Earlier this year, Alisha Geary zoomed in from Paris to the weekly Dream Venture Masterclasses ahead of a shark-tank style pitch against other Indigenous start-ups. Everyone there was vying for a slice of the $150,000 from Andrew and Nicola Forrest’s Minderoo Foundation and, perhaps more crucially, for the attention of the venture capitalists in the […]
91-year-old theoretical physicist Heinrich Hora and material scientist Warren McKenzie, the co-founders of HB11 Energy, believe they can radically change the future with a high-powered laser and a few protons to create viable nuclear fusion. Now, they say, they just need a $100 million laser of their own to prove it, and the Australian government […]
This is how Wild Hibiscus spent $1.6 million researching how to put ‘caviar’ in a bottle and create a magical spirit. Lee Etherington’s journey to becoming the maker of finger lime gin began with a hibiscus flower dropped, on a whim, into a glass of champagne. The diners at his dinner party that night some […]
OwnHome is a rent-to-buy scheme for first-time buyers that aims to reverse the trend of declining homeownership in Australia. James Bowe and Tim Harley were best friends and housemates at law school in Sydney and they always knew they would start a business together. They just weren’t sure what kind of business it would be. […]
How hard work and a sprinkle of fairy dust turned an idea into a $2.3-billion business within months. Magic Eden founder Sid Zhang would like to thank the Victorian education system for landing him where he is today – a founder of the eighth-fastest company to reach a billion-dollar valuation. Zhang couldn’t believe how little […]
Australia’s well-educated population, stable political system and relatively benign regulatory environment should make it a world leader when it comes to innovation. But we consistently rank below our peers on innovation indexes. Forbes Australia looks at some of the companies bucking the trend. Why does Australia consistently rank lower than its western peers for innovation […]
Demand for decarbonisation solutions is a game changer for this asset class. David Brand is the founder, chair and CEO of forestry investment management business New Forests. He started the business in 2005 and New Forests now has offices across the world, with around $10 billion in assets under management. “In 17-and-a-half-years we have never […]
Will Davies describes the culture shock of staying on after selling Car Next Door to the ride-share giant. At parties, Car Next Door founder Will Davies can tell that people don’t quite know how to word the question, awkward with the nuances. “They’ll say: ‘So I’ve heard you’ve merged with Uber.’ And I say, ‘I’ve […]
How Australia is undermining China’s monopoly on the minerals that will be crucial for energy transition. When Luca Giacovazzi explains why rare earths are so important to the future of the planet, he likes to bring up the small electric motors that push water through heating radiators. “Not that long ago, the EU legislated that […]
Paul Schaafsma on the power of celebrity – and stories – when it comes to selling wine. Winemaker and entrepreneur Brian McGuigan was signing bottles and talking to customers at a drive-through bottle shop in Sydney suburbia one rainy night. His operations manager, Paul Schaafsma – the man who would one day create the Kylie […]