Pupil-founded and centered NextGen Ventures has secured $1.5 million in commitments because it appears to lift $2.5 million VC fund, with Blackbird founding companions Niki Scevak and Rick Baker amongst these chipping in.
The fund is the brainchild of Monash College alumni Mitchell Hughes, 23, and former College of Melbourne biomedicine scholar Jerry X’Lingson, 22, who met at Startmate.
They’ve spend the final 12 months growing the concept and kicked off their capital chase in December, securing 60% of their goal with hopes for the final $1 million by the top of 2025.
Additionally backing them are Airtree Ventures, Melbourne uni entrepreneur Andrew J. Nash, and a number of other angel traders
NextGen has already made its first investments, together with AI course of platform, Fluency, based by Swinburne graduate Oliver Farnill and RMIT scholar Finnlay Morcombe.
The VC’s cheque dimension is round $70,000 – so round 36 startups with the fund – with a desire to be the primary investor.
“Our ambition is to construct a generational enterprise agency that strengthens the grassroots of our ecosystem. The cultural shift we’re striving for isn’t only for our era — it’s meant to resonate by means of each era to return,” stated X’Lingson.
“Australia’s proficient youth are genuinely able to tackle the worldwide stage. The ball is in our court docket to assist get them there.”
X’Lingson level to knowledge that reveals 90 Australian student-founded, VC-backed startups have collectively raised $1.2 billion since 2012, together with Atlassian and blockchain unicorn Immutable, but solely 8% of VCs consider the business understands the funding wants of scholar founders.
“For the final decade, the ambitions of numerous younger Australians have been suppressed. So that they quietly flee to Silicon Valley not only for the capital, however for its unapologetic tradition of pursuing what one cares about,” he stated.
“It’s time to develop our personal tradition that encourages fearless ambition on the grassroots, and it begins by rising a backyard of tall poppies.”
Hughes stated student-focused VC funds aren’t new, with Dorm Room Fund within the US, which has been round for a decade and backed greater than 200 scholar startups.
“In 2023, I visited SF, London, and Tel Aviv and noticed first-hand how significantly these ecosystems take younger founders,” he stated.
“I got here again impressed to adapt that confirmed mannequin for Australia. Finally, making our grassroots one the place bold youth dream to construct, and to generate world-class returns alongside the way in which.”
NextGen now with 20 scholar scouts throughout seven Australian universities on the lookout for concepts to again.
Airtree cofounder Craig Blair stated the duo are “tapping into one thing particular” and their proximity to scholar founders “means they’re discovering uncooked ambition and breakthrough concepts earlier than anybody else”.
“The subsequent unicorn may very well be sitting in a college library proper now — and NextGen would be the first to search out them,” he stated.
“We consider this grassroots strategy is the place a brand new wave of generational corporations might come from.”
