G’day, and welcome to this week’s edition of Overnight Success! Your weekly download on all the important things that happened in the Aussie startup ecosystem. 🚀

An extra special welcome to the 29 new subscribers who’ve joined us since the last edition! 🎉

👀 Headlines 👀 

🏦 The Federal Budget was announced this week to the thunderous applause of a golf clap. Although there are some investments into specific innovation themes, there was a sense that it was underwhelming, with no direct investment into the ecosystem. For example, the word ‘startups’ appeared once in the entire budget.

• All that being said, the budget still included a few things you should be across. Lets get stuck in! 👇️ 

• The $22.7B Future Made In Australia policy was formally announced, with funding going mainly to the below five industries and their adjacent communities.

  • Renewable hydrogen, critical minerals processing, green metals, low carbon liquid fuels and clean energy manufacturing like solar and battery.

  • Somewhat specific commitments include:

    • $3.2B to ARENA to support the commercialisation of technology critical to net-zero transformation

  • The Future Made In Australia policy also discusses ‘opening a new front door to investors’ to attract global and domestic capital. This feels more like investment into major projects than startups but we’ll see!

• More information was released about the direct investment into the US-based quantum company PsiQuantum. The investment included $200M in loans, no grants, and $27.7M a year over 11 years to “manage the deal”.

• AI saw an investment of $39.9M over five years to support AI technology adoption in a safe and responsible manner.

• The budget papers revealed that R&D tax rebates are expected to increase by nearly $500M next year and $2.6B over five years from 2023-24 to 2027-28. This forecast is due to an increase in both the overall number and value of expected rebate claims.

• Immigration will also see a few changes with less friction for those with Temporary Skill Shortage (TSS) visas, the reduction of the Global Talent Program, and the death of the Business Innovation & Investment program. Check out TechVisa’s summary here.

👋 MYOB is divesting from Slate Super, a fund controlled by Flare HR, with the transfer process expected to conclude imminently.

• This follows MYOB’s 2022 acquisition of Flare. Slate Super, which has faced scrutiny for high fees and underperformance, is exploring a potential merger with a larger fund to better serve its 90,014 members and $502M in assets under management.

⚡️Startup Retro⚡️

World View inflates with a $37M investment to develop stratospheric balloons

Founders: Alan Stern, Jane Poynter & Taber MacCallum

World View, an Arizona-based company specialising in satellite imagery and space tourism, has secured a $37 million investment from Breakthrough Victoria. Founded in 2012, World View operates remote-sensing balloon systems called stromatolites, which can ascend 30 kilometres into the stratosphere. These systems have applications in agriculture, environmental monitoring, and defence.

World View plans to establish its Indo-Pacific headquarters in Melbourne and build an advanced manufacturing facility in Victoria, which is expected to create up to 200 jobs in engineering, mission control, and data sciences.

The company is also venturing into space tourism, advertising trips over the Great Barrier Reef, although it has yet to receive regulatory approval in Australia. World View aims to start commercial passenger flights from the Grand Canyon in 2026, with tickets priced at $75,000! Talk about inflation! 🎈 

World View has faced legal and operational challenges, including a six-year lawsuit over a $15 million investment from Pima County, Arizona, and a high-profile balloon explosion during an unmanned test flight in 2017.

Due Diligence: Breakthrough Victoria Announcement, ABC News

Asseti lands $2.5M Seed round to develop AI property management platform

Founders: Aonghus Stevens

Sydney-based startup Asseti has secured $2.5 million in Seed funding to advance its AI-driven property management platform. The funding round was led by early-stage venture capital firm Tidal Ventures.

Founded in 2019, Asseti utilises high-quality imagery and machine learning to predict and prioritise maintenance needs for property managers. The platform monitors building wear and tear, leaks, and potential hazards, aiming to reduce downtime and extend the lifespan of assets. Asseti's clients include prominent property managers such as Mirvac, Colliers, CBH, Holcim, and Ventia.

For example, Mirvac utilises the software to monitor and maintain the rooftops of its industrial assets, which are spread across Australia. The AI tool can identify and prioritise maintenance issues of large warehouse sheds. These enable Mirvac to fix any symptoms before they become major issues.

While mostly working with real estate managers at the moment, the platform has the potential to track nearly any real-world asset. The new funding will enable Asseti to enhance its AI capabilities, improve asset insights, and expand into the US market.

Due Diligence: Business News Australia, Capital Brief

Cover Genius secures $120M Series E to scale XCover API Insurance for various industries

Founders: Angus McDonald & Chris Bayley

Sydney-born InsurTech, Cover Genius, has secured $120 million (US$80 million) in a Series E funding round. Led by Spark Capital, known for backing Slack and Discord, the round also saw participation from existing investors Dawn Capital, King River Capital, and G Squared.

Founded in 2014 by ex-Yahoo exec Angus McDonald and former Google BDM Chris Bayley, Cover Genius initially focused on travel insurance but has since diversified. Now headquartered in New York, the company serves 30 million customers globally. Its platform, XCover, operates in 60 countries, offering personalised insurance solutions in multiple languages and currencies.

Cover Genius currently operates the insurance behind the scenes for retailers, fintechs and payments, logistics, gig economy workers, banks and live entertainment ticketing. Currently, the platform us utilised by platforms like Uber, Ryanair, and eBay.

The new funding will accelerate growth, enhance digital insurance distribution, implement AI claims handling, and expand insurance offerings. The funding follows 107% year-on-year growth in 2023 with a focus on key markets like travel, retail, ticketing, and logistics.

Due Diligence: Startup Daily, Business News Australia

Metrovate secures $920K to further develop precision plant growth biostimulant

Founders: Nikolai Macnee

New Zealand AgriTech startup Metrovate has raised NZ$1 million (A$920k) to advance its precision plant growth biostimulant. The funding was led by Sprout Agritech, with participation from Finistere Ventures, Fonterra, OurCrowd, and the Te Pokapū Auaha Callaghan Innovation's Deep Tech Incubator program.

Metrovate addresses the challenge of biostimulants, which often enhance unwanted growth in weeds alongside crops. The startup, based at the Newmarket Innovation Precinct at the University of Auckland, uses molecular biology and machine learning to develop biostimulants that specifically target crop growth while being environmentally friendly and biodegradable.

Founder Nikolai Macnee, who grew up practising regenerative farming, aims to provide farmers with tools that improve crop resilience, faster recovery, and better yields without harming the environment.

The new funds, supplemented by an Agricultural and Marketing Research and Development Trust (AGMARDT) grant, will validate the biostimulant's efficacy and support further field trials and R&D.

If Metrovate is successful, there should be a reduction in the need for traditional plant growth regulators, herbicides, and pesticides. This will lead to lower production costs and environmental impact while enhancing crop yields naturally.

Due Diligence: Startup Daily, Verticle Farm Daily

Data Zoo raises $35M Series A to grow identity verification platform after bootstrapping for 13 years

Founders: Tony Fitzgibbon

Sydney-based fintech Data Zoo has secured $35 million in funding from Ellerston Capital's JAADE fund, marking its first external capital after 13 years of bootstrapping. The investment values the company at over $100 million.

Founded in 2011 by Tony Fitzgibbon, Data Zoo specialises in ‘know your customer’ (KYC) identity verification, using patented technology to enhance compliance and fraud prevention while protecting customer privacy. The platform serves major financial institutions, payment providers, and fintech startups, accessing identity data from over 170 countries. Customers include etoro, MiTrade and MoneyGram.

The software has three other key solutions, including a document verification tool that can extract and authenticate documents like passports to detect fake IDs. Moreover, the business identification tool can check various sources to identify key information about sole traders to proprietary companies. Finally, the tools have inbuilt fraud mechanisms that utilise risk scores and cross-referencing to proactively identify and block bad actors.

Tony, who bootstrapped the company to over 80 employees with 10 offices globally, stepped down as CEO in February. He remains chair, with former London Stock Exchange executive Charlie Minutella assuming the CEO role from New York.

Due Diligence: Startup Daily

Neo-Bionica secures $5M to continue developing and commercialising medical devices

Founders: Bionics Institute & University of Melbourne (JV)

Melbourne-based MedTech startup Neo-Bionica has received a $5 million investment from Breakthrough Victoria. Founded in 2021 as a joint venture between the Bionics Institute and the University of Melbourne, Neo-Bionica specialises in developing advanced medical devices through collaborations in engineering, bioelectronics, and neurotechnology.

Operating from St Vincent's Hospital Melbourne, Neo-Bionica utilises two workshops for implantable and wearable tech, offering services in prototype development, clinical trials, and low-volume manufacturing. The investment aims to expand Neo-Bionica's manufacturing capabilities and market presence, potentially creating up to 45 new jobs.

For medical device founders, the Neo-Bionica end-to-end support pathway helps get an idea into development and clinical trials. The team can assist with support from clinical collaborators who can help design a concept that best meets the needs of clients. Following this, the medical device team of designers and engineers step in to help bring the idea to life. This stage includes surgical consultancy if the device is to be implanted. After a prototype is created, in-human studies and clinical trials are conducted with an aid to help navigate the regulatory approval processes.

Due Diligence: Australia Manufacturing

Want to learn more about why we’re reporting these figures? Read about the ‘Funding the Balance’ initiative here.

🔍️ Accelerator Watch 🔎 

The Plus Eight Accelerator cohort was announced. During the six-month program, each startup will receive a seed funding offer, mentoring, and co-working space.

• iyarn provides a platform for individuals and groups to perform regular check-ins, track well-being, and foster meaningful conversations through customisable tools and real-time data insights.

• Multi-Coached provides online therapy and professional development for allied health professionals, focusing on quick occupational therapy assessments for children and young adults.

• Silknote streamlines documentation for healthcare professionals. Its intuitive interface enables efficient note-taking and better patient care.

• Edible Cutlery creates sustainable, edible utensils made from 100% plant-based ingredients, offering a zero-waste alternative to single-use plastic cutlery by providing products that can be eaten or composted​.

• Day Work Book is an app designed for builders, subcontractors, and tradies to create, sign off, and invoice day sheets, streamlining documentation and approval processes.

• Future Materials ~ in stealth?

• Vendaly helps coffee van vendors manage bookings, communicate with event organisers, and access resources like preferred suppliers and marketing support, ensuring a secure and efficient service.

• Edison Collab provides an AI-driven tool for team brainstorming, offering real-time summaries, visualisations, and automatically generated reports to enhance collaboration and streamline idea organisation.

• GigJam is a platform for musicians to find gigs and for event organisers to hire talent, offering secure payments and timely payouts to ensure a reliable and efficient booking process.

• Shiine Media provides dynamic advertising solutions using LED displays on ride-share vehicles.

• Simplafy enhances workplace wellbeing by providing personalised, expert-led content on topics such as stress management, healthy eating, and financial wellness.

• Coursebox is an AI-powered platform that automates course creation, tutoring, and assessment, allowing businesses to convert content into engaging eLearning experiences and scale their training programs efficiently.

🥳️ Wins 🥳

🎮️ Immutable has launched Guild of Guardians on Google Play and the Apple App Store. The game was co-developed with Mineloader.

• The game launched to a list of 1 million pre-registered users and the global launch event, "Age of the Dread," offers rewards up to $1 million in $GOG tokens and exclusive NFTs, all powered by the Immutable platform.

• The game’s whitepaper is available here! What is a web3 project without a whitepaper?

📌 Notice Board 📌 

🎤 Pitch Opps | 🚀 Accelerator |💰 Competition/Grant | 📅 Event | 🎓️ Course

📆 🎥 Victorian tech unicorn Zeller is hosting a screening of its new short film, Welcome to Inglewood. Free to join! 📍 Melbourne 

• The screening will follow a fireside chat with Julian O’Shea to discuss opportunities for regional businesses and startups. Register here. Will from OS will be there!

🎤 📆 Climate Tech & AgTech Pitch Night hosted by The Startup Network 📍 Melbourne

• Applications are open until 20th of May if you want to pitch your startup, or you can grab a ticket ($27.53) if you want to head along on the 28th of May to watch all the action! More info here.

👀 Aussie startup newsletters, accelerators & co-working spaces list, courtesy of Michael Batko (Startmate CEO)

• Batko is crowdsourcing these lists from the ecosystem so it can act as an open-source resource for all! Add to it here.

• Psssst! Once populated, you’ll find these final lists on the Overnight Success website 😉 .

🧠 KaaS (Knowledge as a Service)

Gem’s Pick 💁‍♂️ Turbocharging Trees, Tech Zero podcast (AFR)

• I love it when things that feel like they should be science fiction turn out to actually be a reality. Star Trek and Avatar fans (and actual scientists…) might be familiar with the concept of the mycelial network, where tiny threads from a larger fungal organism, called mycelium, wrap around or bore into tree roots and enable a symbiotic relationship between the fungi and its surrounding trees. The UK-based company featured in this pod episode (Rhizocore) has captured the magic of this natural phenomenon in the form of pellets that can be planted with tree saplings to increase their chances of survival and boost their growth.

Will’s Pick 💁‍♂️ #1 The Future of Spatial Computing by AfterWork

• The future of spatial computing, including wearing AR, VR, and haptic suits, is uncertain. But this essay by the AfterWork team was a fun read that explored some potential market disruptions and opportunities. Towards the end, startups currently operating in this space are listed. This essay is a prime example of a VC researching, exploring and proposing a thesis around a technology ~ it even makes a few large predictions 👀 .

Will’s Pick 💁‍♂️ #2 Fingertip.com ~ a killer Link-in-bio tool that’s free forever if you create a page before May 31st.

• One of my co-worker's brothers is building, and the adoption rate is strong. I love it for a few reasons:

  1. It’s currently free forever.

  2. It has one of the smoothest onboarding experiences I’ve ever experienced.

  3. I got the URL https://fingertip.com/william

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‘Til next time,

👋 Will & Gem