South Australia is cementing its position as a leader in defence research with a significant funding boost from the Federal Government.

Four local organisations will share nearly $18 million of the $60 million allocated under the Advanced Strategic Capabilities Accelerator’s (ASCA) Emerging and Disruptive Technologies (EDT) Program.

This round of the initiative is aimed at advancing quantum and counter disinformation technologies to give Australia’s Defence Forces a technological edge while developing sovereign capability.

Of the 179 national proposals, 21 contracts were awarded across Australia’s science and technology sectors, aligning with the National Defence Strategy and the Defence Innovation, Science and Technology Strategy.

Local recipients include electromagnetic warfare specialist, Consunet, acquiring $3.15 million and quantum sensing company, QuantX Labs, securing two contracts totalling $6.41 million.

Professor Andre Luiten, Managing Director and co-founder of QuantX Labs, expressed enthusiasm about the funding.

“QuantX is pleased to have been awarded two contracts under this highly competitive scheme.

One of QuantX’s projects will see the company use leading-edge quantum technology and machine learning to develop sensors to detect subtle disturbances in the Earth’s magnetic field to identify and track potential threats. The groundbreaking technology will deliver a powerful new situational awareness capability for Defence.

“These funds will allow us to push our products even further ahead of the competition and secure sovereign leadership in critical fields that underpin national security,” Mr Luiten said.

South Australia’s universities are also set to benefit. The University of Adelaide has been awarded two contracts totalling $5.08 million and the University of South Australia will receive $3.17 million to advance defence research.

This investment fosters long-term partnerships, reinforcing South Australia’s role in shaping Australia’s future defence capabilities and technological advancements.

ASCA is now seeking innovative proposals that can support decision advantage for its next EDT program with applications closing in early 2025.

See the media release.