Climate Salad’s big annual shindig connecting climate tech startups with investors, is on next Wednesday, November 27, in Sydney. Australian Climate Tech Investor Connect kicks off at 1pm at the Paddington Town Hall, and climaxes with the Climate Tech Awards from 4.30pm, recognising the best in local solutions to some of the world’s biggest challenges.… Read more »
A recent change of government in the Sunshine State has not slowed the Queensland Investment Corporation’s (QIC) enthusiasm for backing venture capital firms eager to invest in local startups. QIC joined Westpac and the Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) as a cornerstone investor in Virescent’s new $200 million climate tech fund (Fund II), reportedly tipping… Read more »
5 finalists receive help to grow their nature-positive impact $100,000 Nature Positive Prize to the winner A $20,000 People’s Choice Prize chosen by KPMG staff A new First Nations category Two new themes: regenerative economy and sustainable food systems Applications for the annual KPMG Nature Positive Challenge for 2024 are now open to startups in… Read more »
Brisbane startup Earthodic has raised US$4 million (A$6m) in Seed funding as the climate tech packaging solution looks to make its mark in the US. The round was led by food systems focused California VC FTW Ventures, with support from Circulate Capital, the Queensland Investment Corporation (QIC), UniQuest Fund, Significant Capital Ventures, Branch Venture Group, RedStick… Read more »
As I reflect on the journey we’ve taken with Climate Salad, it’s with a mix of excitement and responsibility that I share a significant update about our next steps. Starting in 2025, Climate Salad will scale back to a more streamlined model — an online community, newsletters, and webinars, largely managed by me, part-time. This… Read more »
Breakthrough Victoria, the $2 billion state government-backed venture fund, has invested $2.5 million into a Melbourne startup recycling food waste as animal feed and fertiliser. Viridian Renewable Technology, founded in 2016, lays claim to being Australia’s first large scale insect protein manufacturing plant. It has a commercial plant in Derrimut, in Melbourne’s western suburbs and will use… Read more »
A Wollongong startup converting disused mining shafts into long-duration energy storage has raised $9 million to turn the idea into reality. Green Gravity was backed by HMC Capital, BlueScopeX, New Zealand’s Pacific Channel and SCAP H, a subsidiary of Japan’s Sumitomo Corporation. BlueScopeX’s hosts Green Gravity’s demonstration plant at BlueScope’s Port Kembla Steelworks facility in… Read more »
Specialist climate tech investor Virescent Ventures is halfway towards its goal of creating a new $200 million fund thanks to backing from Westpac and the government-backed Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC). Virescent Ventures hit the $100 million first close of its second climate technology investment fund (Fund II), following on from the first portfolio, managed… Read more »
Another startup hoping to tackle the problem of methane emissions from livestock has raised $7 million in a Seed round. But rather than seaweed, Number 8 Bio is using synthetic biology to create a cost effective solution to dealing with cow burps. The round was led by CSIRO-backed Main Sequence, with support from Breakthrough Victoria,… Read more »
Nick Hazell, the engineer and serial entrepreneur who turned v2food into a major force in plant-based meat, is back with a new plant-based idea to grow algae as a replacement for fossil fuels and plastics. His latest venture, Algenie, has raised $1.1 million in pre-seed funding from the University of Technology Sydney (UTS), Better Bite Ventures,… Read more »
The Australian Senate passed the new laws last week, setting in place a new climate-related financial disclosure regime that kicks off at the start of 2025 for Australia’s biggest companies, then trickling down to others in the coming years. While the Treasury Laws Amendment (Financial Market Infrastructure and Other Measures) Bill 2024 doesn’t sound like… Read more »
This week’s passing of the Treasury Laws Amendment (Consumer Data Right) Bill 2022 by the Australian Parliament has reignited discussions about its potential to drive positive change. While concerns about complexity, data quality, low consumer uptake, and high implementation costs persist, the government’s commitment to extending and simplifying the CDR by focusing on high-value use… Read more »
A cleantech startup hoping to replacing the amount of diesel fuel in heavy-duty vehicles and machinery by up to 90% has been backed early-stage VC firm Investible. The level of pre-Seed funding for DeCarice from Investible’s Climate Tech Fund was not disclosed. DeCarice was founded in 2023 by engine industry veteran Goran Bozic, and Professor… Read more »
A startup developing cheaper, copper-based solar panels, and backed by Australian tech royalty, has shed jobs and changed its executive leadership as part of a major restructure of the business SunDrive’s investors include Atlassian founder Mike Cannon-Brookes, VCs Blackbird and Main Sequence, the federal government-backed Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) and Clean Energy Finance Corporation,… Read more »
Climate startup Goterra is continuing to kick goals in industry collaborations, with the country’s largest hotel, the 878-room Hyatt Regency Sydney, installing the modular food waste management system onsite. It’s the second version of Goterra’s compact unit, which can also be found at Melbourne Airport, where fly larvae munch through more than two tonnes of… Read more »
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