Building with atoms and bits: 5 Founders Making Hard Tech in Australia | HEO, Alloy, Vexev, Zabidou, Antares

Five founders. Building with atoms and bits. Right at the heart of Australia. From robots that scan the human body to robots watching over satellites in space, one goal unites them: making Australia a better place to start a business.Season 2 of Oversubscribed opens at BrewDog Everleigh in Sydney with Will Crowe of HEO, Joe Harris of Alloy, John Carroll of Vexev, Cibby Pulikkaseril of Zabidou, and Lachlan Bramble of Antares. Between them they're building satellites, robotic ultrasound machines, factory vision systems, launch infrastructure, and the data platform underneath all of it.The conversation covers what's actually happening in robotics and space in 2026: why humanoid robots are further off than the headlines suggest, how HEO bought a satellite that was already in orbit instead of building one from scratch, why capital efficiency has become a competitive edge against better-funded US rivals, and how Australia's mineral wealth could make it a manufacturing base for the rest of the world. They also get into hiring, the talent war in US aerospace, and why none of them think being based in Sydney is a disadvantage.Time Stamps00:00 Trailer01:08 Welcome to Season 2 at BrewDog Everleigh, Sydney02:21 Founder Intros: HEO, Alloy, Vexev, Zabidou & Antares05:53 Why Humanoid Robots Are Still 5+ Years Away07:17 Sponsor: Mighty Partners07:50 HEO's Natural Language Satellite Tasking & "Vibe Tasking" Robots12:35 Hiring in Deep Tech: Why PhDs Aren't a Requirement Anymore14:27 Finding & Training Young Talent in Robotics20:52 US vs Australia: Aerospace Talent, Poaching & the Golden Dome Effect27:50 Why US Investors Now Believe in Australian Hard Tech30:54 "Competition Is for Losers": Building What No One Else Has31:25 Sponsor: Vanta32:43 How Fundraising for Hard Tech Has Changed in 5 Years41:05 Zabidoo's Brutal Pre-Seed Deadline & Capital Efficiency42:25 Lachlan's Antares Raise & Finding the Right Investors45:00 Micro-Factories & Reindustrialising Regional Australia50:14 Sponsor: TEN1351:38 Robots That Don't Look Like Robots: Reindustrialising Australia54:56 The Future of Health: Automating Diagnosis in Remote Australia1:02:46 Breaking the SpaceX Monopoly: Satellites, Asteroids & In-Space Manufacturing1:08:02 How HEO Buys Satellites Already in Orbit1:10:11 Bringing the Future Together: The Full Supply Chain1:14:23 The Robotics Boom: 10x More Companies & the Ethics of Robot Safety1:19:12 Why You Should Work at HEO, Alloy, Vexev, Zabidou & Antares1:21:58 Closing Thoughts & a Live Deal on the PodcastOversubscribed is proudly supported by our sponsor Vanta 🦙 and Mighty Partners 💪Vanta is the all-in-one solution for startups to become compliant quickly and build a security foundation with ease. Startup customers get $1000 off Vanta at https://www.vanta.com/oversubscribed___Mighty Partners is Australia's leading venture debt provider for high-growth software companies.Venture debt gives founders access to growth capital while preserving equity, extending runway and creating greater flexibility between funding rounds. It's designed for ambitious technology businesses that want to keep building without giving away more ownership than necessary.Trusted by companies including BuildPass, Deckard Technologies and Pearler, Mighty helps founders scale on their own terms.Learn more about venture debt and how it can support your next stage of growth at https://www.mightypartners.com.au/oversubscribedThe Day One NetworkOversubscribed is part of Day One, the podcast network dedicated to founders, operators & investors.Please note that the content here is for informational purposes only; should NOT be taken as legal, business, or investment advice or be used to evaluate any investment or financial product. Brendan Hill and Steve Baxter are investors in HEO.About the Host:Brendan Hill is a Venture Partner at TEN13 and an angel investor in Australia’s fastest-growing startups, including Everlab, Heidi Health, Relevance AI and Instant. If you are interested in finding out more about angel investing, connect with Brendan on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/itsbrendanhill/