Terry Hilsberg is a venture investor whose career spans the earliest days of Australia's startup ecosystem. When he spoke to Day One in 2022 he was a co-owner and partner of Fork Ventures, an Australian firm that invests in decentralised networks and digital assets, and a venture partner with InnoHub Capital, a China-based innovation acceleration organisation.
After starting out as a pilot, he became an economic official in the Commonwealth Government in the late 1970s. From 1983 he oversaw the Hawke government's subsidies for research and development and for venture capital, and in 1987 he left to become a partner in Melbourne venture firm CP Ventures.
On The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem, he described how the first wave of Australian startups and venture capital took shape in the late 1970s and 1980s.
3 episodes
Start hereTerry Hilsberg discusses the earliest days of the startup ecosystemHis own interview, a first-hand account of the 1980s government R&D and venture capital subsidies he administered and Australia's first VC firms.
Documentary: The History Of The Australian Startup Ecosystem With Mark Pesce, Hayden Williams, Evan Thornley, Tim Fung, Trevor Folsom, Peter Davison, Pete Lead, Matt Bullock, Allan O'Connor, Rachael Neumann, Maxine Sherrin, Malcolm Turnbull, James Alexander, Alan Jones, Paul Bassat, Hamish Hawthorn, Alfred Lo, Phil Hayes-St Clair, Cameron Adams, Bruce Tulloch, Matt Barrie, Kate Cornick
Documentary: The History Of The Australian Startup Ecosystem With Michael Batko, Wayne Gerard, Petr Adámek, Peter Devine, Rohit Bhargava, Peter Bradd, Zrinka Tokic, Rachael Neumann, Zoe Piper, Susan Oliver, Silvia Pfeiffer, Murray Hurps, Rachel Yang, Yolanda Redrup, Peta Ellis, Sarah Pearson, Niki Scevak, Colin Kinner, Mark Pesce, Colette Grgic, Ian Gardiner, Lauren Capelin, Matt Barrie, Melissa Widner, Cameron Adams, Georgie Turner, Baden U'Ren, Evan Thornley, Alan Noble, Kate Jones, Kate Cornick, James Alexander, Dharmica Mistry, Emily Rich, Lars Rasmussen
The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series Key moments from Terry Hilsberg discusses the earliest days of the startup ecosystem.
“There are very few startups you can do just in the Australian market that can achieve global scale.”
Partner · Fork Ventures
Venture Partner · InnoHub Capital
Partner · CP Ventures
Government official overseeing R&D and venture capital subsidies · Commonwealth Government of Australia
Sources: dayone.fm
Fork Ventures is an Australian investment firm that backs decentralised networks and digital asset projects, usually at an early stage.
1 person · 3 episodes
Adam SpencerHost, Documentary: The History Of The Australian Startup Ecosystem 
Mark PesceFuturist & Host, The Next Billion Seconds 
Hayden WilliamsGroup Product Manager, MYOB 
Evan ThornleyCo-Founder & CEO, LongView 
Tim FungFounder & CEO, Airtasker 
Trevor FolsomCo-Founder and Chairman, Investible 
Peter DavisonCo-founder, Fishburners 
Pete LeadCoach, Scalable Leaders Spot something wrong? Suggest a correctionUpdated 29 October 2026
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