Two weeks ago as part of the Parliamentary Inquiry into the live music industry both The Music and CAST gave evidence as part of their submissions. One of the things that stood out across all three days of evidence was the need for new ideas that can support growth within the industry.
So we’re excited to be kicking off a tech and innovation showcase that shines a light on some interesting and innovative products that could help to solve some of the challenges the industry currently faces and shape the future of the industry.
We believe visibility is the first step to create stronger pathways for technology adoption, to inspire new products that can drive industry growth, evolution and drive more investment.
We know it’s not easy to stay across the latest technology which is why we want to bring it to you each month, in a bite size digestible snapshot.
WHAT IS ENTERTAINMENT/FANTECH?
– A product that drives greater fan experiences
– A product that drives greater efficiencies in the industry (venues, stadiums, events, festivals, conferences, infrastructure providers, managers, agents etc)
– A product that supports those at the heart of entertainment (artists, musicians, athletes).
TERMS TO UNDERSTAND
The below categorises the startup industry used to understand the stage of each company. These are tied to investment typically but are more a reflection on how established the product is and if it has achieved ‘product market fit’.
Product Market Fit – It’s when you’ve built a product that people actually want and are willing to pay for. Basically when a product starts to sell itself because the startup has nailed the solution to a problem customers are feeling.
Pre-seed – A pre-seed stage company is a startup typically with an idea or a basic prototype. The goal at this stage is to validate the product by finding early customers who believe in it and are using or will use.
Seed – is an early-stage startup that has a product in market, most likely with customers but has not yet achieved significant revenue or market traction.
AUGUST’S SHOWCASE
GroundZer0
Empowering creatives to earn a living wage by focusing on their craft.
For who: Creators (artists, musicians), brands and consumers.
Stage: Pre-seed
Team: Aman Bayatly, Gemma Colbran
The product: A marketplace to connect creators with financial opportunities.
How can we support: GroundZero are gearing up for launch so if you’re creator (artists, musicians), brand or consume art and culture. Jump on their website and sign up for the waitlist.
Sunflower AI
Instant event subtitles in many languages.
For who: event organisers, festivals, conferences
Stage: Pre-seed (with investment)
Team: Chuhao Lui, Siva Kalyan, Lingzhi Kang
The product: AI-powered live captioning that can be simply used by any non-technical person from laptops. And it is 10 times more affordable than the current solution.
Current Customers: ICC, UTS, CSIRO, Fish Burners, UQ.
How can we support: Sunflower AI are currently looking for event organisers, venues and festivals who would be interested in making their events more accessible.
BARDAR
Amplify your nights out.
For who – Venues, promoters, events
Stage: Pre-seed
Team: Dexter Todd & Oliver Bagin
The product: Bardar is a nightlife app that connects patrons to venues and events in real-time to help them make the most of every night out. We also turn the data from the app into a commercial API for firms interested in nightlife consumer data.
How can we support: BARDAR is currently looking for brands to co-market with by featuring activations/festivals/events in the app. If you’re a venue, promoter or run events, they would love to chat.
About CAST
The Centre for Arts, Sports and Technology fosters and advocates for collaboration between the technology sector and entertainment businesses to drive sustainable growth and success.
We achieve this by bringing together start-ups and entertainment industry businesses to stay across the latest technologies that can enhance fan experiences, and boost operational efficiencies that strengthen the entertainment industry.
Our vision is for a resilient and prosperous entertainment industry, driven by innovation and empowered by technology adoption.
If you’re an entertainment business, a founder building within entertainment, a creative, an athlete or passion about the entertainment industry. Get in touch to stay across our events or join the community.
