G'day and welcome to Overnight Success, the hitchhiker's guide to the Australian start-up ecosystem. A warm welcome to the 67 new subscribers that have joined since the last edition! You've just joined 968 other legends learning about Aussie start-ups.

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Headlines:

• 🦄 Cheryl Mack's angel investing startup received funding from Euphemia. (AFR)

  • Started in 2021, Aussie Angels is a platform that enables angel investors to coordinate their funding efforts without expensive overheads and is the equivalent of AngelList Venture in the US.

  • Euphemia is the family office of startup ecosystem veteran Dom Pym, working alongside General Manager Judy Anderson-Firth.

  • Learn more about the raise in Start-up Retro below!

• 🏟️ TEG (which owns Ticketek) has taken a majority stake in FAN+. (AFR)

  • The Sydney-based startup was founded in 2018 and offers people access to "the most extraordinary exclusive sporting, athletic and entertainment experiences" - like a video message from your favourite sports star, or a private music class with a famous performer.

• 🌧️ Clouds have gathered over Andrew 'Twiggy' Forrest and Mike Cannon Brooks' dream to send solar power from the NT to Singapore. (Startup Daily)

  • The Sun Cable Project, which closed a $210M Series B last year, has fallen into Voluntary Administration following an apparent disagreement between the billionaire backers.

  • Despite this hurdle, founder and CEO David Griffin believes the project is still well-placed to reach completion.

• 🤖 Smoke signals of a ChatGPT reality-check…

  • Teachers & tutors will soon hail a startup that can tell if ChatGPT wrote a piece of work (AFR). For some background on the issue ChatGPT poses for educators, check out this article from The Guardian.

  • Smart Company warns users of copyright issues for those using ChatGPT to build brand assets.

• ✨ Microsoft bets large on OpenAI (NYT)

  • The tech giant has potentially invested $10B following previous investments of around $3B.

Very important self-indulgent poll 👇

1. Start-up Retro: Australia's start-up raises with a smidge of context.

2. Notice Board: Signposting key events and opportunities.

3. Accredited Tweeters: Snippets from Twitter.

4. (KaaS) Knowledge as a Service: Articles to make you smarter. Or to share with co-workers to make them think you’re smart.

⚡️Start-up Retro⚡️

Advanced Manufacturing & Body Scanning

📏 Grapple grabs onto $35M in debt funding to fuel its growth

The fintech company Grapple has secured $35M in a debt facility from financier Global Credit Investments (GCI). The debt capital, which doesn't involve selling any equity in the company, will allow Grapple to continue scaling and maintain its current growth trajectory. Founded in 2018, Grapple is a non-bank business funding provider that offers financing and B2B payment solutions to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Grapple works two ways for its users to ease cash flow problems. On the one hand, Grapple will get you paid faster in one up-front payment while popping your client on a four-instalment plan. On the other hand, Grapple Pay works for you by paying your supplier in one hit early while easing your business across four instalments. The company claims to have processed over 100,000 invoices worth $75M for over 1,500 Australian SMEs. The start-up said the funding would accommodate "surging demand and take-up" of its solutions. Grapple's founder and CEO, Stephen Dawson, says the company has experienced a "breakout year" as businesses seek alternative financing solutions from non–bank lenders.

Due Diligence: Fintech Futures

Pet Health

🏦 Vedi secures $3M in funding to build the My Health Record for pets

Vedi, a Perth-based veterinary-tech startup, has raised $3M from two international investors, MSD Animal Health, a subsidiary of Merck & Co and New York-based pet-focused venture capital firm Companion Fund. The cash will expand the company's medical record technology for pets in Australia and the UK. Vedi's technology is a universal medical record platform accessible via smartphone, with intelligent data collection tools, allowing vets to access pet health records via the animal's microchip. The technology is seen as revolutionary for the vet industry as practitioners can now easily share information and updates. Collecting better-quality data over the animal's lifetime will ensure better care. The platform is currently being used by industry leaders such as Vetpath, Central Animal Records, Vetwest and Petstock, supporting 78,600 animal patients, including more than 54,000 dogs, 12,000 cats and nearly 3,000 horses. Vedi currently sells into veterinarian clinics but includes a health app for pet owners that gives them visibility on their furballs' health.

Due Diligence: Startup Daily

HealthTech

🎮 TALi Digital completes $4.1M capital raise on market

TALi Digital Limited (ASX: TD1), a digital health company that delivers diagnostic and therapeutic solutions for better cognitive function via its digital platform, has raised $4.1M on market. TALi's product improves attention in early childhood (ages 3-8) and is split into two main functions, TALi Detect & TALi Train. TALi Detect is a gamified cognitive attention assessment tool operating on iOS and Android tablets. Following this assessment, the patented technology, TALi Train offers young children training sessions to improve their attention. As part of the deal, TALi has gained distribution with Genius Childcare to pilot the program in childcare centres across Australia. The TALi platform is an alternative to medication and more drastic measures to improve attention in children. TALi's games focus on selective attention, sustained attention and cognitive flexibility; all elements that need to be nurtured in children as they prepare for school.

Due Diligence: ASX Announcement PDF

Early Stage Investing

👼 Aussie Angels raise $1.4M to make syndicate investing easier in Australia

Aussie Angels is a platform similar to Angel List that helps syndicates organise and execute startup investments. The platform was founded by Thomas Worden, Sacha Schmitz and Cheryl Mack in 2021 and is already used by a slew of Aussie syndicates. The cash will be used to develop a better platform, reducing costs even further. Before Aussie Angels, raising a syndicate had admin fees that could amount to over $100,000, which would turn off many investors. Dom Pym's new family office led the new cash, Euphemia, with AirTree, Rampersand, Black Nova and Archangel all tipping in the capital. It's the who's who of Aussie start-ups, which is no surprise considering the 26 syndicates operating Aussie Angels already. The raise is a big step in the right direction of getting more investors active in Australia. Removing more friction from investing in early stages in Australia will bring in more participants, which may have a substantial impact at the early stages of a start-up's journey.

Due Diligence: AFR

Adventure Tech

📻 Loose Cannon Systems (Milo) closes a $12M Series A to build hands-free communications

Loose Cannon Systems, the company behind the Milo hands-free walkie-talkie replacement for outdoor adventurers, has raised a $12M Series A. Milo was inspired by a family ski trip where staying in contact with family can be challenging. Often, phones are out of service, and walkie-talkies could be more user-friendly. The team of engineers spent more than three years working on the tech behind Milo before the company took the idea to market in October 2020, raising $2.5 million with 5,700 people ordering 17,000 of the devices via a Kickstarter campaign. Milo is built for adventure with its waterproof case and a range of over 600 meters. The device connects to up to 6 other Milos. The investment was led by US VC De Novo Ventures, supported by the HCF health fund-backed local VC XT Ventures, which is focused solely on tech startups in the sport, fitness, health and wellness sectors. Loose Cannon's previous investors include Foxconn, which manufactures the iPhone.

Due Diligence: Startup Daily & AFR

FinTech

🎂 Cake Equity secures Seed extension

Cake Equity, a Gold Coast-based startup that enables businesses to better manage their cap table, ESOP, and capital raises, has extended its seed round. Cake was founded in 2018 to eliminate spreadsheets and PDFs with digital solutions to simplify equity-raising. Cake aims to double its team to over 30 staff in the next three years and is taking advantage of the maturing local ecosystem. Cake will also look to grow internationally with help from the Queensland Government Enterprise Acceleration Fund. The start-up is already used by 100,000 investors and employees across 79 countries. The platform is handy for early-stage startups with small teams under five who can use the platform for free.

Due Diligence: QLD Gov Statement

If you're a founder or investor who has just closed a round, please reach out!

Notice Board

• Melbourne Startup Bootcamp launches next week (18th & 19th Jan)! Register here to attend online for FREE.

  • In-person tickets are no longer available due to popular demand, but the good news is you can still take part remotely (in your pjs if you like)!

  • Hosted by Bay City Labs, Stripe, AWS Startups, Cake Equity and Startup Victoria

  • Will bring together leaders from Australia'sAustralia's top technology, investment and high-growth business ventures for in-depth conversations covering raising capital, growing and scaling your start-up.

  • Best suited to: Early-stage and Series A start-up founders.

• _SOUTHSTART has announced their lineup of top-notch speakers.

  • Check out the lineup and schedule, and get tickets here.

  • Best suited to: Anyone passionate about Aussie start-ups.

• Looking for a fresh start in 2023? 

  • My startup gig has 2,403 jobs currently open across 570 companies. Check them out here.

Have something to put on the Notice Board?

We're always looking for upcoming events & opportunities across the Aussie startup ecosystem - reach out to [email protected] to add yours!

Accredited Tweeters

(KaaS) Knowledge as a Service

• How to know when to say ''Yes'' by Julia Spicer OAM (QLD's new Chief Entrepreneur) via LinkedIn.

  • A simple list of questions to ask yourself when you're saying yes to work.

• Tim Duggan shares the handy google drive folder sharing predictions and trends for 2023 in his new newsletter, OUTLET.

• AI and the Big 5 by Ben Thompson from Stratechery.

  • A long form article on how the big 5 tech companies (Apple Amazon, META, Google, & Microsoft) all currently use AI and where they may leverage it's capability in the future.

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Cya next time,

👋 Will & Gem