)
Adelaide-based software development agency PixelForce has received a strategic investment for an undisclosed sum from fellow South Australian Tobi Pearce, the co-founder of fitness platform Sweat and online driving instructor and student marketplace EzLicence.
Both these companies happen to be clients of PixelForce, which was co-founded by its CEO Hinney Lo and technical director Ben Zhang in 2013, and has grown to a team of more than 60 staff, delivering more than 100 digital products for clients ranging from startups to global brands.
Lo's success has made him a past finalist in the Australian Young Entrepreneur Awards, for which nominations just opened this month for the 2025 edition.
The latest investment formalises a decade-long collaboration between Pearce and Lo, whose team helped build Sweat into a leading fitness app with more than 50 million users across 142 countries, generating in excess of $100 million in annual revenue.
For its part, EZLicense has scaled internationally, facilitating approximately $100 million in learner bookings through thousands of instructors.
Lo welcomed Pearce’s involvement as a strategic investor and advisor, noting his experience in building and scaling digital platforms makes him a valuable partner as the company enters its next phase of growth.
"We are thrilled to officially welcome Tobi as part of the PixelForce team. His journey scaling Sweat from Adelaide to a global brand is inspiring. Tobi’s insight and experience will be invaluable to both us, and the businesses we support as we enter our next growth phase," Lo said
"This partnership, built on years of trust, validates PixelForce’s credibility as one of Australia’s top-tier development agencies. Together, we’ll accelerate PixelForce’s growth and empower even more tech innovators in Australia and Internationally."
PixelForce itself began as a university project, but Hinney soon started to understand a "real demand" for the specific skills and quality of finished products and services that the team had to offer.
"When we first began operating PixelForce as a proper business, our team was just four people in a tiny office," Lo said.
"Over the years since then, the business has continued to grow, however, the period of 2015 to 2017 marked the biggest period of change when we rapidly expanded from a small to medium business, more than quadrupled in size."
It wasn't long before the business started servicing clients both local and interstate, and operating on a much larger scale.
"This helped us establish ourselves as one of the largest digital agencies in Adelaide, release a globally successful mobile app, and gain substantial recognition among local industry leaders," says Ho, whose company's portfolio of high-profile clients includes Flinders University, The University of Adelaide, the Australian Energy Regulator, CSB and more.
Pearce understands the value the agency can deliver, noting PixelForce was "there from day one, helping turn a simple idea into a global product. Their expertise, belief in the vision, and ability to deliver at scale were instrumental in Sweat’s success".
"Hinney and his team have been trusted allies from the beginning, and this new partnership feels like a natural evolution.
"Together, we’re backing the next wave of Australian tech talent and helping founders turn bold ideas into world-class digital products as well as adding significant technology support to existing enterprises."
In the coming months, PixelForce and Pearce plan to unveil a new joint initiative to further champion Australia’s next wave of tech-enabled businesses.
"PixelForce has always been about turning ambitious ideas into reality, and having Tobi on board amplifies that mission," adds Lo.
"We’re not just taking on an investor, we’re gaining a partner who believes in building up the next generation of technology, just as we do."
)
