The 6 Levers to Build Trust at Scale
Founder CEOs often struggle to maintain trust as their startups scale beyond a close‑knit team. Dane Hudson outlines six practical levers—role‑modeling behavior, emotional intelligence, transparency, frequent leader‑employee interaction, trust‑building tools, and proactive conflict management—to embed trust at every level. By consistently applying these habits, leaders can foster accountability, retain talent, and sustain performance as the organization grows. The framework draws on social learning theory and real‑world practices like skip‑level lunches and psychometric assessments.
Boman Is After Startups for Its China Tech Delegation to Meet with Alibaba, Geely and Unitree Robotics
Melbourne‑based Boman Group is launching a five‑day delegation that will take Australian startup founders to China’s Zhejiang province from June 1. The itinerary includes meetings with e‑commerce leader Alibaba, EV manufacturer Geely and robotics pioneer Unitree Robotics, among other innovators. Participants...
Y Combinator-Backed AI Call Receptionist Raises $22 Million Series A
Y Combinator‑backed Phonely announced a $22 million Series A round, valuing the AI call‑receptionist startup at roughly $100 million. The funding, led by Base10 Partners and backed by YC and three enterprise customers, builds on a prior $750,000 seed raise. Phonely’s platform can...
What if the Problem Isn’t Women’s Businesses, but the Way We Talk About Them?
Australia’s latest startup funding report shows all‑female founding teams captured just 2% of capital, down from 4% a year earlier. Research links the shortfall to a self‑advocacy gap: women use more qualifying language, face higher interruption rates, and receive prevention‑focused...
The $1.6 Billion Eucalyptus Exit Is Worth Celebrating – but Here’s Why Female Founders Are Also Shaking Their Heads
The Australian digital‑health startup Eucalyptus, founded by four men, was sold for $1.6 billion, a landmark exit for the sector. The company’s growth was fueled by GLP‑1 medications, which are used disproportionately by women—about 1.7 times more than men. Despite serving...
Kiwi Fund Administration Fintech Caruso Banks $9.3 Million Series A
Caruso, a New Zealand‑born AI‑driven fund‑administration platform, closed a $9.3 million Series A round, valuing the company at $80 million. The round was led by Icehouse Ventures and GD1, with participation from Balmain, a customer‑credit fund manager. The capital will accelerate product development, expand...
Detox Social Enterprise Clean Slate Clinic Scores $2.8 Million Ahead of Series A
Australian virtual detox provider Clean Slate Clinic announced a $4.3 million AUD capital raise, comprising a $2.8 million convertible note from Giant Leap and Scale Investors and a $1.5 million debt facility from Australian Medical Angels, roughly $2.8 million USD. The funding positions the...
Quantum Sensing Defence Startup Detects $5 Million Seed Round
Australian deep‑tech spin‑out Deteqt has raised a $5 million seed round, led by Main Sequence and joined by ATP Fund, BOKA Capital and others. The funding will accelerate development of its patented diamond‑on‑silicon quantum magnetometers, which can be embedded in drones,...
Startup 360: Let’s Get Metaphysical – Learning From Great Books Faster
Pustakh, an AI‑driven applied‑learning platform, launched in Sydney in late 2025 to turn non‑fiction reading into actionable outcomes. Co‑founder Shruta Satam, a former Deloitte and PwC consultant, observed that leaders often read books without implementing insights, prompting the creation of...
Jobs for the Dutts: Former Opposition Leader Gets Queensland Investment Corporation Board Role
Former opposition leader Peter Dutton and ex‑minister Michael Choi have been appointed to the board of Queensland Investment Corporation (QIC). The LNP government says the moves will sharpen focus on critical minerals and defence sector investments. QIC, with about AU$127 billion...
Hyundai Recalls 5000 Kona and IONIQ EVs over Battery Fire Risk
Hyundai announced an Australian recall of nearly 5,000 Kona and IONIQ electric vehicles after identifying a battery‑management software flaw that could trigger a short circuit and fire while charging or parked. The recall targets Kona EVs built from 2018‑2023 and...
Swyftx Cofounder Takes Helm After CEO Punted, Jobs Cut by 15%
Swyftx has dismissed CEO Jason Titman and cut roughly 15% of its workforce after two major acquisitions totaling about $133 million. Cofounders Alex Harper and CFO Andrea Yuen were named acting co‑CEOs, while director Cathryn Lyall stepped in as acting chair. The...
Neurodivergent App Spoony Shuts Down as Investors Prefer AI
Spoony, an Australian social app for disabled and neurodivergent users, raised roughly US$660,000 and built a community of over 65,000 members. The startup’s planned 2025 funding round collapsed as venture capital shifted toward artificial‑intelligence ventures, prompting a shutdown slated for...
Here’s How to Break the Habit of Endlessly Scrolling
The article explains how infinite scroll—a design that continuously loads content—exploits human psychology to keep users hooked, eliminating natural stopping cues and feeding dopamine‑driven cravings. It highlights that algorithmic feeds make users feel they can never be "caught up," turning...
How Elite Sport and ICU Medicine Plunged Olympian Matt Guest Into Startups
Matt Guest, a former Olympic field‑hockey player and ICU physician, co‑founded Clearwater Wellness to commercialise the SnowCap, a thermoelectric cold‑plunge tub that eliminates the need for ice. After a friends‑and‑family round and an Indiegogo campaign that generated about $460,000 USD in...
