On 9 October 2025, Te Raukura ki Kāpiti hosted the New Zealand Final of the Startup World Cup for the first time, bringing a global stage to the Kāpiti Coast in partnership with Creative HQ. Twelve of Aotearoa’s most promising early-stage tech ventures took on the high-pressure format of four-minute pitches and two minutes of questions, competing for a place at the Grand Finale in San Francisco.
Scentian Bio took the title with its AI-powered insect sensing technology, earning the chance to represent New Zealand in Silicon Valley on 17 October 2025 before international investors and media. Backed by Pegasus Tech Ventures and spanning more than 100 regions across six continents, the Startup World Cup connects local innovation to global opportunity.
Meet the teams in the Startup World Cup New Zealand Final 2025
Scentian Bio (1st Place)
Scentian Bio develops biosensing technology inspired by insect olfaction to detect and interpret metabolic chemical signals. Its initial focus is the food sector, measuring composition to support supply chain decisions and improve quality outcomes. The company’s handheld “insect nose on a chip” delivers sensitive, real-time results in a portable format. Designed as a platform technology, Scentian Bio’s approach has potential applications beyond food, including health and environmental monitoring.
Location: Auckland
Website: scentianbio.com
Forever Harvest (2nd Place)
Forever Harvest is a food solutions company developing fruit and nut cultivations without the tree. Their cell-culture platform produces a range of high-value, natural ingredients which are otherwise at risk from climate change, pests, and supply chain disruptions.
Location: Christchurch
Uunafit (3rd Place)
UunaFit develops a system for producing custom-fit, 3D-knitted bras and garments using AI-driven pattern generation, 3D body scanning and advanced knitting technology. The approach enables garments tailored to individual body shapes while reducing waste and returns associated with standard sizing. The company has a particular focus on health-related applications, including post-surgery and pregnancy use cases, alongside a broader objective to establish a more sustainable, personalised model for garment production.
Location: Wellington
Website: unafit.com
Dot Ingredients
Dot Ingredients is transforming the US$50B emulsifier and detergent sector with a patented technology that replaces fossil fuel and palm oil–derived chemicals with a clean, bio-based alternative. Its core innovation, Celluspheres™, is produced from cellulose — the world’s most abundant natural polymer — sourced from sustainably managed forests across the globe. The company converts established science into high-performance ingredients for cosmetics, food and pharmaceuticals, delivering biodegradable, renewable and scalable solutions that reduce environmental impact while meeting industrial performance standards.
Location: Auckland
Website: dotingredients.com
Evidentful
Evidentful addresses a global policing gap, with over 90% of crimes going unsolved due to limited investigative capacity. It has developed a voice-first system that conducts structured, officer-style witness interviews and converts them into statements aligned with policing guidelines. This reduces administrative burden and supports more consistent investigations. Co-founded by Duncan Faulkner and Ravi Sohal, the company is preparing for funded UK pilot programmes in early 2026 while advancing more efficient, accessible policing systems.
Location: Cromwell
Website: evidentful.co.uk
Goldie
Goldie is Australasia’s first real fractional investing platform, providing access to high-value assets including gold, silver, art and collectibles. By removing intermediaries, offering transparent market pricing and securing assets in treasury-grade vaults, the platform lowers traditional barriers to entry. Purpose-led and brand-driven, Goldie has achieved fully organic growth and profitability, indicating early traction with a new generation of investors and a shift in how alternative assets are accessed and owned.
Location: Auckland
Website: getgoldie.co.nz
Litmaps
Litmaps is a Wellington-based software company developing an AI-powered platform for research discovery used by more than two million scientists, academics and R&D teams. The platform enables users to explore prior research through interactive visual maps, citation data and validated AI insights, replacing static search lists with a visual-first interface. By modelling a researcher’s knowledge and layering AI analysis over trusted open metadata sources, Litmaps supports discovery of relevant connections using verified information.
Location: Wellington
Website: litmaps.com
NextWork
NextWork is reimagining how people learn and showcase their skills in the AI age. With 150,000+ learners in 190 countries, our platform combines hands-on projects, community support, and skill authentication into one seamless experience. Learners gain practical skills while building a portfolio of evidence of their work – helping them upskill, stand out, and land jobs that matter.
Location: Wellington
Website: nextwork.org
Orba Shoes
Orba develops renewable material solutions to address waste generated by the global rubber, plastics and apparel industries, including the billions of shoes produced each year. Its first product, the multi-award-winning Orba Ghost sneaker, incorporates more than nine science-based material innovations, including a proprietary rubber certified 95%+ USDA bio-based and designed to biodegrade at end of life. By eliminating plastics and petrochemicals, Orba replaces them with plant-based inputs while maintaining performance, durability and cost standards as a certified B Corporation.
Location: Kapiti
Website: orbashoes.eco
Outfox Ltd
Outfox Ltd supports small and medium-sized businesses to strengthen security and resilience amid escalating digital threats. As cyber risks evolve, many SMEs remain underprepared; the company focuses on making cyber resilience practical, accessible and aligned with everyday business operations. Its approach centres on simplifying complex risk management into workable systems. Recognition as a Startup World Cup finalist reflects market validation of its response to a widespread and growing challenge.
Location: Wellington
Website: outfox.co.nz
TDRI
TDRI addresses moisture-related road failure, which accounts for up to 65% of pavement damage. Traditional drainage maintenance is typically reactive, as existing tools are impractical across entire networks. By identifying subsurface moisture weakness early, TDRI enables a shift toward predictive maintenance, shown to extend pavement life by up to 2.5 times while reducing costs and budget pressure. The company focuses on delivering scalable, affordable intelligence to support climate resilience and infrastructure planning.
Location: Auckland
Website: tdrisolutions.com
The Cleanery
Cleanery develops concentrated cleaning and personal care products in response to an industry built on transporting water in single-use bottles. Its range includes powdered cleaning, dishwashing and hand soap formulations designed to be mixed with water in reusable containers. The model reduces packaging and freight impact while maintaining performance and cost competitiveness. Founded in 2020, Cleanery has scaled to distribution in more than 2,500 supermarkets across Aotearoa, Australia and the United States.
Location: Auckland
Website: cleanery.co.nz
Thank you to our 2025 judges
Brianne West
Environmentalist and entrepreneur
Byron van Vugt
Investment Manager
Elena Higgison
GM Iwi Business Services
Marcel van den Assum
Angel Investor
Sophie Yao
Managing Director
Looking back: 2024 winners and success stories
After pitching at the 2024 Startup World Cup, Natalia Lopez and Kitea Health secured national recognition, launched clinical trials, raised a $10M funding round, and emerged as leading advocates for deep tech innovation in New Zealand.
Check out how The Post and Stuff News covered Kitea Health’s recognition following their Startup World Cup success, including national awards and industry praise.
2025 competition proudly supported by:
