For Founders

Finally, you’ve found your people.

Our Founder community supports exceptional tech founders, entrepreneurs, CEOs and leaders building, scaling and leading technology companies across Australia and New Zealand.

Read about us in Forbes Australia.

Built for Founders at Every Stage

We have built a supportive Founder community that embrace both startup success and founder well-being.

Our members are building businesses at every stage of the journey, from first-time founders finding their footing to like-minded entrepreneurs building global, future-changing businesses. By bringing together people on similar paths, alongside those who’ve already navigated them, we create an environment where knowledge is shared, challenges are understood and rapid growth is cultivated.

We curate exceptional events and safe spaces where founders discuss their challenges, celebrate their successes and explore the limits of their personal growth.

We empower tech founders to not only survive but thrive together.

Apply to pitch to our investor community

For 20 years, we’ve been providing a platform for entrepreneurs to learn, raise capital, network, and collaborate.

Tap into the connections and capital of our investor community. We encourage all startups to apply for rolling sector-agnostic opportunities.

You do not need to be a member of Innovation Bay to pitch at our upcoming investor events.

Upcoming Events

The Founder Experience

Our Founder sessions, retreats, small group meet ups and expeditions are anchored in our members. Through quality content and exceptional experience, we provide a diverse, highly confidential, curated environment that creates trusted connections and allows founders to feel like they aren’t in it alone.

Peer driven knowledge

Sharing experiences and not advice is at the heart of Founder. We vet founders and place them amongst 8-10 others in forum groups.

Lifelong relationships

We build a safe place for founders to feel comfortable sharing openly. We create an environment for founders to feel comfortable sharing their own experiences.

Unique experiences

We craft a yearly calendar of events, facilitating unique and immersive experiences built around the needs of seed stage founders to accelerate your success.

“I have really enjoyed our clan sessions and getting to know the community. As a solo founder, it has been amazing to be surrounded by other founders who have all this amazing knowledge and connections, just what I need at the moment.”

– Kym Hunter | Founder of Champion Life

“From early in our startup journey, Innovation Bay has been an important part of our growth. Through two investment rounds, we have secured the majority of our investors through the IB community, and it has been an invaluable source of guidance and direction for us from more experienced founders. Founding a startup can be pretty lonely at times, and being a community like Founder for seed stage startup founders is a no-brainer and long overdue.“

– James Baker | Co-Founder of Varicon

“Joining Founder is one of the best decisions I have made. It is an open and growth oriented environment, where you can talk deeply with entrepreneurs who are going on a similar journey. There are so many lessons, regardless of specific tech niche you are in, that everyone faces when trying to scale a tech business, and Founder allows you to dive into these with fellow entrepreneurs you can trust as they have no agenda apart from sharing and learning together.”

– James Ferguson | Immutable

Exceptional experiences

Founder hosts events for shared experiences, challenging points-of-view and unlocking new insights on old perspectives. They are known to be unique, whimsical, and a whole lot of fun!

Surround yourself with other top early stage founders in Australia. Get answers to your questions sooner, hear how others have navigated similar challenges in their journey, and celebrate your milestones with others who truly ‘get it’. We are rooting for your success and are always on the lookout for connections and opportunities that will propel you towards growth.

“It is the trusted secure environment that allows for vulnerability and challenging conversations that you can’t share with others, plus all delivered with great humour, casualness, and care of the whole person.”

– Emma Lo Russo | DIGIVIZER

Founder Advisory Board

The diverse voices of the advisory board will play a critical role in guiding Innovation Bay’s founder community, with ultimate goal of leveraging the collective expertise of our most innovative and engaged founders. Their roles will include providing strategic advice, giving feedback on community initiatives, and influencing the direction of the community.