The arc of a tech company’s success is often sprinkled with near death experiences. And according to Airwallex cofounder Jack Zhang, the business, which raised $498 million in a Series G this week, had so many lives in its first 10 years, it should probably be nicknamed “Catwallex”. London-based Zhang took to social media overnight… Read more »
The Commonwealth Bank (CBA) has paid $792,000 in penalties following action by he ACCC over breaches of the Consumer Data Right (CDR). It’s the second time in six months that a major bank has been busted for dragging its feet over CDR, also known as open banking, which launched in Australia 5.5 years ago. NAB… Read more »
The tech industry’s unofficial motto for two decades was “move fast and break things”. It was a philosophy that broke more than just taxi monopolies or hotel chains. It also constructed a digital world filled with risks for our most vulnerable. In the 2024–25 financial year alone, the Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation received… Read more »
Warning: this article contains mention of suicide. Ten months after Australia’s teen social media ban passed parliament, Communications Minister Anika Wells brought together 20 of the country’s top mental health groups to talk about the law at a roundtable. “Today was a useful step for mental health organisations, peaks and government to get together and… Read more »
After months of anticipation and debate, Australia’s social media ban is now in force. Young Australians under 16 must now come to grips with the new reality of being unable to have an account on some social media platforms, including Instagram, TikTok and Facebook. Only time will tell whether this bold, world-first experiment will succeed.… Read more »
Fishburners is addressing the women founder funding gap with a free program to help them succeed. The pioneering startup coworking space has collaborated with more than 30 organisations, from venture funds to corporates, to launch The Ascent Project, a free, on-demand program to support, inspire and inform women, and tackle structural gaps in clarity and… Read more »
In a week when Victoria’s startup community is reeling, it would be easy to believe the story is only about loss. The Victorian Government has confirmed it will wind down LaunchVic as an independent agency and consolidate its functions with Breakthrough Victoria and Invest Victoria, as part of a public sector overhaul. On paper, this… Read more »
With LaunchVic now dissolved into Breakthrough Victoria, it feels like the right moment to revisit the themes I explored in Melbourne’s innovation crisis is about culture – and what comes next and take a more personal look at what went wrong, what could have been built instead and perhaps what can come next. When LaunchVic… Read more »
In celebration of TechStars Sydney’s ‘Demo the Future’ event, Startup Daily is profiling the 12 startups and their founders in the 2025 cohort. Next up: Our Leg Up – helping Australian homeowners turn their equity into income – while also giving buyers a boost onto the property ladder. Our Leg Up Founder: Michael Ragavan One… Read more »
Venture capital firm Blackbird’s annual startup Coachella, Sunrise Australia, will be held on Thursday, April 30, next year. That shaves a day off the annual “love letter to Aussie startups”, with the VC promising “one massive day + one huge night” instead. Announcing the changes to the 2026 event, Blackbird said the revamping the event… Read more »
PsiQuantum, the US startup backed by Blackbird, and the Queensland and federal governments, is already running several months behind schedule on plans to build its Brisbane facility and deliver the world’s first quantum computer. Founded in Palo Alto in 2016 by four expat Australian professors, PsiQuantum was backed by $940 million in joint funding from… Read more »
A Sydney-based alternative proteins startup fermenting “cow-free dairy” alternatives has raised $10 million in a convertible note. The round for All G was supported by LSE-listed clean food investor Agronomics, an existing investor, as well as the VC arm of German tech-driven ingredients manufacturer Doehler and Singapore’s ID Capital. The company is now pondering a Series… Read more »
Melbourne-born fintech Airwallex has seen its valuation increase by 30% in just six months following a second raise for 2025 – US$330 million (A$498m) in a Series G. The round led by a new US VC investor Addition, supported by T. Rowe Price, Activant, Lingotto, TIAA Ventures, and Robinhood Ventures. Local VCs Square Peg –… Read more »
OpenAI insists it is not running ads inside ChatGPT. However, after multiple paying users reported seeing what looked like promotions for Target and Peloton, the company has been forced to clarify what, exactly, is happening. Over the weekend, senior executives from OpenAI responded to screenshots posted on X by ChatGPT subscribers claiming they had seen… Read more »
The federal government has appointed data scientist Dr Ian Oppermann as a commissioner of the Australian Consumer and Competition Commission (ACCC). Dr Oppermann, the keynote speaker at this year’s Startup Daily Best in Tech awards, was previously NSW Government’s inaugural Chief Data Scientist, a startup founder and CSIRO director and entrepreneur-in-residence, and a pioneer of… Read more »
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