Anoulack Chanthivong

🇦🇺 This Week in Australian Startups #179, 26th September 2026

Weekly roundup recording a dozen raises and acquisitions, Firmus's scheduled float, a new $50m venture fund, a founder share sale, grant winners, an accelerator intake, and an AI agent's government breach.

Also DealStreetAsia·Dealroom·This Week in Australian Startups·AFR Technology·AFR Technology·Startup Daily·AFR Technology·AFR Technology·ABC News Technology·iTnews

NSW awards $1 million in MVP Ventures grants to 22 startups

Grants totalling slightly more than $1m went to 22 NSW startups in the latest MVP Ventures round, with individual awards between $24,225 and $75,000; a third round is being assessed.

Meet the 19 ventures sharing $400,000 to connect women, investors and opportunity

NSW Government grants worth $400,000 across 19 recipients include EnergyLab, Barayamal, Go Remote, Western Sydney Women and Scale Investors, funding events and initiatives aimed at closing the gender funding gap.

Remarkable, Catalysr and Indigenous pre-accelerators score NSW government support for diverse founders

Four organisations join a NSW government diversity pre-accelerator program as delivery partners, running programs for migrant, disability and First Nations founders alongside two university-based partners already on the roster.

Sydney Startup Hub rent bill owed to the NSW government pushes Fishburners into administration

Fishburners, the Sydney not-for-profit co-working community, has gone into voluntary administration over a long-running rent debt to the NSW government. KPMG administrators will keep it trading while pursuing a sale and recapitalisation.

UNSW to fast-track female founders in new $4m NSW Government program

UNSW Founders will run the NSW Government's new $4 million Diversity Pre-Accelerator Program for female and culturally diverse health founders, with the University of Newcastle also delivering support; applications open in July.

Minns Labor Government puts female founders in the fast lane with launch of Diversity Pre-Accelerator Program

The NSW Government has opened the first round of its $4 million Diversity Pre-Accelerator Program for female founders, appointing University of Newcastle and UNSW Founders to deliver training and mentoring for women-led startups.

NSW Govt backs new wave of female founders - Inside State Government

The NSW Government has opened the first round of its $4 million Diversity Pre-Accelerator Program for female founders, appointing University of Newcastle's I2N and UNSW Founders to deliver training and mentoring.

The NSW government is getting into startup lending with a $20 million commercialisation fund

NSW's government is lending startups money to commercialise research via a new repayable fund, and names biotech and RNA grant recipients while reopening a ventures grants round.

NSW launches $20 million emerging tech commercialisation fund

NSW has launched a $20m fund to help startups commercialise emerging tech and named All G, HydGene Renewables, Number 8 Bio and Swan Genomics as recipients of Biosciences Fund grants.

Also Startup Daily

$6 million, 36 startups, zero future: NSW cuts funding for Techstars Sydney

The NSW government has ended funding for Techstars Sydney, which closes after three cohorts; its managing director, Christie Jenkins, and her team are departing, and the $4 million diversity pre-accelerator has no operator yet.

Best of the week — the five most popular stories among readers, July 14 – 18, 2025

Weekly roundup of readers' five favourite stories: a precast factory opening for a Sydney tunnel, a grants panel, Circuitwise's agreed New Zealand acquisition, NSW clean-tech grants, and BlueScope's Whyalla bid position.

Techstars' 2024 cohort kicks off with record number of women-led startups

Ten of the twelve startups joining the NSW-backed Techstars Sydney accelerator for 2024 have a female founder; past participant SeenCulture earlier banked $1m in capital.

Waste-to-hydrogen startup awarded $50,000 MVP grant

EM Energy receives a $50,000 state government grant to patent its method of producing hydrogen from organic matter, with the technology being validated at a Newcastle university.

NSW Female founders program applications open - iTnews

Applications open for NSW's program supporting 300 female founders, delivered by Tech Ready Women; alumnus Zondii's founder recalls her 2021 seed raise.

Also nsw.gov.au

Supporting female entrepreneurs and international startups to develop and grow

NSW Government expands its Female Founders Program via Tech Ready Women and plans a Sydney landing pad for global startups; program alumna Zondii's earlier seed raise is recalled.

Also iTnews