Sydney-based materials technology company Xefco is launching a joint venture company to produce revolutionary face masks with the ability to kill the Covid-19 virus within minutes. Xefco developed masks coated in an ultra-thin layer of copper in a collaboration with Deakin University. Studies by the Doherty Institute found that the patent-pending technology has the ability… Read more »
NSW Health has recorded 29 news diagnoses of COVID-19 to 8pm last night, (12 new cases and 17 of which were reported in yesterday’s numbers). The news comes as the Chief Health Officer and the NSW Premier urge Sydneysiders to stay compliant as further exposure sites are recorded across the metropolitan area. Further lockdowns likely… Read more »
Fintech Australia has been forced to postpone The Finnies less than a fortnight before the awards were due to be held on June 9 as Victoria goes into a week-long snap lockdown after 34 active Covid-19 cases emerged in the last three days. With surrounding states also imposing restrictions on anyway who’s been in Victoria… Read more »
As the number of coronavirus in India surpassed 20 million this week, resulting in more than 220,000 deaths, a group of leading Australian tech and investment companies, led by Canva, have stepped in to launch a fundraising campaign to get much-needed medical supplies to the nation. Canva, in collaboration with SafetyCulture, Airtasker, Blackbird Ventures and… Read more »
Victorian Premier Dan Andrews and Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton on Sunday announced steps to slowly ease COVID-19 restrictions in metropolitan Melbourne and regional Victoria. There are four steps before Victoria totally opens up – a goal Andrews refers to as “COVID-normal”. Melburnians will have to wait a bit longer than regional Victorians before an… Read more »
Last night I dreamt I was back in the office for the first time. Our long communal tables in the kitchen were gone. My desk was surrounded on all sides by plexiglass – including overhead, which, for a guy my height, means stooped shoulders and a future riddled with chiropractic appointments. Nobody talked to each… Read more »
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews has announced that metropolitan Melbourne will move to “stage 4” restrictions from 6pm Sunday, as new cases of COVID-19 continue to rise. The state recorded another 671 cases and 7 deaths on Sunday. Andrews has declared a state of disaster from 6pm on Sunday, imposing a nightly curfew on Melbourne… Read more »
The Australian government’s lifeline to small businesses and the unemployed – JobKeeper and JobSeeker payments – will be extended past their original September cut-off date to continue to provide support during the ongoing coronavirus crisis. Prime minister Scott Morrison announced today that the wage subsidy program and unemployment benefit schemes would extend for a further… Read more »
Australia has ruled out abandoning the government’s COVIDSafe contact tracing app in favour of the rival “Gapple” model developed by Google and Apple, which is gaining widespread support around the world. Deputy Chief Medical Officer Nick Coatsworth told The Project the COVIDSafe app was “a great platform”. When it comes down to it, is the… Read more »
COVID-19 will continue to present extraordinary challenges to Australian businesses and startups – even this week as Victoria braces for its second lockdown as it contends with another virus outbreak. When it comes to this pandemic, nobody was entirely prepared, but there are some businesses – with deep pockets, vast expertise and contingency plans –… Read more »
One of the most profound ways the COVID-19 pandemic has affected our lives has been in the way we work. For people lucky enough to keep their jobs, and for those of us in professions where it’s possible, working from home has become the new normal. Australia’s success in “flattening the curve” means restrictions are… Read more »
As many businesses continue to struggle to navigate their way through the pandemic, we spoke with nine Australian startup leaders to understand what they’ve learned from the COVID-19 catastrophe and how they believe businesses can keep their heads above water in future crises. Here’s their advice Ben Thompson CEO and co-founder, Employment Hero Taking… Read more »
People and culture platform Culture Amp has been forced to shed 8% of its workforce as global impact of coronavirus hits the international arms of the business. CEO and co-founder Didier Elzinga announced the redundancies to the team on Thursday, with 36 positions going. While the company continues to grow, it has revised down growth… Read more »
In late March, we posed a hypothetical scenario to a sample of Australians, asking if they would download a contact tracing app released by the federal government; 70% responded in favour. But a more recent survey, following the release of COVIDSafe, revealed only 44% of respondents had downloaded it. The Australian government’s COVIDSafe app aims… Read more »
For this From The Frontline, which looks at how startups are dealing with the coronavirus era, we’ve talked to Kate Cornick, CEO of Victoria’s startup agency, LaunchVic, and four startup founders about their success despite the challenges the face. The quartet are: Matthew Boyd, founder and CEO of Vollie, on online marketplace that connects… Read more »
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