From Hackathon to Real-World Impact: How Our Students Turned Innovation into Enterprise

It’s not every day that a university hackathon leads to the launch of two real businesses, but that’s exactly what happened—and we loved every second of it. 

Here at Venture UWA, we’re no strangers to hackathons. Typically, an industry partner brings us a challenge, our students dive in, and a few days later, they present some wildly creative, occasionally off-the-wall, but often truly viable solutions. The partner might pick one to implement, and our students will walk away with hands-on experience, and we will all call it a win. 

This time, though, things were different. 

When Brightwater, a leading aged care provider, approached us, they didn’t want just ideas. They wanted to support students in building real businesses, with all intellectual property retained by the teams. Even more exciting, they committed $10,000 in seed funding to each of the top two teams, plus the opportunity for Brightwater to become their very first client. 

Yes, you read that right. 

This was a dream scenario for any budding entrepreneur, especially someone with the creativity, empathy, and resilience to solve real-world problems in aged care. And our students rose to the challenge. 

The Venture UWA two-stage Design Thinking program was developed and facilitated by our Director, Chloe Bull. We began with over 100 student applications. After the first round, 28 students moved forward. From there, 10 students (across three teams) made it through to the final stage. What followed was three months of intense, hands-on work: 

• A full-day immersion experience with Brightwater clients, walking in their shoes to deeply understand their needs and daily lives. 

• Cybersecurity and privacy workshops. 

• Feasibility, viability and desirability analysis sessions. 

• Endless interviews with real users and industry stakeholders. 

• Multiple prototype iterations 

  
  

By the end, the teams had developed working MVPs, registered businesses, and were ready to pitch. 

Last Thursday, the three finalist teams presented their innovations to Brightwater, which gave them the incredibly difficult job of selecting just two winners. While we waited for the decision, the energy in the room was electric.

One student shared, “Venture is such a great community—we’re all in it together.” Another, Sayela, told us how the experience helped her learn things she’ll carry forever—from prototyping to launching a company. 

The Winners of the Brighwater Hackathon 

Michael and Conor, with Affinity Cube

• a Raspberry Pi-powered device enabling zero-touch connections via the television for elderly users.

Stephen and James with Pigeon X

• a smart physical newspaper, delivered straight to seniors’ homes, filled with curated content to reduce loneliness and encourage engagement. 

Each of these ventures walked away with funding, a first customer, and a pathway to potentially transform the lives of older Australians. 

It’s hard to overstate the impact. Not only did this program produce two trading businesses, but it also created a space where students grew as innovators, founders, and compassionate problem solvers. Best of all, they’re on track to help thousands of seniors feel more connected daily. 

This was our first time running a project like this. It won’t be our last.