What connects sleep, sea and sky
Small Steps Vol. 116: From bedtime science 🛌 to cargo emissions on the high seas 🚢 and climate experiments in the clouds 🌥.
What we’re thinking about
🛌 Planning your workouts? A Nature study using WHOOP data found that intense exercise too close to bedtime can mess with your sleep. The sweet spot? Try to finish tough sessions at least 4 hours before lights out (or just keep it light!).
🤖🌿 AI isn’t just for emails anymore. A year ago, AI was all about finding ways to make life a little faster or easier. Now, people are turning to it for the messy, human stuff: therapy, finding purpose and getting life organised. Funny how we built these tools to manage our external world, only to discover they're even better at helping us navigate our inner one. HBR explores the trends.
💨 Can we breed our way to lower emissions? A new US$27.4 million initiative backed by the Bezos Earth Fund and Global Methane Hub is betting on it, aiming to breed low-methane livestock across four continents. More here.
🧪🌥️ Spraying the sky to buy time? UK scientists are now testing geoengineering in the real world, spraying tiny particles into the sky to reflect sunlight and cool the planet. It's part of a £50 million government push to explore climate interventions into large-scale climate interventions. Depending on who you ask, it’s bold innovation… or a worrying sign of just how behind we are.
🚢 Big news for the high seas. A draft deal from the UN’s International Maritime Organisation (IMO) would require cargo vessels to cut emissions or pay up. It’s the first time a global industry could face a climate price no matter where it sails. The plan isn’t approved yet, but it could help fund cleaner fuels and support countries hit hardest by climate change.
🌱 Agtech VC is evolving. Investor hype around agtech is settling, and that might be a good thing. Sarah Nolet, Co-Founder & General Partner of Tenacious Ventures, breaks down what’s stalling adoption, and how this reset could lead to models that actually work in the real world (not just pitch decks).
🔥 The fossil fuel subsidy iceberg. In 2022, governments spent $1.5 trillion in direct subsidies to consumers and producers. Add in the hidden costs like air pollution and climate change, and the total jumps to $7 trillion. It's a reminder that decarbonisation isn’t just about tech transitions, but about reworking the economic scaffolding that holds fossil fuels in place.
Image sourced here.
🎙️ Need a rewilding reset? Ben Goldsmith’s podcast is full of hopeful and thoughtful conversations about how bringing nature back could change the world and the way we live.
In the news
🙌 Ovum AI gets a standing ovation. Dr Ariella Heffernan-Marks gave the first public demo of Ovum at the innovAItor series, and was met with a standing ovation for its potential to transform women’s healthcare. 👉 Sign up here for early access to Ovum.
⚡ Amber wins for Vehicle-to-Grid. Amber won Canstar Blue’s Innovation Excellence Award 2025 - Energy for their Vehicle to Grid program.
🩺 Telehealth’s second act is here. Diana Pitts, CEO of Coviu, chats about how the pandemic made virtual care a must-have, and what clinics need now to make it work long-term. Watch here.
📋 What women want (at work). Work180 released their What Women Want 2025 report, looking at what women and underrepresented groups actually need from employers in 2025.
👔 From the CFO seat to CEO. Cyril Gabriel reflects on his first 30 days leading Academy Xi - on letting go of control, embracing ambiguity and leading with trust. Read here.
New paths
🔧 Amber is hiring a Hardware Integrations Engineer (Melbourne, hybrid) and Senior Full Stack Engineer (remote).
🎨 Mindset Health is after a Digital Designer and a Lifecycle Marketing Manger (Melbourne, hybrid).
💼 Climate Tech Partners is searching for an Investment Associate (Sydney, hybrid).
🧠 Tenacious Ventures is looking for an Investment Principal and Insights Lead (Sydney or Melbourne).
Save the date
📅 6 May: ANDHealth Unfiltered: Digital Health Summit, Sydney.
📅 13 - 14 May: Digital Health Fest, Melbourne - come say hi to Rachel and Jo from our team, who will be there.
📅 15 May: Energy Lab’s Women Investors in Climate Tech, Melbourne.
Applications close for the Press Play Cohort 4. Press Play is pre-accelerator for women transitioning from corporate life into building their own startups. 20 scholarship spots are available with 85% off. Apply here.
Applications close for the Ignite Spark Program. Grant funding for Queensland-based SMEs to test and validate their ideas. You can read more here.
📅 2 June: Applications close for the Ignite Ideas Fund. Grants funding for Queensland-based SMEs to commercialise their product. Read more here.