Tech23 would never have been possible — yet alone have reached its tenth anniversary — without a great deal of support from all corners of the startup ecosystem.
To celebrate the tenth anniversary of this event, we collected a small snapshot of the stories that make up the past decade of Tech23. See how these companies’ deep tech innovations have been breaking down borders and what their founders are up to now.
Jack Zhang (Tech23 2016) is driving Airwallex forward, with a vision of a world in which cross-border global payments are simple and accessible to all. Airwallex has enjoyed immense success, having this year raised $US80 million in a Series B round (the second largest funding round in Australian startup history).
Leanne Connelly (Tech23 2015) is with ME3D as its Chief Financial Officer. With support from the University of Wollongong, which also owns its IP, ME3D aims to make 3D printing technology accessible to as many Australian children as possible.
Flavia Tata Nardini (Tech23 2017) is Co-founder and CEO of Fleet. Here, she uses her background in rocket science to create a low-cost, plug and play satellite IoT to support remote operations. The Adelaide-based company raised $5 million in a 2017 Series A round to fund the launch of two initial satellites. This year, the South Australian Government granted Fleet $500,000 from its Future Jobs Fund. Fleet has now opened a ground station in South Australia to allow for 24/7 monitoring of its satellites.
Brad Parsons (Tech23 2015) continues to lead MOVUS. The Queensland-based company secured $4.8 million in Series A funding earlier this year, furthering the development of its industrial IoT sensor and machine monitoring solution.
Alex Grant (Tech23 2016) is Co-founder and CEO of UniSA spin-out Myriota, having developed low-cost satellite IoT technology to connect any device from any location on earth. Earlier this year, Myriota gained $US15 million in Series A funding. Boeing’s venture capital arm, Boeing HorizonX Ventures, contributed to the round, marking its first ever investment outside the US. Next, Myriota will open a $US2.7 million IoT Innovation Lab in Adelaide, creating over 50 jobs.
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Silver Futures
The team at Slatterys is very excited that driven by her passion for reimagining ageing, Rachel Slattery has launched the Silver Futures initiative, aimed at reshaping perceptions of later life and fostering innovation in ageing.
Welcoming Cicada Innovations as the new custodian of Tech23
Tech23 has evolved over the last 13 years as deeptech has increased in prominence and it is wonderful Tech23 will be steered and revitalised by the impressive team at Cicada Innovations.
Drawing the curtain on Tech23
TeamSlatts has loved developing and producing Tech23 for 14 years – but we have decided it’s time to draw the curtain.