Startup Dunedin Distiller
AcceleratorDunedin · Pre-Seed–Seed · 13 people tracked
Investment thesis
Startup Dunedin exists to make Dunedin the most entrepreneurial small city by supporting anyone who aspires to start a company locally. Rather than deploying capital, it focuses on easing the startup journey through connections, capability development, and community building. Its values center founders, embrace ideas from anyone and anywhere, and treat both success and failure as parts of innovation. It is a publicly funded ecosystem initiative of the Grow Dunedin Partnership, backed by the Dunedin City Council, the University of Otago, and Otago Polytechnic.
Source: firm website, verified Aug 3, 2026.
Team · 13 people
from the firm's website
What they invest in
from 18 of 33 portfolio companiesSaaS ×5Consumer ×4Digital Health ×3Healthtech ×3AgTech ×2AI & Machine Learning ×2Circular Economy ×2FoodTech ×2
HQs:New Zealand×11
Portfolio companies · 33 tracked
alumni founders can tell you what the program is really likeCheeky Tea is a ready-to-drink beverage brand sold through liquor stores across New Zealand.
ConsumerFoodTech
Chive Charities operates a platform that represents charities in New Zealand, aiming to present each charity in a clear and consistent way with information that is easy to find.
Impact & Social Good
CompanyHQ operates a software platform aimed at supporting business governance and administration, with legally reviewed content made available to users.
Cloud ComputingEnterprise SoftwareGovTechLegalTechSaaS
Chris HopkinsGreg Chiles(CFO)Liam Donald(Chief Technical Officer (CTO))Ash Evans(Head of Development)Tobias Hopkins(Head of Marketing)Rosie Clark(Head of Legal)
Coralcone makes reusable menstrual cups marketed as a sustainable alternative to single-use period products such as pads, tampons and liners, with one cup replacing about five years of disposables.
Circular EconomyConsumerFemTech
CoursesSpy appears to be an educational platform that provides campus-specific course information for university students.
EdTech
Cue-Go is a New Zealand-based retailer of professional production equipment including lighting, audio, video, and effects gear.
Retail TechPalmerston North, NZ
DiBS provides a multi-purpose booking and management system for shared spaces, with features for room reservations, access control, machine monitoring, and community voting.
PropTechSaaS
Elixir is a cloud-based practice management system for private medical specialists, covering patient communications, appointment scheduling, lab results, notes, and invoicing.
Digital HealthHealthtechSaaS
Ingenum develops a dual AI system combining a deep learning neural network for animal disease detection with language-model applications (ForeSight and WorkMate) for front-line professionals.
AgTechAI & Machine LearningHealthtech
Jeenks Group develops agritech solutions for managing the health of stored grain, actively monitoring conditions and keeping grain in motion to reduce spoilage from moisture, pests, and temperature changes.
AgTechHardwareIoTDunedin, NZ
Kaffelogic makes the Nano 7, a benchtop home coffee roaster that roasts 50-200 grams of green beans in about 12 minutes, paired with its free Kaffelogic Studio software for creating, saving and sharing roast profiles.
ConsumerFoodTechHardware
Central platform for on-farm monitoring, control and autonomous environmental responses.
Co-investorsPacific Channel
ONI is a web-based personal trainer software for building and sharing exercise programs, paired with a mobile client app for following workouts and tracking results.
SaaSSports TechWellness & Fitness
Paper Not Foil makes reusable and degradable hair foils made from stone paper, used by hairstylists as an alternative to standard aluminium foils.
Circular EconomyDirect to ConsumerE-commerce
Amanda Buckingham(Founder)
RealWellth offers a "Doctor-Coach" care model that pairs integrative and functional medicine practitioners with health coaches to provide whole-person care.
Digital HealthHealthtechWellness & Fitness
Sahha provides a health data infrastructure API that turns smartphones, wearables, and labs into real-time biomarkers, health scores, and behavioral classifications that product teams can act on.
AI & Machine LearningData & InfrastructureDigital Health
Co-investorsAura VenturesNZVCR/GA VenturesSupermoon Capital
Scannable provides a platform for tracking equipment records and product traceability, giving safety teams and equipment owners centralized, up-to-date information on every piece of kit without manual data entry.
Advanced ManufacturingIoTSaaSWanaka
GENE DOWER(Executive Officer, Director)
Co-investorsAura Ventures
Skillzea operates gig work groups connecting people with local one-off jobs in New Zealand, organized by city (Auckland, Hamilton, Wellington, Nelson, Christchurch, Dunedin, and Invercargill).
Future of WorkMarketplaces
Frequently asked questions
- How many investments has Startup Dunedin Distiller made?
- Startup Dunedin Distiller has 33 tracked investments, including 1 dated in the last 24 months.
- What stage does Startup Dunedin Distiller invest at?
- Startup Dunedin Distiller invests at the Pre-Seed, Seed stages.
- What sectors does Startup Dunedin Distiller focus on?
- Startup Dunedin Distiller focuses on Sector Agnostic.
- Where is Startup Dunedin Distiller located?
- Startup Dunedin Distiller is headquartered in Dunedin, NZ.
- Who does Startup Dunedin Distiller co-invest with?
- Startup Dunedin Distiller most often shares deals with Aura Ventures, NZVC, Pacific Channel, among 5 tracked co-investors.
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