Hearing from a founder of an IT empire that has grown from nothing to over $3 billion in just 12 years, talking face-to-face with founders of companies that are rapidly growing, and playing with some of the coolest tech from startups coming out of Canberra.

Here’s what went down at the Incubator Open Day on the 7^th of August.

The Open Day saw a series of events throughout the day, beginning with the KILN Incubator Open hour, showcasing some of our wonderful KILN clients and friends, pitching their ideas and demonstrations on what they are currently working on. A full list of the participants can be found on the Innovation Station.

“Participating in the KILN Open Day was a terrific way to look back and reflect on the success of our company since our participation in the KILN Program.“ said Harold Dimpel, CEO and founder of mHITs/RocketRemit.

The buzz and interaction from attendees was electric with over 120 people passing through the space and taking tours that introduced them to the community, programs and opportunities. Through the tours, the GRIFFIN Accelerator cohort had a fantastic opportunity to practice and refine their pitches which they have been working on as part of the 3-month accelerator program.

Dr. Craig Davis and Harold Dimpel of Rocket Remit held a free Growth Metrics workshop on how to measure value and achieve goals. Lesson learnt? The 30 scheduled minutes were not nearly enough to cover the invaluable content presented.

 

The Canberra Innovation Network’s most recent Billion Dollar Panel event saw the CEO of CDC Data Centres, Greg Boorer, give a packed-out crowd a warts-and-all look at what it takes to build a billion dollar company.

That afternoon Greg took us on a journey through his late start at university and first job in Germany, meeting his future co-founder at the 2006 World Cup and eventual relocation back to Canberra, through to the tumultuous beginnings of CDC in the post-GFC 2010s.

The moral of Greg’s story was that hard work and self-belief are the critical factors to startup success, “If you’re not willing to back yourself, then who will back you?”.

Wrapping up the day was First Wednesday Connect, our monthly networking event, that saw a mix of 200 creative business people, innovators and entrepreneurs talking and collaborating.

This entire day was a great opportunity for people interested in finding out about the KILN Incubator Program and those wanting to know more about how the Canberra Innovation Network helps entrepreneurs, startups, researchers and established businesses.

Omar Zuaiter and Alaa Habeb, Co-founders of Dentroid® Technologies (Emudent), showcased on the day, “We were quite invigorated by the turnout, diversity and zeal of the audience. On top of the impressive networking threads and enriching feedback, the Open Day was a fantastic platform to share how conducive and synergetic KILN incubator was to Dentroid®; being here is a no brainer if you want to nourish your emerging business and grow fast!”

Check out our events page for more opportunities like this and to learn more about the KILN Incubator and how it can benefit you, book an intro meeting.