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The COVID-19 pandemic has caused sharp economic fallout and is now forcing governments around the world to rapidly introduce new policies to bring back the global economy. Australia is one of the countries coming up with early prevention measures to combat coronavirus. While major western countries are facing a lot of fatalities, Australia is well-positioned in controlling the death rates. The first confirmed COVID-19 case in the country was reported in late January 2020. The rapidly falling infection rate and minimal deaths are largely attributed to the widespread testing, the tracing of carriers, self-isolation of those vulnerable to the virus and strictly enforced social distancing rules.

As the pandemic causes economic consequences, it also paves the opportunity for technological innovation. It has stirred much speculation about the future of technological progress, economics, and culture. According to a survey by the Atlantic Council’s GeoTech Center, the technology areas are promising the most impactful innovation in years to come, including data and AI, medical bioengineering, trust and supply chains, and the future of work.

The Council’s analysis further noted that the COVID-19 will significantly stimulate innovation as world economies adapt to the impact of immense changes in long-established models of work and explore new technologies to solve medical and bioengineering problems. Innovation and technology play a crucial role in finding new ways to defeat the COVID-19 crisis

In a bid to meet and defeat the coronavirus crisis, researchers at the University of Melbourne, working in collaboration with Western Health, have designed a personal ventilation hood for hospital beds to contain the droplet spread of COVID-19 in ICUs. According to the university, the transparent, movable personal ventilation hood sucks air away from the patient while creating an effective droplet containment barrier. Furthermore, a team of Monash researchers has created a 3D-map of a SARS-CoV-2 protein at atomic resolution using the Macromolecular Crystallography beamlines produced by the Australian Synchrotron. The non-structural protein 9 (Nsp9) mapped by the scientists is thought to mediate viral replication and virulence.

In the innovation race to defeat the pandemic, SPEE3D, an Australia-based innovative supplier of metal-based additive manufacturing technology, has developed and tested a fast and affordable way to 3D print its ACTIVAT3D copper coating, which claimed to kill 96 percent of COVID-19 virus within 2 hours.

Economically, Australia had been footslogging along for almost a decade. But as the country imposed lockdowns, it is seeing a pronounced effect on the economy. A Bloomberg report estimates that the Australian economy is heading for a recession, and it is likely to witness the largest economic contraction since the Great Depression ended in 1931. The country’s GDP is expected to contract by as much as 10 percent during the first three quarters of 2020 and it could take up to three years to return to 2019 levels.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Scott Morrison has announced a series of ambitious monetary and fiscal measures to save businesses from becoming bankrupt and to keep unemployment levels in check. In this regard, the government has announced an AUD$ 320 billion (US$ 165 billion)stimulus package.

Moreover, NERA, an Australia’s Industry Growth Centre for the energy resources sector, has also announced to provide US$20,000 to up to ten country-based energy resources businesses that can offer solutions, services, or knowledge to help manage and alleviate the challenges of the COVID-19 outbreak.