2026
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2026
The 35th INCITE Awards were held Friday, 17 July 2026 in Perth, with 13 technology innovations confirmed to represent Western Australia in the 2026 national iAwards.
2026 Achiever of the Year
PRESENTED BY WAITTA
Professor Iain Murray AM has been named 2026 Achiever of the Year at the historic 35th INCITE Awards, and was presented with the accolade by 2025 Achievers of the Year Kay Hargreaves and Tina Ambrose. Nominated by his own student - and fellow INCITE Awards winner - Shanelle Tennekoon, Professor Murray received the Awards' peak honour in recogniton of his efforts over 35 years quietly rebuilding what's possible in tech. In 2002 he founded CAVI at Curtin University, proving blind Western Australians could earn industry-standard Cisco certifications once thought out of reach. Today, CAVI graduates land jobs at 75–90%, against a national blind employment rate of just 62%.
2026 WA Pearcey Entrepreneur of the Year
PRESENTED BY Rick Harvey on behalf of the Pearcey Foundation
Professor Girish Dwivedi was named WA Pearcey Entrepreneur of the Year, presented by Rick Harvey on behalf of the Pearcey Foundation. Professor Dwivedi was recognised for a significant body of work, having taken calculated entrepreneurial risks to turn world-leading Australian research into globally significant health technology companies. Throughout his entrepreneurial journey, Professor Dwivedi has successfully brought together researchers, clinicians, investors and industry to create ventures that are improving healthcare, advancing artificial intelligence and demonstrating that globally competitive innovation can originate in Western Australia. Beyond commercial success, he has strengthened our innovation ecosystem through leadership, mentorship and collaboration, creating a legacy that extends well beyond any individual company.
2026 Dr Mal Bryce WA Tech Company of the Year
PRESENTED BY WAITTA President Premila Jina
CorePlan took home the Dr Mal Bryce WA Tech Company of the Year Award, presented by WAITTA President Premila Jina. Founded in Perth in 2016, this organisation has made a deliberate choice to stay and build - growing from a local consultancy into a globally-operating SaaS platform used by more than 600 companies and 9,000 users across four continents. It has created skilled technology jobs in Western Australia, raised capital nationally, and built a product that puts WA expertise on the world stage. CorePlan proves that a Perth-based technology company can solve a globally significant problem and win the world's largest mining companies as customers, without leaving home.
Selected at the discretion of the INCITE Awards Chief Judge, this award recognises a nominee who has demonstrated exceptional excellence, innovation, and impact, standing out among their peers as a true leader in their field.
Rio Tinto
Integrated System Modelling is a cloud-native platform that unifies digital supply chain and mine simulation models through a self-service web app. It delivers rapid, traceable what-if scenario analysis for medium-term planning, shrinking runtimes from days to minutes and unlocking scalable, data-driven insights to support informed business decision making.
Selected at the discretion of the INCITE Awards Lead Judges, this award recognises a nominee who has demonstrated exceptional excellence, innovation, and impact, standing out among their peers as a true leader in their field.
Pattricia Ruth Das of Southern Cross Unversity
The multi-sensory driver drowsiness detection device is an edge-based, privacy-first system that monitors driver fatigue using real-time computer vision. By detecting eye closure, yawning, and head droop, it triggers an immediate, simultaneous sound alarm and scent release, providing a fail-safe awakening mechanism to prevent fatal accidents.
Recognising government and public sector teams using technology to deliver improved services, policy outcomes and public value. The category focuses on practical application and impact rather than commercial scale.
Presented by: WA Department of Energy and Economic Diversification's New Industries and Innovation Fund
Jason Hall, Fiona Stanley Hospital and South Metro Health Services
LipReader is the world’s first co-designed, fully integrated AI lipreading phone app. Designed for clinical use, it restores communication for voiceless patients by converting lip movements into text and speech. Using advanced computer vision and deep learning, it improves patient experience, safety, and clinical efficiency with scalability across clinical contexts.
Medical AI Pty Ltd
The Medical AI Expert System for Rare Disease Care provides a secure, standalone, reliable tool for diagnosis, treatment, education and research towards a cure for a rare genetic condition. It includes all relevant medical papers and provides a role response for patients, children, parents, nurses, doctors or rare disease specialists.
Recognising engineered and Industry 4.0 solutions applied across industrial, manufacturing, agritech, medtech and related sectors. This category acknowledges the growing impact of applied industrial innovation in Western Australia.
Presented by: WA Department of Energy and Economic Diversification's New Industries and Innovation Fund
Heat-Trap Solutions
Heat-Trap Solution’s Safety Shower Continuous Circulation and Flushing Fluid Supply System technology enables precise control of the availability, temperature stability, and delivery of flushing fluid for emergency eye/face wash and safety shower equipment, in accordance with the requirements of Australian Standards AS4775 and AS3500.
Curtin Institute for Data Science and BHP Western Australia Iron Ore
This innovation is an industrial analytics application that automates detection of drill rig GPS calibration drift. Deployed in
real mining operations, it reduces QA/QC time from hours to minutes, increases analysis coverage from 2% sampling to over 80%, enabling
proactive maintenance, delivering measurable productivity, safety and cost benefits.
Learn more
Innovate Medtech
A first-in-class optical-guided periodontal system enabling real-time visualisation and targeted laser ablation during subgingival treatment. By combining imaging and therapy in a single clinical instrument, it transforms a blind, operator-dependent procedure into a precise, efficient, and reliable image-guided intervention, improving outcomes and reducing repeat treatments.
Recognising the development of artificial intelligence capability itself, not simply the use of AI within a solution. The category aligns with national and international AI judging frameworks, adapted for the WA context.
Presented by: Insight Enterprises
Agili8
Agili8 delivers "3D virtual hands-on, eyes-on" guidance with AI assistance to the frontline. This patented XRAI Vision® teleports offsite experts to guide frontliners by merging realities with XR + AI + computer vision into an instant Plug & Play solution, through smartphones and smart glasses for handsfree mission critical work.
Recognising technology projects that improve access, participation, equity and inclusion. Previously an honorary award, this is now a fully judged project category aligned with national frameworks.
Presented by: Perth Biodesign
Jason Hall, Fiona Stanley Hospital and South Metro Health Services
LipReader is the world’s first co-designed, fully integrated AI lipreading phone app. Designed for clinical use, it restores communication for voiceless patients by converting lip movements into text and speech. Using advanced computer vision and deep learning, it improves patient experience, safety, and clinical efficiency with scalability across clinical contexts.
Shanelle Tennekoon of Curtin University
SmartWheel is a lightweight AI-powered guidance system for powered wheelchairs, restoring independence of users with disabilities causing mobility impairments. By automating high-precision tasks like doorway traversal and hazard detection on low-cost edge devices, SmartWheel enables safer, independent navigation, reducing caregiver dependency, and improving quality of life for people with disabilities.
Recognising technology-led solutions delivering positive social, environmental and community outcomes. This category brings together social impact and sustainability under a single outcomes-focused framework.
Presented by: Curtin University
Materia Health
Materia Health’s MateriaPOD is a smart, portable, reusable device for precise organ and tissue preservation. Moving beyond ice-based methods, it optimises conditions to reduce cellular injury, improve outcomes, and extend viability. Combining reusable hardware with cell-specific software, it reduces medical waste, lowers carbon footprint, and improves global healthcare resource efficiency.
Carolyn Martin and Helena Mills from the Department of Water and Environmental Regulation
WA Vegetation Extent (WAVE) Pilot is the flagship AI initiative of Government’s Native Vegetation Policy testing whether vegetation can be mapped automatically at scale. It’s developing a trusted, publicly accessible future foundational data asset that fills critical information gaps and enables smarter policy, more efficient regulation and better environmental outcomes.
Recognising technology solutions delivering measurable business outcomes across industry sectors. Eligible projects may progress into multiple national award streams depending on application and market focus.
Presented by: City of Perth
Hola Health
Hola Health connects patients with doctors in under 6 minutes, 24/7. Australia's only fully end-to-end telehealth platform - covering consultation, prescription and pharmacy fulfillment - trusted by Bupa, Woolworths and Cricket Australia . Now operating in the UK, Hola is building the infrastructure layer for scalable, on-demand healthcare delivery worldwide.
CorePlan
CorePlan is a drilling operations platform that connects planning, scheduling and field execution in one system. By replacing spreadsheet chaos with live operational control, it frees geologists and drilling teams to focus on discovery, improve productivity and run better drilling programs with faster decisions and fewer delays.
Recognising early-stage technology ventures demonstrating innovation, traction and growth potential. Designed for startups progressing toward national and international recognition.
Presented by: Startup WA
ThorAI Group
PlanAI is an end to end platform for Financial Planners to complete their statutory requirements for clients within 30 minutes rather than over 20 hours. It also includes a secure platform between Financial Planners and their clients removing the use of insecure emails and ensures 100% compliancy.
Materia Health
Materia Health’s MateriaPOD is a smart, portable, reusable device for precise organ preservation and transport. Moving beyond ice-based methods, it reduces cellular injury, extends viability, and improves transplant outcomes. Combining reusable hardware with cell-specific software, it reduces medical waste, lowers carbon footprint, and enhances healthcare system efficiency globally.
Recognising applied and academic research demonstrating progress toward real-world implementation. Postgraduate and industry-led research are assessed within one merit-based category.
Presented by: the Centre for Entrepreneurial Research and Innovation (CERI)
Hypatia
Precision psychiatry is powerful, but high technical barriers prevent its use in the clinic. Hypatia breaks these barriers with a scalable, browser-based platform that interprets human behaviour at the causal level. We provide clinicians and scientists with the mechanistic targets needed to revolutionise treatment selection and drug discovery.
Shanelle Tennekoon of Curtin University
SmartWheel is a lightweight AI-powered guidance system for powered wheelchairs, restoring independence of users with disabilities causing mobility impairments. By automating high-precision tasks like doorway traversal and hazard detection on low-cost edge devices, SmartWheel enables safer, independent navigation, reducing caregiver dependency, and improving quality of life for people with disabilities.
Recognising technology projects developed by tertiary students, including university, TAFE and equivalent pathways. The category supports emerging talent and provides a progression pathway into national student awards.
Please note: Tertiary postgraduate students or group of students undertaking research Masters, Doctoral or Post-Doctoral programs are not eligible, but may enter the Research and Development Award.
Presented by: Australian Computer Society (ACS)
Om Prashanth • Japtoz Singh Puri • Osayed Abdullah Khan • Elena Jane Odtojan • Chonlada Srimungkhu • Virginia Frilly • Analda Changir. All from Curtin University
An AI-based Android anti-malware system that performs real-time behavioural monitoring and APK analysis using lightweight on-device telemetry and cloud-hosted machine learning models. Unlike traditional tools, it detects zero-day and obfuscated threats with scalable, low-overhead and adaptive security.
Annabelle Lewkowski of Curtin University • William Temby and Jadenipit Tamjarion of Murdoch University
AngelPhish is a digital first responder to email scams. Unlike traditional filters, we provide a calming, chatbot-assisted interface grounded in official government protocols. We address the victim's heightened emotional state or ensure that empowering, up-to-date educational resources and information about scams are conveyed to the user.