Summary

In this episode of The Startup Retro, the hosts delve into the significant headlines from the past week. The discussion begins with Blackbird Ventures' latest data on their gender-based investment targets and continues with an analysis of EVP's new fund structure aiming for $500 million in assets under management. They also explore a report on government grants to SMEs, revealing that a large portion of funds go to low-performing companies. The public hearings on AI inquiry and the implications for startups developing AI tools are covered as well.

Will and Gemma highlight the most interesting startup raises of the week, including ExoFlare's biosecurity threat management platform, and discuss the importance of accurate and detailed reporting on VC funding with Kirstin Hunter and Preethi Mohan from "Funding the Balance." The episode wraps up with Knowledge as a Service (KaaS) recommendations, featuring articles on VC engagement with media and practical tips for using ASIC lodgements for competitor research.

Time Stamps

00:00 Introduction and Welcome

00:28 Blackbird Ventures Data on Gender Investments

05:02 EVP's New Fund Structure

06:06 Government Grants Report

09:00 AI Inquiry Public Hearings

11:02 EVP's Lifetime Fund

15:37 Weekly Startup Raises

21:55 Interview: Kirstin Hunter and Preethi Mohan

40:25 KaaS Recommendations

Links

To get all the links to the stories we mentioned in this episode, you can read this week’s Overnight Success newsletter

Headlines

• Blackbird Ventures' Gender-Based Investment Targets
• EVP's New Fund Structure
• Government Grants Report
• AI Inquiry Public Hearings
• Funding the Balance Initiative

Startup Raises

ExoFlare

• Company website
• 7:30 Episode - Australia is in the grip of an unprecedented bird flu outbreak (8 min)

HammerTech

• Company website

Interview

• Kirstin Hunter
• Preethi Mohan

KaaS - Knowledge as a Service

Our favourite startup-relevant read, listen or watch of the week

• Gemma’s Pick 💁🏻‍♀️ ‘Declined to comment’: three words destroying millions in VC brand equity, by Jessy Wu for the AFR (Will be interviewing Jessy next week - submit your questions directly to me on LinkedIn or via the form link in the show notes.)
• Will’s Pick 💁🏻‍♂️ Warwick Donaldson: ASIC and Competitors - A Practical Guide for Aussie Founders
• Using ASIC to find investors in competitors… handy tip! 

Send feedback to the hosts

• Gemma on LinkedIn
• Will on LinkedIn

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