I’ve just arrived back in Britain after six months spent Down Under – more than enough time for me to glean a snapshot of the Australian startup ecosystem and how it could learn from the UK.
Now that I’m back on home ground, here are a few of the companies I saw during my travels, that in my opinion are, or will be, making a name for themselves.
Tzukuri
The brainchild of Allen Liao and Michael Sutton, Tzukuri is creating wearable tech that actually looks sexy, rather than making you look like a ‘glasshole’.
With the launch of their first product line, ‘The Six’, Tzukuri has created stylish sunglasses, each pair handmade in Fukui, Japan.
The glasses incorporate a Bluetooth low-energy iBeacon and solar technology, with all technology created in-house.
Using the iPhone companion app, the user is prevented from losing their glasses by receiving automatic notifications when they leave them behind. The app also features distance tracking and the ability to display the glasses’ last location on a map.
Ninja Blocks
Co-Founders Marcus Schappi and Daniel Friedman are subscribing to the internet of things being one of the next big avenues for tech.
Ninja Blocks are tiny cloud computers that can sense their environment by receiving input from a variety of sensors and can affect their surroundings by controlling lights, power sockets and other actuators.
They operate on an ‘Open Hardware’ philosophy with the hope that other developers will use the Ninja Blocks to talk to web applications.
They are well on their way to success, having now made two effective raises on Kickstarter (the second for their Ninja Sphere which automates the user’s home).
Coinjar
Coinjar was founded by Asher Tan and Ryan Zhou in 2013. Ryan, having already created and sold the world’s first margin-trading platform for Bitcoin at age 17, decided to collaborate with Asher and start another venture through Melbourne-based startup accelerator Angelcube.
In just over a year, the team was able to grow an idea into a profitable business venture with over 15 staff and offices in Melbourne and London.
CoinJar aims to advance consumer finance through a digital wallet that offers ‘pro-sumer’ features such as Bitcoin integration. In its first financial year, it has seen over 22,000 individual and business customers, with over $40m worth of processed transactions.
Flirtey
Co-founders Matthew Sweeny and Ahmed Haider have their heads in the clouds with Flirtey.
Flirtey bills itself as the first autonomous aerial delivery company. Having designed a fleet of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) incorporating pre-programmed flight paths and collision avoidance technology, Flirtey aims to make deliveries possible via the skies.
UAVs can be operated commercially in Australia with a certification from the Civil Aviation and Safety Authority.
Flirtey takes users’ smartphone locations to deliver parcels directly to them, making sure to fly well below the heights of commercial airspace.
Drawboard
Drawboard was formed by founder Alistair Michener after experiencing painful pen-and-paper review processes while designing oil & gas plants in his Melbourne chemical engineering job.
Drawboard’s flagship app, “Drawboard PDF”, has since become the top grossing app of the Windows Store, and has been used by companies such as Fortescue Metals and Westpac. Though targeting CAD industries, such as engineering, Drawboard has users across many industries.
iOS and Android versions and a backend system to allow syncing of files and collaboration are expected out later this year, which will seek to capitalise on the 80,000 downloads already achieved.
LIFX
LIFX is a smart bulb that allows unprecedented control of your lights. It’s a Wi-Fi and mesh radio enabled, multi-colour, energy efficient LED light bulb that you control with your iPhone or Android smartphone.
LIFX debuted on Kickstarter in September 2012 with project funders pledging a total of $1.3m in just six days.
Users can set the lighting for whatever mood they find themselves in and Lifx suggests what certain colours might achieve, like ‘Deep Purple’ which can ‘relax and stimulate conversation’.
It can turn on the lights at set times, such as when you might want a gentle wakeup, rather than the horrid experience of my iPhone startling me to life most days.