Melbourne fantasy sports startup One Future Football (1FF) has raised $3 million in a pre-Seed round to launch a global soccer league of 12 virtual teams, including one from Sydney’s Bondi. The raise was led by Blackbird Ventures with international footballers Chris Smalling, Patrice Evra and Jesse Lingard, as well as UFC fighter Kamaru Usman… Read more »
Brisbane online prescription startup Midnight Health has raised $15 million in a Series B with ASX-listed insurer nib stumping up the cash for a third time 19 months to own more than three-quarters of the business. nib’s investment comes as regulators crack down on the sector, forcing medtech companies to shift from online applications for… Read more »
Amid an ongoing cost-cutting effort, Twitter has now refused to pay the bills to renew its multi-year contract with Google Cloud, Platformer has reported. We’ve all heard of “the cloud” – but what does it have to do with Twitter? And more to the point, what will the consequences be for Twitter users if Google… Read more »
Green hydrogen startup HydGene Renewables, has raised $6 million to reduce the reliance on fossil fuels to produce the energy source. The round into the Macquarie University synthetic biology spinout was led by the Clean Energy Finance Corporation’s Clean Energy Innovation Fund, which chipped in $2 million, and specialist UK investor Agronomics. HydGene’s technology is… Read more »
A wild idea to create an “internet of energy”, transmitting power from space using light beams has landed $3 million in Seed funding Aquila Earth is a renewable energy startup looking to create the world’s first global, wireless energy network. The round was led by Blackbird Ventures alongside Possible Ventures, Icehouse Ventures and Startmate. Aquila… Read more »
Queensland biotech company Ellume Health, which just two years ago was riding high after winning a $300 million US government Covid contract, has been placed in liquidation after a takeover offer for the failed business fell through. The Australian arm of the global business entered voluntary administration last August. It subsequently emerged that it owed… Read more »
The potential for refugees to help solve the nation’s skills shortages will be explored at the Techfugees round table on the evening of Tuesday, June 20 being held at ACS’ Sydney Hub. As part of World Refugee Day, speakers will be discussing how acknowledging the existing skills of refugees and harnessing the talents of the… Read more »
A vowel-challenged sales training startup for the TikTok generation has raised $4.6 million in a Seed round. The round for Melbourne platform frntlne was led by Matt Berriman’s RealVC with support from Investible, Hoperidge Capital, and Navitas founder Rod Jones. Frntlne creates TikTok-style product education videos for customer-facing staff in retail, hospitality and pharmacy with… Read more »
Battery materials startup Sicona Battery Technologies has raised AU$22 million in a Series A for its plans in Australia and the US. The round was led by India’s Himadri Speciality Chemical Ltd, Australian VC Artesian, and Electrification & Decarbonization AIE LP, a fund managed by Waratah Capital, alongside backers including Riverstone Ventures, Chaos Ventures, Investible Climate… Read more »
Canva is setting up a US$50 million (A$74) innovation fund to back app developers to create new experiences for the design platform. The Canva Developers Innovation Fund was announced at the company’s first developer conference, Canva Extend, in San Francisco today. The 10-years software giant also released the Canva Apps SDK (Software Development Kit) for… Read more »
Sydney broadband network analytics firm Canopus Networks, which helps telecommunications providers deliver low-latency lag-free gaming, has raised an additional US$3 million (AU$4.5M) in its Series A to take the total value of the round to US$10.6 million (A$15.7m). The latest round was led by US VC Konvoy Ventures, a gaming industry focused investor. Managing Partner… Read more »
Apple’s new Vision Pro mixed reality headset has generated a significant amount of buzz. Announcing it at this year’s Worldwide Developers Conference, chief executive Tim Cook said the virtual and augmented reality headset will allow users to “see, hear and interact with digital content just like it’s in your physical space […] seamlessly blending the… Read more »
As Dry July enters its 15th year, co-founder Brett Macdonald tells Startup Daily about the early days, how the movement grew to raise $82 million for more than 80 cancer organisations across Australia – and where it’s going next. It started in a small garage in Sydney’s eastern suburbs in 2007. British expats Brett Macdonald,… Read more »
Sydney-based startups were buzzing earlier this year with the news that global accelerator Techstars would be launching a local program. Techstars TechCentral, powered by the NSW Government, will welcome its first class of companies in July, led by Kirstin Hunter and Lauren Fong. We asked Kirstin and Lauren to talk to each other about Techstars,… Read more »
Buoyed by dramatic changes in the way consumers pay for goods and services, Australia’s payments processing ecosystem will be overhauled based on a new strategic plan that includes the phasing out of cheques and full transition to the New Payments Platform (NPP). The newly launched Strategic Plan for Australia’s Payments System – developed through consultation with regulators,… Read more »
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