ASX-listed Buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) fintech Openpay has been placed in the hands of receivers after it failed to bank working capital from its key funder. The payments platform has been shut down, effectively sealing the company’s fate. The collapse comes a week after the company’s quarterly results on January 31, which flagged delays in receiving the… Read more »
Nasdaq-listed Australian software giant Atlassian has seen its shares fall more than 10% in after hours trade following the release of its December quarter results, which posted a US$99.2 million loss. The loss compares to a rare profit of $23 million 12 months earlier. Now in its 21st year of operations, Atlassian has yet to… Read more »
US investor and Y Combinator cofounder Paul Graham is one of the many fans of OpenAI’s new chatbot, ChatGPT. The striking thing about the reaction to ChatGPT is not just the number of people who are blown away by it, but who they are. These are not people who get excited by every shiny new… Read more »
Consulting giant Ernst & Young has named seven Australian finalists in its annual EY Entrepreneur Of The Year awards. The included Chris Eigeland and Andrew Barnes, cofounders of the Queensland edtech unicorn Go1. Last year Go1 doubled its valuation to $2.8 billion after raising $140 million. Now in its 22nd year, the awards recognise people… Read more »
Fingerprint for Success (F4S), an artificial intelligence (AI)-based performance coaching startup used by tech companies such as Atlassian, AWS, Hubspot and Canva has raised $6.5 million in a second Seed round. The raise was led by local VC Investible and its syndicate group, Club Investible, supported by US firms Five V Capital, and Salesforce Ventures.… Read more »
Salesforce Ventures becomes new investor Wallabies legend John Eales also backed Q-CTRL A record A$74m was raised in the Series B Sydney quantum software startup Q–CTRL has raised US$27.4 million (A$39m) in an extension of its Series B Several new investors joined Q–CTRL’s cap table, including Salesforce Ventures, the VC arm of the US software… Read more »
Agribusiness expert and serial board member Dr Michele Allan has stepped up as chair of Australia’s leading space research centre, SmartSat Cooperative Research Centre (CRC), following the sudden passing of inaugural chair Dr Peter Woodgate on Christmas eve. Dr Allan, chancellor and board chair of Charles Sturt University, also chairs the Food and Agribusiness Growth… Read more »
NSW motoring mutual the NRMA has helped motorists with flat car batteries for a century and now it’s coming to the rescue of the next generation with roadside assistance for electric vehicles with flat batteries, putting patrol vans on the road with recharging battery packs. It’s baby steps for now, but a start. Just two… Read more »
University of Melbourne’s new startup venture capital fund Tin Alley Venture has raised $100 million from a who’s who of the Victorian business establishment to back alumni founders. The uni chipped in $25 million to kick off the fund, a joint venture with John Wiley’s Tanarra Capital, in June last year. Seven months later, the… Read more »
New Zealand-founded accounting fintech Hnry has raised A$35 million in a Series B as it looks to go global. The round was led by local VC AirTree Ventures, supported by existing New York-based backer Left Lane Capital, Akshay Kothari, cofounder of California software company Notion, and Athletic Ventures, the sports star investment syndicate that includes AFL… Read more »
The Australian venture capital arm of Salesforce is one of the victims of the tech giant’s massive job cuts, with Salesforce Ventures head of Australia Mike Ferrari among those shown the door. The VC’s local portfolio of companies will now be managed from the US. Earlier this month, the 23-year-old California-based software company announced a… Read more »
Wholesale hospitality marketplace FoodByUs has raised $12 million in a Series B. The round was led by South African VC Base Capital, supported by New York’s FJ Labs, and Trawalla Group, plus with follow-on funding from founding investor Macquarie Capital. FoodByUs previously raised $10 million in a Series A in November 2021 and then spent… Read more »
Rapid grocery delivery service Milkrun tried to raise additional cash twice in 2022, despite starting the year with $75 million from Tiger Global in a Series A last January, but couldn’t attract investors amid the financial failure of its rivals. The Australian reports that the Sydney startup touted its Series B pitch deck to potential backers… Read more »
Brisbane workplace learning platform Go1 has acquired five-year-old rival British content curation startup Anders Pink. The deal went through late last year for an undisclosed sum amid as part of Go1’s push into the European market after also acquiring Swiss-French edtech Coorpacademy, which delivers French and German language content. It was a busy year for… Read more »
Tennis Australia’s AO Startups program has announced five of the seven startup involved in its pioneering new accelerator program. The startups were chosen from among 165 applications to the program, which is designed to help early-stage companies pilot cutting-edge technologies at the Australian Open (AO) and tennis more broadly. Tennis Australia Head of Innovation Dr Machar Reid said… Read more »
Atlassian shares plunge after another quarterly loss
We asked ChatGPT to explain 9 epic startup failures, including FTX & Fast, to VC investors – and most of the answers are bullshi… er, bullish
Workplace coaching platform Fingerprint for Success raises $6.5 million
Quantum startup Q-CTRL lands $39 million in Series B top up led by Salesforce Ventures
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