Evan Thornley: Bold Bets, Big Start ups, Social Enterprise, & Politics
In this episode of What I Learned in Business, James H Stewart sits down with Evan Thornley — entrepreneur, investor, reformer, and one of Australia’s most original thinkers on business and social change.
Evan’s career has been anything but conventional. He co-founded LookSmart, one of Australia’s first tech companies to list on NASDAQ at the height of the dot-com boom, before riding out its spectacular crash. He later entered Victorian politics, led the global Better Place electric-vehicle venture, helped rescue ABC Learning through the creation of Goodstart Early Learning, and today chairs LongView, a business tackling housing affordability and generational inequality.
James and Evan explore:
What it was like to ride the rise and fall of the dot-com bubble
The lessons from taking billion-dollar risks — and losing
Why Evan left politics to lead change from outside government
The story behind Goodstart and the ABC Learning rescue
How LongView is rethinking housing and wealth inequality in Australia
What Evan's learned about resilience, risk, and purpose across every chapter
This is a conversation about big ideas, bold failures, and rebuilding success with meaning.
Key Takeaways:
How failure can sharpen strategy and conviction
Why purpose-driven business models are the future
What leadership looks like in times of technological and ethical disruption
“The line between visionary and fool is very thin — but it’s where all the progress happens.” — Evan Thornley
About Evan Thornley:
Evan Thornley is an Australian tech entrepreneur, investor, and impact leader. He co-founded LookSmart, led Better Place Australia, was a driving force behind the GoodStart consortium that rescued 650 childcare centres from the financial collapse of ABC learning and now heads LongView, a purpose-driven property business focused on long-term wealth and housing reform.
Connect with Evan:
LinkedIn | https://longview.com.au
