StartupHaus Sydney · Nov 2026: Where Australia’s Top Founders, VCs & Startup Operators Meet

New: The LiveHaus Anthem

We wrote our own song for Season 5. Press play on your way in: Watch the LiveHaus Anthem on LinkedIn

StartupHaus Sydney at a Glance

• Date: Wednesday 11 November 2026

• Time: 5:30 pm to 9:30 pm AEDT

• Venue: AWS Sydney Office, 2/26 Park St, Sydney NSW 2000, Australia

• Who it is for: founders, early operators, investors and ecosystem builders

• Format: A keynote, 2 panels, founder pitches and food and drinks

• Tickets: Paid, limited and curated. Please have your ticket ready at check-in.

Why Attend StartupHaus 2026

StartupHaus is where Australia’s founders, operators, investors, and venture ecosystem collide.
A high-energy after-work gathering for the people building what’s next — from seed-stage to scale-up.

Whether you’re a founder, early-stage operator, VC partner, angel investor, or ecosystem builder, this is your room to learn, connect, pitch, and grow.

What You’ll Gain

• Founder-to-founder insights on traction, GTM, fundraising, product velocity, and real execution.

• Investor access without the awkwardness – curated intros to VCs, angels, accelerators & ecosystem leaders.

• Raw, tactical stories from founders who’ve shipped, scaled, failed, rebuilt, and won.

• A premium after-work atmosphere with DJ, drinks, food, and momentum-charged storytelling.

Event Agenda

5:30 – 6:00 PM | Founder Drinks + Curated Networking
Meet the right people; not just the closest ones.

6:00 – 6:05 PM | LiveHaus Welcome
Setting the energy and intention for the night.

6:05 – 6:15 PM | Keynote by Bluebird

Featuring:

• James Bergl, Founder & Partner, Bluebird

6:20 – 7:00 PM | Panel 1: Founder Panel – "The AI Tax: Is Every Startup Now an AI Startup, Whether It Wants to Be or Not?

• Esther De La Cruz, Founder, Esther De La Cruz

• Adnan Rasool, Founder, SustainTrue

• Byron Dempsey, Founder, Driven Young

• Kush Bhatia, Founder, JobGen.AI

7:00 PM – 7:10 PM | Networking between panels

7:10 – 7:45 PM | Panel 2: VC Panel – "The Series A Cliff: Why Only 1 in 5 Seed Startups Make the Jump (And What the Other 4 Get Wrong)

• Nicholas Ooi, Investor, Investible

• Joanna Yue, Investor, King River Capital

• Mario Alejandro Rojas, Investment Director, OneVentures

7:45 – 8:00 PM | 2-3 Selected Founder Pitches

Founder Pitch 1 (3-5 mins)

• Hardique Dasore, CEO, Nexus Beings

Founder Pitch 2 (3-5 mins)

• Damon Schultz, Co-Founder, Korazon

Founder Pitch 3 (3-5 mins)

• Mat Wilk, Founder, Buildipedia

Live Audience Q&A and Feedback (5-10 mins)

8:00 – 9:30 PM | Music, Food & Drinks, Networking

Wrap up the night with purposeful conversations, food, drinks, and the LiveHaus energy.

Getting to the Venue

Venue: AWS Sydney Office, 2/26 Park St, Sydney NSW 2000, Australia

Public Transport (recommended)

• The venue is within easy walking distance of Town Hall Station and Museum Station, both on the CBD's main train lines

• Multiple bus routes run along George Street and Elizabeth Street, close by

• Use the Transport NSW Journey Planner to plan the easiest route from your location

Parking

• Nearby options include Wilson Parking facilities around the CBD (check current locations via wilsonparking.com.au)

• Secure Parking and other operators have several CBD car parks within a short walk

• Limited street parking may be available nearby, subject to metered restrictions

About LiveHaus

🏆 LiveHaus was recently recognised by the 7NEWS Young Achiever Awards (NSW/ACT) for Connecting Communities & Innovation.

LiveHaus is redefining how Australia connects through business events: replacing boring, low-energy conferences with fast-paced, story-driven experiences where real conversations lead to real ROI.

Every LiveHaus event is built on one promise:
Energy first. Connections second. Outcomes third.
(Yes, in that order.)

Join the StartupHaus Community

Each Haus has its own dedicated WhatsApp group inside the LiveHaus community. Join the StartupHaus crew here: https://chat.whatsapp.com/L7UriFt55vVJWfRIlZ1l0I?mode=gi_t

When you join, please share: your name, what you’re building, why you’re attending and how the group can support you. Let’s keep it high-signal and intentional.

StartupHaus brought to you by LiveHaus: proudly sponsored by Cloud Bridge and Bluebird, partnering with UTS Startups, with community partners Disburse, Korazon and LinkNinja, to bring Australia’s next-gen founders together.

Watch: What a LiveHaus Feels Like

The LiveHaus documentary: Watch the short film on the vision, people and energy behind what we are building. If it resonates, feel free to show the post some love on LinkedIn (like, comment or cheeky reshare).

Season 4 recaps:

• StartupHaus Sydney recap (Season 4)

• LiveHaus Season 4 highlights (1 year anniversary)