Tradeslot Wins ANZA Technology Network’s Gateway to US Guy Manson Award

The winner of the Guy Manson Award for Hottest Company at ANZA Gateway to US, Tradeslot. From left to right: John Dyson, Starfish Ventures; Jesco d'Alquen, CEO Tradeslot, Mark B. Johnson, Tradeslot' s Gateway coach and Viki Forrest, CEO ANZA. Photo by KazzaDrask Media.

Victorian-based B2B Auction Technology Company Takes Top Honors among Australian Companies at Silicon Valley Summit

Tradeslot was named the “Hottest Company” tonight at the conclusion of the 2009 ANZA Gateway to the US Summit at the Plug and Play Tech Center in Sunnyvale, CA.

Pitching alongside 9 other Australian-founded companies taking part in an intensive three-day immersion in Silicon Valley, Tradeslot, from Melbourne, Victoria captured the Guy Manson Award for its real-time combinatorial auction platform that dramatically improves the efficiency and profitability of B2B transactions for both buyers and sellers. The award is given to the Australian or New Zealand company deemed “most ready” to do business in the US marketplace.

“Tradeslot was the clear winner among our judging panel,” said Viki Forrest, ANZA CEO. “The companies were rated on market opportunity, their solution to an existing problem or market need and their readiness to do business in the US. This company is ready to be here.”

The Guy Manson Award includes a 25 percent discount to the ANZA Fast Track to the US program. The mentoring program works with Australian and New Zealand entrepreneurs to significantly accelerate their company’s expansion into the US market.

Tradeslot CEO Jesco d’Alquen accepted the award from ANZA and Starfish Ventures. Starfish Ventures investment principal John Dyson took part in a Q&A judging panel session during the pitches along with Eliane Fiolet of Ubergizmo and Simon Anderson of Pictage.com.

“When you have a start-up there are as many reasons to believe as there are doubts,” said d’Alquen. “The Guy Manson Award definitely helps me know that I am on the right path.”

This year’s line-up of Gateway companies was particularly impressive in that it represented innovation at every level: technology, business models and customer acquisition.

Other presenting companies included: Earth Utility, iPOWOW!, myCaRMS, myownpad, Software Shortlist and Spinergy. Company bios are available at: http://www.anzatechnet.com/page-3/parent-1/section-1.html

Past winners of ANZA’s Guy Manson Award include Neuro Vision Technology, Buzka, Silenceair, cineSync, Digislide and In the Chair (now StarPlayit).

Gateway to the US 2009 Companies Demonstrate Innovation at Every Level

ANZA TechNet is pleased to announce this year’s Gateway to the US companies, who will be pitching their companies and demo’ing their products next Tuesday, October 6, at 9 am at the Plug and Play Tech Center in Sunnyvale.

The companies are:

• Earth Utility, a sustainable utility company that makes sustainability simple and affordable.
• iPOWOW!, an integrated platform and tools for online video, which collects attitude and opinion from any video in real-time, and allows for sophisticated reporting on responses.
• myCaRMS, enterprise software that addresses the dual requirements of regulatory compliance and risk assessment for financial institutions.
• Myownpad, social networking and social gaming integration into a unique virtual world platform that provides an immersive, interactive and social 3D experience.
• Software Shortlist, a proprietary method to help businesses identify software that is most appropriate for their business.
• Tradeslot, combination optimization technology and auction technology that creates transparent and efficient primary markets for scarce resources such as carbon, timber, grain, iron ore, water and more.

They will be joined on stage by a select group of Australian-founded companies already up and running in Silicon Valley: Aruspex, 5th Finger and Embedster.

“Australia is known for its world class innovation,” said Viki Forrest, ANZA CEO. “This is our chance for a great group of companies to show Silicon Valley some Down Under innovation at every level — technology, business models and customer acquisition.”

The companies will pitch before a panel of judges including VC John Dyson (Starfish Ventures), tech guru Eliane Fiolet (Ubergizmo.com) and serial entrepreneur Simon Anderson (Pictage.com). Tickets are just $55 can be purchased at this link.

Xumii Acquired by Myriad Group

Myriad Group AG (SIX: MYRN), a global leader in mobile technology with software in over 2 billion phones, announced this week that it has acquired the brand, technology and 17 employees of privately-held Xumii, Inc., a provider of mobile social networking services based in San Mateo, California and Sydney, Australia.

Xumii was the first software developer to combine social networks and instant messaging into a seamless mobile experience.

Jennifer Zanich, CEO of Xumii is an ANZA mentor and a long-time member of ANZA Technology Network. Once again, a job well done by Ms. Zanich, who is well known throughout the tech industry in Silicon Valley, Sydney and all points beyond.

Read the press release about this deal here, as well as additional input from Kim Heras at TechNation Australia.

Duel Fates of Two Australian Web 2.0 Start-ups

Brad Howarth provides his usual insightful view into the Australian tech community and savvy entrepreneurs’ forays into Silicon Valley in his Bootstrappr column on ZDNetAustralia. He examines the very different fates of two Aussie Web 2.0 startups and their founders, Omnidrive’s Nik Cubrilovic and Atlassian’s Mike Cannon-Brookes and Scott Farquhar.

One company has had a good deal of success, while the other has failed. Read their stories here — it is a lesson in just how different the outcomes for start-up companies and entrepreneurs can be.

Time to Forget about Australia’s Tall Poppy Syndrome

Thought I’d post a link to my colleague Mick Liubinskas’ excellent piece in this week’s Anthill Online.  It’s called “Me, ‘Tall Poppy’? Thanks!” and it’s about — you guessed it — the dearth of Australian entrepreneurs based on that cultural mainstay of ours “the Tall Poppy Syndrome”. Why we like to cut down those who stand tall in their success — an Australianism so pervasive it has stopped an untold number of people with good ideas from even trying, lest they fail and get a big “I-told-you-so” from their mates. It’s bred a degree of risk-averseness in Australia, that fortunately, rapdily melts when Australian entrepreneurs immerse themselves in Silicon Valley where short poppies don’t last long.

Have a read of Mick’s opinion on the subject here, then join the Tall Poppy Pact, a group of Aussies determined to stand tall and help their friends and colleagues do the same.