James McClure
James is a Partner at Antler Australia, where he co-leads the Australian operations. He is a seasoned C-level executive, bringing over 15 years of global tech operating experience across EMEA, APAC, and the US.
James began his career at Google, spending eight years across London, Sydney, and Singapore, where he helped launch and scale new markets across APAC as the first employee in multiple countries in South and SE Asia, as well as launching YouTube across the regionHe then joined Airbnb as General Manager for the UK and Northern Europe, leading regional growth with full P&L responsibility - including a period working directly for Brian Chesky on the growth of Experiences.
Following this, James was EVP Global Business & GM International at SeatGeek (now a unicorn), leading the company’s global B2B2C operations across EMEA and APAC. Most recently, he was Chief Commercial Officer at Adzuna, running the business across 16 global markets.
Alongside, James has been an active angel investor since 2012, with over 14 years of investing experience supporting early-stage founders globally including investing before or alongside Sequoia, 20VC and Balderton
For media inquiries or interview requests, please contact press@antler.co
ARTICLES
.avif)
10 ways to significantly grow marketplace supply In less than 10 weeks
At Antler, we make investment decisions on startups that are less than 10 weeks old. In this time, founders find a team, conceive, test and validate business ideas, and start to grow their startup. For those who want to launch a marketplace, Partner James McClure has shared his insider tips to building supply in that short amount of time.
10 AI Ideas That Should Shape Australia’s Next Election Agenda
As Australia heads into its next federal election, AI is more than just a tech trend - it’s a national priority. From sovereign GPU clouds to AI-driven security and edge intelligence, James McClure, Antler in Australia's General Partner, thinks these 10 ideas could strengthen economic resilience, safeguard critical infrastructure, and position Australia as a global leader in AI.
.avif)
Five mistakes early-stage B2B SaaS startups make and how to correct them
Are you an early-stage B2B SaaS startup? Avoid leaving money on the table, confusing your product roadmap, and other pitfalls that could hamper your growth. Discover actionable strategies for five of the most common mistakes and how to navigate these challenges effectively.
.avif)
100 AI Ideas You Can’t Vibe-Code: Untapped Startup Opportunities for Expert Founders
James McClure, General Partner at Antler Australia, explores 100 unique, complex, and untapped AI startup ideas that can’t be vibe-coded in a weekend - spanning sovereign GPUs, low-bandwidth AI, multi-agent systems, neurotech, synthetic audiences, and hypersonic space navigation. These high-barrier opportunities are launchpads for domain experts and builders in deep tech, regulated, scientific, or frontier domains. Read more below and join Antler’s residency to build them now.