Mick Liubinskas
Climate Tech

Clean Energy Finance’s Tim Buckley headlines Climate Salad’s annual climate tech investor showcase

- November 22, 2024 2 MIN READ

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 »

Politics

The government’s teenage social media ban has $50m fines but still lacks key details

- November 21, 2024 4 MIN READ

The federal government has introduced into parliament legislation for its social media ban for people under 16 years. Communications Minister Michelle Rowland said: This is about protecting young people, not punishing or isolating them, and letting parents know we’re in their corner when it comes to supporting their children’s health and wellbeing. Up until now… Read more »

Business

Drone delivery startup Swoop Aero lands in liquidation

- November 21, 2024 3 MIN READ

The dream is over for drone delivery startup Swoop Aero, with creditors voting on Tuesday to place the venture capital-backed business in liquidation. Swoop raised more than $26 million in VC funding, with CSIRO-backed Main Sequence, impact fund Giant Leap, US investor In-Q-Tel, the defence tech investment arm of the CIA, Artesian, Folklore Ventures, Right Click… Read more »

Sydney light rail tram
Data

A French startup is using your phone’s Wi-Fi connection to figure out how many people are using Sydney’s light rail

- November 20, 2024 3 MIN READ

Transport for New South Wales has defended the use of technology to track commuters’ devices, often without their knowledge, after privacy concerns were raised by local media. The system, which uses Wi-Fi signals to collect data from devices such as mobile phones, is being trialled on a small number of Sydney light rail services for… Read more »

Aona AI Co-founders Bastien Cabirou (right) and Salim Sebkhi (left)
Antler Australia

Antler Investor Memo Series: Aona AI gives corporates the power to implement secure, ethical AI

- November 20, 2024 5 MIN READ

Early stage investment company Antler Australia recently backed a new cohort of startups as part of its ongoing program to build great local tech companies. Startup Daily is sharing the details of each venture in the “Antler Investor Memos” series, which is designed to give you a quick, sharp understanding of the startups and people… Read more »

Life hacks

A Sydney biotech startup has developed a RAT self-testing kit for women to tell if you’ve got the clap

- November 20, 2024 2 MIN READ

The clap is back big time. Over the past decade, the levels of the sexually transmitted infection (STI) gonorrhoea have increased by 157%. Chlamydia is also on the rise up 26% and is now the most reported communicable disease in Australia, with over 110,000 cases in 2023. But the infection, which is often appears asymptomatic,… Read more »

Michael Biercuk
Funding

Q-CRTL scores $2.3 million in $60m federal government plan to back quantum in defence

- November 20, 2024 2 MIN READ

Sydney quantum computing software startup Q-CTRL has been awarded $2.75 million contract by the federal government as part of a plan to deliver the defence sector additional capabilities in quantum and counter disinformation technologies. The Advanced Strategic Capabilities Accelerator’s (ASCA) Emerging and Disruptive Technologies (EDT) program has signed 21 contracts as part of an investment… Read more »

Climate Tech

The National Reconstruction Fund’s 1st investment is $40 million for a stake in a 40-year-old mining industry manufacturer

- November 19, 2024 3 MIN READ

Last week the industry and science minister Ed Husic stood in front of Australia’s tech titans at the National Tech Summit, telling them the $15 billion National Reconstruction Fund was about to announce its first investments. Today Husic delivered on the promise, announcing $40 million for a manufacturer in Queensland. The funds went to Toowoomba-based… Read more »

Michelle Perugini at UniSA Enterprise Hubcomp
People

Serial entreprenuer Dr Michelle Perugini heads to University of SA to commercialise research

- November 19, 2024 2 MIN READ

Health and technology entrepreneur Dr Michelle Perugini has joined the University of South Australia as its new Head of Commercialisation. The cancer researcher turned artificial intelligence (AI) expert cofounded two successful AI startups with her husband Dr Don Perguni, who was a research scientist for the Department of Defence, developing AI technology ISD Analytics, founded in 2008,… Read more »

Bunnings.
Data

Unfair suck of the saveloy: regulator says Bunnings breached customer privacy with facial recognition technology

- November 19, 2024 3 MIN READ

The use of facial recognition technology in Bunnings stores across Victoria and NSW over three years was a breach of privacy and consent laws, Australian Privacy Commissioner Carly Kind has ruled. The landmark decision on breaches to the Privacy Act follows a two-year investigation by the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner, which found that… Read more »

Kelly Steckelberg
People

Canva finally gets a new CFO as IPO plans loom, hiring Zoom’s US-based finance boss

- November 19, 2024 3 MIN READ

More than nine months after the sudden departure of Canva’s chief financial officer, after nearly 8 years, the graphic design giant has found his replacement with Zoom’s Texas-based CFO, Kelly Steckelberg, signing on later this month. Steckelberg took Zoom to its public listing on the Nasdaq in 2019. She was previously CEO of online dating… Read more »

Ben Gust and Kristin Vaughan
Climate Tech

Queensland Investment Corporation tips $10 million into climate tech VC Virescent Ventures

- November 19, 2024 2 MIN READ

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 »

Luke Anear and Kelly Vohs
People

SafetyCulture founder Luke Anear steps down as CEO

- November 18, 2024 2 MIN READ

The founder of Sydney workplace tech scaleup SafetyCulture, Luke Anear, will finish up as CEO at the end of the year after leading the business he founded in a Queensland garage for two decades. Anear will shift into the new role of executive chairman from January 1, with former SafetyCulture customer Kelly Vohs, most recently… Read more »