John Bertrand has an optimistic approach to the inevitable carnage sweeping through Australian venture capital and tech start-ups as market funding and valuations evaporate. It will be an opportunity, he says, to learn lessons, to adjust business models, to work on creating the best possible culture and getting tougher for next time.

Pay attention. Bertrand might be most famous for winning the America’s Cup as skipper of Australia II in September 1983 – producing national euphoria – and now further commemorated in a new Netflix documentary, Untold: The Race of the Century. But both before and after that success, Bertrand has always been focused on drawing the best out of the combination of cutting-edge technology, intense competition, team psychology – and lessons that come from failure.