Curtin University reveals the 13 startups taking part in its annual accelerator

Curtin University has selected 13 startups in its annual Accelerate program, kicking off in 2026.

Now entering its 13th year, Curtin Accelerate is a free program for founders to develop the skills and networks needed to take their ideas to market.

The program’s speaker and mentor network includes Kanopy founder Olivia Humphrey, renowned US angel investor Bill Tai and startup and scale-up executive coach Rob Newman, the former CEO of Nearmap.

The 2026 cohort spans healthcare, education, workplace safety, underwater vehicles, beauty products and more, including Minerva, a virtual-reality platform able to turn CT and MRI scans into true-scale 3D images to help surgeons plan complex paediatric heart procedures.

Curtin’s director of entrepreneurship Danelle Cross said the quality and ambition of the applications goes up every year.

“This year’s cohort includes founders working on lifesaving healthcare tools, safety tech and sustainable consumer brands,” she said.

“These are projects that will make a real difference to people’s lives and show how Curtin supports innovation, from the mind to the marketplace.”

Curtin commercialisation director Rohan McDougall said the program was created to help founders move faster, reduce risk and find the customers and investors they need to scale

“Over more than a decade, the results speak for themselves: alumni have launched more than 70 successful ventures, raising over $41 million in funding,” he said.

“Accelerate aims to turn great ideas into viable businesses that create jobs and diversify WA’s economy – and we have no doubt our 2026 cohort will achieve this.”

2026 Curtin Accelerate cohort are:

• Minerva — A VR imaging platform that turns CT/MRI scans into life-sized 3D anatomy to help clinicians plan and practise complex paediatric heart surgeries.
• Sonowest Healthcare — An integrated telehealth primary care model offering 24/7 support to improve health access for remote WA communities.

• Yalkarang Consulting — A Noongar-led service delivering culturally grounded learning to strengthen workplace and community understanding.

• AchieveAble — A fun and engaging maths tutoring program combining coaching, daily micro-practice and interactive lessons to boost student outcomes.
• aisembl — An intuitive design-to-documentation platform that streamlines material selection and project planning for homeowners and professionals.
• NeuroAnalyse — A clinical decision tool integrating dementia risk prediction into GP software to support earlier prevention.
• Safe Call Up — A discrete safety-monitoring app for family and domestic violence survivors using timed check-ins and silent alert features. Safe Call Up was a finalist for Best New Idea in the 2025 Startup Daily Best in Tech awards.
• Eikonic — Developing the world’s first menopause-focused Advanced Oral Crème, powered by regenerative gold-calcium technology to support women in the menopausal life stage.
• Respiradigm — A digital health companion to predict infant asthma risk and provide parent-friendly guidance and clinician insights.
• Suss Beauty — A waterless, powdered and refillable skincare range designed to reduce environmental waste.

• Next Generation Sensors — Portable electrochemical sensors using ionic liquid-based film and gel technology for fast, on-site detection of explosives and water pollutants.
• hyvr — A cloud platform that streamlines maintenance handovers, unifying shift data and improving operational safety and compliance.
• Sunfish Robotics — Solar ocean robot engineered for long-duration, low-cost ocean data collection.