Community connections: the first events of 2025

Our 2025 event calendar is officially underway! Last week, we kicked off the year doing what we love most – bringing people together – with a packed lineup of 7 events across 2 cities in just 3 days 😮‍💨🥵

11 Feb – Aurora (VCs) Curated Lunch | For funds with $150M+ FUM
hosted by ASX | Sydney
Not only our first event of the year this was also Ryan’s first event as Aurora Community Manager. A big thank you to ASX for hosting us.

12 Feb – Aurora (VCs) Curated Lunch | For first-time funds and those with under $150M FUM
hosted by Halkin Global | Sydney
Conversation explored some of the biggest trends shaping the investment landscape:

🔹 Trump’s Impact – With Trump’s tech and crypto-friendly stance, we discussed how his leadership could influence markets, policy, and investment opportunities in unconventional ways.
🔹 AI & DeepSeek – As AI advancements like DeepSeek continue to evolve, we examined their long-term market effects through the lens of Jevons’ Paradox—where increased efficiency leads to greater consumption.
🔹 Market Liquidity – Liquidity remains a crucial factor in investment strategy. We took a deep dive into current market conditions and what they mean for investors navigating today’s environment.
🔹 Portfolio Health – A look at how portfolios are performing in the current climate, with insights on potential adjustments to optimize resilience and returns.
🔹 LP Outlook – With small funds facing challenges in raising capital, we explored the shifting dynamics in venture capital and private equity, and what this means for fund managers and investors.

It was an insightful discussion, bringing together sharp minds to share perspectives and strategies for the road ahead.

12 Feb – Canopy (Early-Stage Founders) Lunch | Melbourne
Our early stage founders from Melbourne met for a lunch and learn sessions moderated by Senior Community Manager, Beata. ‘Love is in the Air’ was a very timely theme with Valentine’s day just around the corner.

Love in this scenario referred to something extra important for founders: customer attraction and retention. The group dived into conversations around attracting and onboarding customers, keeping customers engaged and loyal, and how to deal with churn and win back customers over a delicious lunch.

First Round Drinks | All communities | Melbourne
We regularly host First Round Drinks which is an opportunity for all Innovation Bay members to come together and connect over drinks and nibbles. Our first event of the series was held in Melbourne and saw 30+ current and prospective members across our founder, angel, and VC communities come together.

13 Feb – Summit (Later-Stage Founders) Member Dinner | Melbourne
An intimate and exclusive dinner with a small group of our Melbourne based founders. While we often host large scale events we love the depth of conversation and value sharing that can happen with a smaller group.

13 Feb – Horizon (Angel Investors) Digital Assets Inner Circle | Melbourne
A group of 14 of our Angel Investors joined us for dinner in Melbourne. Horizon member Anthony and Kyall led some really diverse and interesting discussions including re real world implications of digital assets v AI, how the unfolding current macroeconomic environment may change the ecosystem, as well as what investors should be looking for in order to separate noise from signal when it comes to investing in crypto.

Aurora (VCs) Location Dinner | Melbourne

These events are exclusively for Innovation Bay’s members. Want to explore membership? Apply to join here

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