The Co-operative Research Centres (CRCs) program supports collaboration between research and industry.
Name in original language
Co-operative Research Centers Program
Initiative overview
The CRCs program is one of the main Australian providers of competitive grants. It has two streams: - CRCs undertake industry-led, high quality collaborative research for up to 10 years. CRCs must have at least one Australian industry entity and one Australian research organisation as partners. CRCs have no set funding limit.- CRC Projects (CRC-Ps) undertake industry-led collaborative research for up to three years with grants capped at AUD 3 million. CRC-Ps must have at least two Australian industry entities (at least one of which is an SME) and one Australian research organisation as partners. To date, the Government has committed over AUD 4.8 billion to support the establishment of 225 CRCs and 111 CRC-Ps. Participants have committed a further AUD 14.9 billion in cash and in-kind contributions. There are currently 23 active CRCs and 96 active CRC-Ps. CRCs and CRC-Ps provide industry-focused education and training opportunities for Australian students. Since the program was established in 1991, over 4,000 PhD graduates have been supported by the CRC Program. CRC Projects with a focus on AI Announced in the 2018-19 Budget, the Australian Government committed AUD 25 million in additional funding for the Co-operative Research Centres (CRC) Program to support additional CRC Projects with a specific focus on artificial intelligence (AI). CRC-P funding is available for a duration of up to three years and CRC-Ps may request a maximum of AUD 3 million of Commonwealth funding. The minimum grant amount is AUD 100,000. Each CRC-P must include and maintain amongst its project partners at least:- two industry entities including at least one SME; and- one research organisation. All partners must contribute resources to the CRC-P. Funding for the AI priority round has now been committed and the AI projects supported are now underway.The initiative has the following objective(s):The CRCs program is designed to create a more collaborative research culture between Australian business and other end-users of research and the higher education sector. The scheme provides financial support for collaborations between researchers and industry in specific fields selected after annual rounds.
Name of responsible organisation (in English)
Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources (DISER)
