Discovery & Innovation

St Vincent’s Discovery & Innovation ‘Pitch for Health’ Grants

Pitch for Health is a component of the St Vincent’s Discovery & Innovation Program, developed by St Vincent’s Curran Foundation and St Vincent’s Hospital, and funded by generous donors, to enhance clinical research, innovation and entrepreneurship across the St Vincent’s Sydney Health Innovation Precinct (SVSHIP).

Applications are open to researchers who are employees of Cornerstone Partners of St Vincent’s Sydney Health Innovation Precinct:

• St Vincent’s Hospitals in NSW
• St Vincent’s Centre for Applied Medical Research
• Garvan Institute of Medical Research
• Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute

This round, two grants of up to $125,000 each will be awarded for projects with a maximum duration of one year.

These grants aim to help bridge the gap between discovery research and developed technologies by advancing projects to higher Technology Readiness Level (TRL). TRLs are a metric (1-9) used to assess the maturity of a particular “technology” during its development, from concept to deployment. Depending on the type of project being submitted to this scheme, we would expect it to be around a TRL 3 for a therapeutic-focused project, TRL 6 or 7 for a digital-focused. project, and TRL 4 for a diagnostic/device.

The Pitch for Health Review Panel is chaired by an independent external expert and includes representatives from SVSHIP and external specialists, covering expertise in research, medicine, biotechnology innovation, translation, and commercialisation.

Application process

1. Phase 1: Applicants submit an Expression of Interest
2. Phase 2: Selected applicants will be invited to submit a full written application
3. Pitch: Shortlisted applicants from Phase 2 will be invited to pitch their projects at the Challenger Pitch for Health event in March 2026

• Pitch training and industry mentorship will be provided to all shortlisted applicants
• Two grants will be awarded at the pitch event

Important Dates

• • Phase 1 Applications NOW OPEN
  • Phase 1 Applications close 29 September 2025
  • Phase 2 Invited applications open 14 November 2025

• • Phase 2 Applications close 12 December 2025
  • Short-listed applicants notified – to prepare for Pitch event 26 January 2026
  • Pitch workshops February 2026
  • Challenger Pitch for Health event March 2026 (date to be confirmed)
  • Successful grants funded To start April 2026

Applications

• You must read these before submitting your application
• You will need to set up an account to use the application system