Summary

In this week's episode of The Startup Retro, host Will Richards and guest host Cheryl Mack from Aussie Angels and The First Cheque podcast break down the latest in Australia's startup and venture capital ecosystem. They cover Square Peg's ambitious new funds, the 2023 financial results of Linktree, and a groundbreaking partnership that will see hypersonic rocket launches from South Australian spaceports in 2025. The duo also discuss SafetyCulture's latest $75M raise, Algenie’s mission to replace plastics with algae, and interview Emma Grife from Startmate about their latest cohort. The episode wraps up with a useful resource for B2B startups navigating their sales funnels.

Time Stamps

00:00 Introduction and Welcome

05:00 Square Peg’s New Funds

09:00 Linktree’s 2023 Financials

12:30 Hypersonic rocket launches in South Australia

15:00 SafetyCulture’s Latest Raise

18:30 Algenie’s plastic replacements using Algae

25:00 Interview with Emma Grife from Startmate

30:00 Knowledge as a Service (KaaS) Recommendations

Links

To get all the links to the stories we mentioned in this episode, you can read this week’s https://newsletter.overnightsuccess.vc/p/aussie-startup-vc-summary-14th-september

Headlines

• Square Peg’s New Funds
• Square Peg is raising $840M for its sixth fund, focusing on seed and Series A investments, with a minority stake strategy. They are also raising $210M for their Opportunities Fund 3, highlighting strong returns from Canva and challenges in recent vintages.
• Linktree’s 2023 Financials
• Linktree revealed a $61.6M loss for 2023, spending $2 for every $1 earned. Despite generating $42.8M in revenue, the startup cut its workforce by nearly half. The founders took $21M off the table in secondary sales.
• South Australian Hypersonic Rocket Launches
• Hypersonix Launch Systems will partner with Southern Launch to enable Mach 7 hypersonic rocket launches from South Australian spaceports by 2025, dependent on environmental assessments.

Startup Raises

• SafetyCulture
• Raised $75M in fresh capital with an additional $90M in secondaries at a $2.5B valuation. SafetyCulture plans to enhance its workplace solutions with AI-powered tools and IoT functionalities.
• Algenie
• Secured $1.1M in pre-seed funding to scale algae production as a sustainable alternative to fossil fuels and plastics. Algenie’s innovative photobioreactor system can produce 100 tonnes of algae annually, offering a scalable solution for carbon sequestration and renewable materials.

Interview

• Emma Grife from Startmate

Will speaks with Emma Grife from Startmate, discussing the latest cohort and how the accelerator is helping early-stage startups in Australia.

KaaS - Knowledge as a Service

• Will’s Pick 💁🏻‍♂️
• GTM Funnel Stages, Metrics, and Goals for B2B Startups by Unusual VC – A comprehensive guide on navigating B2B sales motions from awareness to close.

Send feedback to the hosts

1. Gemma on LinkedIn
2. Will on LinkedIn

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