NSW Government distributed $1.04M across 22 startups through Round 1 of its MVP Ventures Program. Grants ranged from $24,225 to $75,000.
The Structure
MVP Ventures runs two streams. Stream 1 offers up to $50k with a 50% co-contribution requirement. Stream 2, for women-owned, regional, or Aboriginal/Torres Strait Islander businesses, offers up to $75k with only 25% co-contribution required.
Eligibility requires NSW headquarters, 10 or fewer full-time employees, and under $400k in aggregated turnover over three years. The program targets Technology Readiness Levels 3 to 9: proof-of-concept through to market readiness.
What This Means for Sales
These are pre-revenue or early-revenue companies getting funded to reach commercialisation. That means hiring. Expect these 22 to start posting for founding AE or first SDR roles within 6 to 12 months.
The program received 322 applications. Selection rate: 6.8%. Funded companies span modular housing, AI for construction, EV tech, flood monitoring, and health diagnostics.
The Context
MVP Ventures was paused in 2023 after the Minns government came in. It restarted with rolling rounds. Round 2 closed December 2025, Round 3 closed April 2026. NSW committed up to $3M for FY 2025-26 through the Future Economy Fund.
This is gap funding. It sits between grants for pure research and VC investment. The goal: keep commercialisation activity in NSW instead of losing it to other states or offshore.
The Trade-Off
These companies are tiny: 10 employees max, sub-$400k revenue. That means early-stage risk if you are considering a role. Upside: equity could matter. Downside: no established sales playbook, unproven product-market fit, and comp will likely be below market until they raise proper funding.
If you see a company on this list recruiting, ask about runway post-grant, customer pipeline, and when they plan to raise Series A. The grant buys them 6 to 12 months of product development. What happens after that determines if the sales role is real or a lottery ticket.