Biggest stories from February 2023 to August 2023

Market is challenging for Founders and Investors.

• New funds – CSIRO-linked Main Sequence VC raised $450m
• Possible Ventures raised half of their target $100m
• OIF Ventures raised $55m for opportunity fund
• Side Stage Ventures raised the first $15 million of a new $30 million fund
• Supposedly 9 funds trying to raise from LPs currently Startups funded
• Mining Tech startup Plotlogic raised $43m
• HealthTech Eucalyptus raised $50m
• DroneTech Propeller raised $22m

Pre-seed/seed stage investments Startup exits

• Rezdy sold to PE for over $100m
• MyProsperity acquired for $50m Startups dying
• Delivery startups like Milkrun are gone
• Celebrity chef’s tech firm Providoor collapsed IPO window closed \

Chatter is happening and secondaries are alive 

• SafetyCulture hits $2.7b valuation, plans $500m share sale
• ROKT preparing for 2024 IPO
• Blackbird completed a $150m (3%) sell down of Canva stock with talk of an IPO on the horizon …

In other news

• Canva named #1 Best Workplace for Innovators by Fast Company
• X vs Meta (fka Twitter vs Facebook)
• Meta launched Threads
• Twitter rebranded to X and appointed CEO Linda Yaccarino
• Cage, Octogon or Italy fight on the cards in Musk vs Zuck
• New docuseries on Apple TV and Google Play – Explores the origins and challenges of some of Australia’s biggest start-ups including Canva, SafetyCulture, Finder, and Brighte.

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