Australian AI Procurement Partnership
Australian AI Procurement Partnership
Build corporate readiness for your startup in the financial sector
Financial services is one of Australia’s most active sectors for AI adoption.
Banks, insurers and super funds are evaluating where AI can solve high-value problems, improve customer outcomes, lift productivity and build new capability.
But the standard for adoption is high. Companies need more than excellent technology. They need the security, governance, and implementation capability to manage enterprise evaluation, approvals and procurement.
The Australian AI Procurement Partnership is an eight-week program that gives Australian startups a pathway into one of the country’s largest and most sophisticated enterprise markets.
Expressions of Interest are now open.
About the Australian AI Procurement Partnership
Over eight weeks, you’ll sharpen your commercial case and strengthen your enterprise knowledge and capability.
You’ll build skills across three major parts of Australia’s financial services sector:
- Banking: Understand sophisticated enterprise technology and procurement requirements
- Insurance: Explore AI applications across underwriting, claims, customer operations, productivity and other priority areas.
- Superannuation: Explore opportunities to strengthen member services, operations and organisational capability.
The program activities combine industry engagement, specialist expertise, and direct support, with the final format shaped alongside participating partners and the selected cohort.
Why join the Australian AI Procurement Partnership?
The Australian AI Procurement Partnership gives you a structured path to develop your enterprise readiness in financial services:
- Access enterprise insight: Understand the AI priorities, problems and opportunities of financial services organisations.
- Engage with decision-makers: Connect with business and technology stakeholders around enterprise needs.
- Build enterprise capability: Strengthen your approach to the governance, security, risk and the operational expectations of large institutions.
- Strengthen your evidence: Build the technical, security, compliance and implementation evidence to support enterprise evaluation.
- Navigate buying pathways: Understand how enterprise opportunities progress through evaluation, approvals and procurement.
- Progress commercial opportunities: Where there is fit, explore potential next steps towards testing, procurement and adoption.
- Prepare for implementation: Build the capability required to integrate and deliver successfully in complex enterprise environments.
- Build industry visibility: Connect into the National AI Centre, Stone & Chalk and participating industry and technology partners.
- Strengthen future growth: Develop capabilities and evidence that supports enterprise opportunities beyond the program.
The program outcome is a pathway towards approved supplier status with participating organisations. Commercial opportunities beyond this will depend on fit, evaluation, approvals and each organisation's procurement processes.
Key program dates
The accelerator will run across eight weeks, with activities shaped around enterprise engagement, assurance and governance, commercial readiness, procurement navigation and implementation.
- 27 August: Expressions of interest open
- 24 September: Expressions of interest close
- 30 September: Applicants notified of submission outcome
- 5 October: Accelerator begins
- 27 November: Accelerator ends
Final program design and participation requirements will be confirmed with selected companies and program partners.
Who should apply?
The Australian AI Procurement Partnership is for established Australian AI companies with proven technology and the ambition and capacity to work with major financial services organisations.
You are a strong applicant if you:
- Have a proven AI product and commercial traction, with technology that is already being used by customers.
- Address a financial services opportunity, with a relevant use case across banking, insurance or superannuation.
- Are ready to pursue enterprise adoption, while recognising that the program is to strengthen the capabilities and evidence to get there.
- Have the team and capacity to engage, including participating in enterprise evaluation, diligence and potential commercial discussions.
- Are prepared to work across enterprise stakeholders, including business, technology, security, risk, compliance, procurement and legal teams where relevant.
- Have senior leadership committed to the opportunity and able to participate throughout the program.
You do not need to arrive fully enterprise-ready. You do need a strong product, credible commercial opportunity and the capacity to build towards the requirements of a major enterprise customer.
Backed by the right partners
Through the Australian AI Procurement Partnership, you’ll gain access to Stone & Chalk’s enterprise network, national AI leadership and responsible AI expertise.
Stone & Chalk delivers the program, drawing on more than a decade of connecting startups and scaleups with industry, government and commercial opportunities. Founded as a fintech hub alongside Australia's major banks, Stone & Chalk has grown into a national innovation community with hubs in Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide.
The National AI Centre, as Principal Sponsor, connects participating companies with Australia's broader AI ecosystem and supports the growth and adoption of Australian AI capability.
Gradient Institute, Australia's independent responsible AI research organisation, brings deep technical expertise in responsible AI and helps companies strengthen the evidence and practices needed to build trust in their systems.
You’ll also engage with relevant specialists from Stone & Chalk’s network of AI, cloud and technology partners as your opportunities and enterprise requirements develop.
How to apply
Your pathway into the Australian AI Procurement Partnership starts with an expression of interest:
- Submit your EOI: Tell us about your company, your product, your customers and the financial services opportunities you are positioned to address.
- Go through selection: Your application will be considered against participating organisations’ priorities, the strength of your potential commercial opportunity and your capacity to meaningfully participate in the program.
- Join the Bridge: If selected, you’ll work with specialists and financial services organisations to understand enterprise requirements, strengthen your readiness and explore opportunities to progress towards adoption.
Expressions of interest open 27 August and close 24 September.
Frequently asked questions
Am I guaranteed a paid pilot?
No. Participation does not guarantee a pilot, procurement decision or commercial contract.
The program moves companies towards approved supplier status and creates pathways to potential commercial adoption.
Any further opportunity will depend on factors including solution fit, enterprise evaluation, risk and security requirements, internal approvals, budget and procurement processes.
Where there is mutual interest, participating organisations and companies may agree to explore further testing, piloting or commercial engagement.
Is this a pitch competition?
No. The Australian AI Procurement Partnership goes beyond pitching. It helps companies engage with enterprise requirements, strengthen their evidence and capabilities, navigate evaluation and procurement pathways, and build the commercial case for adoption.
We're early stage. Should we apply?
The accelerator for companies with a proven AI product, commercial traction and enough organisational capacity to pursue a genuine enterprise opportunity.
You do not need to be fully enterprise-ready. Part of the program is helping strong companies build the capability and evidence required to progress in complex enterprise environments.
A broader digital program of resources and webinars will also be available to companies beyond the selected cohort, providing additional opportunities to engage with the program.
Which institutions are involved?
The Australian AI Procurement Partnership will involve organisations across banking, insurance and superannuation. Participating organisations will be announced in the coming weeks.
Do I need to be in Sydney, Melbourne or Adelaide?
No. This is a national program for eligible Australian AI companies. Participation requirements, including any in-person activities, will be confirmed with selected companies as the program format is finalised.
Ready to apply? Take your tech into one of Australia's most important enterprise markets
Submit EOI