There are a few important details missing from LinkedIn’s list of Australia’s top startups

LinkedIn’s Top Australian Startups list for 2025 just dropped and it’s a brilliant showcase of Australian innovation.

20 companies scaling fast, hiring smart and solving complex problems.

The founders deserve their flowers… building anything in this economy is hard enough, let alone something that grows.

But when you hold up the mirror, the story behind the story is what stands out.

While this list celebrates growth, it also hold up a mirror to a pattern we can’t ignore:

• 90% of these startups were founded by men
• Only 2 have a woman in the founding team
• 85% are venture-backed… the same system where approximately 90% of funding goes to all-male teams

The system is the issue. We know that the problem isn’t the pipeline, it’s the funnel. Women are starting businesses at record rates – they’re just not the ones getting funded, scaled or celebrated. That matters, because our systems reward visibility over viability, capital over care and networks over nuance.

This said, there’s a lot to celebrate here as well and it is important to call it out:

• Many of these companies are solving real problems: healthcare burnout, access to justice, affordable housing and energy transition
• Australia’s migrant story shines through. There’s strong multicultural representation among founders
• There’s life beyond Sydney and Melbourne, with founders emerging from Brisbane and even Darwin (proof that innovation thrives anywhere)
• This list does not include businesses who have gone through significant downsizing (Great to see the team at LinkedIn consider this and build a story of sustainability)

This isn’t about tearing anyone down. I am here to celebrate these startups but I am also here to say let’s expand what “Top” really means.

Headcount and hype are easy to measure – inclusion, sustainability, leadership integrity and culture aren’t. They aren’t something that I expect to see on any list anytime soon, but these are the metrics that will define the companies still standing 10 years from now.

If “Top” only measures how fast you grow, we miss what really matters:

• Who gets funded and who doesn’t
• Who stays and thrives after they’re hired
• Who has the psychological safety to speak up, fail forward and lead differently
• Let’s celebrate these founders, absolutely, I certainly am. But let’s also build an ecosystem where lists like these are the building blocks for continual improvement and systemic change.

I look forward to seeing more diverse founders, funded women, ethical AI builders, regional innovators and purpose-driven operators also getting the flowers and recognition they deserve.

If nothing changes, nothing changes.

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