S1: 00:10 [music] We live in a world where technology makes things easier faster, and more accessible. And many of these tech advances are created by and for people with disability. At Remarkable, we know disability drives innovation. With this approach, when you empower one, you empower many. What began as an initiative of the Cerebral Palsy Alliance has grown into an unstoppable force, empowering disability tech startups by providing the training, capital, and community they need to accelerate and grow into successful businesses. So if you're searching to invest in tech, invest in something truly remarkable. Remarkable, accelerating disability tech.
S2: 01:06 Hello, everyone. I'd like to begin by acknowledging the traditional custodians of the lands on which we're all gathered today. And for me, that's the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. I pay my respects to elders past, present, and emerging, and we acknowledge and respect their continuing culture and contributions. At Remarkable, we believe we are better together. So welcome, everybody, to the Remarkable Australia Plus Accelerator 2025 Ask Me Anything session. My name is Emma Earley, and I'm the Global Head of Programs here at Remarkable. A couple of notes on accessibility for today. We have two Oslan interpreters joining us. There are closed captions and a live transcript available in your Zoom toolbar. And after this session, a recording will be available with human-generated captions and a transcript. So today, we'll share a bit about Remarkable with our founder, Pete. I'll go through our accelerator program structure and inclusions. We'll share what startups we are looking for and how you can craft a successful application to stand out. I'll share a couple of our commonly asked questions and then give you the opportunity to either type in the chat or come off mute to ask some questions of us. All right. So let's start off welcoming our founder of remarkable, Pete Horsley.
S3: 02:28 Hi, everybody. Really good to be with you. Wherever you're calling from, whatever time of the day or night it might be. It's really, really great that you've expressed some interest in our accelerator program. Really, our mission is that we're accelerating tech startups innovating in disability aging and health. We know that technology can have a really big impact in this space. And yet what we haven't seen up until when Remarkable started was lots of pathways of support for tech innovators, entrepreneurs who are creating new startups and technologies in this space. So we've got a cracking team. These are some of the people in our team, and you'll get to meet some of them on the call today. And also, if you're successful getting into the Remarkable program, the accelerator program, these are more people that you'll be working with throughout that time as well. Just to note, we do run parallel programs, one here in Australia and one in the US as well. For the Australian-based one, we call it Australia Plus. It is kind of Australia plus other parts of the world. US is just for companies headquartered in the US. So we really wanted to create these pathways of support. And so some of you on this call right now have been involved in our launcher program, our early-stage pre-accelerator program. Typically, for startups that just have either an early-stage product, could be an idea, could be a research project. The accelerator really has then around that commercialization journey, around the go-to-market. But then we also have our co-investment initiative as well where we invest in seed to series A stage companies as well. So these are pathways of support, but it doesn't mean that if you're not in one of those that you can't get some support from Remarkable.
S3: 04:26 We're really here to grow this entire ecosystem. And so we want to hear from you. We want to work with you. We want to welcome you into this community as well. So over the time that we've been running Remarkable, we've worked now with over 378 founders, 164 startups. Through our accelerator programs, we've run 11 of those now across different parts of the world and worked, specifically through the accelerator program, with 195 founders. Those startups have gone on to have massive impact, raising over $100 million in capital, serving over 1 million customers, creating a bunch of jobs, 773 jobs, 90 of those for people with disability, either as founders or core key members of the team. And they're selling products in about 30-plus different countries as well. But our accelerator program, we are supporting these seven different horizons of possibility. What are they? They're really these areas that as we've continued to listen to the disability community, as we've listened to people in this sector as well about what are the needs, where are there places where perhaps there are some solutions but not many of them or they might not be kind of great solutions in market already around those things or it needs some innovation, it needs some new thinking to it. So these areas around independent living, around enhancing personal mobility, recreation and inclusive play, communication and sensory augmentation, employment, and community participation, education and learning, and also promoting health and well-being.
S3: 06:12 So these seven horizons we see as kind of real opportunities for the market for you to develop solutions in. And we'll ask kind of people as they apply for the program to see if there are one or more of these that they actually track to. But yeah, over that time, we've supported now over 70 startups that have come through the accelerator program. And we're now looking for that next crop of amazing innovations, amazing startups. So I'm going to hand back to Emma, who's going to take us through a little bit more about the accelerator program itself. But it's really great to be with you today.
S2: 06:47 Thank you so much, Pete. I hear those impact stats all the time, but they don't get boring to me because it really aligns with my why and our whole team's purpose. And we're really lucky to get to work with any of you that will join us for this next program. So as Pete mentioned, this is the ask me anything for the Australia-plus program. And to reiterate, that is for startups that are registered and operating globally but outside the US. So if you are registered and operating in the United States, you can attend or watch the recording of the AMA for the US program. That will be available on our website next week or it is 1:00 PM Eastern Time tomorrow. Okay. So I'll share some of our accelerator commitments that help guide how Molly, my counterpart in the US, and I and the rest of the team design the experience across both programs. So starting with accelerate, I guess the hint is in the name. We will accelerate you, and we do expect you to accelerate across the 16 weeks as well. We commit to adding value, and we'll respect your time while doing that. So we do that by creating a tailored and bespoke programming for your startup. So we'll meet with you in advance to figure out exactly what your startup needs and what your objectives are so that we can create just-in-time content and just-in-time connections for you. And the fourth one here is community. It really is the heart of what we do. We will build in and with the community, and that can include people with disabilities within your cohort, as well as within your startup team itself. And our operating principles for our accelerator here. So we build our programming around your startups' objectives, and then we also evaluate our success on our ability to support you to accelerate in those areas.
S2: 08:41 Really key to remarkable across all of our programs and experiences is we will also develop your startup's understanding of accessibility and inclusion. And we'll also support your leadership and team development and dynamics through a lens of inclusion. All right. So why should you apply to our accelerator? What's in it for you? Well, our cohorts are small so that we can tailor the experience to your startups' needs and goals. We're looking at about five startups for the Australia Plus program, so you can get an indication of just how bespoke we're able to be with those intimate cohorts. You'll benefit from weekly tailored programming, and there's more on this on the next slide, weekly one-on-one coaching with a coach that is handpicked just for your startup, mentoring and connections within our extensive network to help your startup grow. You'll access a suite of perks, credits, and discounts, and secure valuable seed funding to grow your startup. And of course, you'll get to end the program pitching in-person to investors and industry. Okay. So what does our sort of tailored and bespoke programming entail? I hear you ask. Well, it's weekly just-in-time content, and a note here that it is delivered in Australian Eastern Standard Time. So the weekly programming for group sessions could be workshops and masterclasses. It could be a mastermind on a particular topic. It could be a founder Q&A with an alumni or other experienced startup founder. It could be peer-to-peer learning that one of you actually leads within the cohort based on your experience and expertise. We'll connect you with an investor panel. There could be some roundtables with mentors or people with lived experience of disability.
S2: 10:24 Of course, there'll be some pitch practice sessions. And this year as well, on a Monday and a Friday, we'll sort of top and tail the week with a check-in and a retro just to make sure that we're all sort of helping you stay focused and aligned with your objectives. We've got a great suite of in-person events that will be held in Sydney, Australia. And for those of you that are located outside of Australia, you'll be supported to attend with a nominal travel and accommodation bursary, and all other programming will be virtual on Zoom. So let's start off with Kickstart. So in week one from 4th to 7th of August, we run Kickstart, which is an immersive event designed to set your objectives, collaborate with your cohort, your startup, and your coach. And that's sort of an overnight. We organize the accommodation, catering, all of those sessions, and some networking opportunities too. Ideally, if possible, plan for your core team to attend that one. Then at the end of that week, on the Friday and Saturday, the 8th and 9th of August, you'll have the opportunity to exhibit at the remarkable stall at the Sydney Disability Expo so you can get your product in front of potential customers, potential partners, and other supporters. Then in the middle of the program, end of September till start of October, we have our mid-program catch up. And that's another immersive session to help you fast track your progress, gain more support and networking opportunities, as well as some community-building opportunities within your cohort because they are the founders that will support you along the rest of your startup journey, both within and after the program.
S2: 12:06 And then to round out the program in the final week, from the 1st to the 4th of December, we have another immersive in Sydney that we refer to as Finisher, and that's designed to help you reflect on the program, get prepared for demo day, and set goals for post-program, and how we can continue our relationship and supporting you after the accelerator finishes. On either the 2nd or 3rd of December, watch this space will be our demo day, which will be at our remarkable disability tech summit. Okay. So we mentioned before, you'll also get coaching and mentoring. So each week, you'll have the opportunity to work with a dedicated one-on-one coach that our wonderful Head of Community and Partnerships, Kate Jenkins, that you can see in the chat here. She will work with you to be able to match within our community a startup coach that can help guide you across the 16 weeks. As well as that, you'll have access to another coach that can specifically help you with sort of leadership and executive coaching, as well as working with you and your team on team dynamics. So we've gotten really great feedback over that in the last cohort. So it's something we're definitely incorporating this year. Now, in addition to your dedicated one-on-one coach, you'll have access to mentorship from a network of global mentors. And that could be key strategic areas, depending on your needs, anything from branding, to legals, to sales, business development, capital raising, and disability sector expertise as well. So all of this timing is at a time that you can schedule between you and your coach or you and a potential mentor. So it's quite flexible there.
S2: 13:51 And as I said before, community really is at the heart of what we do. And the great part about our accelerator program is that we have an extensive and already engaged network who are primed to support you on your next stage of growth. They understand the disability sector. They understand the startup ecosystem. So you're really fast-tracking that mentorship that you wouldn't necessarily get in some other more general programs. So you could have access to our remarkable team, our coaches, mentor, and alumni, Cerebral Palsy Alliance, our remarkable user feedback community, our partners, the disability sector, and the wider startup ecosystem, including investors, if that's the right fit for you. Okay. The Australia Plus Accelerator Program, it does offer funding too, which I know is a really exciting component for a lot of you. So what we are able to offer you is 100,000 Australian dollars for 5% equity. You can see there is an asterisk on this slide here, and I will pop up what that means. So in certain circumstances and some people have asked us this question in advance. So I want to share that. In certain circumstances, we are able to match valuation, and that is in the event that you have closed a priced round with sophisticated investors within the last 12 months. So if you had any more questions on that, feel free to ask at the end of this. And another note here that the funding is also tied to your program participation. So what are those participation commitments? So we do want to make sure that it is tailored to you and adding value. So it's not just a matter of ticking off participation. That's not the point of this. It's about us crafting an experience that does add value. But in return, we do expect you to show up to participate, be part of an engaged cohort as well.
S2: 15:45 So the weekly virtual programming is typically on a Tuesday or Thursday in Australian Eastern Standard Time, but there does need to be some flexibility there for different speaker availabilities as well as we try to accommodate cohort availability as well. So that's typically on a Tuesday or Thursday. It could be anywhere from an hour to a few hours, depending on the nature of the session. On a Monday and a Friday, just for half an hour, we'll have a cohort check-in and a cohort retro. Then at a time to be scheduled between you and your coach, you'll have one or two hours, depending on whether you meet with your startup coach or your leadership and team dynamics coach, and then additional mentoring on a needs basis. You can figure out what you need and what works best there. So we estimate that a weekly virtual commitment is around seven hours, but those in-person weeks will require more than that, and they're likely to be full days. But we'll provide you with lots of notice and all of the times and dates so you can get prepared and get the most out of your participation. We do expect, though, that at least one person from each startup attends each session. Okay. A note on accessibility, so as a baseline, we do endeavor to provide an accessible and inclusive experience, and that goes for all of our programs and events. Wherever possible, we'll also make additional adjustments to meet the needs of founders and everyone else involved in the accelerator. So in the application form, we will ask you if you are able to provide some more detail on how you can participate wholly in the program, and we'll contact you and let you know what we're already accommodating, what additional adjustments we may be able to make. But we'll also be transparent where we're still developing in areas of accessibility as well because we are on a journey, and we are aiming to improve that as we go.
S2: 17:38 And a little note here again that it is Australian Eastern Standard Time. So if you are based outside of time zone, you absolutely still can apply and participate, but just keep that in mind as we let you know about programming and your ability to participate. Everything will be recorded as well. Another note that programming is delivered in English, and if it's required, we will provide sign interpretation as well. But don't take my word for it. On screen here is the wonderful Kaly Ryan from Capella Design from last year's 2024 accelerator program. And she said that Remarkable places lived experience, user testing, and the disability community at the center of everything they do, and it sets Remarkable apart from other impact-focused accelerators because they truly understand startup goals and know the challenges and opportunities in the disability tech space. And I'll share one more from Josh Byron at SpendAble, part of the same cohort in 2024. Kaly I should mention was based in Canada, and Josh is based in Australia. He loved that Remarkable especially focuses on technology in the disability space and was so much more applied to their business and goals. So they were surrounded by people that understood the nuance of their industry in the disability space. And that allowed them to make inroads instead of spending hours explaining what they do to people outside of the industry. So really pleased that I had the great privilege to work with them, and that was some of the feedback that they shared.
S2: 19:12 Okay. So what startups are we searching for? So here is the eligibility for accelerator. So first and foremost, disability tech. So you need to demonstrate that you are clearly benefiting people with disabilities directly or indirectly, and that could include disability, including neurodivergence, health, or aging innovations. Now, the stage we are optimising for is post-product and post-revenue. But if you're an earlier-stage med-tech startup, we still encourage you to apply because we acknowledge often the longer path to market for med-tech startups. Your solution needs to be scalable. So we're looking for scalable technology solutions to help more people. And for accelerators specifically, the business structure needs to be a for-profit business. Everyone needs to be for purpose, but for Accelerator, we're not currently accepting not-for-profit business structures. Australia Plus. So our focus is on the Australian market, and that is also where our networks are sort of broadest and ready. We do have a global network, though, and we do welcome startups from anywhere around the globe, with the exception for the Australia Plus program of startups that are registered in the United States. And then finally, the innovations should be remarkable. So we're seeking positive impact, growth-focused innovations that we believe to be remarkable, and we give you the opportunity to tell us why you believe your innovations are remarkable in the application too. So as you're crafting your application, sort of generally four areas that we're looking for you to demonstrate. And that is, firstly, that you have a solid problem and the problem space and opportunity has been validated.
S2: 21:03 The second is your solution. It is a scalable and remarkable technology solution. And then team, the humans behind it. You are the right team. Tell us why and that you are growth-ready. And then finally, a program fit. So we want to make sure there's alignment not only with your startup, not only with the people in your team, but within the cohort because it's such an important thing to craft a whole cohort experience together. So we really are looking for people that are committed to be engaged within the program and within the cohort. Okay. Some tips here to help you craft a successful application. I just want to-- before I share them, I want to let you know that we have a lot of judges who are reviewing your applications, and we do it with a lot of care. We take it very seriously because we know how much work goes into the time, the energy, and the effort that you're putting into building your startups, and then the time, energy, and effort that you put into crafting these applications. So we do take it seriously, and we do review every single one. So first and foremost, make sure you're reading all of the frequently asked questions that are on the remarkable.org website. And you can download all of the applications in a document before you even get to the application form, if that helps you to prepare. So we're asking each question for a reason. So make sure you actually read them and have a think about how you might answer each question carefully. Please use plain English. Explain things to us simply and clearly. Don't assume that we know everything about anything because we don't. Tell us, but use plain English simply and clearly. So there'll be a diverse pool of judges as well as a selection panel.
S2: 22:54 And all of the judges come from different backgrounds, and that can be lived experience, ethnicity, sector expertise, different genders, different neurotypes. Number three is don't skim over anything, but remember that long answers don't necessarily mean better answers. So if you are concise, that can sometimes demonstrate a clearer understanding of whatever the question is that we're asking. So please keep that in mind. And a note that we do score each category numerically. So make sure you share the love across your application form. And don't just focus on one area because we do score each section numerically before bringing it together and discussing all of them holistically. And the fourth is honesty and authenticity. Just be yourself. Explain things in a way that are authentic to you. You don't need to inflate any of your validation statistics or anything about your team because we're going to meet with you anyway. So we want open, honest, transparency. And that could also mean for some of you, it might be an opportunity for you to call out an area that you want to work on, and it is a growth opportunity for you. So try not to be too worried if you feel like you might have a gap in one area. Call it out, maybe, if that's an area that you're wanting to work on across the program, but do it in a way that's honest and authentic. I do know that we utilize AI to support some of our copywriting. That's okay too. Just make sure you're applying your own individual human lens over that if you are using AI to support you to write these because we want to get to know the real you and the people behind your startup.
S2: 24:35 And a short note here that you will also need to submit a short pitch video. It's up to you how you'd like to do that, but we would like you to demonstrate what your product is so that we don't need to make any sort of guesses as we're reviewing your application. But the format is quite open to how you'd like to do that. All right. Not long to go for me talking at you, and then you'll have the opportunity to ask questions. So a note on the application process. So once you submit your applications, which close on Thursday, the 15th of May, we go into the first round of screening, and that's purely for eligibility. So we just want to make sure that you are disability tech and sort of at the right enough stage. And then it moves to a pool of judges, external and internal to Remarkable and Cerebral Palsy Alliance. So those are sort of judged numerically as well as the opportunity for more comments there. And we do our best to make sure that every application is reviewed by a diversity of genders, lived experience, and backgrounds, as well in terms of sector expertise. The next stage after that, so once those applications are judged, we will shortlist to a first round of interviews, and that interview will be with our selection panel, and from that, we will have a second round of interviews. Really, really fun but really challenging experience for us on the other side of the table, so try not to be too nervous about that because we are all here to support you and learn about how wonderful your startups are. And then after that selection panel, we will be sending offers to the startups.
S2: 26:25 So on this slide are some of those dates. A reminder: 15th of May, applications close. The interviews are 27th of May through till the 4th of June, and then 11th of June is when we'll start notifying people of outcomes there. For those that are offered a place in the accelerator, the next stage after that is pro bono legal sessions. So Remarkable will be covering the cost of you to work with a lawyer so that you can get legal advice on your behalf, not on our behalf. So it's free legal advice on your behalf so that you really understand the contracts and all of the paperwork, and you get legal guidance before you commit to participating in the accelerator. And then we move to a period of deep dives with some of the Remarkable team and your coaches when available so we can really understand your needs and objectives of the program, and then that helps me and the rest of the programming team make sure we've got the right speakers and the right programming ready to go for you. And then we have onboarding from the 22nd of July onwards and an opportunity to meet the cohort before it starts. All right. That's pretty much it for me. Onto some common questions, and then I'll open to the floor here. So one of the most common questions I get is, "What cohort am I eligible for, and can I apply for the US Accelerator program instead?" So eligibility is based on where your startup is registered and operating. For the Australia Plus program, that is everywhere except registered in the US.
S2: 27:58 And I will add a layer of detail to that question because another common question I get is, "I might prefer to join the US program because I'm based closer to the US, or maybe the investment terms are different. Can I apply for that?" If you are registered in the United States and operating in the United States, you would be eligible for the US program. But if not, you wouldn't be eligible if you just sort of applied for the US because you want to be part of the US program. So I hope that sort of answers that one enough. But if not, pop a question in the chat and I can qualify that. So is the startup a full-time commitment, and do I need to be working full-time on my startup? So it's a part-time commitment, but we do expect that at least one person in the startup is working full-time on the startup. We accept that sometimes other team members or other co-founders might be working in a part-time capacity, but at the very least, one founder needs to be full-time on your startup. And another question that popped up last year that I'll call out here is, "Can I participate in another accelerator or other startup program at the same time?" We do ask that you are committed to and focused on the Remarkable Accelerator Program. It is quite intense. There is a lot happening, not just the face-to-face programming, but your implementation with your coach, with your team. So, we do ask that you are committed to only participating in the Remarkable Accelerator Program throughout the 16 weeks.
S2: 29:28 Okay. If you have more questions, please pop them into the chat, put up a digital or physical hand, and come off mute. I'll leave that to you. But remember that more details are on remarkable.org, and you can navigate to the Australia+ Accelerator and read all of the other frequently asked questions there. But I will pause here and open to the floor for any questions. No question is silly, so keep that in mind as well. Swati?
S4: 30:00 Yeah. Hello, Emma. Thanks for the update. I'm calling from India. So I work for the disability tech. I'm working on assistive technologies in India. And in India, it hasn't grown or evolved. This segment hasn't evolved that much. So I am developing some product which has already been developed in some other country, but it is not affordable in this country. So will it be considered? I'm developing it in my own way. So I'm trying to make it available and affordable for Indians. So will it be considered?
S2: 30:45 Absolutely yes, is the short answer. I think innovations can be seemingly small. They can be slight twists. They can be market differences. It can be making it more affordable, or it can be making it more accessible in other ways. So yes is the short answer. But Pete, did you have anything you might want to add to that?
S3: 31:05 Not only that, we've got-- Swati, we've got very good friends in India who are also running accelerator programs there. So ATF over there, Pratik Madhav and the whole team at ATF, AssisTech Foundation, are doing some really, really incredible work there and are really embedded within both the startup and the disability communities over there as well. So certainly, you're more than welcome to apply to as many programs as you would like. But definitely, if you haven't come across them, definitely check them out as well.
S4: 31:44 Pete, thanks for that update. But can I get some more information on the work being done in India? Because till now, I didn't get as much support. So I would really like to have some support on this in India.
S3: 32:00 I'll pop something in the chat for you.
S4: 32:02 Okay. Thank Pete. Thanks, Emma.
S2: 32:05 Thank you. Owa, great to see you here. Thanks for being here. So the question in the chat is, "For earlier-stage MedTech startups, is there a minimum technology readiness level you're specifically looking for?" Great question, and it's sort of a, "Not necessarily," type of an answer. Pete, what are your thoughts on that one?
S3: 32:25 Sorry, I was trying to multitask then. So, "MedTech startups, is there a minimum technology readiness level that you're looking for?" I guess, I don't know the actual kind of levels kind of within that kind of definition. But certainly, I think the learnings that we're doing through this program is really around that go-to-market stage. So we don't want it to be too abstract for you. We want it to be as practical and as applicable as you possibly can. So we realize that some of the medical devices and other technologies, hardware, in particular, does take a long period of time to develop. And also, it's not very well-funded as well. So we make that exception for hardware startups and for MedTech just because we know that it's really, really hard to get that support. And we want to support technologies that are in that space. So certainly, we can have a chat afterward and see kind of specifically where you're up to and what kind of support you're looking to have.
S5: 33:32 Okay. Thank you, Pete. Thank you, Emma.
S2: 33:41 Any other questions from the audience? I'm just checking the chat. Aaron, go for it.
S6: 33:49 Hey, Emma. I just wanted to ask because I've just done the [launcher?]. I wanted to ask about-- when you say, "There's revenue," are we talking a specific amount of revenue, or does that have to-- is there a certain criteria around that?
S2: 34:05 We don't have a certain criteria there. Essentially, it is one of the many component parts into us having a look at joining the cohort and an investment. So it's an indication of validation in market. It's not the be-all and end-all. There's no minimum revenue amount. But particularly, if you are not a MedTech startup, the expectation is that there is some revenue. If you can demonstrate monthly recurring, annual recurring, that's wonderful as well. But not all business models are aligned with monthly recurring revenue. So we have sort of modified the question to demonstrate any revenue there. But there's no minimum. It is just but one of the sort of metrics that we would look that support your validation. But as you know, there are lots of other ways to demonstrate your validation as well.
S6: 34:57 [Easy?]. Thank you.
S2: 35:01 [Swati?], did you have your hand up again in the chat, sorry, in the digital hand up, or maybe that was a remnant from before? Okay. I might go to Jay in the chat box, where similar to MedTech, we're building robots for the disability space, and they take a bit of time and money to launch. There's funding behind the startup to build the product, but we haven't received revenue from an actual customer yet because it's still being built and trialed with customers. Do you have any thoughts on that, Pete, from an eligibility perspective?
S3: 35:40 Yeah. I was just typing a short response in there. I think absolutely. It's totally understandable, Jay. And there's different ways that we also look at how do you apply this understanding around commercialization as well. And some of that can be around kind of pre-commitments. It can be around getting commitments around testing and trialing technologies, agreeing to when it's ready, being able to do pilots and trials. So those sorts of things are definitely very applicable and would love to have more applications in that space as well. So definitely apply.
S2: 36:21 Tony, in the chat, how important is the estimation of market size to eligibility? I would say an understanding of your market. Being able to demonstrate that there is demand in it and that it is a growing space would definitely lend itself towards maybe a more successful application. If there is a lack of understanding of the market size, I might suggest that that would not necessarily score as highly as a startup. That can demonstrate a deep understanding access to in a growing market. Would you say the same Pete?
S3: 37:00 I would, yeah. And I guess we get to see lots of applications that are for a particular part of the disability community, and then they say, "There's a one billion kind of size kind of TAM," and I don't think that that's very helpful for anyone. Yes, the disability market is very large, but we also know that it's very nuanced as well. And so we just want you to be realistic around that. And we also understand that some of these kind of breakthrough technologies are for actually a smaller cohort as well. And so we acknowledge that. That's where you probably rank a little bit higher on the remarkable scale of you know it's a remarkable technology. So I hope that makes sense, Tony.
S2: 37:45 The only thing I might add to that as well, Pete, is we also love to see how you came up with that calculation to just give us a bit more background and context to how you might calculate it. Something that has been shown in past applications as well, and Pete mentioned it there as well, is you might currently, for example, be focused on the aging market, but you might have identified through exploration and some validation experiments or just speaking to potential users and customers, that actually a broader disability space is the next market you'd like to unlock. A geographical market could be a next market you'd like to unlock as well. So have a think about it in a number of different ways that may be relevant to you.
S3: 38:37 Any other questions? Probably what we would also say is that if you kind of all of a sudden think of a question that you haven't asked and you kind of really wish you could ask, please just reach out to us. We're more than happy to answer any questions between now and when applications do close. So yeah.
S2: 39:01 Chris, do you get any other common questions coming through your inbox?
S7: 39:08 Not really. I mean, I don't want to pat ourselves on the shoulder, but I would just direct everyone, I guess I would say definitely check out those FAQs because there is some more content in there and some more of those nuances. So yeah, definitely take a look at that content. And of course, if there are any other questions as well, we're available at hello@remarkable.org, and you can also reach out to us personally as well.
S2: 39:35 Thanks, Chris. Gita or Gita, I'm sorry, I'm not sure the correct pronunciation. Do we have a minimum number of personnel within the team? No. So solo founders are welcome to apply as well. I will, though, note that there is a part of the application form that asks you to tell us why you are the right team for it. So absolutely, you are eligible to apply, but perhaps demonstrate how all of the different skill sets required in your team will be able to be sort of serviced and supported where you might want to be bringing on another co-founder or whether you might be supplementing with outsourcing some of the startup functions as well. Daniel, feel free to come off mute.
S8: 40:20 Thanks, Emma. I've got a question around sort of the product or what you guys sort of do. So I've got a service that's more education-based. So it's more around capacity-building. Is that something you consider, or do you prefer tangible, actual products for the disability sort of market?
S2: 40:42 That's a hard one to answer without enough detail there, but if I can add that it needs to have a scalable technology solution element to it. So if it is a service sort of one-to-one education offering, I would say that that's not eligible because it's not a scalable business model. But if you're able to utilize technology to create a scalable solution in that capability capacity-building space, then that would be eligible. [inaudible] enough? Okay, great.
S8: 41:09 [inaudible] so that's great. Thank you.
S2: 41:16 Lisa, Cynthia, or Kate, if you're still here, do you get any other common questions? If not, no worries.
S9: 41:25 I think questions are often more whether it doesn't have to be about cerebral palsy. We're part of Cerebral Palsy Alliance. We can be developing technology for any kind of disability, but we obviously do have connections in with the disability sector, not just within Cerebral Palsy Alliance. And the user feedback community is new. We're growing that. But we do have people with all different sorts of disabilities in our community that we can try and connect you with during the program, and we'll be aiming to grow that as well to make sure we've got plenty of diversity in that. But yeah, they're probably the main ones that I hear.
S2: 42:06 Pam in the chat, what capacity do you have to support global expansion? So depending on needs, timing, and that sort of thing, we can absolutely connect you to our network of mentors, partners, and supporters. That's actually something that came up from the last cohort of Accelerator 2024. And we're sort of looking at how can we even, post-program, connect them and other alumni to-- if we run a masterclass or another session on expanding to the United States because we do have a US office there. And lots of people that can support US is not necessarily the market you're after. But we do also have our +N Innovation Network. And Pete, did you want to-- you've mentioned it before, but maybe it's an opportunity to go into a bit more detail.
S3: 42:53 Yeah. Sam, one of the things that we've found is, obviously, the Australian Government loves trade and people like that are trying to support through kind of where it makes sense, Australian companies exporting out to different countries. What we have found--- we love the work that they're doing, but what we have found is that there sometimes isn't the understanding necessarily of kind of the nuance of the disability sector. And so certainly, what we've tried to do with the +N network, the Inclusive Innovation Network, is to start to build that kind of global market intelligence of kind of this market in different countries. So we have currently representatives in places like Africa, the UK, India, China, New Zealand, Canada, as well as the US as well. And then we've got other partners that we're currently kind of about to go through kind of a bit of a growth journey with that as well. So we do have partners in other parts of the world there as well. And later on this year, as Emma mentioned, we'll be holding another one of our global tech summits as well. So we've held two of those so far, both in the States, in San Diego, and San Francisco. This year, it's going to be in Australia. So, we'll be bringing a lot of those kind of connections globally to come to Australia as well, which will be really fantastic.
S10: 44:16 Fantastic, Pete. Thank you so much.
S3: 44:21 And we'd love to know if you've got-- I know you've just been kind of-- I'm travelling as well. So, we'd love to know if there's people you think we should be connecting with as well. It'd be great to expand that network.
S10: 44:31 Are you guys aware of or involved with the Xero project at all? Because they're very interested in us and--
S3: 44:38 Yeah. Definitely--
S10: 44:39 --there were already synergies there.
S3: 44:41 A few of the Plus N network were there. They were presenting. And yeah, we know the team over there fairly well as well. And then doing some work as well outside of that with OECD, with AT scale, with the Global Innovation Disability Innovation Hub, Global Impact Investment Hub as well. There's, yeah, quite a few. And quite a few investors as well in the states that are specific to this space as well.
S10: 45:15 Can I ask a further question, Emma?
S3: 45:18 Yeah.
S10: 45:19 I'm just curious, too, because our product is actually really simple. It's really very basic. Some of you already know about it. And I'm always just sort of-- I don't know how that fits in because when I always hear about these sorts of programs, it's always these very technical, very high-level kind of things. And what we're offering is something really, really simple. So, I don't quite know how that would fit in with the way you guys operate and work.
S3: 45:50 Yeah. I mean, I actually think it takes a genius to make kind of a very complex thing simple. And actually, better usability is always a better driver of innovation than really complex sometimes solutions. So, I think it all comes down to kind of the nature of the impact, kind of the competitive landscape that you've got for your particular product, and what impact it's going to make. So, I think for us, yeah, a level of tech, I think actually all technology is assistive technology. It helps us to do things better and faster and more efficiently. So it really does come down to that kind of impact of that technology.
S10: 46:40 Terrific. Thanks, Pete.
S2: 46:42 For the recording, I might just share Dwayne in the comments here. Simple is scalable. I agree with that one as well. And just to give you an example, the testimonial I shared from Kaylee at Capella Design, they're making assistive furniture beautiful so that your home doesn't feel like a hospital. So, the simplicity of a beautiful shower stool and a coffee mug that has greater stability and it's lighter. So, simple is great as well. Please do apply. I think Lisa said here, your product is relevant, can have great impact. So, yeah. I might just leave a bit of an awkward silence for any other opportunities in the chat with the digital or physical hand up for additional questions. No? Okay. Well, I hope that you have found that useful in some way. I hope that if you are on the fence and umming and ahhing as to whether you should apply or I don't know if I'm far enough along, either please reach out to us at hello@remarkable.org or submit your application so that we do have the wonderful privilege to review your applications and potentially be part of Remarkable Accelerator Australia Plus. But if you did find that the US program is a better fit for you because you are registered and operating in the US, we'll share a link in the chat, or you can register on Humanatics for the USAMA. That is on Wednesday, the 16th of April, 1:00 PM Eastern Time, which is 3:00 AM Australian Eastern Standard Time. So, yeah, depending on what's relevant for you.
S2: 48:30 But thank you so much for being here. We appreciate you, and we look forward to reading more about your incredible innovations. Irrespective of where our journey meets next, please make sure you are continuing to build these incredible, impactful innovations to make a more accessible, inclusive world. See you around. Have a great rest of the day. Thank you so much for being here. Bye, everyone.
S10: 48:55 Thanks, all. Much appreciated.
S4: 48:57 Thank.
