Australia’s Startup of the Year: Aurabox
Aurabox cofounders Christopher Skene (left) and Chaturica Athukorala (right).
Photographer: Tracey Murray
We interviewed cofounder and CEO of Canberra health tech startup Aurabox, Dr Chaturica Athukorala, about her road to startup success
Canberra health tech startup Aurabox recently took out the overall Startup of the Year award at the Australian Information Industry Association (AIIA) 2022 National iAwards. And a week later, cofounder and CEO Dr Chaturica Athukorala took out the Synergy Innovation Business Woman of the Year award at the 2022 Synergy Canberra Women in Business Awards.
We chatted with radiologist Dr Chaturica Athukorala about founding Aurabox and why Canberra has been integral to its startup success.
Sri Lanka to Canberra
Born in Sri Lanka, Dr Athukorala came to Australia when she was 18 months old; her father moved the family to Melbourne to take up a lecturing position in economics at La Trobe university. 'Sri Lanka wasn't the best place to bring up kids in the mid-eighties,' she noted, alluding to the riots and instability of that period. Her family moved to Canberra in 1995 when her father was offered his dream job as a senior lecturer; he now serves as an Emeritus Professor of Economics at the Crawford School of Public Policy.
Wanting to study medicine, Dr Athukorala moved to Adelaide after high school as Canberra did not (then) have a medical school. But after her internship, she moved back to Canberra and has remained here ever since.
From problem to solution
As a radiologist, Dr Athukorala noticed that storing and sharing medical imagery was problematic. Doctors were unable to view imagine for a patient in a single location if it had been obtained from multiple medical imaging practices. 'If you got a CT scan and imaging at practice A, and then you had some treatment and got a follow-up scan and imaging at practice B, we would have to open up two browsers to compare your imaging and make treatment decisions,' she explained of the process that medical staff followed. 'I faced this problem multiple times a day, as did my colleagues.'
This problem costs doctors – and the healthcare system – time and money, with interns in particular, spending hours finding imagery. It adds up; doctors spend about 30 per cent of their time on admin that could be done more efficiently. 'That's time that could be spent on patient care, which is what doctors are trained to do, said Dr Athukorala. It also adds extra expenses to the Medicare system.
But it was the experience of supporting a friend diagnosed with breast cancer that led her to start Aurabox. Dr Athukorala watched as her friend went to three different imaging practices for three weeks. And when her friend saw her surgeon, they had to access three different systems and put everything together to devise a treatment plan. On the day of surgery, her friend had to take images on a USB stick to ensure her surgeon could reliably access her images.
'She's grappling with the cancer diagnosis. She's a mum with kids, she's worried about her future and she's also having to take care of our healthcare system to take care of her,' recounted Dr Athukorala.
Aurabox enables medical practitioners and patients to access medical imaging from multiple imaging practices in one place. tAnd while the platform is already helping our healthcare system run more efficiently and effectively, it also reduces patient anxiety.
Happy family, healthy life
When we met over lunch, Dr Athukorala was the picture of good health. 'I usually prefer a light lunch such as a salad,' she said before explaining that healthy eating and a daily exercise routine are part of her lifestyle. Aurabox is not her first business; until a few years ago, she was the part owner of a yoga studio in Kingston.
Family and sport are strong themes and take priority even with her successful startup. She coaches her daughter's netball team, and her husband is involved with her son's cricket. 'My daughter loves that I'm involved in her netball,' she explains. 'And it's also an important skill; learning how to direct children and explain concepts to them helps me understand how best to explain Aurabox to adults, including investors.'
It's unsurprising that family – and especially the school network – features heavily in the founding story of Aurabox.
Talking tech at a kid's birthday party
Think you can't use your parenting networks in your startup journey? Think again.
Dr Athukorala met cofounder Christopher Skene at his daughter's birthday party, where they chatted about his role as a technologist working with startups. Their daughters were in the same class, so they continued to bump into each other at school and birthday parties. More startup and tech chats followed. When Dr Athukorala decided it was the time to bring Aurabox into existence, she cornered Skene at a school pickup. 'I knew I needed a partner in crime, and Chris was the first person I thought of,' she said.
After two weeks of considering the proposal, he agreed to help her.
Skene initially agreed to work on Aurabox as a side hustle. But within two months, he switched to work half and half with his (then) employer and Aurabox. Then, within six months, he moved to focus on Aurabox full-time.
Aurabox's first staff member was also a trusted parent from the school community. And as a breast cancer survivor, she is someone who understands and shares their vision. With plans to expand, the company currently consists of four people: two cofounders and two staff members. 'We have the right people who just amplify what we do,' said Dr Athukorala. 'We work as a team, and it's not the cofounders and the others.'
Innovation is one of Canberra’s best kept secrets
'Aurabox would not be here if not for Canberra,' Dr Athukorala announced when accepting the Canberra Women in Business Synergy Innovation Business Woman of the Year award 2022. She credits the strong community spirit with her decision to start and build Aurabox. And it is more than just the innovation space: it's also the community where parents will help pick up their kids after school when she is busy building her startup.
Dr Athukorala described Canberra's innovation ecosystem as one of our city’s best kept secrets. ‘When people think of Canberra, they think of Government and politics, but there is so much fantastic innovation happening here,’ she said.
“When people think of Canberra, they think of Government and politics, but there is so much fantastic innovation happening here”
Aurabox is a Canberra Innovation Network success story. The founders were awarded an Innovation Connect (ICON) grant in their early stages of development, which was crucial to them being able to employ software engineers to build the system. Dr Athukorala has also completed the Canberra Innovation Network’s Idea to Impact course and, more recently, its SME Accelerator Program.
According to Dr Athukorala, the Canberra region still has many untold success stories. 'I'd love to see our innovation in Canberra being showcased because you can't be what you can't see. 'If we can highlight what we've already got, that would be inspirational for people,' she said.
International vision
'I've learnt to be courageous and just dream as big as I want to,' said Dr Athukorala about her vision for Aurabox. In three years, she envisages Aurabox being well-known as a reliable and trusted brand throughout Australia. 'I want people to see the name Aurabox and be, yep, that's awesome – that company helps me,' she said.
The next step is going international, with the company already researching key players and how the medical system uses medical imaging in key markets.
Congratulations to Aurabox on its awards, and for making a difference to our healthcare system.
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