Women business leaders have said Australia must move beyond segregated "women in startups" events and that the country should push for stronger investment in female-led businesses while drawing more male founders into the conversation.

At a panel during Melbourne startup festival Pause Fest on Wednesday, entrepreneurs including cryptocurrency startup Liven co-founder Grace Wong and co-founder of women's football boot brand Ida Sports, Laura Youngson, said the country's startup sector would have made progress once "you don't have to have a special segment of women".

L-R: Grace Wong, Founder, Liven, Laura Youngson, Co-Founder, Ida Sports and Equal Playing Field, Sarah Hamilton supernova and Sarah Moran, Managing Director, Girl Geek Academy at a 'Truth and lies behind female founder' panel, Pause Fest in Melbourne Credit:Luis Enrique Ascui

Moving to this point means focusing on diverse founder teams and bringing male startup founders into the conversation, the panel said.

Youngson said having a male co-founder in Ben Sandhu had been a great experience. Investors and potential partners still routinely direct inquiries to him despite them being Youngson's responsibility, but she says Sadhu is "able to call this out in a way that I cannot" when it happens.