Five regional startups we have our eyes on in 2023

It seems like regional startups are going to make a big splash in 2023 and beyond. And we aren’t the only ones who think so. In December, Fishburners CEO Martin Karafilis told SmartCompany that the startup hub wants to place more of a focus there this year. This got us to thinking about which regional startups we’ll be keeping an eye on in 2023.

SwarmFarm Robotics: Gindie, QLD

OceanFarmr: Bateman’s Bay, NSW

Oceanfarmr founder Ewan McAsh founded the digital platform after a long career as an aquafarmer himself. Source: supplied

Dubbed the Google Maps of the ocean, Oceanfarmr raised $1.45 million in funding back in November, led by Katapult.

The geolocation company offers intelligent monitoring to map and analyse aqua farms. This is being used across oyster, mussel and seaweed farms across the world. It has reportedly allowed users to spend up to 50% less time in the water.

The business was started by a former marine biologist and has seen over 874% growth over the past year.

Zetifi: Wagga Wagga, NSW

Zetifi is on a mission to bring better connectivity to Aussie farmers. Back in December it completed a $12 million Series A funding round. This was led by Telstra and Graincorp, and the company had previously received state and federal government funding.

Zetifi has developed long-range Wi-Fi solutions for farmers so their equipment can stay connected. This includes a permanent small cell that provides connectivity to devices in range, as well as a roving Wi-Fi hotspot. The latter can be stuck on a vehicle or machinery so it can retain an internet connection out in the field.

Sea Forest: Triabunna, Tasmania

Sea Forest founder and CEO Sam Elsom. Source: supplied.

Launching in 2019, Sea Forest saw an initial capital raise of $5 million, which was followed by a massive oversubscribed $34 million in 2021.

The company grows a native seaweed called asparagopsis and then converts it into animal feed supplements. This is important because it reduces the amount of methane released by the animals, which can be bad for the environment. It’s also something Bill Gates is interested in.

The seaweed itself also draws a large amount of CO2 from the atmosphere. As Perth seaweed startup ULUU told us last year, seaweed actually does a better job at this than terrestrial plants.

Subpod: Byron Bay, NSW

Subpod has seen a 200% uptick in profit since 2021, with more than $6 million in sales across 26 countries. It also just landed a $800,000 capital raise back in November. Not bad for small coastal startup that only put its products on the market back in 2019.

Subpod offers customers a three-in-one system that combines compost, a worm farm and a garden seat. As of November 2022 the business had done $16.4 million in sales and had launched a range of new products.

According to the company, 10 Subpod systems prevent the emissions of around five cars every year.