Applications for the seventh round of the Victorian Medical Research Acceleration Fund (VMRAF) are now open. It offers both grants of up to $100,000 to support early-stage research projects with a practical application, as well as later-stage grants of up to $500,000 to help researchers bring their products and practices into clinical or health care… Read more »
Two Australian climate tech startups are among seven ideas as part of the third cohort for US-based Studio X’s global energy and climate tech innovation accelerator. Economical Energy and Onvol will be part of the 16-week program, which is backed by energy giant Shell. The seven ideas chosen span energy, climate tech, green energy solutions, emissions management,… Read more »
Renewable energy deployment platform Orkestra has raised a second Seed round in less than 12 months, this time banking $2 million, with local VC Tidal Ventures once again leading the round. Orkestra previously raised $1.1 million in November last year in a round led by Tidal. While the VC called it a Seed round in… Read more »
Digital security and fraud prevention startup Darwinium has raised for the second time in 12 months, banking US$18 million (A$28m) in a Series A. The round was led by US Venture Partners (USVP), with last year’s Seed investors, Blackbird, Airtree and Accomplice topping up their stakes. The US-based customer protection platform was founded by Bondi… Read more »
A new cross-party group of politicians is getting behind the local tech sector to understand the issues it faces has launched in Canberra. The Parliamentary Friendship Group on Tech and Innovation is being co-chaired by Labor member for Bennelong Jerome Laxale, the Liberal member for Casey, Aaron Violi MP and Wentworth independent Allegra Spender, and has… Read more »
Victoria’s electric vehicle road use tax is dead, killed off by a legal challenge to the High Court of Australia. A majority 4-3 decision by the full bench of the High Court ruled the law was unconstitutional in a decision that could hit state-based consumption taxes more broadly. The High Court ruled that Victoria’s EV… Read more »
HR platform Employment Hero has landed 2023’s biggest local raise, bagging $263 million in a Series F led by US fund Technology Crossover Ventures (TCV). It’s the second nine-figure raise this week with Canberra startup Skykraft announcing a $120 million round for its satellite-based air traffic management system. Employment Hero’s backing from TVC remains subject… Read more »
From a local entrepreneur using ‘maggot robots’ to address food waste to one of the world’s leading generative AI experts, AgriFutures evokeAG. 2024 has unveiled a compelling lineup of local and international agrifood tech thinkers and innovators speaking at the two-day event in Perth this February. Will AI change how and what we eat? Does… Read more »
Australia’s eSafety Commissioner, Julie Grant, has found X (formerly Twitter) guilty of serious non-compliance to a transparency notice on child sex abuse material. The commissioner has issued X with an infringement notice for A$610,500. The commissioner first issued transparency notices to Google, X (then Twitter), Twitch, TikTok and Discord in February under the Online Safety… Read more »
While the federal government trundles along with the roll out of a national digital ID framework, Australian Payments Plus (AP+), the consortium fintech backed by BPAY, eftpos and NPP Australia, has developed its own solution to tackle verification, fraud and identity theft, ConnectID. ConnectID lets people verify their identity to third parties without having to repeatedly… Read more »
Silicon Quantum Computing founder Professor Michelle Simmons has won the Prime Minister’s Prize for Science for her pioneering work in the cutting edge sector. The awards were announced by prime minister Anthony Albanese, with scientists working in biotechnology and teaching also recognised. It’s a lucrative win for Simmons, who receives $250,000 as part of the… Read more »
Cryptocurrency exchanges will need to need to hold an Australian financial services licence (AFSL) under plans to regulate the sector from the federal government. A proposal paper on regulating the sector has been released by Treasury for feedback by December 1. The government wants to use existing financial services laws with threshold triggers, including an… Read more »
A Canberra-based air traffic management startup has banked $120 million for plans to run the system from space. The round in Skycraft was led by Australian arm of UK-listed fund manager Foresight, supported by CSIRO VC fund Main Sequence Ventures and Canadian pension fund OPTrust in a raise that took two years to complete. A… Read more »
Sydney recruitment marketing startp The Martec has raised $8 million in a round let by multi-family investment office AS1 as it looks to ramp up its offshore presence. The platform uses artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance its personalised talent marketing to a level that’s normally customer-focused. Since launching in January this year, The Martec has… Read more »
Welcome to Ignition Lane’s Tech Wrap, where they cut through the noise to bring you their favourite insights from the technology and startup world. Ignition Lane works with ambitious business leaders to apply the Startup Mindset to their technology, product and commercialisation problems. This wrap goes out free to subscribers. Here’s their review of all the big… Read more »
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