I recently returned from Silicon Valley where I had insightful conversations with a diverse range of founders and investors. These discussions shed light on the challenges faced by technology startups in the current funding landscape. With venture capitalists (VCs) taking longer to respond and valuations subdued, it is crucial for founders to approach these obstacles… Read more »
SBE Australia has launched a new advisory model to connect high potential female-founded businesses with the services they need for high growth in a partnership with professional services firm BDO. SBE CEO Nicole Cook said the SBE Advisory Collective was developed in response to reports the organisation commissioned last year, which found that between 2017… Read more »
There’s been a changing of the guard at Australia’s first angel investor network for women-led startups, Scale Investors, with the founding team selling the business to the current management team Scale was created a decade ago by Susan Oliver, Carol Schwartz, Annette Kimmitt and Laura McKenzie. Over that period the angel investors backed 47 women-led… Read more »
It took 10 years from the time I hoped to become a venture capital investor until the time I actually became one. Ten long years of hanging by the hoops, trying to crack in, a VC desperado. It’s a fairly typical story: I studied books and articles, listened to podcasts about the greats, built spreadsheets… Read more »
That there is a huge gender gap in venture capital (VC) funding is hardly news; even ChatGPT knows it. This is despite the progress that women have made in business generally. According to a 2021 report by PitchBook, companies founded solely by women in the US and Europe received just 2.4% of total venture capital funding.… Read more »
Venture capital funding at the start of 2023 may not have been as bad as many thought according to new analysis from Perth-based investment data company Techboard. Releasing its March quarter Funded report this week, Techboard identified $1.01 billion in capital deployed across 111 deals. That figure is 50% higher than the $661 million across… Read more »
Jessy Wu, investment principal at AfterWork Ventures, is an unlikely venture capitalist. She happily admits it was “the furtherest thing from my mind” when she emerged with a ANU with a philosophy degree, also majoring in English literature. Next thing she knew, she was working at NAB Ventures. Within 18 months, Wu became part of… Read more »
Sydney-based startup MilkRun made a big splash with its promise to deliver groceries within ten minutes, raising more than A$85 million from some of the biggest names in Australian venture capital, including Atlassian billionaire Mike Cannon-Brookes. MilkRun’s co-founder and chief executive Dany Milham had already found success with fast-delivering mattress company Koala. Less than a… 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 »
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 »
Aside from questions on funding, there’s one other query that VCs seem to consistently field: How did you get into the venture capital industry? Layoffs from the major technology companies has triggered renewed interest in VC as a career path. With the sector’s strong push towards impact companies, there’s now a very real opportunity to… Read more »
In today’s business landscape, where the rate of disruption is accelerating and the fickle nature of consumer preferences leaves little room for error, the success of a startup hinges on the founders’ ability to weather the storm. Resilience, the capacity to absorb unexpected setbacks and adapt to new challenges, is a crucial quality for entrepreneurs… Read more »
Women-led startups and others tackling climate and sustainability-related issues are emerging trends Australia’s impact startup ecosystem, a new report from VC Giant Leap reveals. A snippet above a quarter (26%) of the impact opportunities reviewed by Giant Leap come from women-led ventures, a touch above the 23% average in the broader ecosystem. Meanwhile, a majority… Read more »
A healthcare startup that simulates real life patient conversations to help doctors and nurses communicate better has raised $1.5 million in Seed funding. The round in SimConverse was led by Folklore Ventures, with support from Artesian. SimConverse was founded by Aiden Roberts and Will Pamment after they met at uni, studying medicine. They has set out… Read more »
Every chance it gets, OneVentures touts its credentials as “Australia’s first female-founded VC firm” with cofounder Dr Michelle Deaker as its public face. She’s one of two female founders, alongside Anne-Marie Birkill and Paul Kelly. Last year the business added Sarah Meibusch to the leadership team as Partner. But the faces the Sydney VC chose… Read more »
From Perth to Paris: How an Aussie startup for teacher training won the Cartier Women’s Initiative
AI-based task automation startup Servicely banks $3 million
NSW startup sector sounds the alarm as the state government turns off funding taps in pre-budget review
Antler Investor Memo Series: Kidly is taking the pressure off parents to make sure their children have fun
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