As ROI goes for investing in deep tech, Sydney deep tech innovator Cicada Innovations has delivered in spades over the past 25 years. The organisation celebrated its 25th anniversary this week, estimating that its role in Australia’s economic growth tops $8 billion, including $6.5 billion in capital raised, high-skill jobs creation, and broader innovation innovation… Read more »
Investment NSW director of innovation Liza Noonan is leaving the government to become Cicada Innovations CEO. Noonan replaces Sally-Ann Williams, who stepped down in mid-2025. Noonan will take the helm of the Sydney-based deep tech incubator on November 3. The move ends a 3.5-year stint in various roles inside the NSW government, during which Investment… Read more »
NSW biotech Cauldron Ferm became the first startup to win two years in a row at the Startup Daily Best in Tech Awards, after taking out Best Regional Startup in both 2024 and 2025. The award, supported by Carta, recognises an outstanding startup located outside of the state capitals, which demonstrates strong growth, boldness in… Read more »
This week on Startup 360, we talk to two founders who presented at Cicada x Tech23. Engineer Nick Hazell is back with his second climate tech startup, Algenie, having previously raised $120 million for his plant-based meat startup v2food. Also on the couch is Ana Belgun from CSIRO-developed digital twin pioneer Terria. They were among… Read more »
Artificial kidneys, mission-free mining trucks, low emissions ammonia and GPS-free navigation are just some of the breakthrough innovations that will feature at the Cicada x Tech23 deep tech showcase in Sydney this year. This annual event spotlights Australian science-based startups developing critical technologies in health, energy, infrastructure, and industry A record 150 applications were received… Read more »
Ammonia is the second most-produced chemical on the planet and without it, we wouldn’t be able to feed the world. But making it has been energy intense – until an accidental scientific discovery at the University of Newcastle created the potential for a more environmentally friendly way to produce it. That discovery is a new… Read more »
Deep tech evangelist Sally-Ann Williams is wrapping up her leadership of Cicada Innovations after six years. Williams, previously head of R&D at Google Australia, signed on in mid 2019, and has transformed the veteran Sydney incubator, steering it deftly through the pandemic and expanding operations to Western Sydney and Melbourne. “This has been one of… Read more »
New Zealand’s deep technology incubator and venture firm, Outset Ventures, has secured NZ$41.5m (A$38.4m) close of Fund II. The final commitments from more than 150 investors are more than a third above the initial NZ$30m target. The Auckland-based firm’s alumni include Rocket Lab, LanzaTech and Mint Innovation. Outset’s Future House currently hosts more than 20 deep tech… Read more »
Palm oil is both important to everything from food to cosmetics and detergents, and an environmental disaster, with rainforests being felled for the cash crop. It’s estimated to be in 50% of all Western household and food products, with 75 million tonnes produced annually. It’s also the leading cause of orangutan extinction, with between 1,000… Read more »
An advertising executive. An aerospace engineer. A doctor. Not a punchline – but the profile of Australia’s new generation of innovators. They’re not spinning out of Silicon Valley with SaaS platforms or apps. They’re solving real-world problems: clean flight, robotic surgery, sustainable materials. They’re building deep tech. And they’re doing it in labs, in surgeries,… Read more »
A defence technology startup that helps analyse visual surveillance systems from drones and other optical systems has raised $5 million in new funds from its existing backers. Main Sequence, Salus and Beaten Zone Venture Partners wrote fresh cheques following on from a $4.5 million Seed round in December 2023. Defence expert Simon Olsen cofounded Arkeus… Read more »
An 18-month-old robotics startup that emerged out of the UNSW Founders Defence 10X program in 2023, has raised $2 million in a pre-Seed round led by CSIRO-backed deep tech fund Main Sequence. The raise for Breaker will be used to triple its team over the next six months and further expand its presence in the… Read more »
Australian deep tech inventors have given the world wifi, Google Maps, cochlear implants and the goon bag, but a new report into the state of play for the sector suggests that while there’s no shortage of ideas, that potential is being stifled by limited support from venture capital, industry, and government. Pioneering deep tech incubator… Read more »
Founders by their very nature see things others have yet to realise. Their challenge is to then get others to see that vision, believe in and back it. And then convince their customers to use a solution they didn’t know they need. Seven years ago, Dr Elliot Smith’s Maxwell Plus was just such a startup.… Read more »
Leading investor in university-originated deep tech, IP Group Australia, has announced a new A$125 million contribution from Hostplus to the IP Group Hostplus Innovation Fund. Hostplus has added to its existing A$310m investment to bring its total commitment to $435m, backing companies like green hydrogen pathfinder Hysata, chronic lung disease therapy biotech RAGE and sustainable… Read more »
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