![]() When that is combined with the private angel investment, we can expect that the renewed partnership should see around $10 million of investment into start-ups over the next four to five years.”Īndrew Duff welcomed the partnership renewal, saying Sparkbox’s focus is on early stage investment to back entrepreneurs in sectors including information and communications technology, material science, cleantech, and medical and diagnostic technology. “In order to maintain the momentum of investment into start-up companies, NZVIF is committing to invest a further $4 million with Sparkbox. That has so far seen us combining to invest nearly $7 million. “Through our initial investment partnership, NZVIF committed to co-invest $4 million with Sparkbox. They are clearly committed to continuing to be an active part of the seed and early stage venture investment market in New Zealand. “Sparkbox is a very active private group which has been investing for over a decade. NZVIF chief executive Franceska Banga said the initial investment partnership had seen NZVIF and Sparkbox invest around $7 million into over a dozen companies, helping to fund the growth of promising young technology companies like Mesynthes, BigLittleBang and Booktrack. Building successful innovation companies is about identifying the right person and providing them the necessary support and investment.” The key to turning these ideas into commercial success comes down to entrepreneurial abilities. “There are some superb ideas and innovation emerging from our universities and research institutes. With the investment partnership with NZVIF, we want to help find the next generation, and our objective is to back around 20 entrepreneurs over the next five years. ![]() ![]() “We have previously backed entrepreneurs, like Rod Drury of Xero and Grant Ryan of YikeBike, as well as the new breed of successful Kiwi entrepreneurs, like Brian Ward of Mesynthes and Paul Cameron of Booktrack. They know how to leverage networks, but are creative and can think outside the box and follow a strategic plan to a successful exit. “The traits of this new form of ‘extreme entrepreneur’ are people who are capable, knowledgeable, quick to adapt, able to listen, and can learn from the experience of others. Sparkbox chairman Andrew Duff said they are looking for a new type of entrepreneur able to get Kiwi innovation successfully onto the world stage. The co-investment partnership should see Sparkbox Ventures and NZVIF combining to invest around $10 million in start-up companies over the next five years. These users have also spent more than 2.5 years reading.National angel group Sparkbox Ventures plans to back 20 entrepreneurs over the next five years, following the renewal of its investment partnership with the New Zealand Venture Investment Fund. Launched late last year, Booktrack claims to have more than 300,000 users creating more than 3,600 Booktracks in 30 different languages. The results, published by a Liel Leibovitz, noted that out of 41 adults, “virtually all subjects performed moderately to significantly better on information retention tests on Booktrack’s enhanced platform than they did after reading the same text on an unenhanced book reader.” This study only further validates a previous study conducted at New York University in 2011. According to Booktrack, out of 248 middle and high school students in the randomised study, those who read the syllabus text with a synchronised soundtrack spent 30 per cent more time reading and recorded a 17 per cent increase in comprehension, than their peers in the control group. Given that Sparkbox Ventures hails from New Zealand, it is no surprise that Booktrack Classroom was launched basis findings from a research project conducted at the University of Auckland. Students can also match their stories to some 20,000 free-to-use music and ambient audio tracks, which will be paced to their reading speeds. These books include famous classics and contemporary titles, like Romeo and Juliet and The Cloud respectively. In addition, it has secured US$3 million in funding led by New Zealand-based investment firm Sparkbox Ventures.Īs Booktrack enters the education space, its ‘classroom’ feature will allow students free access to soundtracked e-books, according to an official statement. The startup, previously backed by PayPal’s Peter Thiel and Park Road Post Productions, today announced that it has launched a classroom feature available on iOS App Store, Google Play and Google Chrome Store. A new way to write,” touts the official website of Booktrack, an American e-book platform that allows reading with soundtracks. The audio book platform has now entered the education industry with money in its pockets! Do people read better with music?
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