Innovate with nbn Grants Program 2026: How to Apply

If you run a small business outside a major Australian city and you use the nbn network to help you operate, there is a grants program worth putting on your calendar right now. The Innovate with nbn Grants Program is now in its seventh year, and for 2026 it is offering a total pool of $125,000 to regional and remote businesses that are using technology in genuinely useful ways.

This guide walks you through exactly what the program offers, who can apply, what you will need to prepare, and how to give your application the best possible chance.

What Is the Innovate with nbn Grants Program?

The Innovate with nbn Grants Program is run by nbn co ltd, the company responsible for Australia’s national broadband network, in partnership with the Regional Australia Institute. It is designed to recognise and reward regional and remote businesses that are using the nbn network to solve real problems in their communities, whether that is reaching new customers, improving how they operate, or building something genuinely new for their industry.

Unlike a traditional grant where you apply for funding towards a specific future project, this program works more like an awards competition. You tell the judges a story about how your business already uses technology to create impact, and category winners are rewarded with cash grants to help them keep growing.

The program has now been running for seven years, which means it has a track record of paying out real grants to real regional businesses, not just a one-off marketing exercise. That history is worth knowing, because it tells you the program is well established and the judging process has been refined over time.

How Much Funding Is Available?

The 2026 program has a total funding pool of $125,000, broken down as follows:

Seven category winners will each receive $15,000. There are seven categories in total (listed below), and one winner is selected in each category.

On top of the seven category prizes, a single Champion Award recognises the strongest entry across all categories. The Champion Award adds a further $20,000 on top of that entrant’s category win, meaning the overall Champion could receive $35,000 in total.

There is no requirement to spend the grant money on a specific, pre-approved project plan the way you might with a government grant. Winners are free to use the funds to keep building on whatever they demonstrated in their application, whether that is expanding operations, investing in new equipment, hiring, or scaling up a technology-driven idea.

The Seven Grant Categories

You can only apply in one category, so it pays to think carefully about which one best fits your business before you start your application. The categories for 2026 are:

• AgTech and Environment, for businesses using technology in farming, land management, or environmental projects.
• Arts, Culture and Tourism, for regional creative, cultural, or tourism-focused businesses using digital tools to reach audiences or visitors.
• Education, for businesses or organisations delivering education or training services with a strong technology component.
• First Nations Business, for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander owned businesses using technology in their operations.
• Health and Wellbeing, for businesses improving health or wellbeing outcomes in regional communities through technology.
• Innovation for Productivity, for businesses that have used technology to become more efficient or productive.
• Women in Regional Business, for women-led regional businesses using technology to grow.

If your business could genuinely fit more than one category, choose the one where your story and results are strongest, since you are being judged against other entries in that specific category.

Who Qualifies?

To be eligible for the Innovate with nbn Grants Program, your business needs to meet all of the following:

• You must be connected to the nbn network. This is a core requirement of the program, since it exists to showcase what regional businesses are achieving using that connectivity.
• Your business must be located in regional Australia. The program is specifically aimed at businesses outside Australia’s major metropolitan centres, in line with its goal of supporting regional and remote economic growth.
• You need to hold an Australian Business Number (ABN). This confirms you are operating a genuine, registered business rather than a personal project or hobby.
• You need an Australian bank account that matches the name on your ABN, since this is how any grant funds would be paid.

You can only apply in one of the seven categories listed above.

Why This Program Is Different From a Typical Government Grant

Most grant programs ask you to describe a future project and then judge whether that plan deserves funding. This program flips that approach. It asks you to show what your business has already done, and rewards that track record with cash you can then put towards whatever comes next.

This matters for how you should approach your application. Rather than spending time writing a formal project proposal with budgets and milestones, your energy is better spent making sure the story of what you have already achieved is told clearly and convincingly. If you have already solved a real problem in your business using your nbn connection, whether that is reaching customers you could not reach before, running your operations more efficiently, or building something new for your industry, that existing achievement is exactly what this program is designed to reward.

The involvement of the Regional Australia Institute alongside nbn co also reflects the program’s broader purpose. It is not simply a marketing exercise for nbn co’s own network. It is positioned as a genuine effort to recognise and support the role that connectivity plays in regional economic development, which is why the program has continued for seven consecutive years.

Who Does Not Qualify?

Based on the program’s published eligibility criteria, the following situations would likely rule out an application:

• Businesses located in metropolitan areas rather than genuinely regional or remote locations are not the intended audience for this program, even if they happen to be nbn customers.
• Businesses without an active nbn connection are not eligible, since network connection is a foundational requirement.
• Individuals without a registered ABN, or businesses without a matching Australian bank account, will not meet the basic entry requirements.
• Applications submitted after the closing date and time, or entries submitted in more than one category, are also likely to fall outside the program’s rules.

The program has not published a detailed list of excluded industries or business structures beyond these core requirements, so if you are unsure whether your specific business type qualifies, the safest approach is to prepare your application and confirm your eligibility directly through the official application portal before the closing date.

What Can the Funding Be Used For?

Because this program works as a recognition award rather than a project-specific grant, there is flexibility in how winners use their funds. The program does not require a detailed spending plan submitted upfront. Instead, judges are looking at what your business has already achieved using technology and connectivity, and rewarding that achievement with funding you can then reinvest into your business.

In practice, past winners across the program’s history have used their grants for things like purchasing new equipment or software, expanding into new markets, hiring additional staff, scaling up production, or investing further in the technology systems that helped them win in the first place.

Key Dates

Applications opened on 1 September 2026 at 9:00am AEST, which means the program is open for entries right now.

Applications close on 12 October 2026 at 11:59pm AEDT. This gives eligible businesses several weeks to prepare a strong entry, but it is worth starting early rather than leaving it until the final days.

Winners are expected to be announced on 16 November 2026.

What You Will Need to Prepare

The application is built around storytelling rather than a lengthy written proposal, which makes it more approachable than many government grant applications. Based on the program’s published application process, you should prepare:

• A short video, between 60 and 90 seconds long, that you can film on a smartphone. There is no requirement for professional video production. The video should clearly explain the problem your business faced, the technology solution you used to address it, and the impact that solution has had.
• Supporting information about your business, including your ABN details and confirmation of your nbn connection, ready to enter into the online application form.
• A clear sense of which single category best represents your business and your story, since you can only enter one.
• Any supporting evidence of impact you can point to, such as growth figures, customer feedback, or specific outcomes your technology use has delivered. While the published guidance focuses on the video as the core of your entry, having concrete examples ready will help you tell a more compelling and specific story.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Trying to fit your business into every category instead of picking the one where your story is genuinely strongest. Judges are comparing entries within each category, so a strong, focused entry in the right category will usually beat a generic entry submitted somewhere it does not quite fit.

Over-producing the video. The program explicitly allows smartphone footage, so spending significant time or money on professional production is not necessary and will not automatically improve your chances. What matters is clearly communicating the problem, the solution, and the impact.

Leaving the application until the last few days before the 12 October 2026 deadline. Gathering your business details, checking your ABN and bank account information, and filming a video all take time, and technical issues with a late submission could cost you your entry entirely.

Forgetting to confirm your nbn connection status and regional location before applying. These are foundational eligibility requirements, and it is worth double-checking both before you invest time in preparing your full entry.

How Competitive Is It?

With only seven category winners and a single Champion Award nationally, and the program now well known after seven years of running, competition for each category is likely to be meaningful. That said, because entries are grouped by category rather than judged as one single pool, your business is only being compared against other entries in your chosen category, not the entire national field. A clear, well told story that directly demonstrates real impact from your technology use will stand out more than a polished entry lacking specific detail.

After You Apply: What Happens Next

Once applications close on 12 October 2026, entries are assessed within each of the seven categories. A winner is selected for each category, and one of those seven category winners is then also named the overall Champion, receiving the additional $20,000 on top of their category prize. The program expects to announce all winners on 16 November 2026.

Because the assessment happens by category rather than as one combined pool of applicants, it is worth remembering that your entry is really only being measured against other businesses that chose the same category as you. This is one more reason it pays to choose carefully and make sure your story is placed where it will be judged most favourably.

Related Funding Options for Regional Businesses

If the Innovate with nbn Grants Program is not the right fit for your business, or you want to build a broader funding strategy while your application is being judged, there are other options worth exploring. Grants Assist covers a wide range of regional and small business funding programs, including regional business grants for non-metropolitan Australian businesses, which is a useful starting point if you want to see what else is available outside the major cities.

Businesses whose strength lies in technology and productivity improvements may also want to look at innovation grants for Australian businesses, since these programs often share similar goals of rewarding businesses that use new approaches to solve real problems.

If your business fits the First Nations Business category, it is also worth reviewing Aboriginal business grants for additional funding options specifically designed for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander owned businesses.

Women-led regional businesses considering the Women in Regional Business category may find it useful to also look at small business grants for women, which brings together other funding programs open to women in business across Australia.

And if your business operates in farming, land management, or a related field and you are considering the AgTech and Environment category, funding for the farming sector outlines other programs that may complement an entry into this program.

What to Do Next

Confirm that your business meets the core eligibility requirements: an active nbn connection, a genuinely regional or remote location, a valid ABN, and a matching Australian bank account.

Choose the single category that best reflects your business and where your results speak for themselves.

Start planning your 60 to 90 second video now, focusing on a clear before-and-after story: the problem you faced, how you used technology and your nbn connection to solve it, and the impact that has had on your business.

Submit your application well before the 12 October 2026 deadline to avoid any last-minute issues.

Want to keep exploring your options? Grants Assist’s online portal gives you access to detailed, regularly updated information on grants and assistance programs across Australia. Explore the Grants Assist portal to browse more programs like this one, or call us on 1300-005-999 to speak with one of our advisors.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who can apply for the Innovate with nbn Grants Program?

Businesses located in regional Australia that are connected to the nbn network, hold a valid Australian Business Number, and have an Australian bank account matching that ABN can apply. Applicants choose one of seven categories to enter.

How much funding does the Innovate with nbn Grants Program provide?

The program has a total pool of $125,000 for 2026. Seven category winners each receive $15,000, and one overall Champion Award winner receives an additional $20,000 on top of their category prize, for a possible total of $35,000.

When do applications open and close for the 2026 round?

Applications opened on 1 September 2026 at 9:00am AEST and close on 12 October 2026 at 11:59pm AEDT. Winners are expected to be announced on 16 November 2026.

Can I apply to more than one category?

No. Applicants may only apply in one of the seven categories: AgTech and Environment, Arts Culture and Tourism, Education, First Nations Business, Health and Wellbeing, Innovation for Productivity, or Women in Regional Business.

What do I need to submit with my application?

The core of the application is a short video, between 60 and 90 seconds, that can be filmed on a smartphone, explaining the problem your business faced, the technology solution you used, and the impact it has had. You will also need your ABN and nbn connection details ready to enter into the online application form.