Impact Program Autumn 26'

The operating system of human civilisation was built on a flawed premise – that the world is a collection of objects to be optimised, not a web of relationships to be nurtured. Five of nine planetary boundaries crossed. Socio-ecological systems under simultaneous strain. Crises the system generates but cannot solve. There is an urgent need to radically redesign how we produce, provision, and participate in the world.

That shift doesn't happen through isolated breakthroughs. It happens when enough ventures are connected, coordinated, and building in the same direction that the old pattern can no longer hold.

The CoLabs Impact Program is a 6-month, in-person venture development journey for founders building at the leverage points where that shift happens – food, materials, energy, health – and the systems that connect them.

We help you stress-test an idea against real-world conditions, combining startup fundamentals with systems thinking, life-centred design, and regenerative enterprise principles. We can't guarantee fundability. But we can help you determine whether you're building something worth funding.

CoLabs acts as convener, educator, and ecosystem weaver throughout. At the end, the path is yours.

Who It's For

Founders at idea → pre-seed stage
Researchers and students exploring venture pathways
Operators transitioning into venture building
Individuals or early teams working on complex, system-level challenges

Core Outcome

This program is designed to move you from early idea → real-world venture readiness through a structured, step-by-step progression through:

Idea/hypothesis exploration
Opportunity validation
Prototyping or early testing
Building a funding-ready, execution-ready venture

By the end, you'll be positioned to:

attract funding or support
partner with universities or research institutes
build a team
initiate pilots, partnerships, or early revenue

Program Structure

6 months | In-person | Small cohort

5-15 teams per cohort
- 4-5 with lab access
- 5-10 with coworking/engineering access
Fortnightly core workshops (1.5–3 hrs)
Alternating CLIMB sessions (peer support + collective sensemaking and problem-solving)
Access to experts, labs, workspace, and technical deep dives

How You Will Learn

Structured venture-building workshops
Real-world testing and validation
Access to domain experts
Community + ecosystem support
Physical space (lab / office)

After the Program

We are here to help and want to see you succeed. Which is why we ensure that there's a range of post-program pathways that allow you to continue in the way that suits:

Regular membership: build at CoLabs (pay for services)
Stay in the ecosystem: build elsewhere (but be a part of our alumni and community)
Venture studio pathway: build with CoLabs

Selection Criteria

We’re looking for people ready to work on meaningful problems and actively build a venture.

Working on something that matters: at any scale, with serious potential to benefit people and planet
Systems-aware (or curious): open to embracing complexity, regenerative design, and new ways of seeing
Early, but serious: idea to pre-seed, with clear direction and intent to build
Ready to commit: 2–3 days/week in-person, testing and iterating in the real world
Community-minded: open to feedback, collaboration, and shared learning

We will prioritise initiatives working across relevant domains such as:

Biotech/biomaterials/green chemistry
Climate and energy
Circular economy
Food systems and agriculture
Nature-based solutions
Deep-tech addressing systemic challenges

But we hold these categories loosely. The most interesting work often doesn't fit neatly into a list – and we're under no illusion that we have the full picture. If you're building something that doesn't map cleanly onto the above but is genuinely oriented toward a flourishing future, we'd still love to hear from you.

What Makes It Different

Built for complexity (biotech, climate, deep tech, not just software startups)
Challenge-led, not idea-first
Life-centred + regenerative thinking embedded throughout
A hybridisation of deep thinking and hands-on doing
Deep integration into CoLabs ecosystem (space, people, partners)
Optional pathway into venture studio (equity-based support)

Our Thesis

For the first time in history, we face a choice that is also a design brief: to consciously redesign how we produce, provision, and participate in the world. Not just doing less harm. Circular, bio-led, and regenerative by design. Fair for people and the living world alike.

We believe the most important ventures of the next decade will be bio-based or bio-led. Built by founders whose ventures are complexity-informed and systemically attuned. Bioregional economies are the unit of change. And the window to shape what emerges is now.

'We used to be working out of a garage... It helps us out quite a bit having a bigger space to work in... We've made much faster progress than we otherwise would have been able to.'

Samin Haque
Founder @ Melbourne Bionics

'The CoLabs Impact Program has been a vessel for metamorphosis in my journey, deeply enriching me with the resources, support, and belief to grow my biomaterials practice in a way that feels both holistic and truly sustainable – thank you!'

Chloe Harper
Founder @ Off With the Pixies Studio

'It's been an amazing time working with the CoLabs team through the impact program. We have space now to do our work, which has been great.'

Vigneswarian Appia
Founder @ CForge

The CoLabs team have been super helpful, and the Laboratory is just fantastic to work at. I've accelerated the project I'm in so fast because I'm here. If you have a great idea, please join up!'

David Stapleton
CSO @ Utilium

Physical space

Access to CoLabs workspace, with optional lab and engineering space access for selected ventures

Hands-on venture design

Apply tools like value prop design, business modelling, and validation to your own venture

Ecosystem access

Connections to partners, collaborators, and the broader CoLabs network

High-quality cohort

Build alongside a like-minded founders working on meaningful challenges

Collaborative Advantage

Ongoing peer support, accountability, connection, and problem-solving through CLIMB community layer

Access to internship programs

Tap into internship talent to support and grow your venture.

Captivating content

We make your venture visible. Through photos, videos, and the words that bring it all to life.

Systemic and Regenerative Thinking

Learn to design ventures that work within complex systems and living environments

Access to experts

Guidance across IP, biotech, regulation, funding, and commercialisation

Optional venture studio pathway

Opportunity to continue building with CoLabs as a partner (equity-based)

River and Honey

Chief Optimist Officers @ CoLabs

lead morale, momentum, and midday walk meetings with unwavering dedication. Known for strategic tail-wagging and expert-level presence, they keep team energy high and collectively sniff-test ideas (and snacks) before they scale.

Aaron Schimann

Principal @ Schimann

15 years of experience as a commercial lawyer, plus a B.BioTech, Schimann are increasingly focusing on new and emerging tech with a sustainability-focused remit.

Lauren Crystal

Managing Director @ Your Creative

Award-winning impact-led branding strategist and co-founder of Your Creative, Lauren comes from a long line of entrepreneurs and has a deep understanding of how to communicate technical complexity.

Tuan Nguyen

Next-Gen Materials Expert @ CoLabs

Tuan, now part of the CoLabs team, was the former CSO of CoLabs alumni, Alt Leather and R&D Team Lead at Vinnotek, has a rare ability to combine deep technical thinking with practical execution. He excels at helping teams gain conceptual clarity and define the right pathways to validate the commercial viability of R&D projects.

Vinisha Rathod

Managing Director @ P3 Studio, advisor, speaker, and author of The Briefcase Effect™

With 15+ years across EY, BCG, and global startups, she helps founders align strategy, people, and partnerships to navigate growth. Systemically attuned and commercially sharp, Vinisha builds high-performing teams, strong cultures, and sustainable growth pathways.

Jan Bjelic

Strategy and Operations Lead @ CoLabs

As CoLabs' Business Development Lead, Jan moves fluidly between a sales call, a spreadsheet, and a scientific conversation. With a background spanning supply chain, data analysis, marketing, and operations – plus some time in the trenches at Thermo Fisher – he brings real commercial and operational depth.

Ken Seidenman

Senior Associate @ FB Rice

A rare find. A PhD neuroscientist and registered Patent Attorney (AU, NZ, and US) with deep expertise across molecular biology, stem cells, CRISPR, cancer immunotherapy, and drug discovery. At FB Rice, he offers genuinely expert IP support: from first filing and portfolio strategy through to freedom-to-operate and due diligence.

Dr. Jason Whitfield

Investment Manager @ Main Sequence

Synthetic biologist, former SynBio10x accelerator manager, and now IM at Main Sequence Ventures. Helps early-stage bio and climate startups scale impact. TEDx speaker on synthetic biology.

Jason brings sharp insight spanning lab to startup, right through to investment. The TL;DR? He knows how to turn science into fundable, scalable ventures.

Paul Bevan

CEO @Magic Valley & Founder @ Rouge Pet

A 5x business founder, Paul has deep domain expertise in finance and is one of the most resilient founders in Australia. His latest two ventures, Magic Valley and Rogue Pet, are based out of CoLabs and are bringing cultivated meat products to market for pets and people.

Andrew Gray

CEO and co-founder @ CoLabs

Andrew is CEO of CoLabs and a transdisciplinary tinkerer with a background in biochemistry and molecular biology (B.Sc, Monash). With over seven years’ experience designing and running labs, he specialises in innovation facilitation and experimental design, leading CoLabs’ expansion across APAC.

Samuel Wines

CSIO & co-founder @ CoLabs

A systemic synthesiser, with business and biology degrees, he works across strategy, innovation, venture design, and ecosystem building. Applying a complexity-informed, living-systems and design-thinking lens to develop ventures aligned with nature and real-world viability.

Warwick Donaldson

Author @ The Startup Capital Nerd

Author of The Startup Capital Nerd, specialising in early-stage financial operations, metrics and capital raising. Warwick takes a no-nonsense approach to collaborating with founders, investors and operators to help drive capital-efficient startup growth.

Hilary McKie

Lab & Ops Coordinator @ CoLabs

Hilary helps manage day-to-day operations while bringing serious technical depth from her Master of Biomedical Engineering and R&D work at Alt Leather. Her hands-on expertise spans rapid prototyping, material science, medical devices, and molecular biology, making her as useful on the bench as behind the scenes.

Nathan (Nate) Kinch FRSA

Philosopher in residence @ CoLabs, author of Trustworthy by Design, co-lead, afterthought.art
co-owner, Nightfall Worldwide

Nate is an ethicist with extensive experience leading major programs for government, industry and startups. His work has informed policy, standards, and sociotechnical systems that impact millions of people worldwide.

Impact Members will work through the KTH Innovation Readiness Levels

Notting Hill lab entrance

PC2 facilities will be available for Impact Builders.

Regular CLIMB meetups will be scheduled throughout the course of the program

Impact builders gain access to lab space and innovation facilitation to rapidly iterate and prototype their experiments

Impact program participants will have access to 3D printers and other forms of prototyping infrastructure

Participants will get access to high-quality content and storytelling (including team photos and portraits) throughout the duration of their Impact Membership

Get ready, Applications for Cohort 3 of the Impact Program are closing soon

Helping to get you from early idea to real-world venture.

The CoLabs Impact Program

Our Impact Member Alumni

What does the program offer?