and connection,” CEO Peta Ellis said. “Since 2012 over 460 entrepreneurs have called RCL home. Through our events program we have welcomed more than 16,000 guests into our community by hosting over 500 events aimed at supporting founders on their entrepreneurship journey.

River City Labs powers a range of programs, events and engagement opportunities, enabling corporate partners to innovate differently and embed their teams within the start-up community. Recent partnerships in the financial technology sphere include sponsorship and collaborations with BOQ and CUA.

www.rivercitylabs.net

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THE INNOVATIVE business banking minds at BOQ are teaming up with renowned Brisbane-based technology hub and accelerator, River City Labs (RCL), to help drive the  financial technology (fintech) and startup environment in Queensland.

BOQ and RCL are cementing a two-year corporate partnership that will not only assist startups to develop but also engage BOQ teams as part of that process. 

BOQ group executive and chief operations, digital and information officer, Donna-Maree Vinci said the two-year deal signified the growing link between corporates and the startup community “which will ultimately benefit customers by enhancing their banking experience while providing new experience for staff”.

“BOQ is a firm friend of RCL and this mutually beneficial partnership will formally connect startups with our people across the group,” Ms Vinci said. “In working side-by-side with RCL members, our people will actively contribute to Australia’s innovation community.

“The new opportunities this partnership presents for BOQ can’t be understated and we are excited about this new chapter with RCL.

“While gaining the opportunity to provide our customers with innovative banking solutions and new age services, our people will also benefit from new insights and immersive experiences, such as a newly created RCL out-turn program.”

As out-turn participants, experienced BOQ employees are partnered with startups requiring a specific skill or knowledge set. BOQ employees participating in this program work one day a week with the startup, over a 12 week period, stimulating new thinking and a startup culture for BOQ. 

Residential space at RCL has been taken by the bank, further increasing access between BOQ and the startup community.

River City Labs CEO Peta Ellis said, “It’s positive to see corporations such as BOQ who we have worked with for more than five years, increase their commitment to the sector and River City Labs in particular. 

“We welcome BOQ as an official corporate partner. This exclusive partnership will allow RCL to implement further programs and solutions for our start-up community. As a resident at RCL, the partnership with BOQ is already delivering benefits with a small team currently developing a creative new business idea, demonstrating just how quickly this partnership is fostering new thinking.”

RCL members will have exclusive access to suitable BOQ products, services and expertise under the bank’s commitment to ethical startup banking.

In addition to implementing capability and culture programs with the regional bank, RCL will proactively connect BOQ with its member entrepreneurs to develop new business opportunities and advance the bank’s digital and innovation agenda. 

www.boq.com.au

www.rivercitylabs.com.au

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STARTUP Weekend Brisbane brought great ideas to life – ranging from blockchain tracking of beef and equine data management systems to gamification of health systems and drone imaging technologies – at River City Labs last weekend.

Incubators River City Labs and Fishburners Brisbane joined forces for the weekend staging one of Australia’s largest business ‘startup’ events. Both organisations worked together to bring together industry mentors, business experts, judges and attendees bursting with ideas to execute into a potential business within 54 hours.