VDU 2026: Partner Reflections

Venture Down Under brings together leaders from across the venture ecosystem to connect, exchange ideas and explore what is shaping the future of the industry. Following VDU 2026, partners Sophie Blythe from HSBC Innovation Banking and Paul Tontodonati from Platform Advisory Partners shared their reflections and key takeaways from the event.

Sophie Blythe, Director, HSBC Innovation Banking

Venture Down Under (VDU) brought together 170+ venture leaders from across Australia and New Zealand and, importantly, a growing international cohort. HSBC Innovation Banking (IVB) was also proud to be continuing our longstanding partnership with Innovation Bay as this year’s Platinum Sponsor, marking the one year anniversary since launching IVB.

This was my first VDU, and as a relative newbie to the Trans-Tasman venture ecosystem, I was welcomed with open arms by veterans of the community who have spent decades building this ecosystem. Having worked across many countries, I quickly realised the genuine collaborative instinct here is quite distinct. It’s a young ecosystem but there’s a shared belief that a rising tide lifts all boats, and VDU has been deliberately designed to create the kind of constructive challenge and debate that elevates the ecosystem as a whole.

There was an international thread that ran through almost every conversation – building from Australia & New Zealand for global markets, with global capital and global ambition.

On AI, beyond the collective aversion to “AI slop”, the conversation centred on AI as an accelerant: commercialising inventions faster, stretching TAMs towards the unbounded, and reshaping a founder archetype that’s getting noticeably younger.

My colleague Jonathan Yip, HSBC Head of Innovation Banking for Asia highlighted that the current wave of innovation is more infrastructural and institutional than the last, and that’s where Australia and New Zealand have an edge. Aussie and Kiwi founders should lean into the inherent advantages here: world-leading research and universities; a proven history of building companies that matter globally; capital efficient founders and standout talent. The Trans-Tasman innovation really is world-class. Associate Professor Michelle Hill walked us through ProSeek Bio’s game-changing ovarian cancer blood test; the current diagnostic pathway is surgical removal of the ovary, and 50–80% of those ovaries turn out to be cancer-free – a tangible example of the kind of globally meaningful outcomes this ecosystem can produce.

My biggest takeaway for futureproofing our ecosystem is cultural. As our capital base becomes increasingly global, the story we tell needs to land in international markets. The ‘quiet achiever’ reflex needs to go. In the US, failing well carries value and gets rewarded, the opposite is true here. We should be bolder and more explicit about both our successes and our learnings, including the hard ones.

And lastly, the costumes…! As next year marks the tenth VDU, I’ve no doubt the fancy dress will be off the charts.

Paul Tontodonati, Founder & Director, Platform Advisory Partners

VDU is always a great opportunity to connect with people across the industry in a relaxed setting away from the boardroom. It creates space to catch up with familiar faces, meet new people and, importantly, have deeper conversations about what is happening across the ecosystem and what may be coming next.

This year was particularly interesting given the pace of AI disruption and the mix of challenges and opportunities it is creating. We really valued hearing different perspectives on investment, exits, company building, governance and how businesses are adapting their operations for the next phase of growth.

The social setting, energy and enthusiasm throughout the event make VDU a particularly enjoyable few days. This was Platform’s third year attending, and we look forward to being back again next year.

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