Episode Summary:
Aaron Birkby is the co-founder of The Unconventional Group, and has over two decades experience working as a founder, advisor, board member, investor and facilitator in the Australian startup ecosystem. He has worked in a variety of roles building and supporting technology startups to grow into global companies, including as CEO of Startup Catalyst, and Entrepreneur In Residence at Queensland University of Technology, James Cook University and Split Spaces. In his conversation with Adam, Aaron discusses how the Queensland startup ecosystem has evolved over the past couple of decades, and what he sees as gaps in the Australian startup ecosystem.
Chapters:
00:00 Introduction to Day One Podcast
00:24 Meet Aaron Birkby
00:31 Overview of The Unconventional Group
01:06 The Biggest Gap in the Australian Ecosystem
02:18 Aaron's Experience with Telstra's Innovation Programs
04:10 Aaron's Journey into the Startup Ecosystem
05:27 The Evolution of Queensland's Startup Landscape
08:55 Unique Aspects of Queensland Startups
11:06 Are We on the Right Track?
13:42 Rowing in the Same Direction
14:41 Influential Entrepreneurs and Founders
16:31 Advice for New Founders
18:01 Changing the Narrative Around Australian Startups