Startup Battlefield is returning to Australia – here’s what happened the last time we came to Sydney

In November 2017, TechCrunch brought Startup Battlefield to Australia for the first time. Fifteen startups from across Australia and New Zealand took to the stage in Sydney, pitched in front of investors and judges, and competed for a shot at the world stage.

It was one day. One stage. And what happened next is exactly why we keep coming back.

Sydney, August 19, 2026

On August 19, Startup Battlefield returns to Sydney in partnership with Stripe, one of the world’s most popular technology companies. We take the Stripe Tour Sydney on a night the Australian ecosystem will never forget. Ten selected companies will pitch live in front of high-profile investors, global media, and the best of Australia’s tech community. The top three will win up to $10,000 in Stripe payment credits. The big winner walks away with something even bigger: automatic entry into the Startup Battlefield 200 at TechCrunch Disrupt in San Francisco this October – no application required, no contest. It’s just a guaranteed spot on the world’s premier stage.

But this is not just an event of 10 companies throwing. This is the moment for the entire Australian ecosystem – the founders, investors, operators, and builders who have been quietly doing world-class work from the other side of the world. We want every ambitious innovator in the room, whether you’re on stage or in the audience, because this is the kind of night that reminds you why you started.

Find out who should apply and more information about the Stripe x Startup Battlefield here.

What’s going on here?

Don’t just take our word for it. Here’s what came out of one day in Sydney in 2017.

The winner was a global health technology platform

Manuri Gunawardena was a final year medical student when he founded HealthMatch – a machine learning platform that matches patients with clinical trials. He won. That victory turned into more than $25 million raised, US expansion, and more than a million patients worldwide, backed by Square Peg Capital and SEEK co-founder Paul Bassat.

The runner-up is building a global agtech company

Runner-up FluroSat used hyperspectral imagery to help farmers reduce waste. The Startup Battlefield stage gave the company its first real exposure. A Microsoft M12 seed round followed, then a merger to form Regrow Agriculture – now with over $60 million raised and backed by Microsoft, Airtree, and Cargill.

Together, the winner and runner-up from one day in Sydney have raised more than $85 million. That’s what happens when you create a platform and invite the right people to it.

A wide class of 2017

For 26 Australian Battlefield students, funding raised exceeds $147 million, with three successful acquisitions. They are backed by Y Combinator, Blackbird Ventures, Square Peg, Khosla Ventures, Microsoft, Airtree, Startmate, Techstars, and SOSV. CancerAid went on to become Osara Health. Life Whisperer partners with fertility clinics around the world.

These were companies the world had never heard of before they stood in a room in Sydney and made their case. That’s what Startup Battlefield does. It discovers companies before the world knows their names.

Ready to make history?

We’re looking for the next HealthMatch. Next Regrow. The next company no one has heard of, builds something important.

Applications are now open July 6.

Apply now for Stripe x Startup Battlefield Australia 2026. It’s free to apply. No equity was taken. Personal event in Sydney, August 19, 2026.