Canberra, 13 April 2026 – Defence Trailblazer has delivered its most significant Capability Showcase to date with the successful staging of DTECH26 at Parliament House, Canberra on 24 March.
The event marked an important point of progression for the Defence Trailblazer initiative and set the stage for the launch of the successor program, AUSDII: the Australian Defence Industry Incubator.
DTECH26 Capability Showcase
Bringing together more than 270 representatives from government, Defence, industry, and the research sector, DTECH26 provided a platform for strategic engagement and the opportunity to showcase 55 of Defence Trailblazer industry partners’ breakthrough defence and dual-use technologies.
The showcase offered attendees direct exposure to innovations addressing current and future Defence challenges, with a strong representation of SMEs (small and medium enterprises) contributing to capability advancement.
The scale and diversity of participation underscored Defence Trailblazer’s role in connecting key stakeholders across the defence landscape, with many opportunities for networking and discussions with parliamentarians, Defence, industry, innovators and R&D thought leaders.
Defence Trailblazer’s impact
The event celebrated the impact of the initiative, which commenced in December 2022 with support from the Australian Government under the Department of Education’s Trailblazer program.
In just over three years, Defence Trailblazer has:
- Established 277 industry-academic collaborations to strengthen Australia’s defence sovereign capabilities.
- Advanced 110+ technologies in key Defence priority areas.
- Unlocked more than $140 million co-investment from 200+ industry partners.
- Supported 78 start-ups and scale-ups with prototype development and commercialisation upskilling.
- Upskilled 800 students and defence industry professionals.
In addition, economic consultancy ACIL Allen has estimated Defence Trailblazer will have a longer-term impact, boosting Australia’s GDP by $875 million and supporting 1,000 new jobs over the next two decades.
AUSDII Defence Industry Incubator launches
With Defence Trailblazer concluding in December 2026, the next chapter that builds on the support for the Defence innovation ecosystem will be AUSDII, the Australian Defence Industry Incubator.
AUSDII will be a not-for-profit national incubator focused on supporting, validating and scaling Australian early-stage defence and dual-use companies to transform concepts into real-world sovereign Defence capability.
AUSDII’s overarching mission is to grow the pipeline of innovative Australian companies for local and global Defence markets. The incubator is modelled on successful international exemplars that support allied nations’ defence capability such as DEFENSEWERX, NATO DIANA, BlueForge Alliance and Brave1.
AUSDII is built on the success of the Defence Trailblazer’s DINAMIC innovation program that:
- Supported more than 355 innovators to understand Australia’s defence and dual-use innovation ecosystem.
- Accelerated more than 87 Australian ventures.
- Helped to unlock over $39.1M in VC funding for participating ventures.
“AUSDII will build on a proven track record of Defence Trailblazer success to achieve its mission of delivering operationally validated solutions and technologies”, said Dr Sanjay Mazumdar, Executive Director of Defence Trailblazer. “Our close relationship with the Defence and National Security community, as well as the global defence sector, will be pivotal to AUSDII’s value proposition.”
More information can be viewed on the AUSDII webpage: dtb.solutions/ausdii.
View the DTECH26 photo gallery and the Capability Guide on the DTECH26 web page, and watch the Defence Trailblazer impact video:
About the Defence Trailblazer: Defence Trailblazer is a collaborative partnership between Adelaide University and UNSW supported by the Department of Education and over 200 industry partners and associates. Defence Trailblazer is dedicated to advancing Australia’s defence capabilities through innovative research and strategic partnerships. By collaborating with industry, academia, and Defence (particularly DSTG, VCDF Group, CASG and the Service Innovation Units), we aim to develop and commercialise breakthrough technologies that address critical national security challenges.
Contact Information: For media inquiries, please contact: Ilsa Stuart, Senior Partnerships Manager, 0402 260 771 istuart@dtb.solutions
