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Mina Radhakrishnan is in the early stages of building a new start-up after :Different collapsed.

What this start-up founder learned from the public death of her company

Mina Radhakrishnan, the only founder of a collapsed start-up brave enough to speak at the Financial Review Entrepreneur Summit, hopes the industry values battle scars as she tries again.

  • Tess Bennett
Me&u chief executive Kim Teo says the greatest challenges since merging had been integrating technology and staff.

How Kim Teo pulled off a mega-merger with her start-up’s biggest rival

The co-founder of restaurant ordering app Mr Yum is now the boss of its former competitor me&u, after the heavily backed Aussie start-ups merged to survive.

  • Aaron Weinman
Black.ai co-founder Keaton Okkonen says Zoox and Waymo are pointers to the AI talent pool in Australia.

Look at Zoox and Waymo to see Australia’s AI potential

The local ecosystem for investment in artificial intelligence is in its infancy, but could thrive if given the right funding.

  • Michael Bailey

How to tell if work stress is burning you out

Behavioural scientist Jemma King says most people have one of three “instant stress styles”. Determining yours could help you avoid burnout.

  • Euan Black

Start-up founders take us back to basics. It’s refreshing

It’s refreshing to hear from founders and their investors who aren’t tied up in corporate spin. Their stories are about survival.

  • Anthony Macdonald
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June

Lucy Liu, the co-founder of Airwallex, says female entrepreneurs still face biases and stereotypes when raising capital.

‘I fire people just as quickly as my male co-founders’

High-profile female entrepreneurs including Airwallex’s Lucy Liu have hit out at sexist attitudes, and male-led venture capital investors.

  • Tess Bennett

‘What if a cruise ship got in the way?’ Rocket wrapped in red tape

Australia’s first home-grown rocket launch has been slowed down by a nervous regulator, says Gilmour Space Technologies CEO.

  • John Davidson
Square Peg Capital partner James Tynan has warned that smaller funds may be unable to raise.

Top VC admits newer Aussie funds will struggle to raise capital

Younger venture capital funds will be the next casualties of the tough capital raising environment, even if they’re performing well, a Square Peg partner says.

  • Yolanda Redrup and Nick Bonyhady
Employment Hero co-founder Ben Thompson put the big idea out there on Tuesday.

1pc of your super for venture capital? Add it to the list

Everyone wants a piece of the $3.9 trillion super system and now we can add venture capital. The problem is, it is not the government’s money to redirect.

  • Anthony Macdonald
Honey Insurance co-founder Richard Joffe says employees need to be prepeared to ‘go to war’.

‘Pick up a knife and get on with it:’ Start-ups reject work-life balance ‘beast’

Start-up workers must be prepared to “go to war,” to help their companies succeed, rather than worrying about work-life balance top local entrepreneurs have warned.

  • Maxim Shanahan and Paul Smith
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Flying Fox Ventures’ Kylie Frazer and Employment Hero chief executive Ben Thompson agreed the market had returned to normal.

Super funds ‘should be forced’ to back start-ups

Employment Hero chief executive Ben Thompson has proposed a novel aid for the flagging start-up sector: reserving 1 per cent of superannuation money for it.

  • Nick Bonyhady
Matthew Koertge, Sydney-based managing partner of Titanium Ventures.

Telstra looks to cash out of venture capital investments

Telstra Ventures has changed its name to Titanium Ventures, as the telco mulls selling its venture capital investments.

  • Tess Bennett
Kylie Frazer of early stage VC fund Flying Fox said unionisation of start-ups was unrealistic.

Start-up funding bounces back, as two-speed sector emerges

New data shows early signs that the tech funding winter is thawing, with Aussie tech deals up 30 per cent on this time last year.

  • Tess Bennett

Why we need to get behind small business

The true backbone of Australia’s entrepreneurial spirit and innovation lies within its small business sector, not just the tech giants.

  • Luke Achterstraat
Highview says its liquid-air energy-storage tech can solve the firming challenge for renewable power.

Rio Tinto punts on British start-up to plug renewables gap

The mining giant joined a $575 million investment round for Highview Power, which says its storage technology can firm renewable power.

  • Hans van Leeuwen
Joe Collins the co-founder and executive chairman of Camms, bootstrapped the risk and compliance software business until 2019.

Ellerston Capital-backed software start-up sells for more than $US100m

The purchase of Camms, a risk and compliance software developer, delivers a payday for the little-known Collins family from Adelaide and its big finance backers.

  • Updated
  • Tess Bennett
Canva has cultivated an image as a fun employer but has sharp restrictions in its contracts backed by the threat of shares being withdrawn.

Say something bad about Canva? It can claw back staff shares

Documents seen by the Australian Financial Review show how Canva shares give the start-up leverage over former staff in a widely used industry practice.

  • Nick Bonyhady
Archistar founder Dr Benjamin Coorey is helping commercial and residential property developers make better decisions using AI.

Proptech Archistar rules off raise; NAB, Skip, PEXA top up

Archistar has now raised $40 million since it was founded in 2018.  

  • Sarah Thompson, Kanika Sood and Emma Rapaport
The original Guzman y Gomez food franchise in Newtown, Sydney.

Guzman y Gomez’s spicy burrito is a recipe for high growth

It’s easy to sound smart by being gloomy about the future of a stock, but the future of this Mexican-themed chain is positive.

  • Martin Rogers
Linkby co-founders Andrew Chak, Chris Wirasinha and Adrian Fagerland have raised $4 million in Series A funding.

This ex-Young Rich Lister built a top media company, now he’s trying tech

Chris Wirasinha co-founded Pedestrian almost 20 years ago and bootstrapped the company until it was acquired by Nine. With Linkby, he’s taking a different path.

  • Yolanda Redrup
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The founder’s own skincare needs were the catalyst for developing Bangn Body products.

Beauty-brand founders who started their careers in banking

Four successful women tell how they developed their skills at companies like Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan before starting their own businesses.

  • Lauren Sams
Laura Deeming

Cryogenic start-up focuses on thawing the frozen waiting for a cure

A former child prodigy is working on ways to ensure that bodies can be revived when the time is right.

  • Ashlee Vance
Guzman y Gomez founder Steven Marks.

GyG’s well-connected investors feed the quacking ducks

Demand for Guzman y Gomez’s shares shows investors of all stripes are buying the wonderful story.

  • Mark Di Stefano
Aengus Tran, co-founder and CEO Harrison.ai at AFR’s 2024 AI summit.

Sonic Healthcare-backed Harrison.ai boots up $100m-plus Series C raise

Harrison.ai’s management team has commenced discussions with a handful of potential investors regarding the cash call.

  • Sarah Thompson, Kanika Sood and Emma Rapaport
Canva’s co-founders Cliff Obrecht, Melanie Perkins and Cameron Adams.

What Canva, Rokt and Aussie VCs have learned about US IPOs

After Life360’s oversubscribed Nasdaq debut fund managers predict 2025 will see a rush of private tech companies testing the public markets. Canva and Rokt are watching closely.

  • Tess Bennett

Original URL: https://www.afr.com/afrlive/entrepreneur-summit