Get your responses in to the 2025 Startup Muster survey by August 18

Responses to the annual census of Australia’s startup ecoystem, Startup Muster close on August 18, so you have just two weeks left to have your say.

– from educators to investors, accelerators, incubators, coworking spaces, service providers, government, precincts and professional services supporting startups – delivering a clear and comprehensive picture of the state of play in an annual check-in

Survey founder Murray Hurps, that the for the first time they have survey coordinators on the ground in every Australian state and territory to ensure the feedback is truly representative of what’s happening across the nation.

“Startup Muster has been on a mission to measure and publish the progress, challenges, and opportunities within the Australian startup ecosystem since 2013, in order to demonstrate and accelerate progress,” Hurps said.

“Australia has one of the world’s most geographically dispersed startup ecosystems. According to Startup Muster 2024, the average distance between each Australian startup is 850km, and a maximum of 3,700km. I need your help to make sure our unique startup ecosystem is understood, your opinions heard, and your work appreciated.”

The national report will be available for free in late 2025. The responses will also be shared with relevant parts of Government and for research (if you give permission).

Each year there’s an initial call for questions to help shape the survey and in 2025, Hurps said they’ve combined questions this year from many different startup supporters and government departments to save doubling up.

“These are questions from the ecosystem, for the ecosystem, and we’ve also worked to trim 25 questions from our last survey that didn’t yield actionable data,” he said.

“This survey will take a while – grab a coffee – but you can stop any time and come back to resume later. We’re confident you can complete this in much less time than a typical policy consultation session.”

Northern Territory survey coordinator Emma Nesbitt said good data leads to good decisions.

“In the NT, we’ve often found ourselves underrepresented in national narratives, not because we aren’t innovating, but because our data hasn’t been captured.,” she said.

“Startup Muster gives us the platform to change that. A 20-minute survey might seem like a lot, but missed opportunities from a lack of data cost us more. If we want policy and capital to flow north, we need to be visible in the data”.

WA coordinator Nate Sturcke agrees.

“Startup Muster is a unique opportunity to help inform future policy and funding decisions for Australia’s startup and innovation ecosystem,” he said.

“For Western Australia, it means we can better understand how our ecosystem is evolving, how we compare to other states, and where best to direct effort to ensure a thriving, resilient ecosystem for all innovators, regardless of sector, stage, or postcode.”

Kate Montgomery from the Tropical Innovation Festival is running the Queensland chapter.

“Startup Muster is more than just a survey. It’s a collective voice from all corners of the innovation system across Australia, showing what’s needed to make it easier to start and scale, no matter where you live,” she said.

“Whether you’re in the city or the regions, this data helps influence and guide the resources, support, and policy changes that can actually make a difference”

Supporting the 2025 Startup Muster are: Optus, ARENA, Research Link Australia (ARDC), City of Sydney, ACS Labs, Rippling, Stone & Chalk, Main Sequence, Queensland University of Technology, University of Newcastle, Pledge 1%, National AI Centre, CSIRO, Ashurst, Baxter IP and Gild Group.