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Sunrise is Blackbird’s love letter to founders and the beautiful things they create. It’s a celebration of ambition and creativity, where Australians and Kiwis dream up the future.

Australia 26

30 April

Carriageworks, Sydney

Featured Sessions

Tim Doyle (Eucalyptus): Squeezing the Oil from Tim Doyle

Tim Doyle

Visions Stage

Tim Doyle (Eucalyptus): Squeezing the Oil from Tim Doyle

Visions Stage
One of the biggest liquidity events in Australian startup history just happened — and Tim's come back to Sunrise to tell the story. Eucs co-founder unpacks the deal: why an acquisition over an IPO, what the journey actually looked like, and what it really feels like to sell something you poured your entire self into.

Tim Doyle

CEO & Co-founder at Eucalyptus

Tim Doyle co-founded Eucalyptus, the global digital health company acquired for US$1.15b and serving 500,000+ patients.

Katelyn Lesse & Angela Jiang (Anthropic): Riding the Exponential

Katelyn Lesse, Angela Jiang

Visions Stage

Katelyn Lesse & Angela Jiang (Anthropic): Riding the Exponential

Visions Stage
The models are improving faster than most businesses can keep up. Katelyn Lesse and Angela Jiang lead engineering and product for Anthropic's Claude Developer Platform - and they've seen this pattern before at Stripe and OpenAI. A frank conversation about what it actually takes to build on AI infrastructure that doesn't get stranded when the next model drops.

Katelyn Lesse

Head of Platform Engineering at Anthropic

Katelyn leads Platform Engineering at Anthropic. Previously the engineering leader at Stripe & Betterment.

Angela Jiang

Head of Product, Platform at Anthropic

Angela leads product for the Claude Platform at Anthropic. She previously held product leadership roles at OpenAI and Stripe

Tom Kelly (Heidi Health): Dreams Worth Building

Thomas Kelly

Visions Stage

Tom Kelly (Heidi Health): Dreams Worth Building

Visions Stage
Tom Kelly was a vascular surgeon who couldn't accept that medicine was drowning in paperwork. He pitched Blackbird in blood-soaked scrubs, hung up his stethoscope and then nearly lost everything. This is the story of how Heidi went from the brink of collapse to a global phenomenon, and why Australia has everything it takes to build the future of healthcare.

Thomas Kelly

Co-founder & CEO at Heidi

Dr Thomas Kelly is Co-founder & CEO of Heidi, an AI care partner helping clinicians cut admin and free up time for patients.

Lucy Liu (Airwallex): The First Decade

Lucy Liu

Visions Stage

Lucy Liu (Airwallex): The First Decade

Visions Stage
In hard, regulated industries, a decade of unglamorous work just gets you to the starting line. Lucy Liu, co-founder of one of Australia's most iconic startups, unpacks what it really takes to build in the invisible years: before the headlines, before the recognition, when belief has to run way ahead of proof.

Lucy Liu

President & Co-founder at Airwallex

Lucy Liu is Co-Founder of Airwallex, and a globally recognised fintech leader, named by Forbes and EY among Asia-Pacific’s top entrepreneurs.

Aaron Blabey (Bad Guys, Thelma the Unicorn): You Can’t Be Anyone Else (And Why Would You Want To Be?)

Aaron Blabey

Visions Stage

Aaron Blabey (Bad Guys, Thelma the Unicorn): You Can’t Be Anyone Else (And Why Would You Want To Be?)

Visions Stage
Creating something genuinely fresh that cuts through is hard. Aaron Blabey - author of Thelma the Unicorn and The Bad Guys - has done it several times over, selling 60 million books in the process. A rare chance to hear what he's learned about creating your own lane and staying true to yourself.

Aaron Blabey

Author at New York Times Bestseller

Aaron Blabey is a #1 New York Times bestselling author, creator of The Bad Guys, Pig the Pug and Thelma the Unicorn, with 60+ million books in print.

Danielle Strachman (1517 Fund): They've Lost Their Minds — Backing Weirdos and Dropouts Before It Was Cool

Danielle Strachman

Visions Stage

Danielle Strachman (1517 Fund): They've Lost Their Minds — Backing Weirdos and Dropouts Before It Was Cool

Visions Stage
Before Figma. Before Ethereum. Danielle Strachman was writing checks to dropouts and sci-fi scientists when no one else would take the meeting. This is the story of 1517 Fund - and why the founders who look completely wrong are often the ones worth backing first.

Danielle Strachman

Founder & General Partner at 1517 Fund

Danielle is co-founder and GP at 1517 Fund and on the founding team for the Thiel Fellowship.

Dr Julia Reisser & Michael Kingsbury (Uluu): The End of Fossil Plastic

Julia Reisser, Michael Kingsbury

Visions Stage

Dr Julia Reisser & Michael Kingsbury (Uluu): The End of Fossil Plastic

Visions Stage
An oceanographer and a lawyer walk into a lab - and start brewing plastic from seaweed. Julia and Michael are building Uluu to replace fossil-fuel plastics with a material that's biodegradable, carbon-negative, and made from one of the most renewable resources on earth. Imagine a business at the scale of Dow Chemical - but actually good for the planet.

Julia Reisser

Co-founder & Co-CEO at Uluu

Julia is an oceanographer tackling plastic pollution at a global scale. With a PhD in plastic waste, she helped pioneer The Ocean Cleanup.

Michael Kingsbury

Co-founder & Co-CEO at Uluu

Michael is cofounder of Uluu, turning seaweed into next-gen plastics. Former BHP exec, M&A lawyer now rebuilding materials for a fossil-free future

Jae Lubberink (Pabulum Mill): Surviving the Taste Extinction

Jae Lubberink

Explorations Stage

Jae Lubberink (Pabulum Mill): Surviving the Taste Extinction

Explorations Stage
AI is democratising creativity—or so we're told. Jae disagrees. The algorithm era has flattened culture, mutilated taste, and ushered in an age of infinite slop. The artisans have been displaced by techbros who have the nerve to self-appoint themselves as the arbiters of taste in the wake of their own gentrification. The only way out? Romanticise toil, do the reps, and build something of meaning.

Jae Lubberink

Growth Manager at Eucalyptus

Jae is a writer and researcher exploring philosophy and technology. He writes at Pabulum Mill and works in Growth at Eucalyptus, with experience across policy, startups and VC.

Geoff McQueen (Accelo/Worksights.ai): You're Better Than You Fking Think

Geoff McQueen

Explorations Stage

Geoff McQueen (Accelo/Worksights.ai): You're Better Than You Fking Think

Explorations Stage
Aussie and Kiwi founders are quietly killing it in the US - and there's never been a better time to make the move. Geoff McQueen did it 15 years ago and learned some expensive lessons so you don't have to. Visas, corporate structure, hiring traps, and how to build a network without being entitled about it.

Geoff McQueen

Founder at Accelo & worksights.ai

Geoff McQueen is a serial entrepreneur who scaled Accelo globally, exited to PE in 2024, and now builds worksights.ai.

Believers: A Pre-Seed Investing Masterclass

Maxine Minter, Niki Scevak, Danielle Strachman

Believers: A Pre-Seed Investing Masterclass

There's something special about believing in a person before anyone else will. Pre-seed investing is the ultimate exercise in belief - and one of the most rewarding things you can do in the startup ecosystem. Niki Scevak, Danielle Strachman, and Maxine Minter share what they've learned from years of writing the earliest checks. Come curious, leave ready to back someone.

Maxine Minter

General Partner at Co Ventures

Maxine Minter is Australia’s first solo female GP and the General Partner of Co Ventures, backing ambitious founders at day zero.

Niki Scevak

Co-founder at Blackbird

Niki Scevak is co-founder of Blackbird, partnering with founders at day one to build generational companies.

Danielle Strachman

Danielle is co-founder and GP at 1517 Fund and on the founding team for the Thiel Fellowship.

Beyond the Lucky Country: A Creative Nation

Charlie Gearside, Joe Walker, Maxine Minter

Explorations Stage

Beyond the Lucky Country: A Creative Nation

Explorations Stage
How does Australia go from a country that digs things up to one that makes things that matter? Maxine Minter, Charlie Gearside, and Joe Walker go head to head - each pitching bold ideas for Australia's future, then opening them up to challenge, scrutiny, and heat from the others. Expect big thinking on culture, technology, and long-term prosperity.

Charlie Gearside

Co-founder & YouTuber at Eucalyptus / Gearside

Co-founder of Eucalyptus, now YouTubing and changing the vibe around Australian entrepreneurship and excellence.

Joe Walker

Host at The Joe Walker Podcast

Joe Walker is host of The Joe Walker Podcast, known for deep conversations with founders, scientists and big thinkers

Maxine Minter

Maxine Minter is Australia’s first solo female GP and the General Partner of Co Ventures, backing ambitious founders at day zero.

Geoffrey Huntley (Ralph Wiggum Loop): Software Development Now Costs Less Than Minimum Wage

Geoffrey Huntley

Explorations Stage

Geoffrey Huntley (Ralph Wiggum Loop): Software Development Now Costs Less Than Minimum Wage

Explorations Stage
A burger flipper at Macca's earns more than it costs to develop software. Geoffrey Huntley shares a cold, stark look at what AI is doing to the unit economics of business — what moats still matter, what's been permanently erased, and why the question is no longer whether things will change, but whether you're ready.

Geoffrey Huntley

Inventor, Engineer & Investor at Ralph Wiggum Loop

Geoffrey is the creator of the world famous Ralph Wiggum Loop, which recently broke a bunch of VC funds.

Cameron Ensor, Neil Reitmann & Luca Miln (Lucky Sauna Hats): We Accidentally Bought 20,000 Sauna Hats

Cameron Ensor, Niel Reitmann, Luca Milne

Explorations Stage

Cameron Ensor, Neil Reitmann & Luca Miln (Lucky Sauna Hats): We Accidentally Bought 20,000 Sauna Hats

Explorations Stage
Three Sydney mates spotted five boxes of sauna hats on Facebook Marketplace and thought they'd have a crack at selling them. They turned up to collect - and found five pallets. 20,000 hats. So they launched a business from their apartment, and ended up on the Today Show.

Cameron Ensor

Co-Founder at Lucky Sauna Hats

Cam is building multiple startups, including an AI design tool for architects and ecommerce brands like Lucky Sauna Hats, after helping launch student tech programs at Hall and Startmate.

Niel Reitmann

Growth at Eucalyptus

Niel leads growth at Eucalyptus and Lucky Sauna Hats. Previously worked at Startmate, Atlassian, and EntryLevel.

Luca Milne

Luca used to build tech, now selling sauna hats out of his apartment.

Alby Churven (Clovr): From Roblox to Production-Ready Front End (Lightnight Talk)

Alby Churven

Explorations Stage

Alby Churven (Clovr): From Roblox to Production-Ready Front End (Lightnight Talk)

Explorations Stage
Alby Churven is 14 years old, from Wollongong, and already on his third startup. His latest, Clovr, turns ideas into production-ready frontend - no mockups, no no-code limitations, just real shippable product. A reminder that the next generation of builders isn't waiting for permission.

Alby Churven

Co-founder & CEO at Clovr

Alby is a 14-year-old founder and CEO of Clovr, building AI tools for developers, and the youngest ever to interview for Y Combinator.

Tegan Lerm & Lizzie Hedding (Project Planet): Turning Dreams into Collective Action (Lightning Talk)

Tegan Lerm, Lizzie Hedding

Explorations Stage

Tegan Lerm & Lizzie Hedding (Project Planet): Turning Dreams into Collective Action (Lightning Talk)

Explorations Stage
A year ago, Tegan and Lizzie had almost no funding and a stubborn belief they could change how Australians engage with elections. That belief became Build a Ballot - used by nearly 600,000 people ahead of the 2025 federal election. This is the story of what happens when you dream bigger than we're taught to and then do the work to make it real.

Tegan Lerm

CEO at Project Planet

Tegan Lerm is a climate activist and CEO of Project Planet, building civic tools that help people participate in climate action and democratic change

Lizzie Hedding

Co-founder & Creative Director at Project Planet

Lizzie is Creative Director of Tilt Studio and co-founder of Project Planet, helping build movements like Build a Ballot, used by 600,000 Australians

Sonia Kaurah (Tala Thrive): What Happens When Therapy Wasn't Built for You (Lightning Talk)

Sonia Kaurah

Explorations Stage

Sonia Kaurah (Tala Thrive): What Happens When Therapy Wasn't Built for You (Lightning Talk)

Explorations Stage
Sonia Kaurah founded Tala Thrive to make culturally competent mental health care a global standard, not a luxury. This is a founders story of building something deeply personal into something the world genuinely needs.

Sonia Kaurah

Founder & CEO at Tala Thrive

Sonia is the Founder & CEO of Tala Thrive, a global mental health platform delivering culturally competent care, shaped by her background in psychology, venture capital, and entrepreneurship.

Hon Weng Chong (Cortical Labs): We Taught Human Brain Cells to Play Doom (Lightning Talk)

Hon Wen Chong

Explorations Stage

Hon Weng Chong (Cortical Labs): We Taught Human Brain Cells to Play Doom (Lightning Talk)

Explorations Stage
200,000 human neurons. A glass chip. And a 1993 shooter called Doom. Hon Weng Chong's Melbourne lab built the world's first biological computer — running on living human tissue, consuming a fraction of the energy of traditional AI, and already shipping to researchers around the world. The future of computing is alive

Hon Wen Chong

Founder at Cortical Labs

Physician turned founder. Co-founder of Cortical Labs — building the world's first biological computers on living human neurons.

What's on at Sunrise

Networking
Find your people. Build lasting relationships.
Visions Stage
Groundbreaking keynotes and big ideas from visionary.
Explorations Stage
Explore new ideas, tricks, and skill sets to level up.
Matchmaking
Book meetings with our AI-powered matchmaking app.
Sunset Afterparty
Where Sunrise transforms from inspiration into celebration.
Community Meetups
Free space for community groups to gather and connect. Applications open.
Side Events
A $10K grant to support your Sunrise side events.
Catering
Fully catered lunch, coffee, snacks and refreshments.

Sunrise is where the startup community comes to dream big.

Here, you will meet new people, be inspired, and learn new things. Join us.

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Sponsors

Sunrise is made possible thanks to the support of our Sponsors and Community Partners.

Become a sponsor

FAQs

Can I sponsor Sunrise?

Each Sunrise, we work with a small group of partners who are as committed as we are in creating an extraordinary event. We're deliberately pretty picky about who we work with, but if you work with a company that wants to champion startups and the people building them, then flick us an email at sunrise@blackbird.vc and we can chat there.

When and where is Sunrise Australia 2026?

Sunrise Australia 2026 returns to Sydney on 30 April at Carriageworks - 245 Wilson St, Eveleigh, NSW, Australia.

When will the full program be announced?

We have a number of new speaker drops in the lead-up to Sunrise. The full program and schedule will be released in early April.

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