Alex and Chris Naoumidis
Funding

Hypnotherapy medtech raises $17.8 million Series A

- March 21, 2023 2 MIN READ

A Melbourne medtech building hypnotherapy-based apps so people can self-manage a range of illnesses has raised a US$12 million (A$17.8m) in a Series A. The round for Mindset Health was led by King River Capital, supported by Andrew Forrest’s Tattarange VC health fund Tenmile, Perennial Partners, impact funds Giant Leap and Alberts, Yard Ventures, WordPress founder… Read more »

Pivot founders
Funding

Female-founded edtech startup Pivot banks $1.4 million to support student and teacher wellbeing

- March 20, 2023 2 MIN READ

Melbourne education tech startup Pivot has raised $1.4 million for its schools feedback platform to improve teaching.  The round was led by the Catholic Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle and technology firm DiUS, with support from LaunchVic’s women-led investment program the Alice Anderson Fund. The funding will be used to re-platform the company’s survey-based technology and launch… Read more »

R&D, science, man looking in microscope
Funding

Medtech startups can score up to $5 million from a new incubator fund

- March 20, 2023 2 MIN READ

A new medical technology incubator program developed by the Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF) during the former Coalition government will offer up to $5 million in funding for early-stage medical research projects with commercial potential. The $50 million BioMedtech Incubator program is being backed by the MRFF and the Medical Research Commercialisation Initiative. Responsibility for… Read more »

Kogan.com
ASX

Kogan.com, Dubber, Redbubble among 7 ASX companies dropped from the All Tech Index

- March 20, 2023 2 MIN READ

Online retailer Kogan.com, along with six other ASX-listed companies, have been dropped from the S&P/ASX All Technology Index, as part of a quarterly rebalancing of indices. The change takes effect from today, March 20. Alongside Kogan.com (ASX: KGN), Dubber (ASX: DUB), RedBubble (ASX: RBL), Temple and Webster Group (ASX: TPW), Cettire (ASX: CTT), Frontier Digital… Read more »

Dorothy (Dot) Lee and Jarrod Walsh.
Food and drink

The team behind one of the coolest restaurants in Sydney’s Inner West, Hartsyard, have a new seafood place

- March 17, 2023 2 MIN READ

Former Hartsyard owners Jarrod Walsh and Dorothy “Dot” Lee are diving back into restaurant game after Easter with a new venue at the Old Clare Hotel in Sydney’s Chippendale, across the road from UTS Startups. Longshore, a seafood-focused restaurant and bar, will open in mid-April at the former Automata site at the Old Clare Hotel, seating… Read more »

National AI Centre. Stela Solar
AI/Machine Learning

A new analysis reveals business is clamouring for AI, but struggling to find the people to do it

- March 17, 2023 2 MIN READ

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has gone mainstream, but implementing it is still a major challenge according to a new report by the government-funded National AI Centre (NAIC). The report, Australia’s AI Ecosystem Momentum report, spoke to more than 200 business decision-makers and AI service providers about how they were using the technology to grow their revenues… Read more »

Lisa Byrne
Cyber security

A data security expert says the federal government’s cybersecurity strategy has the wrong end of the stick

- March 16, 2023 2 MIN READ

The Australian government’s ambition to “become the most cyber secure nation by 2030” is destined to fail unless customers demand “security certifications” from businesses, according to a leading data security expert. Lisa Byrne, from data strategy firm Notitia, said customers will be the catalyst for businesses to “wake up” to their responsibility to provide effective… Read more »

Lewi Software, Geraldine Terada-Bellis, Vishnu Avudainayagam
Funding

Skalata backs Queensland Uni grads in software startup transforming chemical engineering

- March 15, 2023 2 MIN READ

A software startup developed by two University of Queensland graduates has raised $200,000 in a Seed round backed by Melbourne VC Skalata Ventures. Lewi Software is tackling an unsexy part of asset management in the chemicals sector – wastewater management, which has suffered from underinvestment on the software from compared to the rest of the… Read more »

Victor Dominello
Politics

Victor Dominello, the driving force behind the NSW government’s Digital ID project, on the lessons from data hacks and the way forward for online privacy

- March 14, 2023 2 MIN READ

Victor Dominello won’t be NSW government minister cutting the ribbon on the fruits of several years of hard work building the Digital ID app. The member for Ryde retires from politics after 15 years when NSW voters go to the polls on March 25. But for the past several years he’s been driving digital innovation… Read more »

NEXL CEO and founder Philipp Thurner
Funding

Gilbert & Tobin’s former innovation boss raises $4 million for his law firm data startup

- March 14, 2023 2 MIN READ

Customer relationship management (CRM) and revenue operations software startup Nexl has raised $4 million in new capital, backed by B2B-focused VC EVP alongside follow-on funds from Vulpes and Saniel Ventures. Nexl was founded 3.5 years ago by Philipp Thurner, who was head of innovation at top tier law firm Gilbert and Tobin. The software platform… Read more »

Silicon Valley Bank
Business

Canva, Xero and Freelancer are among local tech companies with millions in deposits in failed Silicon Valley Bank

- March 13, 2023 3 MIN READ

Privately-owned design platform Canva is among multiple Australian tech companies with funds stuck in Silicon Valley Bank (SVB), which was seized by Californian regulators on Friday after customers tried and failed to withdraw an estimated US$40 billion in funds. After an anxious weekend wondering if they’d see their money again, US officials stepped in earlier… Read more »

Firefighter water bomber airplane
Funding

US Fed steps in to save Silicon Valley Bank deposits – and prevent further withdrawal runs

- March 13, 2023 3 MIN READ

The US Treasury Department has intervened to guarantee deposits following the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) and halt broader bank run jitters. Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen, Federal Reserve Board chair Jerome Powell, and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) chair Martin Gruenberg released a joint statement on Sunday night, US time, amid concerns of… Read more »

Deer, Pamu
Food and drink

That’s nice deer: New Zealand researcher find the latest milk that’s ‘good for you’

- March 10, 2023 2 MIN READ

Move over cows, a clinical trial of older Kiwis drinking deer milk has found it’s good for their health. The New Zealand study, by Massey University and commissioned by the government-owned farming business Pāmu, found drinking the company’s deer milk improved the nutritional status, muscle mass and physical performance of women aged 65 and above.… Read more »