News
Investor · 4 deals
AWS
Cloud computing platform
Disclosed deals
Every published round AWS took part in, and every parcel of existing shares it bought off another holder. Deals we hold but haven't published yet are not counted, and a place in one of its own programs is under Cohorts.
| Company | Stage | Announced | Amount | Role | Alongside | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zipr | Grant | 6 Sep 2022 | $100k | Lead | SmartCompany (14 Sep 2022), SmartCompany (6 Sep 2022) | |
| Ajust | Accelerator | Aug 2023 | - | Lead | SmartCompany, ARN (ARNnet) | |
| Pluralis Research | Accelerator | 9 Oct 2025 | - | Lead | Startup Daily, SmartCompany | |
| Mary Technology | Accelerator | 9 Oct 2025 | - | Lead | Startup Daily, SmartCompany |
Cohort members
Everyone AWS has named to a program in published coverage. A place in a program is not a raise: the cheque is the figure recorded with the place, which is the program's standard terms where we hold them, and a blank is one we don't.
| Member | Program | Announced | Cheque | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leonardo.Ai | Generative AI Accelerator | 2023 | $35.8m | Startup Daily, SmartCompany |
Portfolio
Companies AWS has backed in a published round, and companies whose existing shares it bought off another holder.
| Company | What it does | First invested | Rounds | Led |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ajust | Consumer complaint resolution service using AI agents | Aug 2023, Accelerator | 1 | 1 |
| Leonardo.Ai | AI art production platform for consumers and enterprise users | 2023, Accelerator | 1 | 1 |
| Mary Technology | Legal tech startup whose Fact Management System converts unstructured litigation informat… | 9 Oct 2025, Accelerator | 1 | 1 |
| Pluralis Research | Enables collaborative foundation-model development through shared training protocols | 9 Oct 2025, Accelerator | 1 | 1 |
| Zipr | Upgrading the online retail experience | 6 Sep 2022, Grant | 1 | 1 |
Funds
Fund closes reported for AWS, as distinct from the investments it has made.
Portfolio companies acquired
Companies AWS has backed that another company then bought. An exit for the holding, not a deal AWS did.
| Company | Bought by | Kind | Announced | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leonardo.Ai | Canva | Acquisition | 30 Jul 2024 | $300m+ |
| Leonardo.Ai | Canva | Acquisition | Jul 2024 | $120m+ |
People
| Name | Role | Sources |
|---|---|---|
| Dr James Wilson | Engineer (former) | Startup Daily (5 Aug 2025), Startup Daily (4 Mar 2025) |
| Fiona Bones | Executive | SmartCompany |
| John Kearney | Head of ANZ Startups | Startup Daily, SmartCompany (7 Oct 2025), SmartCompany (24 Nov 2022), SmartCompany (14 Sep 2022), SmartCompany (9 Aug 2022) |
| Lauren Capelin | Ecosystem Manager | LaunchVic, Startup Daily |
| Rohit Bhargava | Business Development Manager | SmartCompany (16 Jun 2023), SmartCompany (15 Jun 2023), TechCrunch Venture |
| Sherry Karamdashti | General Manager and Head of Startups in North America | Startup Daily, SmartCompany |
| Tom Hamer | Engineer (former) | Startup Daily, Blackbird Ventures |
Coverage
Stories naming AWS. Where several outlets covered the same round, they are bundled under whichever ran the fullest account.
News
EVP launches 40x to support software startup founders looking to raise
EVP has launched 40x, a peer network for revenue-generating software startups in Australia and New Zealand planning to fundraise within a year, led by Mark Zmarzly; applications close mid-September.
Exit / M&A
Adactin acquires Focus Dynamics Group to deepen Microsoft play
Sydney tech services firm Adactin has bought Melbourne Microsoft partner Focus Dynamics Group, keeping all 82 staff and the FDG brand intact to deepen its Dynamics 365 and Azure capabilities; terms undisclosed.
Also CRN Australia
2 deals
DataMasque raises $5.6 million to tackle one of AI's biggest enterprise hurdles
DataMasque, whose platform masks customer data for AI use, has collected $5.6 million from Wavemaker Partners, OIF Ventures and Icehouse Ventures, with Wavemaker leading.
3 deals
AI data centre startup Firmus eyes off another $725 million raise as it readies to IPO on the ASX
Sydney-founded AI data centre company Firmus, now Singapore-based, says Coatue and Nvidia are set to back its next US$505 million raise before a planned ASX listing, after earlier raises including Nvidia's A$330 million.
2 deals
Call centre monitoring startup Operata dials in $11 million Series A
Operata, which watches over call centre performance, has banked a Series A of $11 million at a valuation topping $100 million, with Tidal Ventures at the helm and funds earmarked for AI-era integrations.
Series A
$11m
Operata raises $11 million Series A as AI reshapes contact centres
A Melbourne software firm monitoring AI-driven customer service operations has closed a Series A round led by Tidal Ventures, valuing it at $100 million, with proceeds earmarked for platform integrations and international growth.
Key hire
Apple of his isle: Fintech investor Brian Collins named Enterprize Tasmania CEO
Enterprize Tasmania has appointed Brian Collins, deputy chair of FinTech Australia and co-founder of fintech fund Triple Bubble, as CEO, with the ten-year-old organisation seeking national and global reach for the state's startup ecosystem.
7 deals
Pre-seed
$3m
Optimaze raises $3 million to help businesses save billions in cloud costs
Sydney cloud-waste startup Optimaze has secured $3 million in pre-seed backing from Arconic and The Innovation Club to grow engineering, speed its roadmap and pursue cloud partnerships starting with AWS.
4 deals
2 Aussie startups make the cut for the latest AWS Generative AI accelerator
AWS picked 40 startups for its 2025 Generative AI Accelerator, including Australians Pluralis Research and Mary Technology; the piece recalls past raises by alumni Relevance AI, Leonardo.ai and Marqo, and Leonardo.ai's sale to Canva.
Pre-seed
$700k
Sovereign legal AI startup Isaacus courts $700,000 in pre-Seed
Isaacus, which builds sovereign AI models for the legal sector, has banked $700,000 in a pre-seed round co-led by Aura Ventures and Galileo Ventures to take its product to market.
Unnamed stage
$30m
V2 AI hires cloud modernisation expert Bojan Zivic as director
Sydney consultancy V2 AI has brought on Bojan Zivic as a director to lead enterprise cloud and AI work; the piece also recalls its $30 million early-2024 raise from Columbia Capital.
News
The Airspeeder Mk4 racing eVTOL gets sign-off for experminental piloted flight
Australia's aviation regulator has granted Alauda Aeronautics an experimental certificate to fly its Airspeeder Mk4 racing eVTOL with a pilot aboard; Intel, Dell, AWS and Telstra back the series' computing and race-control systems.
Key hire
Tractor Ventures appoints startup ecosystem leader Liz van Zyl to spearhead $1B funding vision
Tractor Ventures hires Liz van Zyl as head of partnerships as its cumulative startup lending passes $100 million; the interview covers non-dilutive capital, founder support and plans to grow its partner network.
Unnamed stage
$1m
Workplace culture platform Hoogly takes the world by storm, winning UK and US awards as it closes $1 million raise
Sydney startup Hoogly, which builds tools for workplace connection, topped the GSV Cup in San Diego and has banked $1 million toward a round it plans to close within days, double its initial target.
Funding announcement
Firmus CTO Dr. Daniel Kearney joins Forbes Technology Council, advancing sustainable AI leadership
Firmus announces its chief technology officer's acceptance into the Forbes Technology Council, a vetted peer group for senior tech leaders, citing his cooling and computing-efficiency background.
Funding announcement
Curtin Accelerate Kicks Off 2025 Cohort With 12 Startups
Curtin Accelerate has started its 2025 program with twelve Perth founders, offering mentoring, Venture Studio expertise, a modest equity-free grant, AWS credits and potential Kickstart+ investment consideration.
2 deals
Lender Lighter Capital has another $30 million for startups thanks to the Victorian government
Lighter Capital, a revenue-based lender, has added another $30 million to lend to Australian startups, extending the facility the Victorian government and iPartners first backed.
Funding announcement
Antler Investor Memo Series: Lyngo AI answers the healthcare communication crisis with AI receptionists
Investor memo profiling Lyngo AI, a startup whose AI voice agents answer clinic calls and manage bookings, covering its Antler pre-seed backing, the founders' backgrounds, early traction, and growth plans.
Exit / M&A
Interactive sees growth through its customers’ acquisitions
Interactive systems chief Simon Durkin explains how serving clients through their acquisitions fuels growth; ex-Datacom Australia head Alex Coates joins as chief executive from January 2025.
8 deals
CloudWave Secures $75 Million in Funding to Revolutionize Cloud Strategy and Digital Transformation
CloudWave announced a $75 million round to speed growth and broaden its cloud services; the page also lists recent raises by ProvanAI, ProducePay, Peaky, Boring Company, Watu, Render and Arcee AI.
News
Sapia.ai opens its machine learning models with strategic API program
Sapia.ai is making its AI interview models available to other businesses through a new API initiative on AWS Marketplace, letting firms build workplace AI tools from its interview data, per CEO Barb Hyman.
Funding announcement
From SaaS to SaiS: A River of Inquiry into how AI is unlocking vertical SaaS
A Blackbird partner argues AI has revived vertical software by turning hard-to-sell customers into product-led buyers, noting the firm recently backed three such startups and recalling Aconex's sale to Oracle.
Also buildxact.com
Accelerator
US$500k
Neural Notes: Phonely's US$500,000 boost sets the tone for AI receptionists
Phonely, a Melbourne maker of AI receptionists, has secured US$500,000 from Y Combinator to fund team growth and new languages; shorter items note an AI board advisor, a government AI program, and OpenAI news.
Also SmartCompany
13 deals
Nine Aussie startups that raised $233.5 million this week
Weekly roundup of nine Australian startups that together raised over $233 million, led by Hysata's $172 million Series B, with rounds also for V2 Digital, AgriWebb, Disco, Genero, Brainfish, Kite Therapy, Nucanon and Maslow.
4 deals
The Startmate Demo Day Asks: Here’s what the 10 startups are seeking, from investment to referrals
Startup Daily's Ask column profiles the ten Startmate Summer 2024 Demo Day startups and their funding asks, noting Kite Therapy's completed raise and Carbonaught's government grant.
Unnamed stage
$30m
Data transformation consultancy startup V2 Digital lands $30 million
Melbourne consultancy V2 Digital raised $30 million from Columbia Capital about a year after launch, aiming to expand its consulting team; it earlier received initial backing from Ox Ventures founder Matt Farmer.
Series D+
$458m
Expat Google engineering exec Claire Southey heads home to join ecommerce marketer Rokt
Rokt hires former Google and Amazon engineering executive Claire Southey for its Sydney engineering leadership, with other senior hires, as the ecommerce marketing firm eyes a future public listing.
Also Startup Daily
Pre-seed
$500k
Jason Calacanis-backed Stori rebrands as Nucanon after $500,000 raise
Stori is now Nucanon following a $500,000 pre-seed round led by Skalata with Antler, Outlier Ventures, Paperclip Partners and Sydney FC's chief executive aboard, on top of 2023 backing from Antler and Jason Calacanis.
Also SmartCompany
9 deals
Nine ANZ startups that raised $60.3 million this week
Roundup of the week's funding news: nine companies across Australia and New Zealand secured investment spanning clean energy, construction logistics, legal tech, coaching, research tools, creator media, medtech and marketing software.
Also Startup Daily·SmartCompany·SmartCompany·SmartCompany·SmartCompany·LaunchVic
Funding announcement
Build Club is launching an accelerator for AI founders to take on the US
Build Club and AWS are launching a six-week Sydney accelerator for 15 technical founders in AI, offering credits, mentoring and a US tour, with two founders already chosen.
Bridge / extension
$6m
Diversity Atlas raises $6 million following 'unprecedented demand' for its diversity analytics platform
Melbourne diversity-data firm Diversity Atlas has raised $6m from Canada's Gener8 VC, its first outside backing and a bridge round ahead of a Series A, to fund rapid growth.
7 deals
Chipper Cash Becomes A Unicorn & Mr Yum raises US$65m Series A led by Tiger Global
TEN13 newsletter reporting Chipper Cash's US$150m unicorn round, Mr Yum's Tiger Global-led Series A, and new investments in Payhippo, Preezie, Pushas and Heaps Normal, plus portfolio updates.
Also Skalata Ventures·Skalata Ventures·Archangel Ventures portfolio·Startup Daily·SmartCompany·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·SmartCompany·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·SmartCompany·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·SmartCompany·SmartCompany·TechCrunch Australia·Tech Funding News - Australia·Australian FinTech·AgFunderNews·Women's Agenda·Beef Central / Grain Central·Forbes Australia·SmartCompany·LaunchVic
Pre-seed
Antler Investor Memo Series: Geniepay solving a global sales problem
Antler Australia investor memo profiling pre-seed sales-financing startup Geniepay, founded by Sajid Bokhari and Eric Ding, covering its backing, beta customers and pitch competition wins.
Pre-seed
$700k
Meet Ajust, the Sydney startup that loves customer complaints and wants more of them
Profile of Ajust, whose platform uses AI to route consumer complaints to businesses; its solo founder secured pre-seed backing from Carthona Capital and joined AWS's generative AI accelerator program.
2 deals
Investment Notes: Marqo
Blackbird announces it led AI search startup Marqo's seed round, joined by January Capital, The Creator Fund and angel investors, having previously backed the company's pre-seed in May 2022.
Also TechCrunch Australia·Startup Daily·SmartCompany·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·SmartCompany
8 deals
Six Aussie startups that raised $45.1 million this week
Weekly roundup of six Australian startups raising a combined $45.1 million across energy, e-commerce, design software, cloud security, climate tech and insurtech, plus Awayco's acquisition of Barcode Solutions and nVest winning SmartCompany's Pitch.
Also SmartCompany·LaunchVic
4 deals
Startup funding dropped massively in 2023, but AI and climate tech are still winners
KPMG data shows Australian startup funding fell sharply in early 2023, though AI and climate tech stayed strong, with several large raises listed and a new Main Sequence fund announced.
Also Startup Daily
7 deals
Six Aussie startups that raised $42 million this week
Weekly roundup of six Australian startup raises: Lyka's Series B extension, plus new funding for HydGene, JDoodle, One Future Football, Aquila and Number 8 Bio, with investors and founder comment.
Also RenewEconomy·Startup Daily·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·SmartCompany·RenewEconomy·RenewEconomy