Western Australian Technology
Hall Of Fame

Event & Context

First WA IT Awards

Held as part of ACS Branch Conference. 4 categories, 1 sponsor, 4 judges, 110 attendees. Jim Ellis OAM as inaugural Chair & MC. Same year the internet was born. Chief Judge: Prof Jeff Rohl (inaugural, from 1991)

1991 WINNERS

• Achiever: Keith Melville, Perth City Council
• Exporter: Atlas Software
• Installation: Dept of Land Administration
• Product: DBR for Natural Resource Conversion

Event & Context

2nd WA IT Awards

106 attendees, Esplanade Hotel Fremantle.

1992 Winners

• Achiever: Colin Yow, Y-Micro
• Educational: John Patterson, Curtin University
• Exporter: Comsys International
• Product: SECWA for OS/2 DFIS System

Event & Context

3rd WA IT Awards

Atrium Hotel, Mandurah.

1993 Winners

• Achiever: Professor Tony Watson
• Exporter & Product: Vector International for Macroview
• Installation: St John's Ambulance
• Student: ECU Bunbury for Blossom

Event & Context

First standalone event

154 attendees including Governor General Michael Jeffery. Langley Hotel.

1994 Winners

• Achiever: Jeff Mansell
• Exporter: Stanilite Electronics
• Installation: Dept of Minerals & Energy for Tengraph
• Product: Functional Software

Event & Context

5th WA IT Awards

Novotel Langley Hotel.

1995 Winners

• Achiever: Associate Professor Dennis Moore
• Education: PC Genesis
• Exporter & Product: Future Technology Resources
• Installation: Bunnings

Event & Context

9th Awards — first multimedia ceremony

Edith Cowan University delivers WA's first multimedia-led ceremony. Telco category added. Professor Walter Green joins as judge. This is also the year WAITA expands to include Telecommunications, becoming WAITTA.

1996 Winners

• Achiever: Ron Hutchinson, ESRI Australia
• Exporter: Io Research for Bitwalker 3
• Product: Travelsoft Systems for Qantas Itinerary Mgmt

Event & Context

7th Awards

Parmelia Hilton, 200+ attendees.

1997 Winners

• Achiever: Joseph Wong, CCK Treasury Systems
• Education: Natalie Simeons & Kate Rose-Rogers, Curtin University
• Exporter & Product: CCK Treasury Systems for Infinity

Event & Context

WA IT & T Awards — 10 categories

Program expands to reflect sector growth.

1998 Winners

• Achiever: Hugh Beggs, Alphawest
• Exporter: Fundi for IMSPA
• Product: Edith Cowan University for Fireball
• Telecoms: Aries Australia for Phonecontrol

Event & Context

Record number of entries

Hyatt Regency, nearly 400 attendees.

1999 Winners

• Achiever: Antonio Cantoni
• Exporter: Maptek for Vulcan Spatial Modelling
• Product: AlphaWest for ProdTrak (joint) / State Revenue Dept

Event & Context

Over 400 attendees — record · Y2K era · Sybil Burman confirmed as Chief Judge

Burswood Convention Centre. The sector has navigated Y2K. Sybil Burman now serving as Chief Judge — the same year Professor Jeff Rohl wins Achiever of the Year.

2000 Winners

• Achiever: Emeritus Professor Jeff Rohl
• E-Commerce: iNature & Telstra for reiwa.com
• Product: Lasata Software for Vision Enterprise

Event & Context

65 submissions

Burswood Convention Centre, 361 attendees.

2001 Winners

• Achiever: Steve Pretzel
• Exporter: PIVoD Technologies
• Online: HBF for AskTed
• Product: Fun-Ed for eVac-U8!

Event & Context

97 submissions

Burswood Convention Centre, 440 attendees.

2002 Winners

• Achiever: Mal Bryce
• Innovation: Secure Systems for Silicon Data Vault
• Product & Exporter: CommTech Wireless for BASEPage2000

Event & Context

Jim Ellis OAM steps down as Chair

412 attendees, held at Burswood Convention Centre. Mike Coles becomes chair (until 2012).

2003 Winners

• Achiever: Michael Malone, iiNet
• Innovation: Cortec Systems for Freeway
• Product: Empired for Bigredsky

Event & Context

Hyatt Regency, 369 attendees.

2004 Winners

• Achiever: Peter Brown, Westnet
• Innovation & Online & Product: Amristar Solutions for iDelve

Event & Context

414 attendees

Burswood Convention Centre.

2005 Winners

• Achiever: Nathan Buzza, CommtechWireless
• Innovation: Thumtronics for The Thummer
• Product: iTech Consulting for ReadOn

Event & Context

Moodle wins international recognition

359 attendees, Burswood.

2006 Winners

• Achiever: Garry Trinder, Edith Cowan University
• Exporter & Online: Moodle
• Product: Lectopia — University of Western Australia

Event & Context

Jim Ellis OAM wins Achiever of his the awards program he founded

344 attendees.

2007 Winners

• Achiever: Jim Ellis OAM
• Innovation: Sensear for SP1 & SP1x SENS® Technology
• Exporter & Product: Fundi Software

Event & Context

330 attendees, first time a woman is named Achiever of the Year in Dr Helen Armstong

Burswood Convention Centre.

2008 Winners

• Achiever: Dr Helen Armstrong
• Innovation: Stochastic Simulation for Stochastic Reservoir Engine
• Product: Snowden Technologies for Reconcilor

Event & Context

First time two winners are named winners for one category (innovation)

Burswood Entertainment Complex, 284 attendees.

2009 Winners

• Achiever: Gail Short
• Innovation (joint winners): DDD (TriDef 3D) & NearMap
• Product: iiNet for BoB

Event & Context

iAwards pathway first introduced

Burswood, 288 attendees. First year winners receive automatic iAwards entry.

2010 Winners

• Achiever: Professor Craig Valli, Edith Cowan University
• Innovation: Curtin University for iPortfolio
• Security: iWebGate for DMZ in a Box

Event & Context

398 attendees — 20th edition of the WAITTA Awards

Hyatt Regency Perth Grand Ballroom. Arnold Wong becomes Chair.

2011 Winners

• Achiever: John Stockbridge
• CIO of Year: Craig Ward, WA Police
• Innovation: Transmin for Rocklogic
• Product: SEQTA Software

Event & Context

448 attendees — 21st Awards (2011–2012) · International pathway to Asia-Pacific ICT Alliance Awards formalised

Hyatt Regency

2012 Winners

• Achiever: David Mierowsky
  
  Resources: ITC Global for BHP Billiton IROC

Event & Context

Rebranded: INCITE Awards. Sue Findlay becomes Chair. New WAITTA Awards brand launched - the INCITE Awards.

Perth Convention & Exhibition Centre, 433 attendees.

2013 Winners

• Achiever: David Mierowsky, Fundi Software
• Young Achiever: Marjan Zia Khodadadian, BankWest
• CIO: Vito Forte, Fortescue Metals Group
• Govt: Ajilon & WA Police for PJIE

Event & Context

19 categories · 63 judges · ~435 attendees

23rd Awards (2013–2014). Two WA teams win at APICTA, another takes Merit.

2014 Winners

• Achiever: Professor Andrew Rohl, Curtin University
• New Product & Industry: Norwood Systems

Event & Context

Growing sector representation

Achiever, Entrepreneur, CIO and multiple product categories.

2015 Winners

• Achiever: Simon Chan, Radlink Communications
• ICT Entrepreneur: Clinton House, InHouse Group
• CIO: David Dans, Landgate
• Startup: Virtuallis

Event & Context

25 years — WAITTA independent from ACS

Notable win: WA Police & Australia Post reduce National Police Check wait time from 5 days to 30 minutes. Considered for national adoption.

2016 Winners

• Achiever: Dr Kate Raynes-Goldie
• Ministers Award: Reflex
• Effective Govt: Australia Post & WA Police for National Police Check
• Startup: Family Zone
• Disruptive Tech: Nuheara

Event & Context

Pearcey Foundation Award — inaugural year · Continued international footprint

Inaugural Pearcey Foundation Entrepreneur Award presented — 10th year of the program being delivered in WA. First winner: Matthew MacFarlane of Vibe Capital.

2017 Winners

• Achiever: Dr Vivienne Conway
• Pearcey (inaugural award): Matthew Macfarlane, Vibe Capital
• Disruptive Tech: Fastbricks Robotics
• Effective Platform: NGIS Australia & CSBP

Event & Context

Hall of Fame introduced

Agworld, Clicksend, HealthEngine, Seqta inducted.

2018 Winners

• Achiever: Professor Yogi Kanagasingam
• Mal Bryce Tech Company: HealthEngine
• Pearcey: Mark Andrich
• Research & Innovation: Thales
• Startup: Swan Systems

Event & Context

Strong health tech showing

Royal Flying Doctors WA wins Mal Bryce Tech Company.

2019 Winners

• Achiever: Derek Gerrard
• Mal Bryce Tech Company: Royal Flying Doctors WA
• Pearcey: Robert Nathan
• Research & Innovation: Noisy Guts
• Startup: Alerte

Event & Context

INCITE goes virtual — COVID-19

All categories online. SpaceDraft wins Startup of the Year. Long-time WAITTA member and judge Dr Bob Cross named Achiever of the Year.

2020 Winners

• Achiever: Dr Bob Cross
• Pearcey Foundation Entrepreneur: Greg Riebe
• Innovating Govt: Node One Internet
• Social Impact & Smarter Communities: Intellicare
• Transformative Business: TOKN
• Startup: SpaceDraft
• Peter Fillery: Dior Etherton, ECU

Event & Context

30th anniversary — gala returns in person

2021 Winners — 30th INCITE Awards

• Achiever Of The Year: Peter Rossdeutstcher, Atomic Sky Pty Ltd
• Dr Mal Bryce WA Tech Company: Vix Technology
• Pearcey Western Australia Entrepreneur: Mr Charlie Gunningham
• Social Impact Award: What The Doctor Said
• Research & Innovation Industry: Avicena Systems Pty Ltd
• Research & Innovation Postgraduate: Sanjay Sharma And Auden Sehovic From Edith Cowan University, School Of Science
• Startup Of The Year: Avicena Systems Pty Ltd
• Innovating Government Award: East Metropolitan Health Service
• Transformative Solutions: Avicena Systems Pty Ltd
• Peter Fillery Undergraduate Tertiary Student Project: Alexander Von Perger From Curtin University And Barminco

Event & Context

Farewell Gerry Gannon — 20+ years as MC of the 'Logies of IT'

2022 Winners — 31st INCITE Awards

• Achiever Of The Year: Sheryl Frame
• Dr Mal Bryce WA Tech Company: Aqura Technologies
• Pearcey Western Australia Entrepreneur: Mahmood Hussein
• Social Impact Award: Neurotologix
• Research & Innovation Industry: Edith Cowan University
• Research & Innovation Post-Graduate: University Of Western Australia
• Startup Of The Year: Assuro
• Innovating Government Award: Marble Bar Virtual Worlds
• Transformative Solutions: Pentanet
• Peter Fillery Undergraduate Tertiary Student Project: Deloitte & Curtin University

Event & Context

Marble Bar wins APICTA Gold — Pakistan

Marble Bar Virtual World (Marble Bar Primary + Nyamal Elders + Airborne IT): INCITE → iAwards Digital Govt → APICTA Gold in Pakistan.

2023 Winners — 32nd INCITE Awards

• Achiever Of The Year: Dr David Cook
• Dr Mal Bryce WA Tech Company: Global Drone Solutions
• Pearcey Western Australia Entrepreneur: Pia Turcinov AM
• Digital Inclusion - Connected State Award: Airborne IT
• Social Impact Award: Ascend Health Group
• Research & Innovation Industry: Xsights Digital
• Research & Innovation Post-Graduate: University Of Western Australia
• Startup Of The Year: Conifr Technologies
• Innovating Government Award: Edith Cowan University
• Transformative Solutions: Edith Cowan University
• Peter Fillery Undergraduate Tertiary Student Project: Curtin University

Event & Context

INCITE reboots in earnest and paves a path to the 35th milestone year

VetChip wins iAwards National Chief Judge Award. Containers for Change WA competes at APICTA in Brunei.

Honorary Awards

• Assoc. Professor Dr Parwinder Kaur — Achiever of the Year (Sponsored by WAITTA)
• Radlink Communications — Dr Mal Bryce WA Tech Company of the Year (Sponsored by WAITTA)
• Switched on Seniors — Connected State Digital Inclusion Award (Sponsored by the Office of Digital Government WA)
• Peter Van Der Made — Pearcey WA Entrepreneur of the Year (Sponsored by the Pearcey Foundation)

Innovating Government
Sponsored by the Office of Digital Government Western Australia

• Edith Cowan University — ParaVerse — WINNER
• Horizon Power — Demand & Energy Forecasting Tool — MERIT

Transformative Solutions
Sponsored by Kinetic IT

• NGIS Australia — TraceMark Sustainable Sourcing — WINNER
• Innovative Energy Solutions (IES) — ASCR — MERIT
• SpaceDraft — SpaceDraft — MERIT

Peter Fillery Undergraduate Tertiary Student Project of the Year
Sponsored by the Australian Computer Society

• Edith Cowan University — Vulnerable Machines — WINNER

Research & Innovation (Post-Graduate)
Sponsored by NRI Australia & New Zealand

• Edith Cowan University — Water Twins — WINNER

Research & Innovation (Industry)
Sponsored by NRI Australia & New Zealand

• VetChip — VetChip — WINNER
• Clear Carbon — End-to-end emission monitoring, management and reporting platform — MERIT
• Pawsey Supercomputing Centre — Quantum Computing Innovation Hub — MERIT

City of Perth Social Impact
Sponsored by City of Perth

• Curtin University — Healthy Connections — WINNER
• Containers for Change — Collect — MERIT
• Earflo — Earflo — MERIT

Startup of the Year
Presented by Startup WA

• Earflo — Earflo — WINNER
• Clear Carbon — Clear Carbon — MERIT

Event & Context

Norwood Systems wins APICTA Gold

Women in Technology WA past co-chairs Tina Ambrose and Kay Hargreaves named joint winners of Achiever of the Year. 6 WA wins & merits at national iAwards. Three WA projects on the world stage. Norwood Systems wins Gold for Industrial Technology at APICTA.

Honorary Awards

• 2025 Achievers of the Year — Tina Ambrose & Kay Hargreaves

Dr Mal Bryce WA Tech Company of the Year

• WINNER: Norwood Systems

2025 Digital Inclusion Award

• WINNER: Ember Connect

2025 Pearcey WA Entrepreneur of the Year

• WINNER: Chris Morrissey

Innovating Government
Sponsored by the Office of Digital Government Western Australia

• WINNER: Asset Engine
• MERIT: Child & Adolescent Health Service — MERLIN

City of Perth Social Impact
Sponsored by City of Perth

• WINNER: Kawu Palya — Your Health, Your Story (Healthy Connections, Curtin University)
• MERIT: Ember Connect

Sustainability & Environmental Impact
Sponsored by Kinetic IT

• WINNER: Clear Carbon
• MERIT: Professor Ahmed Abu-Siada, Curtin University - ViON — MERIT

Startup of the Year
Presented by Startup WA

• Li-ion Energy — WINNER
• Clear Carbon — MERIT

Research & Innovation (Industry)
Sponsored by NRI Australia & New Zealand

• Norwood Systems — OpenSpan™ Call Protect — WINNER
• Clear Carbon — End-to-end emission monitoring, management and reporting platform — MERIT
• Pawsey Supercomputing Centre — QBit Bridge — MERIT

Research & Innovation (Post-Graduate)
Sponsored by M&T Resources

• WINNER: Ying Li (Curtin University) — AI-automated phonetic transcription for clinical application
• MERIT: Dr Michella Hill (Edith Cowan University) — NEONATE-in-VR

Emerging Leader
Sponsored by the Australian Computer Society

• Cody Dalliston (Curtin University) — ROBORIGGER Remote Release Hook — WINNER
• Jade Woods & Lucy Boulos (Curtin University) — AnatoView — MERIT

Event & Context

35th milestone — record nominations

120+ nominations — a new record for the 35-year-old program. Celebrating Western Australian excellence in technology innovation. Two new awards presented for the first time: The Chief Judge Award and the Lead Judges' Choice Award.

Major Award Winners

Adding to the milestone program's festivities, two new awards were presented for the first time at the 35th INCITE Awards: The Chief Judge Award and the Lead Judges' Choice Award.

• 2026 Achiever of the Year — Professor Iain Murray AM
• Dr Mal Bryce WA Tech Company of the Year — CorePlan
• WA Pearcey Entrepreneur of the Year — Professor Girish Dwivedi
• Chief Judge Award — Rio Tinto
• Lead Judges' Choice Award — Pattricia Ruth Das

Honorary awards

Recognising significant and sustained contributions to the Western Australian technology ecosystem.

• WA Achiever of the Year (honorary award) — Professor Iain Murray AM
• WA Tech Entrepreneur of the Year (honorary award) — Professor Girish Dwivedi
• Dr Mal Bryce WA Tech Company of the Year (honorary award) — CorePlan

iAwards Pathways

Western Australian winners and merits which gain entry into the national iAwards.

Chief Judge Award

• WINNER: Integrated System Modelling by Rio Tinto

Lead Judges Choice Award

• WINNER: AI Safety Guard by Pattricia Ruth Das of Southern Cross College

Digital Government Solution of the Year
Presented by: WA Department of Energy and Economic Diversification's New Industries and Innovation Fund

• WINNER: LipReader by Jason Hall, Fiona Stanley Hospital and South Metro Health Services
• MERIT: AI for Rare Disease Care by Medical AI Pty Ltd

Industrial Technology Solution of the Year
Presented by: WA Department of Energy and Economic Diversification's New Industries and Innovation Fund

• WINNER: Heat-Trap Solutions
• MERIT #1: Automated Drill Rig GPS Drift Detection Tool by Curtin Institute for Data Science and BHP Western Australia Iron Ore
• MERIT #2: Dirad by Innovate Medtech

Artificial Intelligence Solution of the Year
Presented by: Insight Enterprises

• WINNER: Agili8

Technology & Business Solution of the Year
Presented by: City of Perth

• WINNER: Hola Health
• MERIT: CorePlan

Student Tech Solution of the Year
Presented by: Australian Computer Society (ACS)

• WINNER: Argus Sentinel • Om Prashanth • Japtoz Singh Puri • Osayed Abdullah Khan • Elena Jane Odtojan • Chonlada Srimungkhu • Virginia Frilly • Analda Changir. All from Curtin University
• MERIT: AngelPhish • Annabelle Lewkowski of Curtin University • William Temby and Jadenipit Tamjarion of Murdoch University

Diversity & Digital Inclusion Solution of the Year
Presented by: Perth Biodesign

• WINNER: LipReader by Jason Hall, Fiona Stanley Hospital and South Metro Health Services
• MERIT: SmartWheel by Shanelle Tennekoon of Curtin University

People and Planet Solution of the Year
Presented by: Curtin University

• WINNER: MateriaPOD by Materia Health
• MERIT: WA Vegetation Extent (WAVE) Pilot by Carolyn Martin and Helena Mills from the Department of Water and Environmental Regulation

Research and Development Solution of the Year
Presented by: the Centre for Entrepreneurial Research and Innovation (CERI)

• WINNER: Hypatia
• MERIT: SmartWheel by Shanelle Tennekoon of Curtin University

Start-Up Solution of the Year
Presented by: Startup WA

• WINNER: PlanAI by ThorAI Group
• MERIT: MateriaPOD by Materia Health