TWISTA - This Week in Startups Australia

Since 2013, Australia's Startup Muster report has been an eagerly-awaited snapshot of the state of the national startup ecosystem. Murray Hurps - who oversees Startup Muster under one of the many hats he wears - joins TWISTA to talk through the insights in the report - which can be downloaded at startupmuster.com. As you can imagine, there's a lot of AI - but which states are doing the best? And how can the ecosystem do better?

And finally - after more then a decade and two hundred plus episodes, I've decided to call time on THIS WEEK IN STARTUPS AUSTRALIA. This will be our last show. Big thanks to all the folks who helped me through the years to keep it going - you all know who you are.

On to other challenges!

In the three years since TWISTA's last investor special we've seen the end of the zero-interest rate environment, a severe inflationary shock - and much more besides. For at least two years raising investment as a startup was harder than it had been in nearly a generation. Is that tumult over? And what have we learned from it? We talk to Aussie Angels founder Cheryl Mack and Jelix Ventures co-founder and CEO Andrea Gardner - and get some great answers.

The biggest change in Australia's tech ecosystem over the last decade has been the rise and rise of 'deep tech' - products and services from the frontiers of research. It's slow, expensive - and world-changing. Burl Aerospace co-founder and CEO Crighton Nichols reckons it's about time for a revolutionary rethink of air transportation - and Burl's transformative designs demonstrate of what's possible in aviation, when you come at it with a clear mind and deep domain knowledge. Getting from prototype to full-scale flying product? Yeah, it's doable - but it's not easy. We're going deep and flying high on THIS WEEK IN STARTUPS AUSTRALIA.

Can a startup serve a community first and still thrive? Brian Lim's PollenOne offers free, searchable database of grants and tenders - first for Australia, and eventually for every country where Australian startups can do business with governments (including the USA, UK, Singapore, and several others). Just getting the data is a big ask - once you have it, how do you monetise it - while respecting your users? Brian Lim walks the tightrope between doing good and doing well on THIS WEEK IN STARTUPS AUSTRALIA.

Can a startup serve a community first and still thrive? Brian Lim's PollenOne offers a free, searchable database of grants and tenders - first for Australia, and eventually for every country where Australian startups can do business with governments (including the USA, UK, Singapore, and several others). Just getting the data is a big ask - once you have it, how do you monetise it - while respecting your users? Brian Lim walks the tightrope between doing good and doing well on THIS WEEK IN STARTUPS AUSTRALIA.

TWISTA tiptoes back across the Tasman to talk to another startup at the 2025 Canterbury Tech Summit. Rivir manufactures a box that provides satellite data access to field-connected sensors of the sort often found in agriculture and mining. So far so good - but what happens when your satellite provider gets bought by StarLink which 'deorbits' their constellation? We talk to Rivir co-founder Donna Henderson about negotiating satellites, telcos and investors - on this episode of THIS WEEK IN STARTUPS AUSTRALIA.

Sick of carrying a folder of SIMs as he traveled the world, Scott King reckoned he could do better - and did. ZapMe gives users a single number that's always available in any country - and always routes to their mobile. It's a great beginning - in a market filled with regulators and massive competitors. How can you build a successful startup in such a contested environment? TWISTA asks - and gets some unexpected answers.

Jevon LeRoux's startup Keeyu uses 'agentic' AI to revolutionise how online businesses work with their customers. The outcome of deep domain knowledge, LeRoux wants Keeyu to be a platform for the whole business - well beyond the sales channel. Can he get there? And what does it take to succeed an AI-centred startup?

Big thanks to SxSW Sydney - where I saw Jevon pitch Keeyu!

TWISTA swims across the ditch to talk with Steve Leftly, founder of Kiwi startup Myovolt - (https://myovolt.com/). Straddling the line between medtech and consumer wearable, Myovolt offers both pain relief and faster rehabilitation for folks with muscle strains and injuries. But building a startup with a medical focus means regulations, certifications - and investors prepared to bide their time. How's that work?

Recorded live from the show floor at the 2025 Canterbury Tech Summit - big thanks to those folks for making it all come together!

After a bit of a pause, THIS WEEK IN STARTUPS AUSTRALIA returns with its annual preview of Spark Festival - sparkfestival.co - with Spark Festival board member and TWISTA 'guardian angel' Murray Hurps, and communications director Paul Wallbank. We go through the festival, then pivot to an examination of the state of the startup community, following the closure of the York Street startup hub.

Spark Festival - https://sparkfestival.co