What's new
Updates on our portfolio and team blog
New to our portfolio:
Remi.ai
A state of the art machine learning platform that supports critical decisions across global Retail and Ecommerce supply chains.
PodCast in Japanese
Jun Hosoya talks about how InterValley sees the potentials of Australian VC market (Japanese content)
Blog: Paralympics and the Autumn Bug
Will NatureTech and Deep Analog Technology Make a Breakthrough?
How lucky we are to have welcomed QuintessenceLabs
in our portfolio
Has the Japan VC market gone international?
Japanese institutions turn their eyes towards Aussie tech start-ups
Featured at Financial Review on April 20, 2021
Leveraging early stage Australian technology companies into the Japanese market
Fund Overview
Australia is experiencing a surge in high tech and tech value creation as exemplified by burgeoning Australian unicorns like Canva, Atlassian, Airwallex and Judo Capital. As of January 2020, Australia has $2-2.5Bn available in venture capital funds under management to develop quality, high growth companies. Critically, Australia has an affordable talent pool and realistic deal pricing – a healthy contrast with other global venture investing hot spots.
Japan’s outbound M&A and investment in open innovation is at an all time high. This reflects its desire to combat secular economic headwinds, with corporate Japan looking abroad for new technologies and product ideas to complement existing (and create new) revenue lines. Japan also has global distribution networks and supply chains seeking ways to improve performance.
InterValley is a geographically focussed VC fund established to take advantage of both these trends. The fund leverages high quality, scalable, early stage Australian technology companies into the Japanese market, complementing the strategic direction of an increasing number of Japanese corporates at precisely the right time.
Japan has traditionally been viewed as a difficult market to penetrate for Australian companies. InterValley’s cornerstone shareholder New Frontier Capital Management, uniquely provides the firm with privileged access to the client base of its parent company, Mizuho Financial Group, which has deep relationships with more than 70% of corporate Japan. InterValley will leverage these relationships for the benefit of the Group’s corporate clients and InterValley Limited Partners. This positions InterValley as a co-investor of choice for the best VCs in Australia for portfolio assets relevant to Japan.
At the end of 2019, InterValley successfully announced its first closing. The fund is now active in the market, with a focus on securing further financial and strategic investors in the fund with a target of AUD$100m.
We respectfully acknowledge the Traditional Owners of the land on which we work and learn, and pay respect to the First Nations Peoples and their elders, past, present and future.
Portfolio
Kepler Analytics - Melbourne
AI platform for brick-and-mortar retailers that collects and analyses customer behaviour data to recommend actions that effectively grow sales.
Why we like them
Kepler’s in-store sensors help retailers to better understand and optimise how customers experience their store environment, providing a digital interface to the physical retail environment and enabling better data-driven decision-making capabilities across a range of business areas. InterValley will actively assist their global expansion with focus on Japan.
2020 Investment with follow on investment in 2021
Myriota - Adelaide
Global leaders in low-cost, low-power, secure direct-to-orbit satellite connectivity for the Internet of Things.
Why we like them
Myriota are leading this sector of New Space with the most advanced satellite communications for remote and urban IoT devices avoiding the need to use cellular networks. Their existing nano-satellite constellation is the most well developed with clear plans to optimise global coverage and facilitate real time communications anywhere on Earth.
2020 Investment with follow on investment in 2022
Baraja - Sydney
Self-driving is hard. Baraja has invented a new type of LiDAR called Spectrum-Scan™ which delivers the highest performance available to address the challenge of self-driving cars. Baraja is a rapidly growing start-up, with a revolutionary LiDAR for self-driving vehicles.
Why we like them
Baraja are at the cutting edge of Autonomous driving technology. Equally the strong relevance of this sector to Japan and with Hitachi as a co investor it made Baraja and ideal investment for InterValley.
2020 Investment with follow on investment in 2021
XY Sense - Melbourne
XY Sense is a next generation occupancy sensor that helps companies unlock live, 100% anonymous data to futureproof the way they plan, use and monitor office space.
Why we like them
XY Sense have a proven track record and have built on previous experience in this sector to solve and answer office space planning challenges which is ever more relevant as the world's population returns to working in offices post pandemic
2021 Investment with follow on investment in 2022
Quintessence Labs - Canberra
Quintessence Labs offers the strongest security foundation for data. This includes centralized enterprise key and policy management, a high-speed true random number generator, an integrated hardware security module, and highly secure encryption for data in uncontrolled environments.
Why we like them
QuintessenceLabs’ portfolio of modular security products addresses the most difficult security challenges facing organizations, helping implement robust security strategies to protect data today and in the future.
2021 Investment
Hemideina - Melbourne
Hemideina's bio inspired proprietary mechanical signal processing technology can be applied to hearing implant treatments for severe-to-profound deafness.The objective is to develop a new hearing implant system - “The Hera Wireless Implant” to address the challenges of the current treatment including speech perception, lifestyle, size, aesthetics and battery life.
Why we like them
We were very impressed by the original thinking of this all female founder team whose technology can bring a big improvement to the every day experience of having a hearing implant.
2021 Investment
Remi.ai - Sydney
A state of the art machine learning platform that supports critical decisions across global Retail and Ecommerce supply chains.
Why we like them
We were very impressed by the team and saw Remi as directly addressing both problems the InterValley team understood but also was a business ideally positioned for solving the supply chain pressures triggered by the 2020/21 Pandemic
2022 Investment
Cydarm - Melbourne
Cydarm was one of the first graduates of CyRise, Melbourne’s cyber security startup accelerator. Cydarm's mission is to enable cyber resilience through better and faster security operations accelerated by adaptability.
management platform that enables cyberseegrate, and respond with ease..
Why we like them
We were very impressed by the team and had tracked their progress since 2019 and saw the challenge they were addressing consistent with enabling effective management the growing cyber security threats across the world.
2022 Investment
Hillridge - Sydney
Hillridge understand farming is hard, especially during extreme weather conditions. Their weather-based technology aims to improve the coverage and quality of insurance for farmer in Australia and around the world, in a way that goes well beyond current crop or livestock insurance.
Why we like them
It was an impressive and innovative approach to a real problem faced by farmers - particular small farmers supporting our ESG objectives as a fund.
2022 Investment
Strongroom - Melbourne
Strongroom use artificial intelligence within their drug management platforms to reduce adverse drug events within the Pharmacy, Hospital and Aged Care Facility settings.
Why we like them
We have been close to the Strongroom team for over 18 months - we like the team and have been very impressed as they proved out their business model and set themselves up for international growth. They also had the perfect Japanese angle for us.
Global Team Members
Jun Hosoya
Founding General Partner, CEO Japan
Japan
Jun Hosoya has more than 30 years of investment management experience across Japan and the USA, including 46 venture investments. His many successful exits include 8 IPO’s, 6 M&A transactions and 3 trade sales.
Jun was the founding member and Managing Director of INCJ (Innovation Network Corporation) in 2009, a Japanese VC fund with an AUM of USD 20 billion. At INCJ Jun was responsible for investment and management of early stage innovation companies. Jun also launched the Life Science IP Fund and MedVenture Partners, an incubation fund for medical devices.
Prior to INCJ, Jun was a Partner for Apax Globis, a VC fund in Tokyo, where he led the Technology Investment Team. Prior to that Jun was International Portfolio Manager for NED, responsible for managing investments in Silicon Valley.
Jun has served as COO and has been a board director for numerous portfolio companies in early stage, pre-IPO and post-IPO stages. Jun is currently the Charter Member of TiE Japan.
Education:
MBA, University of Chicago; BA, Rikkyo University
Simon Wright
Founding General Partner and Managing Partner
Asia Pacific & Europe
From the UK, Simon Wright has extensive experience within entrepreneurial environments. For nearly 20 years he held CEO and CFO positions within the Virgin Group working closely with Sir Richard Branson.
As well as working alongside many entrepreneurs, Simon also brings extensive deal experience having directly managed exits over USD$1bn in value with Virgin. Since then Simon has worked with some of the largest Private Equity firms in the Europe and the USA, most recently working with Bridgepoint Capital.
Simon was responsible for the Virgin Group's operations in Japan over a 10 year period including successfully managing the launch of two start up businesses in Japan.
Simon has deep experience in starting, growing and exiting businesses in all parts of the world, and worked on boards across a range of sectors, affording him perspective on requirements to successfully globalise businesses.
Simon is based in Melbourne, Australia.
Education:
Sheffield Business School, Finance; Chartered Institute of Accountants (ACMA); GAICD
Shigeki Usuki
General Partner, Representative of New Frontier Capital Management
Japan
Shigeki is CEO of NFCM Hong Kong and Executive Vice President of NFCM, with extensive experience as an Investment Committee member and representative of New Frontier Capital Management of various global funds including Cybernaut New Frontier Venture Fund (China VC), CMH Growth Fund (China PE) and Tata Capital Growth Fund I & II (India PE).
Shigeki previously served as Head of Investment Department at Mizuho Securities for 7 years and was responsible for the Private Equity fund business of Mizuho Securities. He has worked in the Tokyo and New York offices of the Mizuho group and has approximately 20 years of experience in Corporate Finance, Cross-border M&A, Capital Markets and PE Fund Management.
Shigeki was also Head of Fund working Group at the Investment Banking Unit of Mizuho Financial Group., and has been the CEO of NFCM Hong Kong and Executive Vice President of NFCM since 2015.
Education:
BA in Economics, University of Tokyo.
Yasushi Kuroda
Founding Partner
Japan & Australia
Yasu Kuroda has more than 15 years experience in venture investment and venture incubation. His portfolio includes 10 high-tech ventures. Yasu’s successful exits include 1 IPO and 4 M&A’s, with other investments still running. He was previously Deputy General Manager of Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Venture Capital, a USD 200 million VC.
Yasu has a strong background in leadership development, coaching, and organizational development, which he now brings to his role as an investor. He has served as board director for numerous early stage companies. Leveraging his HR skills, Yasu has engaged in value-add and turnaround strategies for various portfolio companies. He was instrumental in core hires & building the management team of the company that has already gone to IPO.
Being married to an Australian, Yasu has a solid network within Australia’s innovation ecosystem including with Austrade, local VC’s and as a member of the expert network for the government scheme ‘Accelerating Commercialisation’.
Education:
MBA, University of Pennsylvania; BA, Keio University
Doron Ben-Meir
Chair of Investment Committee
Australia
Doron was the founding CEO of Commercialisation Australia (Federal Government) and subsequently the founding Director of the Entrepreneurs Programme. In these roles he contributed to supporting over 500 seed to early stage ventures by investing over $350m and building a unique government-led ecosystem. His continuous involvement in the program spanned seven years, from conception to maturity. He is highly regarded in Australia and beyond.
Prior to these positions, Doron spent 20 years as a venture capitalist and serial entrepreneur, having co-founded 6 technology companies and invested-in and/or managed several others.
For the last 5 years, Doron was the Vice President (Enterprise) at the University of Melbourne, where he co-founded BioCurate Pty Ltd, was Chairman of University of Melbourne Commercial Ltd, and represented the University on the Board of the NASDAQ Entrepreneurial Center in San Francisco, California.
Doron is Chair of InterValley’s Investment Committee.
Education:
BSc, Monash University; BEng (Hons), Monash University, GAICD
ADVISORS
Professor Toby Walsh
Toby Walsh is Scientia Professor of Artificial Intelligence at the University of New South Wales, research group leader at Data61, guest Professor at Technical University of Berlin, external Professor of the Department of Information Science at Uppsala University and an honorary fellow of the School of Informatics at Edinburgh University. He is a fellow of the Australian Academy of Science, the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence and the European Coordinating Committee for AI
Professor Fabio Ramos
Fabio Ramos is an Professor in machine learning and robotics at the School of Information Technologies, and co-director of the Centre for Translational Data Science at the University of Sydney. He has over 130 peer-reviewed publications and received numerous best paper awards. His research focuses on statistical machine learning techniques for large-scale data fusion with applications in robotics, mining, environmental monitoring and healthcare
John Lee, M.D.
John Tsung-Chun Lee, M.D. is a Taiwanese physician scientist turned entrepreneur in medical technologies, trained in Taiwan (NTU), Japan (Keio), and US (Stanford/Silicon Valley). John teaches Medtech, Biodesign & entrepreneurship at major Taiwanese universities.
FIEA Article 63:
日本国内の投資家の皆様へ:
本ファンドは金融商品取引法第63条に基づく「適格機関投資家等特例業務」に関する特例の適用を受けています。適格機関投資家等特例業務に関する公衆縦覧【法第63条第6項】はこちらのリンクからご覧頂けます。Form 20-2 [Japan]
For Investors in Japan:
InterValley Ventures Pty Ltd has filed the Notification for Specially Permitted Businesses for Qualified Institutional Investors, etc. (SPBQII) to the Financial Services Agency of Japan pursuant to Article 63 of the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act (FIEA). Public Inspection Regarding Specially Permitted Businesses for Qualified Institutional Investors, etc. [FIEA Article 63(6)] is available at the following link: Form 20-2 [Japan]
Important Information:
Important Information: This material was created by InterValley Ventures Pty Ltd ACN 620 419 123 (General Partner). InterValley Ventures Pty Ltd is a Corporate Authorised Representative (CAR: 1265243 of Affirmative Financial Services Pty Ltd who holds an Australian Financial Services Licence (AFSL: 331840). This material is for information purposes only and should not be construed as an offer or solicitation or recommendation to buy or sell any financial products. The information in this presentation or communication is directed and available to residents of Australia only deemed to be Wholesale Clients under Section 761G of the Corporations Act of 2001. This material is neither a prospectus nor a disclosure document under the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) (Act), nor is it required to be. A copy is not required to be, and has not been, lodged with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission. This material has been prepared only for issue to and use by prospective investors who qualify as Wholesale Investors as defined in the Act (Wholesale Investors) and is not intended to be received or read by anyone other than a Wholesale Investor. An interest in AI^Human, LP (Fund) will only be issued to investors that are Wholesale Investors.
Jurisdiction: This material does not constitute, and may not be used for the purpose of, an offer or solicitation in any jurisdiction other than the Commonwealth of Australia or in circumstances in which such offer or solicitation is not authorised other than as set out in the separate international disclosure statement. No recipient of this material in any jurisdiction other than the Commonwealth of Australia may treat it as constituting an invitation to them to apply for an interest in the Fund unless, in the relevant jurisdiction, such an invitation could lawfully be made to that recipient or the Application Form in the separate AI/HUMAN, LP Information Memorandum could lawfully be used in compliance with applicable law.
Confidentiality: This material is the property of the General Partner. By receiving this material, the recipient agrees to keep its content confidential and agrees not to copy, supply, disseminate or disclose any information in relation to its content without the prior written consent of the General Partner.
General advice: This information is intended to be general in nature and is not personal financial product advice. Any advice contained in this document is general advice only and has been prepared without considering your objectives, financial situation or needs. Before acting on any information, you should consider the appropriateness of the information provided and the nature of the relevant financial product having regard to your objectives, financial situation and needs. You should seek independent financial advice and read the relevant disclosure statements or other offer document prior to making an investment decision (including a decision about whether to acquire or continue to hold) about a financial product. The General Partner makes no representation to the recipient or advisers (as relevant) as to, or in relation to, the accuracy or completeness of the information, statements, opinions or matters (express or implied) arising out of, contained in or derived from this material or any omission from this material or of any other written or oral information or opinions provided now or in the future to any interested party or its advisers. In particular, no representation or warranty is given as to the achievement or reasonableness of any plans, future projections, prospects or financial returns and nothing in this material is or should be relied upon as a promise or representation as to the future. The General Partner expressly disclaims all liability for any loss or damage of whatsoever kind (whether foreseeable or not) which may arise from any person acting on any information and opinions relating to the Fund contained in this material or any information which is made available in connection with any further enquiries, notwithstanding any negligence, default or lack of care. In furnishing this material, the General Partner undertakes no obligation to provide any additional information other than as specifically stated in this material.
Forward looking statements: This material contains forward looking statements which are identified by words such as “may”, “could”, “anticipates”, “believes”, “estimates”, “expects”, “intends”, “plans” and other similar words that involve risks and uncertainties. These forward looking statements are subject to various factors that could cause the results of the Fund to differ materially from those expressed or anticipated in these statements. The General Partner does not intend to update or revise forward looking statements, or to publish prospective financial information in the future, regardless of whether new information, future events or any other factors affect the information contained in this material, except where required by law.
Investment risk warning: Investment in the Fund involves a high level of risk and is not suitable for investors who are unable to sustain the loss of all or part of the sum invested, or who require predictable levels of return or liquidity. Section 6 of the separate InterValley AI/HUMAN, LP Information Memorandum sets out additional risks of an investment in the Fund. Potential investors should assess their own appetite for such risks independently and consult their own advisors before making a decision to invest in the Fund. Investment in the Fund should be regarded as speculative and is subject to the conflicts of interest described in the separate Information Memorandum. Investments should be considered only by wholesale investors.
CONTACT US
AI/HUMAN, LP is registered in Victoria as an unconditional Early Stage Venture Capital Limited Partnership (ESVCLP).
InterValley Ventures is the fund manager with its registered office in Queensland.
This is not an offer statement.