Introducing the Pilot Project

The wait is over! Welcome to The Pilot Project - a curated newsletter covering updates across the student startup ecosystem, events and helpful resources to support you every step of the way. 

If you’re a student founder or interested in the startup ecosystem — then you’ve come to the right place. We’re bullish on students supporting students and this is one of those first steps to making that a reality. We hope this newsletter gives you as much value as it gives us. 

— Ikya, NextGen Ventures

In this issue

Dive into investment trends across student-founded ClimateTech startups
See what our team has been up to this month
Attend some upcoming events in April
Apply for VC and startups are hiring now
Get practical advice from the resource recommendations of the month

The Climate Crisis Could Be the ‘Problem’ That Acts as a Catalyst to Draw in Australia’s Most Talented Into Tech

Australian students at climate strike (source: 

The sector that has garnered the most VC-backed student-founded startups in Australia is ClimateTech, representing 13% of all deals. In developing our Student Startup Funding Report, we identified the following ClimateTech, student-founded startups: 

Allume Energy Avarni Earth AI Envirometrics.io Monty Compost Co 

NetNada ULUU Xylo Systems Climasens (new addition since report release) 

Despite this prominence in deal volume, ClimateTech startups only attracted 2.6% of the total capital invested in Australian student-founded startups. This discrepancy reflects a broader trend within the Australian venture ecosystem in 2023, where ClimateTech secured the majority of deals (10%) but only represented 7.8% of the overall venture capital investment for the year. 

A significant driver behind this trend is the nascency of… 

Read Full Article 

Recaps and Releases: NextGen’s Latest Happenings

NextGen Sydney Investments Team with Sid Kasbekar from Airtree

Check out the first-ever Australian Student Startup Funding Report. It documents novel insights into the trends, barriers, and the understated impact student founders have on the Australian startup ecosystem. 

Read the Full Report 

Our official 2024 VC Training Bootcamp has wrapped up! Hear from Jamal (one of our new investment associates) about his experience diving straight into the world of VC. 

Read Jamal’s Post 

Want to find out more about the inception and progression of NextGen Ventures? Our Co-Founder Mitchell Hughes made an appearance on The Business Of Podcast to discuss his own journey into the world of startups. 

Listen to the Episode 

April Events

5 April MQ Incubator & Young Wisdom Student Startup Pitch Night. 

NSW6 April → 8 May MLAI Hackathon. 

VIC & NSW 9 April Raising The Bar USYD. 

NSW 9 April Cofounder Speed Dating, 

VIC 30 April AI Emerging Startups Western Sydney 2024. 

NSW 1 May StartSpace Founders Fair. 

VIC1 May → 2 May Blackbird Sunrise. NSW Email Blackbird for special student discounts on tickets 

See Startups & VCs Hiring Now

Sales Operations Associate - ProcurePro (Remote) Staff Backend Engineer (Java) - Subscriptions - Canva (Remote) Content Curator - Pixabay - Canva (Remote) Software Engineer (Java) - Superhero (Sydney) Product Designer Internship - ANZ - Canva (Remote) Creative Technologist Internship - ANZ - Canva (Remote) Investment Intern - Rampersand. (Melbourne)