Participated · Seed · Sep 2023

Mentra builds an AI-powered neuroinclusive employment platform that parses job descriptions and matches candidates to roles based on neurotype, aptitude and environmental sensitivities. The Charlotte, North Carolina–based startup was launched in 2022 by three autistic co-founders led by CEO Jhillika Kumar. Its talent pool has grown from 300 jobseekers in March 2022 to over 33,000 today, and the platform has signed over a dozen companies and partnered with 30+ universities and 200+ service providers. Mentra reports a one-year retention rate of 97.5% and says over 70% of its data is not collected by traditional job platforms. The company transitioned from a services per-hire model to a scalable SaaS offering earlier this year, with 67% of that new SaaS revenue being annual recurring revenue and an internal goal to hit $3 million in SaaS ARR by the end of 2024. Mentra is also building a neuroinclusion marketplace for service providers and plans a future marketplace of tailored services for neurodivergent workers such as bootcamps and job coaches.

Led · Equity · Jul 2022

WeMoney operates in the Australian open banking sector and is focused on capitalising on expansion opportunities. The company aims to improve its position within the Australian Open Banking landscape. It secured USD 3 million in a fundraising round led by existing investors. The announcement references prior financings, including USD 7 million in June 2022 and a USD 2 million seed raise in 2020. The funds are intended to support the company’s expansion and positioning in Australia’s open banking market. WeMoney is a financial-wellness platform and app focused on helping users — particularly Gen Z and Millennials — gain a deeper understanding of their finances and get better loan and mortgage deals. The app was accredited as an Authorised Data Recipient under Australia’s Consumer Data Right, enabling members to connect bank accounts from accredited providers for deeper insights. Since launching in October 2020 the app has amassed over 285,000 downloads, and member numbers and revenue have grown more than 30% month-on-month. The company has formed partnerships with 52 companies, including CoinSpot, OurMoneyMarket and Athena Home Loans. WeMoney entered the New Zealand market in December 2021 and has a longer-term goal to enter other global markets, including North America. Management says new capital will be used to expand the product and significantly invest in streamlining the platform. WeMoney is a financial health and wellbeing platform that helps young working Australians understand and manage their money using behavioural science and AI. The product lets users track bills and recurring payments, understand savings, monitor income and view credit scores to provide a complete picture of financial health. The company emphasizes a community approach that connects users with shared goals to improve money management. WeMoney wrote its first line of code in October 2019 and launched its site in February; user acquisition grew after the initial COVID shock to roughly 200 new users per day. The startup closed an oversubscribed $2M raise during the COVID outbreak to invest in its team and to develop technology, integrations and partnerships. CEO Dan Jovevski previously founded SwitchMyLoan, which was acquired in 2017.

Participated · Seed · Jun 2022

mpathic is a leader in AI-powered actionable conversation analytics specializing in healthcare, life sciences, and client services. Its conversational analytics platform leverages natural language processing and generative AI to detect and correct cultural attunement issues in real time during provider–patient interactions. The company was awarded an NIH SBIR Phase I grant to develop the project titled "Empathy for Everyone: Generative AI that Improves Patient-Provider Cultural Attunement in Real Time," aimed at addressing racial bias in mental healthcare AI. mpathic is partnering with Wave to build a diverse, representative dataset for model training, drawing on Wave's focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion. A team of psychologists and researchers from mpathic and Wave, including Alison Cerezo, Grin Lord, Amber Jolley-Paige, Jay Palat, Tad Hirsch, Sarah Adler, and Alison Pickover, will execute the project. The initiative aims to reduce disparities in mental healthcare by improving cultural attunement, increasing retention and therapeutic outcomes for minority patients. mpathic builds enterprise software that analyzes conversations across texts, emails, audio calls and other channels to help employees detect potential misunderstandings and adjust communication in real time. The product targets use cases in customer service, insurance claims, healthcare and human resources—'anywhere where empathic conversations impact key outcomes.' CEO and co-founder Grin Lord, a trained psychologist, has described mpathic as 'Grammarly for empathy.' The company was founded in 2021 and is based in the Seattle area. mpathic has 12 employees. Financially, the company has raised $4 million in a recent seed round and $5.2 million in total to date.

Participated · Series C · Jun 2021

Sendle provides simple, affordable and reliable shipping for small businesses, offering flat-rate labels, scheduled pickups, and integrations with platforms like Etsy, eBay, Shopify, Squarespace and WooCommerce. The company positions itself as the first 100% carbon-neutral shipping carrier in the U.S. and Australia and is a certified B‑Corporation. Founded in 2015, Sendle has grown rapidly and recorded more than 800,000 users globally, with U.S. small-business package volumes increasing more than tenfold in 2020. It has pursued product innovations and strategic partnerships to democratize access to large-scale logistics for smaller merchants. Sendle plans to expand further in the U.S. by building out a network of logistics, delivery, and technology partners to reshape package delivery for small businesses and early-stage startups. The company emphasizes affordability and no hidden fees or subscriptions to help small sellers compete in e-commerce. Sendle is a Sydney-based courier service that offers carbon-neutral, flat-rate shipping for small businesses and is a certified B Corp. Small businesses can quote, book, and track parcels from any device. Led by CEO and co-founder James Chin Moody, Sendle has announced partnerships with Bonds Couriers to launch a solar-powered delivery fleet, with Shopify to power Shopify Shipping in Australia, and an integration with Etsy. The company reported six months of rapid growth and partner innovation prior to the funding. Sendle raised AUD$19m in funding and intends to use the proceeds to expand its Australian and US markets. The funding round was led by King River Capital with participation from Alberts Impact Capital, Marinya Capital, Federation, Rampersand, Full Circle Venture Capital and NRMA Insurance. Sendle operates a courier service focused on offering small businesses access to large-scale delivery infrastructure while competing with incumbents such as Australia Post and several startup rivals. The company has emphasized environmental credentials, launching 100 percent compostable satchel bags and partnering with South Pole Group to offset emissions, making its deliveries carbon neutral. Sendle reports its customer base grew by over 600 percent in the past two years. The business plans to use new funding for product launches, partnerships and exploration of international markets. The company recently appointed Eva Ross, formerly head of Asia Pacific marketing operations and strategy at Airbnb, as chief marketing officer. Sendle was launched in 2014. Sendle is an Australian door-to-door parcel delivery service that offers booking, delivery management and customer communication tools in one place. The company focuses on the business-to-business market and competes on service and price. Sendle has shown strong traction, reporting 20% month-on-month growth over the last year. The startup plans rapid expansion and further development of its technology platform. The recent funding is intended to support those expansion plans and continued product development. Sendle aims to provide a competitive, end-to-end parcel-sending experience for businesses. Sendle is an Australian parcel-delivery startup that launched in November last year. It provides an online booking system intended to offer a more frictionless delivery service compared with traditional options such as Australia Post. The company raised $1.8 million in seed funding to expand its customer reach and create runway for the next 12 months. The round was led by existing investor NRMA alongside high-net individuals. Co-founder James Moody said the funding gives the startup 'some good runway' and that the team is focused on building the platform and increasing support capacity.

Participated · Series B · Oct 2019

Valiant Finance is an Australian business loan marketplace and comparison engine that connects business owners to over 75 online SME loan providers. The platform partners with banks and broker networks including Westpac, Connective and Yellow Brick Road Group and offers a streamlined application process from inquiry to settlement. Valiant intelligently selects the best lending option for customers and builds a unique digital application for that product in real time, even when the end lender has limited digital capability. The company plans to use the $12.5 million Series B to accelerate its product roadmap, expand partnerships, and broaden its SME product offerings, including point-of-sale finance for equipment dealerships. Valiant is also developing collaboration and machine-learning features for accountants and point-of-sale vendors. The funding is intended to strengthen Valiant's position in small-business lending and support future institutional partnerships. Valiant Finance is an online SME lending marketplace that matches small businesses with lending partners through an algorithm and emphasizes "unprecedented transparency." The platform officially launched in November last year and has since partnered with 26 lenders. The company intends to use its marketplace to put business loan options in front of more Australian small businesses. Valiant closed an $800,000 seed funding round to support that expansion. The round was led by Westpac's VC fund Reinventure and supported by H2 Ventures and several angel investors. Co-founder Alex Molloy said he cast a wide net for funding and chose Reinventure as the lead.