VAPAR unblocks wastewater pipelines from Sydney to the US

Sydney-based VAPAR is helping utilities across Australia, New Zealand, the UK and the US to monitor and manage critical pipeline infrastructure.

VAPAR’S story began in 2009 when CEO and co-founder Amanda Siqueira was an engineering intern. She was spending 8 hours a day watching footage of the inside of sewer pipes. Not surprisingly, she started exploring ways for technology to make inspections more efficient.

In 2018, Siqueira and co-founder Michelle Aguilar launched VAPAR.

‘We were among the first to commercialise the use case for deep learning frameworks,’ says Siqueira. ‘Until then the technology was largely limited to university PhDs. VAPAR’s tool now helps maintain over 2 million metres of wastewater infrastructure annually for clients around the world.’

Growing demand to address a vast underground problem

Utilities are tasked with maintaining a growing and complex network of urban stormwater and sewer networks.

Sydney alone has over 30,000 kilometres of underground sewers. Adding to the challenge are ageing infrastructure, growing urban populations, increasingly unpredictable weather and overstretched budgets. Strict regulatory requirements in many countries mean utilities face heavy fines if pipelines fail.

Inspections are time-consuming. ‘For every metre of underground sewer and stormwater pipe being checked, people are sitting manually coding inspection footage,’ says Siqueira. ‘Many of our customers also lack trained staff who can do this assessment.’

AI makes experts many times more efficient

VAPAR’s expert-in-the-loop model uses artificial intelligence to review CCTV footage. Customers upload their footage to VAPAR’s cloud platform, where the technology flags any issues for experts to validate.

‘Instead of looking at one inspection video per hour, engineers can do 10,’ explains Siqueira. ‘They can focus on handling exceptions and determining priorities.’

The tool generates both inspection reports and cost estimates. This lets utilities move from reactive to proactive management. They can get ahead of potential pipeline failures and plan and prioritise repairs. They are also able to better assess infrastructure capacity against planned developments.

Meeting growing international demand

VAPAR works with local councils and utilities across Australia. International demand soon took VAPAR overseas. The company first entered the UK in 2019 and today most of its business comes out of the UK.

International exposure meant a larger customer base. It also brought VAPAR’s technology to the attention of investors. In December 2023, VAPAR secured A$5 million from investors including NASDAQ-listed Autodesk, and Dutch water technology specialist PureTerra Ventures.

That funding enabled VAPAR to enter the US, hiring its first US-based employee in early 2025. In just over 12 months, the US has grown to make up around 11% of VAPAR’s annual revenue. Its technology has supported city maintenance programs in New York, Illinois and Massachusetts. 

VAPAR’s technology helps maintain more than 2 million metres of wastewater infrastructure annually for clients around the world.

Overcoming US market challenges

The US was an exciting new market for VAPAR, but market fragmentation also made it more challenging. Compared with the UK market, which is highly consolidated with only 11 utility operators, in the US there are around 20,000 potential customers for VAPAR’s technology.

‘While customers in the US are willing to adopt foreign technology, the procurement process tends to be longer,’ says Siqueira. ‘There are many more people we need to speak with.’

VAPAR needed a different marketing strategy for the US. As a new market entrant, the company also needed to connect with local partners to leverage their existing customer relationships.

Landing Pads program provides solid foundation for expansion

VAPAR participated in Austrade’s Landing Pads program in San Francisco in 2022, very early in the planning to move to the US.

‘That program helped us reshape our go-to-market approach for the US,’ says Siqueira. ‘It seems wild to me now how much we had to learn.’

Mentoring and introductions from Sunil Joshi, Austrade’s Trade Director – Landing Pad, and access to the alumni network were especially important. Sessions with the Entrepreneur in Residence also proved invaluable when it came to preparing pitches and pitch decks for capital raising.

‘We learned a lot from just being able to talk to people who had done it before,’ says Siqueira.

Austrade continues to support VAPAR with invitations to webinars on capital raising and closing pipeline opportunities; introductions to service providers; and more.

‘The intel we gained from the Landing Pads program was so helpful for our entry to the US. It gave us the opportunity to plan and design the process upfront, which made the execution much easier and faster,’ says Siqueira.

Building a pipeline of customers in the US

VAPAR’s focus is on building its key customer base in the US, now that it has established it can sell its product there.

Taking the lessons from the Landing Pad program, the company is focused on establishing a base of critical customers and building a referral network. With the first 6 US customers signed, VAPAR aims to get to 10 foundation customers by the end of the 2025–26 financial year.

After that, VAPAR is planning to serve Latin American and Asian markets through partnerships and distributors.

Judging by VAPAR’s trajectory to date, signs are good for a solid pipeline of referrals.

Austrade’s Landing Pads program

The Landing Pads program helps tech scaleups to expand in new markets. It includes coaching, in-market connections, introductions to partners and advice on raising capital. The 5 Landing Pads (Ho Chi Minh City, Jakarta, London, San Francisco and Singapore) offer programs throughout the year. Learn more about the Landing Pads program.