ive into the vibrant atmosphere of the inaugural S2S Summit that took place on the 16th of November at the Sydney Startup Hub, with our special episode featuring exclusive interviews from industry leaders on the day! In this unique Tank Stream Speaks episode, we bring you snippets of engaging conversations with summit attendees, capturing the essence of their businesses, their learnings from the day, and the burning questions they wish their clients would ask them.
Join host Bradley Delamare and co-host Isabel Vanhakartano and the guests, giving you a glimpse into the dynamic community in the Australian tech ecosystem. From insightful business introductions to the burning queries on services, this episode is a showcase of the entrepreneurial spirit that defines our community.
Stay tuned for a firsthand account of the S2S Summit through the voices of the innovators who make the ecosystem a thriving hub for collaboration and growth in this first of two S2S Summit specials.
About Michael Langford
A passionate startup advocate, I currently lead the VC & Startup Ecosystem at Google Cloud across APAC, working with A&Is and VCs to help their portfolio companies build, scale and innovate with Google Cloud and Google.
I believe in supporting a healthy ecosystem and strive to be helpful however I can - whether that's finding the right technical expertise, making connections or building and supporting ecosystem events. My team runs the Google for Startups Cloud program giving early stage founders up to US$200k in credits to build their tech for free: learn more and join at cloud.google.com/startup
About Google Cloud
Google Cloud accelerates every organization’s ability to digitally transform its business and industry. We deliver enterprise-grade solutions that leverage Google’s cutting-edge technology and tools that help every developer build more sustainably. Customers in more than 200 countries and territories turn to Google Cloud as their trusted partner to enable growth and solve their most critical business problems.
About Antonio Thewissen
Antonio Thewissen is an engineer-turned-marketing professional with a focus on B2B Revenue Marketing and Demand Generation. He is currently the Marketing Director for Australia & New Zealand at Airwallex, a leading global financial platform for modern businesses, offering trusted solutions for global payments, treasury and expense management, and embedded finance.
Previously, Antonio led various marketing and strategy roles at technology and industrial software companies such as Uber, Anaplan, AVEVA, and GE, covering APAC markets including Australia, New Zealand, Japan, India, Taiwan, and Hong Kong. Antonio holds an MBA from AGSM-UNSW and lives in Sydney, Australia with his wife and two boys.
About Airwallex
Airwallex is a leading global financial platform for modern businesses, offering trusted solutions to manage everything from payments, treasury, and spend management to embedded finance. With our proprietary infrastructure, Airwallex takes the friction out of global payments and financial operations, empowering businesses of all sizes to unlock new opportunities and grow beyond borders. Proudly founded in Melbourne, Airwallex supports over 100,000 businesses globally and is trusted by brands such as Brex, Rippling, Navan, Qantas, SHEIN and many more. For more information, visit http://www.airwallex.com.
About Steve Grace
Steve Grace is the CEO & Founder of The Nudge Group, a company specialising in connecting startups and scale-ups globally with world class talent from early stages to IPO. He is also the co-founder of TNG Media, the media arm of The Nudge Group, encompassing several brands, including Balance the Grind, a publication dedicated to helping people ‘live better’; Give It A Nudge, a video podcast about the startup and scale-up world; and Startup Life: Unscripted, a weekly newsletter highlighting the stories of startup employees.
Balance the Grind - https://balancethegrind.co/
Give it a Nudge - https://www.youtube.com/@giveitanudge
Startup Life: Unscripted - https://startup-life-unscripted.beehiiv.com/
About Simon Thompson
Simon Thomasen has been editor of Startup Daily since 2019.
He hosted the Startup Daily show on streaming service ausbiz.com.au from 2020 to 2023. He was previously associate editor of Business Insider Australia, a national restaurant critic, editor of The Good Food Guide, and newspaper proprietor during a 30-year career in journalism and publishing. He's also an investor in early stage startups.
About Startup Daily
Startup Daily has been inspiring, educating, and reporting on the Australian tech and startup community since 2012. Not only have we had a front row seat to watch the development of the Australian innovation ecosystem – we have also played a key role in helping it grow. Digital innovation could add between $140 billion and $250 billion to Australia’s GDP by 2025. However, Innovation and Science Australia warned in its 2030 Strategic Plan that Australia is falling behind its global peers in the innovation race. Startup Daily is part of Pinstripe Media, with mastheads including Kochie’s Business Builders, Flying Solo, and Your Money & Your Life.
Startup Daily was named the top source of news for the Australian startup ecosystem in the Startup Muster Report. We are passionate about telling the stories of Australian and New Zealand innovators, driving others to join the movement and making an impact on the future of our nation’s economy and its people.
About Jacqui Bull
Jacqui is the Cofounder and COO of Sidekicker. Sidekicker is passionate about making casual staffing stress free. With the SEEK Venture Fund as our major investor, a team of 110, and 25,000 workers, we are Australia’s largest online staffing marketplace. We use technology to improve the quality and reliability of temp staff for businesses, and give workers choice and control over their work. Jacqui has fast become a trailblazer for female entrepreneurs in the technology space and is passionate about using technology to drive innovation. Jacqui was featured in Smart Company’s 30 under 30 list, was shortlisted in the final 5 nominees for the Verve Cliquot Women in Business Awards and is a regular speaker at tech events.
About David Jones
Founder of Contextual, specializing in Product Adoption and Onboarding for Mobile and Web Apps. Contextual provides a solution for educating users within the app, enhancing user activation and retention, without the need for developers. Previously, David co-founded Threatmetrix.com (acquired by RELX) delivering a 15x return to investors and founded EmuTech Email (acquired by SurfControl), David's entrepreneurial journey began with founding a startup before it was a thing. David's latest venture, Contextual, addresses a common challenge in startups: helping customers understand and engage with apps. We offer tools for codeless onboarding, UX, and engagement, crucial for app retention and growth. Our upcoming version 3.0 will revolutionize the sector by reducing dependence on the use of pop-ups and push notifications.
About Claire Marriott
Claire Marriott is the APAC CEO of Newfound Global, an executive search firm with a presence in Melbourne, London, Scotland, and New Zealand. We strategically partner with ambitious high-growth scale-ups to build the human muscle to scale globally. We have a strong focus on ensuring cultural fit, building executive bench strength, and gathering market intelligence to ensure companies confidently accelerate time-to-revenue in new markets. Claire is also a co-founder of the #TechDiversity Awards, working with leading industry groups and companies to foster a culture of true diversity in the Australian technology sector.
About Tank Stream Labs
Tank Stream Labs is the go-to coworking community and service provider for tech-focused businesses. We enable businesses to grow, evolve and succeed together, and provide like-minded entrepreneurs with a curated tech-agnostic community. With us, businesses gain access to all of the services needed to make their business thrive. From business operations being taken care of, to the networking and collaboration opportunities that will help their business on its growth journey. If you're looking for a new home in Sydney, Tank Stream Labs offers coworking spaces that foster innovation, creativity, and collaboration. For more information on Tank Stream Labs head to the website or contact us at: hello@tankstreamlabs.com.
This podcast episode was recorded in Tank Stream Studios, the exclusive audio and video podcast studio located in the Tank Stream Labs Sydney Startup Hub.
Tank Stream Speaks is proudly produced by the team at Ampel. Ampel is an audio content agency specialising in podcast, radio, and audio content creation. Ampel is a proud member of Tank Stream Labs, and the team behind Tank Stream Studios. For more information, head to www.ampel.com.au or reach out to us at hearhere@ampel.com.au
Chief Audio Officer: Josh Butt
Edited by: Isabel Vanhakartano
Mixed by: Carter Quinn