🇦🇺 This Week in Australian Startups #126, 10th August 2025
$54.4m raised across 4 rounds, Airtree closes a $650m fund, UNSW launches startup investment platform Barker Street Ventures and Atlassian tops US$5 billion in revenue.
Top News
Atlassian tops US$5 billion in revenue and losses continue, but shrink, as Mike Cannon-Brookes declares ‘I’m not going anywhere’ (Startup Daily)
Melbourne investor Boman Group is ramping up China ties for Australian startups ahead of $1 billion VC fund (Startup Daily)
Seek threatened to unplug Employment Hero (The Australian)
Sendle merges with two US parcel and logistics firms to form FAST Group (BNA)
Zip partners with Xero, Stripe to tackle $1.1bn late payment crisis (The Australian)
Australia's largest care software provider MYP Technologies acquired by British group System C (BNA)
Magic Valley partners with Pythag Tech to supercharge cultivated meat production (BNA)
UNSW launches startup investment platform Barker Street Ventures (Capital Brief)
Airtree officially closes $650m fund backed by MetLife, US colleges (Capital Brief)
ASX-listed automotive SaaS group Infomedia straps in for $651 million buyout from TPG (BNA)
NSW government breaks silence on missing MVP Ventures grant round (SmartCompany)
Student Edge Acquired By Workforce-Tech Platform Year13 (Startup News)
Buildkite finally has a new CEO (Startup Daily)
NBN Co has selected Amazon's Project Kuiper over Starlink to replace its Sky Muster service, declaring it a “major leap forward” (The Australian)
Outgoing REA chief to chair VC-backed Carma as IPO momentum builds (AFR)
Sydney Uni accelerator Genesis launches $5,000 founder prize for startup financial models (Startup Daily)
Sydney VC Folklore Ventures in ambitious $350m fund-raising push (AFR)
HSBC launches 'innovation banking' in Australia, hoping to woo startups and VC (Capital Brief)
India's OYO acquires Aussie rental startup MadeComfy in $50m deal (Capital Brief)
Funding Rounds
$54.4m This Week (4th August to 10th August)
Hypersonix Launch Systems, an aerospace engineering start-up specialising in hydrogen-powered jets that travel at speeds breaching Mach 5, has raised an undisclosed amount in a Series A round from High Tor Capital, Saab and RKKVC (AFR)
GymGoer, which wants to make it easier for athletes and everyday travellers to find single-day gym passes while on the go, has raised $400k in a Seed round from Angel Investors (SmartCompany)
Lorikeet, an AI customer support platform for Fintechs, Healthtechs, & other complex businesses, has raised $54m ($35m USD) in a Series A round from QED Investors, Square Peg, Blackbird, Airtree, Skip Capital, Capital 49ers, Operator Partners and Athletic Ventures (Steve Hind | Capital Brief | AFR)
Chirp, an AI-powered sales co-pilot that automates CRM updates, unifies fragmented deal data, and delivers real-time insights to help reps focus on closing deals, has raised an undisclosed amount (Nick Armstrong)
$4.25m Last Week (27 July to 3rd August)
Hall, a Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO) platform for AI search, has raised $2m in a Pre-Seed round from Blackbird (BNA | Capital Brief | SmartCompany)
Myostellar, a biotech that is developing first‑in‑class biologic therapies to treat muscular dystrophies by stimulating skeletal muscle regeneration with minimal fibrosis, has raised $750k in a Pre-Seed round from Breakthrough Victoria, Monash University (Breakthrough Victoria)
FytonBio, a biotech developing advanced antibodies that can find and remove harmful immune cells, has raised $1m in a Pre-Seed round from Monash University, Breakthrough Victoria (Breakthrough Victoria)
Remagine Labs, making a bluetooth-connected, wearable electro-pharmaceutical to enhance patient-centred care and consistent dosing of medications, has raised $500k in a Pre-Seed round from Monash University, Breakthrough Victoria (Breakthrough Victoria)