At 19, this innovator and uni dropout caught the eye of venture capital

Freesia Gaul, a robotics entrepreneur, raised $600,000 from Blackbird at age 19, according to a profile by Emma Rapaport, technology reporter at the Australian Financial Review. Gaul is the only founder backed by the venture capital firm after she passed through Protostars, Blackbird's early-stage founder program. The profile, published as part of the AFR Young Rich List 2026, describes Gaul as a dropout who left university to pursue start-ups and hardware innovation.

The central product is a black glove with white electronics designed to translate hand movements into digital commands for virtual reality and robotics applications. Rapaport demonstrated the prototype from a small shoebox during a meeting at a cafe in Surry Hills, Sydney. The article characterises Gaul as curious, ambitious and confident in her ability to work through technical problems, though it notes that her conversation moves rapidly across topics.

The Blackbird investment is notable for its size and stage. A $600,000 seed-stage commitment to a founder of this age, drawn from a program rather than a conventional pitch, reflects venture interest in hardware-oriented companies in Australia. The article does not disclose valuation, round structure or co-investors.

Supplemental coverage of the story was limited to the same headline from AFR, and no additional financial details were available beyond the primary article.