About:

Hello, I’m Benny.

I’m a Gunakurnai & Wotjobaluk man.

Born and raised in Melbourne, I now reside in Sydney via Darwin with my beautiful partner Rachel.

I’ve done 33 laps around the sun, but others tell me that this isn’t my first life.

I was a better than average athlete who invested more in my teammates than myself. I was a coach's dream and nightmare. Sport is a great classroom and canvas. Life is a paradox.

My athletic resume includes being contracted to the Melbourne Stars and captaining both the Victorian & National Indigenous Cricket teams. I am the youngest captain in Northcote Cricket Club’s history and have been recognized with a Life Membership.

Like Robin to Batman, I have primarily worked alongside founders and CEOs. For some time, this was one of the few constants in an ever-changing and evolving professional life.

Working alongside these brilliant leaders prepared me to found Draper.

Our mission at Draper is simple: expand economic independence by making it easier to build a business than to get a job.

In early 2026, we were one of a handful of companies selected into the S26 Startmate batch.

Away from Draper, I remain a Board Director at Victoria University Online and at About Time, Australia’s first and only national prison newspaper.

I am also a Development Partner at Bright Moon Trust and have the privilege of backing early-stage Indigenous social entrepreneurs who are leading change in their communities across the north.

Before jumping into company-building, I was a journalist and producer.

My reporting sat at the convergence of planetary health, state and corporate interests, and Indigenous rights.

It was a privilege to write, report, produce, and correspond for an array of domestic and international publications - including VICE, CH4, The The Saturday Paper, New Internationalist, The Guardian, IndigenousX and more. 

I co-hosted The Project, was a frequent voice of reason across shows like ABC’s Q&A, and moved ideas with institutions such as the The Wheeler Centre, Monash School of Media, Film & Journalism, and the Social Good Outpost at Griffith University.

I have also had the privilege to work on incredible productions, including the four-part docu-series, The First Inventors.

In 2023, I was a Walkley Finalist, Australia’s version of the Pulitzer Prize, for a story showcasing the entirely preventable scourge of rheumatic heart disease in the remote Aboriginal community of Doomadgee. 

I am also slowly writing a limited-series drama based on Paul Cleary’s book, Title Fight - how an Indigenous leader fought back against a billionaire mining magnate in the underdog legal battle of the century.

You can see my work here: https://linktr.ee/bj.abbatangelo

In another life, I was the Co-CEO and Deputy CEO at AIME, Advisor to the Global CEO at SEEK and Director of Strategy & Investments at First Nations Futures.

I’d love to hear from you.