From Day 0: How I Built This (Student Founder Evening) | Sydney
FROM DAY 0: HOW I BUILT THIS
An evening for Sydney's most ambitious students and builders
📅 Date: Thursday 5 Feb
⏰ Time: 5:30pm – 7:30pm
📍 Location: Sydney
🎤 Speaker Line-Up
Adam Ma is the founder and CEO of Voqo.ai. Voqo AI is building AI-powered voice bots that answer and triage calls for real estate agents, helping prevent missed inquiries and collapsed deals. Adam graduated from a B.S (Hon) in Computer Science from UNSW in 2023, and has raised capital from the likes of Startmate, Blackbird Ventures and Mark Bouris.
Shyeon Delnawaz is the founder of Puralink. Puralink is building autonomous pipe inspection robots. Shyeon graduated from a Bachelor of Science and IT from UTS. He was also in the W25 cohort of the Startmate Accelerator, and has raised from the likes of Peak XV, Side Stage Ventures, and Wollemi Capital.
Gerry Lu is the co-founder of Atrium. Atrium is an AI-powered personal chief of staff. Gerry holds a Bachelor of Advanced Computing (CS Honours) and Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Sydney. Atrium has secured $1.3 million in pre-seed funding from Airtree and TEN13, alongside a group of US and Australia-based angel investors.
Lulu Ghattas is the Head of Community at Kinso, the AI app that brings your conversations, calendar and contacts into one place. Lulu studied a Bachelor of Economics (French) at UTS. She’s played a key role in helping Kinso grow organically and go viral on social media, contributing to its rise as one of Sydney’s most talked-about AI startups.
Registration closes 29th January.
What does it actually look like to build a startup from day zero?
FROM DAY 0: HOW I BUILT THIS is an intimate evening designed for students, recent grads, and early-stage founders who want a real look behind the curtain of company creation - the messy starts, early decisions, near-misses, and inflection points that don’t make it into pitch decks.
We’ll be bringing together a small group of ambitious student founders and builders for a fireside-style conversation and open AMA with founders and operators who’ve been exactly where you are: starting with an idea, no roadmap, and a lot of uncertainty - and turning it into something real.
This isn’t a polished “success story” panel.
It’s about day zero thinking, honest lessons, and practical takeaways you can apply immediately to what you’re building (or thinking about building).
Expect candid stories, tactical insights, and plenty of time for questions - plus space to connect with other students who are serious about startups.
⚠️ Limited to 50 attendees. Registrations will be reviewed to ensure a high-quality room. Successful applicants will receive venue details upon confirmation.
Who this is for
Students or recent graduates building a startup (or about to start)
Technical or non-technical founders exploring their first company
Builders curious about what it really takes to go from idea → execution → first momentum → traction → pitching → first cheque
What you’ll get out of it
Honest insights into the earliest stages of startup building
Practical lessons on getting started before you feel “ready”
A clearer picture of founder and funding pathways available for students
New connections with like-minded student builders, and opportunity to meet potential co-founders
✨ Plus: A select number of student attendees will be selected to shadow a founder for a day, gaining firsthand exposure to what life actually looks like inside an early-stage startup (make sure you tick the box in the registration form)
Agenda
5:30 – 6:00pm — Arrival & light networking
6:00 – 6:45pm — Fireside: From day 0
6:45 – 7:15pm — Audience AMA
7:15 – 7:30pm — Pizza, Drinks, Networking & close
7:30pm onwards — Casual drinks at Cabana Bar (4 min walk)
About Startmate
Startmate is Australia’s leading startup accelerator, backing exceptional founders to build globally ambitious companies. We run programs for founders at every stage - including students - and invest early to support founders long before they’re “obvious” successes.
About Scalare Partners
Scalare Partners supports early-stage startups with capital, community, and hands-on support across the founder journey, helping ambitious teams scale faster with the right foundations in place.