From Subiaco Garage to Million-Dollar Export: How Local Tech Founder is Leading Perth's Innovation Boom

When Jasmine Chen started tinkering with automation software in a modest Subiaco garage five years ago, she had no idea her side project would eventually land contracts with mining operations across three continents. Today, her company has grown from a one-person operation to a team of 23 based in a sprawling office in East Perth's emerging tech precinct on Great Eastern Highway.

Chen's journey reflects a broader shift in Perth's entrepreneurial landscape. While the city has long relied on resources and construction, a new generation of founders is building scalable tech solutions that address real operational challenges facing large-scale industries. Her venture, which has attracted venture capital investment and now generates over $4.2 million in annual revenue, exemplifies the potential simmering beneath Perth's surface.

"Perth's not Silicon Valley, and that's actually an advantage," Chen says of her success. Her software platform, which optimises predictive maintenance schedules for industrial equipment, has proven especially valuable as global supply chains become increasingly fragile. Major clients include operations in Western Australia's Pilbara region, along with customers in Chile and Indonesia.

What sets Chen's operation apart is her deliberate choice to stay rooted in Perth. Despite multiple offers to relocate to Melbourne or Sydney—the traditional hubs for Australian tech—she's betting on Western Australia's talent pool and cost structure. The company's average salary sits around $85,000, competitive against eastern seaboard cities, while real estate and operating costs remain significantly lower.

Her success hasn't gone unnoticed by local economic development bodies. Perth's technology sector has grown at roughly 8.5 per cent annually over the past three years, according to the WA Tech Council, with software and professional services now accounting for a measurable share of new business registrations in the metropolitan area.

The ripple effects are evident across Northbridge and Mount Lawley, where new co-working spaces and innovation hubs have sprouted. The recently expanded Stone & Chalk technology campus on William Street now hosts over 200 startup employees, many working on solutions that leverage Perth's proximity to Asia-Pacific markets.

For Chen, the real milestone came recently when one of Perth's major construction firms adopted her platform for an $800 million infrastructure project. It validated not just her product, but her thesis: that world-class innovation doesn't require a coastal postcode.

"Perth's just getting started," she reflects. "We're building something that matters, right here."

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