Startup Daily

Some facts about our brilliant 2024 Startup Daily Best in Tech Awards winners! 🦄 Scaleup of The Year winner Deputy became Australia’s first tech unicorn in two years back in March. Hear what Deputy CFO Emma Seymour has to say about their success here – and join Startup Daily, Deputy and more for #UnicornDay in Melbourne on October 24: https://bit.ly/3Y9f3Mi 🟰 We had our first-ever tie! Most Innovative Startup was awarded to food waste recycling startup GOTERRA and Agili8 for their artificial intelligence (AI) and extended reality (XR) healthcare solutions helping Aboriginal, rural, regional and remote communities. See Agili8’s inspiring founder Esther Oh in action here. 👩🏻💻 This year we scaled from 10 to 15 awards to recognise more startup legends making a positive impact across the ecosystem. Half of the award winners were female, and winners came from across the country, from Orange to Perth. Congratulations again to all the winners and nominees, and thank you to our major partner AWS Startups, award sponsors Tank Stream Labs, S2S Summit, ACS (Australian Computer Society) Labs, Firemark Ventures, StartxLabs Australia, Vanta, Airwallex and community partners Antler, Day One FM - for founders & operators and Spark Festival.

When CDs launched, it seemed like the end for vinyl records. But vinyl made a comeback and now it feels like using an old-school camera is set to follow in its footsteps if this week’s episode of Shark Tank Australia is a sign.

As governments worldwide move to restrict teenagers’ access to smartphones and social media, a fierce scientific debate has erupted over whether these digital technologies actually harm young people’s mental health.

When Zeller CEO and cofounder Ben Pfisterer raised $100 million in a Series B that valued the then two-year fintech at $1 billion, he was talking to his US investor from behind a $19 IKEA desk. Supported by AWS Startups

Crowdfunding platform Equitise has been handed to voluntary administrators after cofounder Jonny Wilkinson failed in his own attempts to raise a $500,000 bridging round.

Federal government-backed Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) has awarded software startup Orkestra $2.77 million in co-funding to help fast-track the rollout of commercial electric vehicle chargers. 

Clean tech startup powers up with $2.77 million: https://bit.ly/4hFMEVB

This gap isn’t just a moral oversight; it’s a market failure, writes Katarina Throssell, senior investment associate at Giant Leap.

The federal government is looking to take on big tech companies like Meta, owners of Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp, TikTok and Elon Musk’s X, and possibly YouTube, with a social media ban for children under 16.

Australian computer scientist and debunked Bitcoin ‘inventor’ Craig Wright has been accused of contempt of court after filing a $1.79 billion lawsuit against payments firm Block.