Four Aussie startups that raised $2.86 billion this week (sort of)

If you thought last fortnight’s bumper funding round-up was impressive, wait till you read about the four Aussie startups that have raised a massive $2.86 billion (yes, with a ‘b’), led by Firmus Technologies’ blockbuster $2.85 billion funding round.

Keep reading to learn more about Firmus Technologies, Eudaemon Technologies, Zabidou and Rampart.

Firmus Technologies: $2.85 billion

Firmus, the Australian-born AI data centre infrastructure startup with ASX ambitions, is now valued at a staggering $15 billion (US$10.5 billion) after raising an additional US$2 billion (AU$2.85 billion) for the national rollout of its $73 billion Project Southgate

The round was backed by existing investors Coatue and Nvidia, plus new equity from funds managed by Blackstone Tactical Opportunities and other Blackstone vehicles, with additional participation from US quant trading firm Jane Street.

The total raised by the Singapore-based business now tops US$3 billion (AU$4.25 billion) in just 12 months, adding another $3 billion to the company’s valuation since it began touting an IPO on the ASX at a $12 billion valuation earlier this year.

Astonishingly, it was only worth $1.85 billion in September 2025 when US chip giant Nvidia backed a $330 million raise to build a data centre in Tasmania. That project has since expanded to three data centres on the Apple Isle.

Its previous raise was US$505 million (AU$725 million) at an $8 billion valuation in April, just weeks after Firmus raised $100 million at a $6 billion valuation.

Other investors include Phil King’s Regal Funds Management, Archibald Capital and Tectonic Investment Management, Melbourne billionaires Alex Waislitz and the Pratt family, and Ellerston Capital.

Eudaemon Technologies: $3.75 million

Australian medtech startup Eudaemon Technologies has secured $3.75 million in new funding to help it bring to market what it claims is the world’s first hydrogel condom.

The Sydney-based company, which was founded in 2018 by Nick Northcott and Dr Simon Cook, has now raised a total of $19 million and is in the final stage of product development for its proprietary hydrogel technology, which it hopes will address the global public health challenge of inconsistent condom use.

The latest funding comes from cornerstone investor Swinburne Ventures Limited, the venture capital arm ofSwinburne University of Technology, as well as prominent Australian family offices and high-net-worthinvestors.

Eudaemon will now move to undertake clinical trials and secure international regulatory approvals for its condoms, which are designed to more closely mimic the properties of human tissue than condoms made from latex or synthetic plastics.

Research and development for the company’s hydrogel technology first began over a decade ago, as part of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s Grand Challenges initiative, which sought to develop a next-generation condom that could increase uptake and improve sexual health outcomes across the globe.

“Breakthroughs get the headlines, but it’s the years of unglamorous product-development grind that turn a discovery into something you can actually make and sell,” said co-founder and executive chairman Nick Northcott in a statement.

“That’s the work this round backs. We’ve proven the material, and now we’re finishing the manufacturing design and the science needed to produce it reliably, at medical-device standard and at scale.”

Manufacturing startup Zabidou has locked in $3.5 million in seed funding as it rolls out technology to help factory operators assess the quality of their output.

Zabidou was founded in July 2025 by Cibby Pulikkaseril, who was one half of the founding team of deep tech startup Baraja. Once valued as high as $300 million in 2021, Baraja attracted millions in funding for its LiDAR tech for autonomous vehicles; however, by 2024, some of its investors had dramatically written down its value.

According to Forbes Australia, Pulikkaseril is once again building a tech company with lasers, but this time the lasers are combined with cameras to create a form of “robotic quality assurance” for the manufacturing sector.

Zabidou’s products are reportedly being used by six customers across 15 sites, including in the construction sector and pet food manufacturing. The system can be placed at the end of an assembly line, for example, to check the end products are to spec.

The startup’s latest funding round was led by Black Nova, Main Sequence and Antler, and follows a previous $1.3 million pre-seed round.

Media startup Rampart has raised $2.3 million from five high-profile investors, in a funding round that values the company at close to $29 million.

According to The Australian Financial Review (AFR), Rampart founder Joe Aston now holds 92% of the business publication following the capital raise.

The investors backing Rampart include Ashok Jacob, executive chair of Ellerston Capital; David Gyngell, former CEO of Nine Entertainment; Doug Tynan, investment chief at GCQ Funds Management; Ceres Capital director Sam Brougham; and retired neurosurgeon Michael Morgan and his wife Elizabeth.

Aston is the former editor of the AFR’s Rear Window column and author of a book about Qantas called The Chairman’s Lounge.

He founded Rampart in early 2025 after leading the AFR in October 2023.

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