I2N Accelerator ventures take their pitch to Sydney investors
The 2026 Accelerator cohort brought down the house at the Investor Showcase in Sydney last week, ahead of Demo Night on Wednesday 7 October at the I2N Hub.
Recycled cardboard replacing blast hole savers on mine sites, software catching dangerous medication interactions before they reach a patient, telehealth dentistry reaching aged care residents and a brine shot that stops cramp before it stops you. Last week the 2026 I2N Accelerator cohort took twelve regional ventures to Sydney for their first pitch to the investor community.
Held at Greenhouse on Thursday 24 September, the I2N Accelerator Investor Showcase put the cohort in front of a curated room of investors, operators and ecosystem partners. It landed in week 10 of the 13-week program, which is deliberate. Late enough that the ventures have something real to show, early enough that what they hear in the room can still change the pitch they give on the night that counts.
For several teams it was their first time presenting to an investor audience at all.
"Great businesses are being built in Newcastle and the Hunter, and our role is to make sure those founders are just as well connected to Sydney's investors and networks as they are to their own region," said Richard Berry, Acting Senior Manager, Entrepreneurship at I2N.
The venue is part of the story. Greenhouse is Australia's climate tech hub, and its Director Innovation and Investment, Charlotte Connell, serves as the Cleantech Industry Connector for the I2N Accelerator. Across multiple cohorts she has been one of the most valuable connections the program can offer ventures working on climate and sustainability solutions: candid about what the market will and will not reward, generous with introductions and consistently willing to tell a founder the thing they need to hear rather than the thing they want to.
"Cleantech is no longer a nice to have, it's a national security multiplier, a sovereign capability amplifier, and how it's the biggest opportunity we have. I'm excited to play a small role in helping the innovative and ambitions founders from I2N go further and faster," Charlotte said.
The 2026 cohort spans three streams. Cleantech, with Envirocone, Bin Chick and Left Handesign. Healthtech, with Mechanistic Health, Smile Advisor, ConnectedCare Hub and Pickled GOAT. All-Industries, with Akrue, Bandigon, FirmBrain, Invoice Harbour and Meandrix. Several teams are made up of University staff, students and alumni.
The Cleantech stream is supported by TRaCE, the Trailblazer for Recycling and Clean Energy, and Investment NSW. The Healthtech stream is supported by the Central Coast Health and Wellbeing Living Lab.
Sydney was the warm up. The cohort comes home for Demo Night on Wednesday 7 October, where all twelve ventures pitch to the Hunter and Central Coast community at I2N Hub Honeysuckle from 5.30pm.
Free to attend, but places limited for the the biggest night in the region's startup calendar.
Get your tickets to Demo Night here.
✨ What is the I2N Accelerator?
The I2N Accelerator is a launchpad for founders based in the Newcastle and Central Coast regions, to validate their pathway to market and hit go on their business model. Founders are immersed into a community of bold changemakers, mentors and experts as they chart their path to commercial and social impact.
Are you the next changemaker? If you want to join the I2N Accelerator cohort in 2027 submit a short EOI to keep updated.
🙌 Thank you to our program partners
Contact
- Richard Berry
- Email: i2n@newcastle.edu.au
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