Biotech industry expansion in Australia is gathering real momentum, with market size, company numbers, funding, and policy support all pointing to a sector moving from “promising niche” to a major pillar of the national economy.
Between stronger government backing, a deep research base, and an increasingly sophisticated investor landscape, Australia is positioning itself as a global hub for biotech innovation across therapeutics, medtech, digital health, ag‑biotech and more.
How Big Is the Biotech Industry in Australia?
Recent market studies give a clear picture of how fast the Australian biotech industry is expanding.
IMARC Group’s Australia biotechnology market report estimates that the Australia biotechnology market reached about USD 13.4 billion in 2025 and is expected to climb to USD 24.8 billion by 2034, reflecting a 7.02% CAGR during 2026–2034. The report points to factors such as government tax incentives, rising demand for advanced treatments, and strong collaboration between universities and industry as core growth drivers.
IBISWorld’s Biotechnology in Australia industry analysis puts the industry’s market size at about AUD 12.3 billion in 2026, with 930 biotech businesses in 2025, and notes that the number of businesses has grown at roughly 7.8% per year between 2020 and 2025. The same analysis names CSL, Telix and CSIRO among the biggest players, alongside a long tail of small and medium‑sized biotech companies.
A 2025 overview on LinkedIn, “How big is the Biotechnology Industry in Australia?”, cites a market valuation of around USD 12.5 billion in 2024 and highlights diversified growth across medical biotech, agricultural biotech and industrial biotech. It notes, for example, that crop biotech is worth about AUD 1.2 billion and growing at 8.5% per year, while livestock genetics and sustainable inputs are also expanding quickly.
Collectively, these sources show that the biotech industry in Australia is already a multi‑billion‑dollar sector with healthy mid‑single‑digit to high‑single‑digit annual growth, and significant upside as new products reach market.
Government Support and Funding: A Catalyst for Expansion
One of the strongest tailwinds for biotech industry expansion in Australia is targeted government support for research, commercialisation and advanced manufacturing.
IMARC’s biotech report emphasises that Research and Development Tax Incentive (RDTI) programs and other tax benefits reduce the financial risk of biotech R&D and stimulate innovation in medical and agricultural biotechnology. A companion summary, “Australia Biotechnology Market: Innovation, Healthcare and Sustainable Growth”, reinforces that government support and investment incentives are key enablers, alongside rising healthcare demand and a skilled workforce.
On the grant‑funding side, the Albanese Government announced in July 2025 that nearly A$100 million had been awarded to three key organisations—Brandon BioCatalyst, ANDHealth Pty Ltd, and Biointelect Pty Ltd—to accelerate emerging biomedical and medtech innovations. The official media release, “$100 million to support Australian medical innovations”, explains that:
- The funding is delivered under the Medical Research Future Fund’s (MRFF) Medical Research Commercialisation Initiative.
- Over the next 10 years, this initiative will provide A$450 million to support commercial development of Australian medical research.
- More than 130 Australian SMEs across 150+ projects have already benefitted, including companies developing new medicines, medical devices and digital‑health technologies.
Healthcare Asia’s article “Australia allocates $65.5m for biomedical and medtech advancements” gives additional detail, noting that the selected incubators will support small and medium‑sized enterprises to commercialise new or repurposed medicines, digital health technologies and new medical devices.
A pre‑budget submission from Medicines Australia, MTAA and AusBiotech highlights further government commitments, including A$62 million to support clinical trials and A$18.8 million for a National One‑Stop Shop (NOSS) for clinical trials, aimed at streamlining approvals and attracting more global biotech investment into Australia’s clinical‑research ecosystem.
AusBiotech and the Life Sciences Ecosystem
Industry body AusBiotech plays a pivotal role in the biotech industry’s expansion.
In October 2025, AusBiotech released its 2024–25 Annual Report, which BiotechDispatch summarised in “AusBiotech’s annual report highlights a defining year for Australia’s life sciences sector”. The report highlights that:
- Australia’s broader life‑sciences ecosystem comprises more than 2,900 organisations and employs a substantial share of the high‑skilled workforce.
- 2024–25 was described as a “transformational and defining year” for the sector, with a revitalised advocacy agenda and increased engagement with governments and regulators.
- Flagship events like AusBiotech and AusMedtech conferences and the Women in Life Sciences Leadership Summit drew more than 7,000 participants, reflecting growing domestic and international interest.
- The organisation is now focused on “the next phase of growth,” including deeper global collaboration (for example, through the proposed Australia–UK BioBridge).
Earlier, in 2022, AusBiotech launched a 10‑year sector strategy. InnovationAus’ article “AusBiotech unveils 10-year blueprint for the biotech sector” describes this strategy as “possibly the most significant and comprehensive strategic document” for the Australian biotech industry.
- Better access to capital, aiming to increase capital flows to the sector by A$1 billion annually.
- Stronger company growth and commercialisation support, with fewer gaps in technology transfer.
- Building sovereign capabilities in key biotech areas.
- Programs that help SMEs scale and navigate the commercialisation pipeline.
The strategy also notes that SMEs make up around 80% of the biotech industry, and cites ABS data showing higher‑education R&D spending of A$2.79 billion in biomedical and clinical sciences, and more than A$2.2 billion combined in health and biological sciences, underscoring the depth of the research pipeline feeding biotech expansion.
Grant Thornton’s Australian Biotechnology Sector Snapshot adds that the sector’s value had grown by about 43% since 2019 and 60% since 2017, with 2,654 organisations identified as part of the biotech ecosystem, including companies, research institutes and support organisations.
Research Strength and Commercialisation: From Lab to Market
Australia’s biotech industry expansion is built on world‑class research and improving commercialisation pathways.
The federal strategic document “Biotechnology in Australia – Strategic Plan for Health and Medical Research” (health department PDF) provides an overview of the landscape and outlines initiatives to support and grow the country’s “vibrant and thriving biotechnology sector.” It emphasises:
- A strong base in biomedical and clinical sciences, with leading universities and institutes.
- The importance of clinical‑trials infrastructure, regulatory quality and collaborative partnerships for attracting investment.
- The need to strengthen translation and commercialisation, so that discoveries reach patients and markets faster.
The Walter and Eliza Hall Institute (WEHI) article “Driving the next wave of growth in Australian biotechnology” stresses that Australia’s medtech, biotech and pharma sectors together are now the largest value‑adding export industry outside of primary industries, and argues that the next wave of growth will come from:
- Investing in early‑stage discovery and translation.
- Building advanced manufacturing capacity so high‑value products can be made locally.
- Strengthening collaborations between universities, research institutes and industry.
IMARC’s biotech report similarly notes that September 2025 saw significant growth in adoption of biotechnology in healthcare, driven by demand for personalised medicine and regenerative treatments and by increasing collaboration to accelerate product commercialisation.
Biotech Clusters and State‑Level Initiatives
Biotech industry expansion in Australia is also visible at the state level, where clusters and events are reinforcing growth.
A Queensland Government statement, “Queensland secures Australia’s leading biotechnology conferences”, notes that Queensland will host AusBioInvest and the AusBiotech International Conference on the Gold Coast in 2026 and 2027. These events are expected to attract thousands of delegates, showcasing Queensland’s biotech, medtech and life‑sciences capabilities and helping to secure more investment into local companies and infrastructure.
Across Australia, major biotech hubs include:
- Melbourne and Victoria – strong in medical research, immunology, oncology and advanced manufacturing.
- Sydney and New South Wales – a concentration of biotech headquarters, clinical‑trials sites and digital‑health companies.
- Queensland – growing strengths in vaccines, infectious‑disease research and ag‑biotech, backed by state‑government life‑sciences strategies.
- Western Australia and South Australia – emerging clusters around medical devices, resources‑linked biotech and agricultural biotechnology.
Grant Thornton’s sector snapshot highlights that these clusters contribute to a nationally significant innovation system, with over 2,600 life‑sciences organisations identified across the country.
Key Drivers of Biotech Industry Expansion in Australia
Pulling together market reports, policy documents and industry commentary, several key drivers stand out.
From IMARC, Vocal Media and AusBiotech sources:
- Government support and tax incentives – including the RDTI, MRFF funding and clinical‑trials initiatives, lower R&D risk and attract capital.
- Rising healthcare demand – an ageing population, growing chronic‑disease burden and demand for personalised medicine increase the need for biotech solutions.
- Strong research base – high R&D spending in biomedical and biological sciences feeds a constant pipeline of discoveries.
- Collaborative ecosystem – universities, institutes, hospitals and industry partner through incubators, accelerators and consortia.
- Global market access – Australia’s reputation for high‑quality science and clinical trials helps local biotech companies attract overseas partners and investors.
On the capital‑markets side, Investing News’ Biotech Market Forecast: Top Trends for Biotech in 2026 notes that globally, biotech is entering 2026 with a relatively positive outlook, characterised by solid oncology pipelines, reasonable valuations and supportive regulatory environments in several jurisdictions. That global backdrop is favourable for Australian biotech companies seeking to raise capital or list on overseas exchanges.
Opportunities and Challenges Ahead
Looking forward, biotech industry expansion in Australia faces both promising opportunities and real challenges.
Opportunities include:
- Scaling precision medicine, cell and gene therapies, and regenerative medicine built on Australia’s research strengths.
- Growing digital‑health and data‑driven biotech, including AI‑supported diagnostics and personalised treatment plans.
- Building sovereign manufacturing capacity for critical medicines and vaccines, improving health security and export potential.
- Leveraging clinical‑trials reforms (including the NOSS and additional funding) to attract more global studies and partnerships.
Challenges flagged by AusBiotech, Grant Thornton and policy submissions include:
- Access to growth‑stage capital, especially for companies scaling beyond the early stages.
- Navigating complex regulatory and reimbursement pathways, which can slow time‑to‑market.
- Talent competition, both locally and globally, for specialised biotech, regulatory and commercial leadership skills.
- Ensuring long‑term policy stability and infrastructure investment, so companies can plan multi‑year R&D and manufacturing strategies.
AusBiotech’s 10‑year blueprint underlines that sustained growth will require coordinated efforts to boost capital flows, streamline commercialisation support, and deepen academia–industry partnerships.
