Sydney startup propeller, which uses drones for mapping and analysis of construction, quarries, mines, and other ground sites has raised US$15.35 million (A$ 22.8m) in a round led by its long-time backers Blackbird and Silicon Valley VC Costanoa Partners. Also joining the cap table are Aware Super, Canva founder Cliff Obrecht, and LaunchVic chair Leigh Jasper’s… Read more »
CommandPost, a crisis management startup designed to improve emergency response times and coordination has raised $200,000 in Seed funding from Melbourne VC Skalata $200,000. Founder Alex Rixon-Booth worked in emergency service response and decided to take things to the next level in the wake of miscommunications during the recent NSW floods and Black Summer bushfires… Read more »
ASX-listed regional airline REX has taken a 20% stake in electric passenger planes startup Dovetail Electric Aviation. The terms of the deal were not disclosed. A REX board member will join the Dovetail board. The investment follows a collaboration partnership struck last year with REX, which provided Dovetail with a Beechcraft King Air as flying… Read more »
Former Startmate boss James Tynan has been named a partner at Square Peg, three years after signing on at the VC. Tynan joined Square Peg in 2020 from the Startmate accelerator program, which also makes pre-seed investments in the startups involved. Since then he’s led investments for Square Peg in companies including culture meat venture… Read more »
A New Zealand deep tech manufacturing startup helping produce cleaner hydrogen with fewer precious metals has raised NZ$2.5 million (A$2.3m) in a Seed round. Bspkl has developed a new, more sustainable way to produce catalyst coated membranes (CCMs) for the hydrogen industry. CCMs typically use platinum and iridium in solid membranes to maximise hydrogen production.… Read more »
Social media “finfluencer” Tyson Robert Scholz, known as “ASX Wolf” on social media, has been threatened with jail time if he attempts to charge for financial and share trading advice following a ban by the Federal Court. In December, Justice Kylie Downes found that Scholz had illegally run a financial service business between March 2020… Read more »
The first mover advantage that turned Block-owned Afterpay enjoyed since its launch nine years ago is about to end, with the world’s most valuable tech company, Apple, set to become Australia’s leading buy-now-play-later (BNPL). The Roy Morgan Digital Payments Report reveals it’s taken just 7 years for Apple Pay to build its local market penetration,… Read more »
Employee benefits platform Circle In has raised $2 million in a round led by Sydney VC Alberts Impact Ventures. The cash is earmarked for global expansion plans and to develop the platform for working families and caregivers. Existing backers Leigh Jasper, Carol Schwartz, Rob Phillpot, Andrew Sypkes, and Employment Hero’s Ben Thompson also supported the… Read more »
The Australian government is backing the quantum sector with $4.6 million in funding to improve education and collaboration. National science organisation CSIRO has scored $3.6 million to fund up to 20 PhDs in quantum technology under the Australian Quantum Graduates Program. A further $1 million goes to the Sydney Quantum Academy through the National Quantum… Read more »
Western Australian startup CO-architecture has raised $330,000 in a pre-Seed round for its community platform for professional designers and creatives. The cash came from Victorian early-stage VC Skalata Ventures, with support from several local angel investors, including architect and former Perth deputy lord mayor Sandy Anghie, and Hassell director Peter Lee. CO-architecture connects independent and… Read more »
The dream is over for rapid delivery startup Milkrun, which shuts down this week after 18 months of operations, having raised $86 million in the last two years. Cofounder Dany Milham emailed staff today after the Easter break to say “we have made the difficult decision to wind down the business, and as a result,… Read more »
Open-source intelligence (OSINT) software startup Fivecast, has raised US$20 million (AU$30m) in a Series A. The Adelaide-based intelligence gathering platform scans publicly available data, including social media sites and the dark web, to identify threats ranging from extremists to terrorists, drug trafficking and organised crime. The round was led by US cybersecurity VC Ten Eleven,… Read more »
Jamie Dimon, chair and CEO of JP Morgan Chase, has been dubbed the king of Wall Street, while also being seen as America’s “least-hated banker”. He’s seen as a level head in banking circles, so his views on the sudden collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) last month, which sent shockwaves through the global tech… Read more »
New NSW Labor premier Chris Minns has deleted his TikTok account as the state follows in the footsteps of federal Labor in banning the Chinese-owned social media app on government-issued devices. Minns said the decision follows advice from the Commonwealth. On Tuesday federal Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus issued a directive to remove the TikTok app from… Read more »
A Melbourne startup that’s hoping to build a mental health app to help people clear their minds has raised $800,000 despite being at least 9 months away from releasing a product. Called Modo, the startup has been backed by Archangel Ventures, Black Sheep Capital, Co Ventures, Giant Leap Fund, the female founder-focused Alice Anderson Fund,… Read more »
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