2015 was a massive year for Australian startups and 2016 is set to be just as huge.
We’ve seen successful startups like Canva, Shoes of Prey and SafetyCulture score huge investment rounds, as well as the emergence of numerous new and promising ventures, not to mention Atlassian’s global successes.
Here are nine that are heading towards big things next year.
On the back of raising nearly $600,000 on Kickstarter, the Sydney-based 3D printer scanner startup is already making waves.
It was originally only seeking $100,000 and will be using the funds to rapidly roll-out its scanner around the world and “keep the momentum” going.
The team will also be jetting off to Switzerland at the start of the year to compete in the global Seedstars competition after taking out the local version earlier in 2015.
This social network for travellers already had users in over 100 countries before it entered the River City Labs and muru-D accelerator.
It has now been offered a three month and $20,000 extension to the accelerator program, which has helped the Brisbane startup come “a hell of a long way”, especially internally.
It now has nearly 26,000 downloads and active users are up by 85%.
The Outbound team will be on the hunt for a large funding round in the new year, but thanks to the cash injection, will have the time to get it right.
Fintech startup Timelio just closed a half a million funding round, but co-founder Charlotte Petris said it’s all about the partners they’ve brought on board.
The two-way marketplace for invoice financing just announced it would be creating 50 new jobs over the next three years as part of rapid expansion in Melbourne so it’s definitely one to keep an eye on.
The legal market is becoming increasingly competitive for startups, but LawAdvisor is already beginning to stand out.
It launched a platform to “democratise the legal process” in late July and was “inundated” by users.
The startup recently raised $230,000 that it “didn’t need” in order to bring Startup Grind global startup director Chris Joannou on board and founder Brennan Ong has been in the US to close a larger Series A round.
LawAdvisor will also be putting on LawHack early next year to coincide with the launch of a new service targeted at startups and small businesses.
Fresh from graduating from the famed Y Combinator summer program, employee training startup GO1 closed a $1.36 million investment round led by Steve Baxter and Tank Stream Ventures.
Co-founder Andrew Barnes has stayed put in the US after finishing the program, setting up an office in San Francisco, and plans on using the money to expand the offering around the world and to “put the foot down on the accelerator”.
The sharing economy has become much more accessible and accepted this year and Buzzy Tasks is using the concept to help users get tasks done or make some extra cash on the side.
Former lawyer Lauren Trlin was inspired to create the startup after finding she didn’t have the time to complete these small tasks. The little tasks startup is set for big things in the coming year.
Peter Lord quit a well-paying corporate job to start the virtual financial assistance startup and recently closed a $1.5 million round, giving it runway to continue developing its service and attracting users.
The startup is competing with the likes of Sydney-based Pocketbook, but Lord says his company offers a broader range of options and advice.
Twenty-year-old co-founder Brandon Reynolds turned down a $2.5 million offer – that’s how confident he is in his idea.
And for good reason – the online platform that allows fans to take a personalised video call from their favourite celebrity already has the likes of Chris Lilley, 5 Seconds of Summer and a bunch of high-profile AFL players on board.
It recently launched with a lavish party, but Reynolds assured us the team were back to work first thing the next morning.
Two years of hard work pre-launch and behind the scenes has paid off for this peer-to-peer lender.
It launched in October and has just closed an Australian-first deal worth $60 million from a big bank.
The deal will allow the startup to greatly expand its lending ability as it makes some serious waves in the fast-growing sector.
Do you know more on this story or have a tip of your own? Raising capital or launching a startup? Let us know. Follow StartupSmart on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
Denham Sadler is a freelance journalist based in Melbourne.
