🇦🇺 This Week in Australian Startups #145, 18th January 2026

Jan 17, 2026

News

EOS to acquire counter-drone firm MARSS Group for $54m (InnovationAus)
Palisade Impact acquires Sydney’s Arc Energy (AFR)
Sidekicker founder Jacqui Bull shared the platform was sold to SEEK last year and will stay on as COO (LinkedIn)
WA medicinal cannabis manufacturer Cannaponics eyes ASX listing later this year (The West Australian)
Airwallex takes legal action seeking removal of critical AFR and SMH coverage ahead of expected IPO (AFR)

Respiratory imaging group 4DMedical secures $150m backing from institutions as US rollout ramps up (BNA)
Zelira Therapeutics raises $49 million to advance autism treatment HOPE 1 (BNA)
Neuren Pharmaceuticals’ Daybue sales to reach $1b in 2028 (Capital Brief)

LeadStory named a partner in Stagwell’s Future of News initiative alongside BBC, AP, Axel Springer and The New York Times (LinkedIn)

Anthropic is setting up shop in Australia (The Age)
Google accelerates Waymo robotaxi Sydney launch plans (AFR)
Adelaide startup OmnigeniQ showcases physics-based modelling of human protein CDK5 at JPM Week as it pursues a ‘holographic human twin’ (Capital Brief)
Eucalyptus pauses men’s longevity brand Compound and refocuses on GLP-1 weight loss as funding round targets $1 billion-plus valuation (Capital Brief)

SecondQuarter targets Australia’s $12 billion liquidity gap with larger third fund (Capital Brief)

Social media ban hits 4.7m teen accounts in first month (InnovationAus)
Microsoft and ACTU sign non-binding agreement to consult workers on AI development and deployment (The Australian)

Advanced Navigation has appointed long-serving military legal officer Michelle Toscan as its new head of Asia-Pacific sales (InnovationAus)
Culture Amp names Caroline Rawlinson CEO as co-founder Didier Elzinga assumes executive chair (BNA)
Atlassian adds Google product VP Anil Sabharwal to board (Capital Brief)
January Capital’s Alex Rankin returns to Australia to spend more time with local founders (LinkedIn)

Australian start-up exits hit $US3.5b in 2025 as values rise 62% (AFR)
Chai and Capital, founded by Solai Valliappan and Preethi Mohan, has released a report comparing India and Australia’s VC markets and funding trends (LinkedIn)

Sustainable cleaning startup Pleasant State’s tough call to wind down as cost pressures bite (BNA)
Sendle is dead, killed by a US merger partner who misled the Aussie startup’s key investor, Federation (Startup Daily)
Australian AI founders are ditching ‘build from anywhere’ and rushing back to San Francisco (Capital Brief)

estateXchange, a platform that helps lawyers and banks share and verify documents for deceased estate administration to cut repeat paperwork, has raised $12.5m from Macquarie Group, OIF Ventures, Little Group and Angel Investors (SmartCompany | BNA | Capital Brief)
SPEC Toolbox, a ConstructionTech platform that helps structural engineers design and specify mass timber products to cut timber build delays, has raised $3m in a Pre-Series A round from Black Nova and Investible (BNA)
Dam Secure, a cybersecurity platform that enforces plain-English security rules in developers’ IDEs to stop risky AI code, has raised $6.1m in a Seed round from Paladin Capital Group (SmartCompany)
Omniscient Neurotechnology, a MedTech platform that maps brain networks from patient MRI for neurosurgeons to plan surgery and protect function, has raised $20m in a Series D round from The National Reconstruction Fund (BNA | InnovationAus | Capital Brief)
GrazeMate, an AgTech platform that uses drones to muster cattle for graziers to save time, cut labour and reduce mustering stress, has raised $1.2m in a Seed round from Y Combinator, Antler, Meat & Livestock and NextGen Ventures (Forbes)