Here are some of the best things among 100-plus events at the 2021 Spark Festival

Tech & innovation festival Spark has unveiled its 2021 program with more than 100 events in a hybrid mix of national gatherings online and in person.

Now in its sixth year, the Spark Festival will run for two weeks from October 13-27, covering everything that’s hot for startups, innovation and entrepreneurship.

Maxine Sherrin

Festival Director Maxine Sherrin said that as Covid restrictions lift and the community and economy comes back to life, she wants aspiring and established business owners to re-emerge with the skills and connections of the new digital economy.

“This year’s theme is ‘Light Your Spark.’ Over 100 organisations from across Australia have rallied together and created a program which shares the up-to-date and relatable knowledge Australians need to start and grow a business today,” she said.

It all kicks off on October 13 with Opening Night Online Event: Meet the Spark Festival community

Some of the key events in the 2021 program include:

Building global businesses: Venture Abroad Successfully
Fostering diversity in VC and angel investing: Best practices to remove bias from VC and Angel investing
Web 3.0, the game changer no-one knows is coming: NFT Sparkle – A Deep Dive Into a Fascinating New World
New approaches to funding: Global Trends in Startup Funding
Innovation Cities: Incubating Place and Culture for Entrepreneurship
Growth Hack Your Revenue with Catapult
The Evolving R&D Tax Landscape with Fullstack Advisory
DIY Design for Startups with General Assembly
Venture Abroad Successfully with Haymarket HQ
Startup Team Speed-Dating with UNSW Founders
Investor Ready Pitch Night with Fishburners
Genesis Cohort 28 with Sydney Uni

There’s also a strong focus on female entrepreneurship with events such as:

Towards a supportive entrepreneurial ecosystem for women-led startups with Springboard
Meet Investors, Bridging the gender gap in access to capital with Inspiring Rare Birds
Practice Your Pitch with Mums & Co

Getting around Australia, in Darwin you can be part of the Croc Pitch with $1 million in Venture Capital up for grabs while in Adelaide it’s Foment: Viti, Wine and Tourism Tech Pitch

Sherrin said Spark is unique as a grassroots program that seeks to cover the length and breadth of innovation, with events about quantum computing and cybersecurity alongside workshops about practicing your pitch and growth hacking your revenue.

“They’re all united by the idea of sharing the skills and knowledge Australian businesses will need if they are to continue to thrive in the global economy,” Sherrin said.

Spark is also about accessibility, with 90% of the events online and most of them are free.

A not-for-profit with the mission of driving prosperity for all Australians via the growth of thriving new economy businesses, this year’s Spark Festival is supported by NSW Government (Major Sponsors) and William Buck (Gold Sponsors), as well as OVHcloud, Pledge 1% and The Spark Collective.

The Spark Festival program is available here.

For festival information and sponsorship opportunities email Maxine