SEA of Startups
Real, raw, relatable takes on Southeast Asian startups. One investor, the week's news, no script.
Episodes
Malaysia does not have a money problem
On the twenty seventh of July, in a bank tower in Petaling Jaya, the Malaysian government announced more than five billion ringgit of financing for Malaysian startups.It has been a week. I still cannot tell you who is giving it.Not because it is a secret. Because nobody published the list. The minister said fifteen organisations. The fullest account any newspaper ran named twelve, and it introduce
When the bust ends in a courtroom
For a decade, Indonesia was not a story about Southeast Asia. It was the story. Two hundred and eighty million people, most of them young, most of them coming online for the first time with a phone in their hand. Gojek, Tokopedia, a parade of unicorns. Every global fund with a Southeast Asia slide put Jakarta in the middle of it, and everybody wanted in.In 2021, at the peak, Indonesian startups ra
Just passing through: how Malaysia keeps funding the people who leave
Over the past few weeks, three Malaysia stories hit the news that, on the surface, have nothing to do with each other. A government pension fund answered in Parliament for nearly RM200 million lost in a fish farming startup that turned out to be a fraud. A celebrity founder and her husband sat in a courtroom over money that came from two of the biggest state funds. And a quasi-crypto commune in Fo
The $7.4 Billion Lie
You have seen the number this week, probably five or six times, from five or six people who all copied it from the same report. Southeast Asian tech funding hit 7.4 billion dollars in the first half of 2026. More than double last year. Recovery is here, the drought is over, break out the good coffee.It is true. It is also one of the most misleading true things I have read all year. Because 4.5 bil
Who Owns the Scarce Thing?
This week the two biggest stories in Southeast Asian tech were not a funding round or somebody’s ninth super app pivot. They were a government chip program in Penang and 3,600 kilometres of fibre being dropped on the seabed between India and Singapore.Two boring stories. Laid side by side, they are the most honest picture of this region you will get right now. Both are asking the same question, th
One Winner, Six Shipwrecks
Since 2017, Southeast Asia has produced exactly one tech IPO that made public investors real money. One. And this week, the Philippines is getting ready to bet its entire year on the next one.So this week I want to talk about who is buying, who is selling, and which side of that trade you actually want to be standing on.Four stories, and they braid into one. We open with the good news, because the
The Mirage and the Fork in the Road
Start with two numbers and a question.In May, startups in this region raised $472 million. More than double what they raised in April. Read only that line and you would think the drought had broken.Now the second number. That doubling was built almost entirely on two checks. Take those two out and May was thin, still down on the year before.So here is the question I want to sit inside. When you ar
Ep 31 - Oil, iron, and idle money: what the war is really doing to Southeast Asia
Start with a sliver of water between Iran and Oman. On a normal day, roughly a fifth of the world’s oil moves through the Strait of Hormuz. This year it stopped being normal. When the strait seized up, Brent jumped 10 to 13 percent in a single session into the low 80s and kept climbing to the highest level since 2022. The International Energy Agency, which does not deal in drama, called it the lar
Ep. 30 - We Called It a Funding Winter. I Think We Built for an Exit That Was Never There.
Singapore just released its report on venture funding for 2025, and almost every write-up reads the same way. Funding winter. Capital’s gone quiet. Hold the line, it’ll come back.I think that’s the wrong story.I’ve been sitting with these numbers for a few days, and the more I look at them, the more I’m convinced we’ve been telling ourselves the comfortable version. The comfortable version is that
EP 29 - Chatbots to Agents and where Liability Lands
I hopped into a taxi in Bangkok last week and the driver, a man north of fifty, spent the ride telling me what he was building with AI.Not complaining about the economy. Not asking where I was from. Telling me about his project.I’ve been turning that over ever since, because it isn’t an isolated thing. For weeks now I’ve been scanning event listings in whatever city I land in, and the pattern is h
Ep. 28 - The Philippines Just Drew a Line With Washington. Malaysia Just Rewrote Its IPO Rules. And the Whole Region Is Doing Something Nobody Is Tracking as One Story.
Two stories from Southeast Asia this week, and almost nobody connected them.The Philippines unveiled the marker for the Pax Silica industrial hub in New Clark City. Twenty plus companies expressed interest. A dozen are billion-dollar US firms. And on the same day, Manila publicly rejected the US request for diplomatic immunity and US legal jurisdiction over the zone. The hub will operate under Phi
Ep. 27 - Strip Out One Deal and SEA Raised $800M. A Chip Stock Just Got 95x Oversubscribed. And OpenAI Spent $4 Billion Admitting AI Is Hard to Deploy.
There’s a version of this week that looks like a good week for Southeast Asia’s startup ecosystem.The Q1 2026 funding report shows the highest quarterly capital raised since late 2022. Malaysia’s hottest IPO in sixteen years prices and lists next week. OpenAI and Anthropic both announce major new enterprise offerings backed by some of the biggest names in global private capital.Here’s the version
Four Stories That Explain Southeast Asia Right Now
This week’s episode is a news episode. No guests. Just four stories that I think every founder, investor, and operator in Southeast Asia should be paying attention to right now.Here’s what we cover, and why each one matters.1. China forced Meta to unwind a completed acquisition. Mid-honeymoon.In December, Meta acquired Manus — the AI agent startup that went viral in 2025 as China’s answer to deep
Four people are flying around the moon right now.
Episode Title: The New Space Age Is Actually Here | Artemis II, SpaceX IPO & The Rise of Orbital InfrastructureEpisode SummaryRight now, four humans are flying around the moon. Not in a simulation. Not in a film. For real. Kevin uses the launch of Artemis II on April 1, 2026 as the jumping-off point for a deep dive into the most consequential shift in space exploration since the Apollo era — and w
AI-First Starts Inside: What Tiwa York Actually Said (And Why It Should Worry You)
Most AI content gives you a framework. Tiwa York gives you a verdict.The founder who built Kaidee to 35 million users and guided it to a successful exit sat down with SEA of Startups and said what most operators are afraid to say out loud: your team is probably performing AI adoption, not doing it. And the longer you stay there, the harder it gets to move.Here’s what he actually said — the numbers
The SEA SaaSpocalypse & The Rise of the Space Lobsters
In the ever-changing landscape of technology and business, the term “SaaSpocalypse” has emerged to describe the recent downturn in public software stocks. But what does this mean for the future of SaaS companies, especially in Southeast Asia? In this blog post, we’ll explore the nuances of the SaaSpocalypse, the potential for growth amidst disruption, and what established and emerging companies ca
EP 22 - Meta's $2.5B "Butterfly Effect"
KeywordsMeta, Manus, acquisition, Singapore, AI, geopolitics, startups, tech industry, business growth, investmentSummaryIn this conversation, Kevin and Kim discuss Meta's recent acquisition of Manus, a Singapore-based startup, exploring its implications for founders in the region, the geopolitical landscape, and the evolving nature of AI in business. They analyze the rapid growth of Manus, the si
EP 21 - The "Elon Singularity"
SummaryIn this conversation, Kevin and Kim discuss the recent merger of Elon Musk's companies, particularly focusing on the implications of combining AI and space technologies. They explore the potential of data centers in space, the evolving role of Tesla, and the regulatory challenges that come with these advancements. The discussion also touches on the future of sovereignty in space and the mes
🎙EP 20: Singapore did it...again: How the SGX–NASDAQ Dual Listing Bridge Rewrites Southeast Asia’s Exit Game
Heyyyy guys,🧠 TL;DR — What Actually Changed* SGX × NASDAQ dual listing is a real regulatory breakthrough — but U.S. liquidity remains unproven* The fintech “funding collapse” was actually capital consolidation into Singapore* Southeast Asia is shifting from emerging → maturing, with real scaffolding for a capital stack* Founders + investors have a 24-month window before this becomes table stakesTh
🎙EP 19: While We Argue About Electricity, Google Is Moving Compute to Space. Southeast Asia Has 36 Months to Wake Up.
THIS WEEK'S REALITY CHECKGoogle just published research that makes every data center in Southeast Asia look obsolete.Project Suncatcher: Space-based AI data centers hitting cost parity with terrestrial operations by 2035. Launch costs dropped from $10,000 to $1,500 per kilogram. SpaceX is targeting $200/kg.This isn't science fiction. It's a $100 billion economic shift happening right now—and South
🎙EP 18: 400% Returns: How Transformational M&A and AI Will Redefine Southeast Asia’s Next Decade
Episode Title: 400% Returns vs S&P: The 6 M&A Habits Turning Acquisitions Into Capability MachinesTHIS WEEK'S REALITY CHECKCompanies that transform while they transact are delivering 400%+ returns vs the S&P 500 over the last decade.That's not incremental. That's a different category of value creation entirely.Deloitte just mapped how they do it: Six habits that separate transformational acquirers
🎙️ EP 17: 680 Million People. 11 Regulatory Systems. 1 Opportunity: Turning ASEAN’s Chaos into Capital.
THIS WEEK'S REALITY CHECKThe 47th ASEAN Summit just wrapped in Kuala Lumpur. Trump was there. China's Premier showed up. Everyone talked about integration.Meanwhile, the smartest founders in Southeast Asia are betting on something completely different: That the chaos isn't a bug—it's the entire competitive moat.This episode unpacks why ASEAN's fragmentation might be its biggest strategic advantage
🎙️ EP 16: The $1 Trillion AI Feedback Loop: Why OpenAI's Circular Deals Will Either Create the Future or Collapse Like Cisco in 2000
Your grandmother probably thinks AI is just fancy autocomplete. Your investors think it’s the next industrial revolution. Both might be right. And that’s exactly the problem.Welcome to the most expensive game of musical chairs in human history.In October 2025, OpenAI—the company that made you question whether your job is safe—signed roughly $1 trillion worth of deals. Not over decades. Not in theo
🎙️ EP 15:When Regulators Win: What Singapore's Robotaxi Rollout Reveals About the Future of Deep Tech"
When Regulators Win: What Singapore's Robotaxi Rollout Reveals About the Future of Deep TechWhile Silicon Valley's AV companies fought regulators and burned billions, Singapore just orchestrated the future of transportation. WeRide partnered with Grab. Pony.ai partnered with ComfortDelGro. Both launching in 2025.This isn't just about self-driving cars. It's about how deep tech scales when you work
🎙️ EP 14: Heat, Hype & Hard Truths: Why Climate Tech Keeps Failing in Southeast Asia’s Torture Chamber (And How Founders Can Survive It)
Your battery just died. Not your phone—your entire business model. This week on Sea of Startups, we're diving into why most climate tech fails within months in Southeast Asia, how tropical conditions are a torture chamber for hardware, and why the smartest founders are turning brutal constraints into billion-dollar competitive advantages. Plus: Why Chinese AV companies are playing a completely dif
🎙️ EP 13:The $12B Unicorn Teaching This Malaysian Founder How to Scale Without Losing His Soul
This conversation explores the messy middle of entrepreneurship through Ryan Ng’s unique journey of building YouDigital while leading APAC expansion at $12B unicorn Deel. We dive into cultural barriers holding back Southeast Asian professionals, the myth of work-life balance, and what it really takes to build something meaningful while maintaining financial stability.⏱️ Key Topics DiscussedThe Dee
🎙️ EP 12:The Great Reality Check: How SEA's Tech Scene Finally Grew Up (And Why Silicon Valley Should Pay Attention)
"We went from the whole growth at all costs mentality to, can you actually make money? All within the span of about 18 months."Hey everyone, News flash- That's not some venture capitalist pontificating from a Palo Alto coffee shop. That's Kevin Brockland describing the most dramatic pendulum swing in tech history—happening right now, in Southeast Asia, while everyone else is still arguing about AI
🎙️ EP 11: The Trust Equation: Why Corporate VCs Aren't the Villain in Your Startup Story
The Trust Equation: Why Corporate VCs Aren't the Villain in Your Startup Story"One yes can open doors you didn't know existed. One no from the wrong person can kill dreams before they start." — Pavel Veselovsky, Corporate Venture StrategistHey everyone,Let's address the elephant in every founder's pitch deck.You know that moment when a corporate VC shows interest in your startup? That split second
🎙️ EP 10: The $40B GenAI Reality Check: Why 95% of Enterprise AI Projects Are Failing (And What the 5% Winners Know)
🎙 EP 10: The $40 Billion AI Reality Check | MIT's Brutal Wake-Up Call on Enterprise AI's 95% Failure Rate🛰 Everyone's chasing AI transformation. 95% are just burning money.This week, Kevin Brockland and Kim Yeoh tear apart MIT's Project NANDA report — the most brutal reality check the AI industry has seen. Despite $30-40 billion in enterprise AI spending, 95% of companies have exactly zero ROI to
The Ecosystem Builder Running APAC's Startup Bridge Solo: Chi Chi Wong's Cross-Cultural Playbook
🎙 EP 9a: You Can’t Copy-Paste Trust | Chi Chi Wong on Cross-Border VC, Founder Support, and Building the Human Infrastructure Behind Southeast Asia’s Startup Ecosystem🛰 Everyone’s chasing unicorns. Chi Chi Wong is building something rarer: real cross-border trust.This week, Kim Yeoh sits down with Chi Chi Wong — the one-man APAC ecosystem team at Huawei Cloud — to unpack what ecosystem building ac
🎙️ EP 8 :Fraud, Fish & the Fragile Currency of Trust
Read up on our newsletter!🎙 Most VCs think ESG stories are too noble to fact-check. That's how you lose $600 million. — Kim Yeoh🛰 Southeast Asia's startup ecosystem just got a reality check that makes WeWork look like a rounding error. E-Fishery — Indonesia's sustainable aquaculture darling backed by SoftBank and Temasek — somehow turned $150 million in real revenue into $750 million on paper.This
🎙️ EP 7: The Enterprise Sales Reality Check You've Been Avoiding
EP 7: The Enterprise Sales Reality Check You’ve Been Avoiding | The Enterprise Sales Playbook No One Talks About: Why Your Perfect Product Still Can't Close Corporate Deals in SEARead up on our newsletter!🎙 Most founders think enterprise sales is about having the best product. That’s adorable. — Axel Winter, former CTO Cisco APAC🛰 Enterprise sales in Southeast Asia isn’t a meritocracy.It’s a game
🎙️ EP 6: The Invisible Unicorns: Why Southeast Asia's Biggest Startup Stories Are Happening Behind Your Phone Screen
From Apps to Infrastructure: 3 Startup Shifts Rewiring Southeast AsiaRead up on our newsletter! https://seaofstartups.substack.com/🎙️ EP 6: The Invisible Unicorns: Why Southeast Asia's Biggest Startup Stories Are Happening Behind Your Phone Screen🛰 The next big story in Southeast Asia’s startup scene isn’t an app.It’s the infrastructure humming underneath.In this jam-packed episode, Kim Yeoh and K
🎙EP 5: Sleeping Giant: Why the Philippines Might Be Southeast Asia’s Next Startup Powerhouse
🎙️ Episode TitlePhilippines Startup Shift with Joseph De Leon 📌 Episode Summary (100–150 words)In this episode, Joseph De Leon (JDL) shares strategic insights into the evolution of the Philippine startup ecosystem: why $5K angel checks still teach more than $5M rounds, how conservative capital is learning to take risks, and what separates founders who pitch beautifully from those who can actually
🎙EP 4B: How Jakarta’s AI Megacenter & Malaysia’s VC Reboot Shape SEA’s Tech Future
“You can’t build AI without compute. And you can’t build trust with slogans.”— Kevin Brockland“Singapore can’t handle everything. It really can’t.”— Kimberley YeohHey everyone,Last week we talked cold hard cash, where it's flowing and why seed founders are getting squeezed while unicorns feast. This week? We're going deeper. Past the money, into the guts of what's actually getting built.Episode 4B
🎙EP4A: Funding’s Up, Startups Down? Southeast Asia’s Barbell Economy in 2025
🎧 Episode 4A: Funding’s Up, Startups Down? Southeast Asia’s Barbell Economy in 2025Welcome to Part 1 of our two-part deep dive on the state of startup funding in Southeast Asia.One month into the SEA of Startups podcast, we’re marking the milestone with a special two-parter that cuts through the noise — and goes straight to where the money’s moving (or not moving).In this episode, we unpack the ha
🎙EP3 Deep, Narrow, and Agentic: The New Stack That’s Quietly Taking Over
“These APIs are pretty cool… they allow people to sell quickly without having to go through bureaucratic buying processes.”— Chris Birrell🧠 Episode 3: Deep, Narrow & Agentic — with Chris Birrell (FUNC Ventures)In this episode of SEA of Startups, we dig into the quiet revolution happening inside the software stack — where smart APIs, agentic AI, and vertical SaaS are giving focused founders an edge
🎙EP2: Seed Strapping—The Road Less Funded
🎙️ EPISODE 2: The Road Less Funded – Seed-Strapping with StrategyWelcome back to SEA of Startups — where Southeast Asia’s startup game gets real. No hype. No fluff. Just raw conversations with the people building and backing what’s next.If Episode 1 was our reset, Episode 2 is the reframe — and we’re calling it: Seed-Strapping. That gritty middle ground between bootstrapping till burnout and fundr
🎙 EP1 Why We're Back and Why This Podcast Had to Happen
This isn’t a fluffy reset. It’s a recalibration.SEA of Startups is back — sharper, bolder, and more real than ever.In this special kickoff, co-hosts Kevin Brockland (Indelible Ventures) and Kimberley Yeoh (Producer & Co-host) share what inspired this new chapter, and what listeners can expect from the episodes ahead.This isn’t just a podcast — it’s a space for authentic conversations, layered pers
Startup Ecosystem in Malaysia
This time around, we are sharing a recent presentation that our host gave at a recent event in which he discussed the different players in a startup ecosystem and how the current environment in Malaysia shapes up. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit seaofstartups.substack.com
Jeremy Au
This week we are joined by Jeremy Au. You may know him from the BRAVE Southeast Asia Tech Podcast or from Monk’s Hill Ventures. We cover a lot of ground chatting about the VC ecosystem.I’d love to know what you took away from this conversation with Jeremy Au. If you’d like to be considered as a guest or have someone that you’d like to hear me speak to, drop me a message.—Where to hear more from
Hanif Wahid of Delyva
This week we are joined by Hanif Wahid the Founder of Delyva, which is is a multi-courier delivery platform recommends the best-performing courier service for every delivery.This was a great conversation with Hanif as we talked about the founding story and how they have grown. We talk about the importance of customer feedback in building the product and scaling the business.I’d love to know what
Ganesh Bangah of Commerce.Asia
This week we are joined by Ganesh Bangah, a serial entrepreneur with a resume longer than this podcast. He built MOL Global which listed on NASDAQ and later sold to Razer and is currently focused on Commerce.Asia as well as ASX-listed Netccentric.This was a great conversation with Ganesh where navigate the evolution from cyber cafes to selling points to gaming. We talked about acquiring Friendste
Ben Bagg of Nectar Group
This week we are joined by Ben Bagg the Founder of Nectar Group, which is focused on enabling companies looking to expand across the APAC through as a Sales & marketing driven revenue generator.This was a great conversation with Ben where we talked about the early days of bootstrapping a lead generation business. We talk about merging his business with a co-founder and building off of the busines
Jonathan Weins of Pop Meals
This week we are joined by Jonathan Weins the Founder of Pop Meals, which is an F&B company leveraging tech and data to enable tailored experience with better quality and lower prices.This was a great conversation with Jonathan as we navigate the business model pivot towards physical locations. We talk about how they are applying tech and data and bring the iteration from their software experienc
TM Lee of CoinGecko
This week we are joined by TM Lee the Founder of CoinGecko, which is the world’s largest independent cryptocurrency data aggregator and has made a name as key provider of fundamental analysis on the crypto market.This was a great conversation with TM as we talked about how he came to be interested in the crypto industry and why they decided to build CoinGecko. We talk about building a subscriptio
Gil Carmo of iMotorbike
This week we are joined by Gil Carmo the Founder of iMotorbike, which is the leading online platform to buy or sell pre-owned Motorcycles with operations in Vietnam and Malaysia.This was a great conversation with Gil where we start with recognizing that there is no right time to start a startup, but you just must go. We navigate through them making a business model pivot in 2021 and how they have
Ami Sugiyama of Secai Marche
This week we are joined by Ami Sugiyama the Founder of Secai Marche, which is a B2B farm-to-table fulfilment platform that streamlines the supply chain through its in-house software which involves warehouse management and demand forecast systems.This was a great conversation where we talked about her past experience as an entrepreneur in the tea trading business and restaurant business led to the
Benjamin Croc of BrioHR
This week we are joined by Benjamin Croc the Founder of BrioHR, which is an HR Tech platform that automates repetitive tasks and engages employees for maximum productivity. They currently serve over 1,000 businesses across Southeast Asia.This was a great conversation with Benjamin as we talked about his experience as a consultant leading him to recognize the pain point and ultimately decide to la
Tunku Danny Mudzaffar of microLEAP
This week we are joined by Tunku Danny Mudzaffar the Founder of microLEAP, which is a P2P (Peer-to-Peer) Financing platform that offers both Shariah-Compliant and Conventional lending.This was a great conversation with Tunku Danny where we cover the motivation behind launching microLEAP. We talk about balancing the supply and demand sides of P2P financing and how listening to what those sides wan
Sharma Lachu of Accendo
This week we are joined by Sharma Lachu the Founder of Accendo, which is a Talent Intelligence Platform company that helps organizations revolutionize how to attract, assess, align, develop, and retain top talent, both inside and outside the company.This was a great conversation with Sharma where we talked about how his childhood led to his entrepreneurial journey. We also discuss the pivot from
Shayna Teh of Food Market Hub
This week we are joined by Shayna Teh the Founder of Food Market Hub, which helps restaurants & suppliers to increase efficiency by centralizing all F&B backend processes in one app.This was a great conversation with Shayna where we cover the journey to launching Food Market Hub from entrepreneurial family to a fashion startup to restaurateur to present. We talked about building the MVP, scaling
Dr Darren Gouk of AOne
This week we are joined by Dr Darren Gouk the Founder of AOne. For those of you who don’t know, AOne eases digitalization of education centers with a learning center management system.This was a great conversation with Darren as we talk about going from a marketplace to a SaaS business. Through the conversation we navigate from MVP through the various product launches and international expansion
Jason Low of Virtualtech Frontier
This week we are joined by Jason Low the Founder of Virtualtech Frontier, which is a virtualization and Metaverse enablement company that is developing engagement-driven virtual events, with virtual fairs, exhibitions, livestream events and hybrid events.This was a great conversation with Jason as we talk about the pathway he took, from becoming an entrepreneur, merging with a marketing firm, then
Martin Perez of PetChef
This week we are joined by Martin Perez the Founder of PetChef, which is D2C company offering a subscription service of healthy foods for your furry friend.This was a great conversation with Martin where we talk about his background in entrepreneurship and traveling the world. We talk about the passion for healthy foods for pets and scaling his business. We close off talking about what comes nex
Fabio Miceli of Sonno
This week we are joined by Fabio Miceli the Founder of Sonno, which started as a bed in a box D2C company but has now evolved into a full sleep brand with both online and offline channels.This was a great conversation where we learn the origins of launching a sleep brand and how entrepreneurship was always part of him. We talk about the challenges in launching a physical product and utilizing a D
Suthan Mookaiah of Edar.com
This week we are joined by Suthan Mookaiah the Founder of Edar.com, which is an online to offline retail grocery chain across Malaysia, and soon to be Indonesia, that allows payment by recycling household waste.This was a great conversation with Suthan was fantastic as we go from corporate retrenchment to covid entrepreneur to business model pivot. A recurring them to this conversation is partner
Eric Cheng of Carsome
This week we had a special collaboration with Founder Institute Malaysia as part of their relaunch and announcing they are open for applications. In this session, we were joined by Eric Cheng the Founder of Carsome, which is Malaysia’s first and only unicorn.This was a great conversation with Eric as he walks us through the early days of launching Carsome and the pathway they have taken in scalin
Top Lim - FinHero
This week we are joined by Top Lim of FinHero, which is a FinTech solutions provider operating a Finance as a Service platform ranging from credit scoring, KYC, collections and even supply chain financing.This was a great conversation to discuss how he transitioned from a corporate career at equipment financing entities to launching his own firm. We talk about the particulars in leveraging techno
Goh Ai Ching - Piktochart
This week we are joined by Goh Ai Ching of Piktochart, which is an all-in-one tool to easily create infographics, presentations, reports, posters, and videos online either from scratch or by editing a broad range of templates.This was a great conversation to discuss the pathway of a bootstrapped founder. We talk about what led to the founding of the company, building in the early days, and how th
Henry Tye - Big Domain
This week we are joined by Henry Tye of Big Domain, which is a domain registrar that also provides web hosting, web design, SEO services, and several other related services to launch and run a website.This was a great conversation to discuss where we go through the process that led him to launch his business and the experience of a second time founder. We talk about the rigors of making it throug
Charles Tang - Instant eStore
This week we are joined by serial entrepreneur Charles Tang of Instant eStore, which is an All-In-One Ecommerce Solution serving thousands of clients.This was a great conversation with serial entrepreneur and early pioneer of ecommerce in Malaysia, Charles Tang. We discussed how he started the business and scaled in the early days. We touch on the evolution of ecommerce and the need to be omni-c
Kelvyn Chuah - SINEGY
This week we are joined by Kelvyn Chuah of SINEGY, which is a digital asset exchange based in Malaysia, one of only 4 registered with the Securities Commission.This was a great conversation to discuss how Kelvyn launched a crypto exchange in Malaysia and navigated the regulatory process. We touch on the market perceptions and getting broader adoption. Inevitably, we make mentions of FTX, but cir
Howie Chang - Forward School
This week we are joined by Howie Chang of Forward School, which is equipping aspiring students and tech professionals with industry-ready skills required for the fast-moving tech sector.This was a great conversation to discuss how Howie came to launch an education focused startup. We talk about building a curriculum and getting accreditation. We then move onto scaling the business.I’d love to kn
Year End 2022 Hits
We launched SEA of Startups with the intent of highlighting great entrepreneurs and their stories. In the short few months, I think we have accomplished that goal. In this episode, we highlight excerpts of lessons extracted from three episodes that give a taste of the operational insight that comes from these stories. Please take the time and go back through the prior interviews we have done ov
Azran Osman-Rani - Naluri
This week we are joined by Azran Osman-Rani of Naluri, which provides an integrated digital care solution that combines support for physical and mental health.This was a great conversation with serial entrepreneur Azran. We talk about the localization experience at iFlix and how this combined with his own family experience with health to create the idea for Naluri. He discusses the process of val
Pennie Homa - Homa2U
This week we are joined by Pennie Homa of Homa2U, which is an online to offline (O2O) building materials and interior finishes marketplace supplied from brand new items through to unused construction materials, discarded, and overstock markets.This was a great conversation where we talk about the industry background Pennie had before launching Homa2U. We discuss the wastage problem that exists in
Alvin Yuan - HealthMetrics
This week we are joined by Alvin Yuan of HealthMetrics, which has designed a unified health benefits platform to manage, measure, and improve the employee benefits strategy.This was a great conversation where discuss the initial MVP and go to market strategy and how they navigated regulations. We discuss how some network effects in the market aided their growth. We wrap things up with some forwa
Arif Tukiman - RunCloud
This week we are joined by Arif Tukiman of RunCloud, which is a leading cloud control panel that is simplifying cloud, doing away with the difficulties of cloud management, and bringing simplicity, to return focus on business performance.This was a great conversation as we go from the early days of experiencing the problem firsthand when he ran a web development agency. Then building that product
Derek Toh - Hiredly
This week we are joined by Derek Toh of Hiredly, which is a a leading online to offline recruitment platform for junior to mid-management talent, including both a job portal and headhunter recruiter solution.This was a great conversation where we go from Derek’s time as a headhunter to his realization of the importance of information beyond the job description and beyond the CV. We talk about sca
Chris Fong of FeFiFo
This week we are joined by Chris Fong of FeFiFo, which is a technology-first co-farming company that focuses on empowering the new generation of progressive farmers in ASEAN.This was a great conversation where we learn the origins and ambition to tackle a key issue for smallholder farmers. We discuss extensively different areas of standardization and taking a process-oriented view. We even discu
Wai Hong Fong of StoreHub
This week we are joined by Wai Hong Fong of StoreHub, which started as an POS system but has evolved into an all-in-one platform for retailers and restaurants to automate and grow their businesses. They currently have over 15,000 businesses across Southeast Asia.This was a great conversation that trace the hustle of building a product and scaling internationally. We touch on aspects of fundraisi
Jes Min Lua from Recommend Group
This week we are joined by Jes Min Lua of Recommend Group, which is southeast Asia's #1 Home and Local Services platform, operating under Sejasa.com in Indonesia and Recommend.my in Malaysia.This was a great conversation about building a marketplace model and the hurdles they have overcome. We cover the aspects of building trust through to tactics to drive recurrence and keep transactions on the
Mark Koh of Supa
This week we are joined by Mark Koh of Supa, which provides a self-service data annotation platform to enable machine learning models.This was a great conversation as we go straight into the last mile problem of data analysis in AI/ML models, data annotation. We hear how he has built a customer base and uses thought leadership as lead generation. We wrap up on how a data company incorporates dat
Brian Tan - FutureLab
This week we are joined by Brian Tan of FutureLab, which is a mentorship platform connecting Mentors to Mentees to guide career paths, gain skills, and develop professionally from university through to Enterprise.This was a great conversation about an impactful business aiming to enable access to mentorship for university students and recent graduates to guide them along their career paths. Incre
Whei Meng - Speedhome
This week we are joined by Wong Whei Meng of Speedhome, which is tackling the home rental market with zero deposit for tenants by combining insurance protection and tech innovation.This was a great conversation about the challenges and paint points in the home rental market. Leveraging an insurance product to eliminate the need for high upfront deposits which can be restrictive for segments of th
Sina Meraji - Learning Loops
This week we are joined by Sina Meraji of Learning Loop, which is a data company specializing in learning distribution and discovery.This was a great conversation as we discussed Sina’s own personal life experiences that developed the motivation and passion to launch Learning Loop. We uncover a number of insights in the learning experiences, the filters of knowledge and understanding users. Ther
Yienyee Soh - Avana
This week we are joined by Yien Yee Soh of Avana, which is a social commerce enabler platform, providing an integrated D2C & reseller selling solution for social media channels.This was a great conversation as we went from the days of creating an aggregator for a community of blogs operating as shops through to launching an enabler platform that has since scaled. We discuss the direction of s
Ram Muniandy - Asia Mobiliti
This week we are joined by Ramachandran Muniandy of Asia Mobiliti, a mobility as a service company (MaaS).Through this conversation we navigate the origins and the motivation to building something to better the nation. We discuss the evolution of public transportation and demand responsive transit (DRT) that scraps the timetables. A number of great points made that are highly applicable to every
Effon Khoo - Kakitangan.com
This week we are joined by Effon Khoo of Kakitangan.com, which is an online HR Software for Malaysian businesses that helps handle payroll, claims, benefits, leave and more.During the conversation we move from the 10 years’ experience in Microsoft through to raising multiple rounds of capital (crowdfunding, CVC, and VC). We discuss details around scaling a highly localized product and how they ar
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