Emergence Of Accelerators And Accelerator Policy: The Case Of Australia

In this chapter, Martin Bliemel, Saskia de Klerk, Ricardo Flores and Morgan Miles review the historic context in which an accelerators industry emerged in Australia in parallel with policy development to indirectly support start-ups. Their study spans over three decades of policies aimed at supporting innovative high-growth ventures. Early attempts at stimulating an incubator industry failed. The authors focus on the most recent years, during which accelerators initially emerged in Australia in the absence of policy tailored to the accelerator business model, followed by the design and implementation of a A$23 million national Incubator Support Programme.