Beat Queensland - SHR!MP S01E03

12 October 2025

Alongside the Entrepreneurship World Cup, the deadline for a LaunchVic Grant application arrived. Well, Go Big or Go Extinct was my motto for the World Cup, and the pitch served as the basis for the grant application. Being based in Victoria and working to launch one of the coolest projects this state has seen in this sector (probably ever), which other organisation would be better suited to support SHRMP's vision and ambition than the state's own innovation funder, that even has “Launch” in its name? And surely nothing would convince a Victorian organisation more than a chance to beat Queensland in one of their key industries.

The SHRMPcruiser was born - as an illustration for the power of scale that a vertical, modular aquaculture approach could deliver.

The Entrepreneurship World Cup judging panel was impressed - at least enough for SHRMP to get into the Australian final. LaunchVic was not impressed. Or if they were, there's probably not much "Launching" left in them - "The idea has merit, but the stage is too early" as the inclusion criteria for funding had moved to "having a working prototype and/or sales" or some other later stage cut-off over time.

Maybe we will try beating Queensland another time.

“If anyone from the Victorian Government is listening… With just 6 Cruisers, parked right here in Geelong. we could beat Queensland in one of its core industries!”