TechBurst Asia Podcast

If you keep up to date with the latest technology news, you know that the momentum and investment has shifted from Asia to the Middle East. But gone are the days where countries like Saudi Arabia and the UAE just import technology and talent - the new trend across the Middle East is how to create a home-grown technology startup ecosystem - and this is what we are going to cover in today’s podcast.  Let’s face it - money is not going to be an issue - but as we have seen from other countries, just throwing money at the startup ecosystem is no guarantee that it will be successful.  To help us go through this topic, we are joined by the Partner & Co-Founder of SparkLabs Group, Bernard Moon. SparkLabs has made a name for itself by launching accelerators and VC funds in Asia, Australia and the US, but now they are entering the Middle East market, so let’s see what has drawn SparkLabs to that region - and what Bernard thinks will be the critical success factors to making sure they get a return on their investments.  Show Notes: 00:00 Intro to Bernard Moon and SparkLabs Group 02:30 SparkLabs new accelerator programs in Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi 06:00 How does SparkLabs plan to find the “best of the best” startups in the Middle East 08:45 Do you see any similarities between the Middle East markets and other countries where you have had success with your accelerators (e.g. Korea, Taiwan)? And are there any specific opportunities and / or risks compared to the other markets you operate in?  14:30 What are the critical success factors for the Middle East markets to develop a home grown startup ecosystem? And what is the role of academia in creating this? 20:30 What does SparkLabs look for in startups that they want to invest in? And are there any red flags that you watch out for? 24:00 What will it take for SparkLabs to view their entry into the Middle East accelerator market a success? 26:00 What can countries like Saudi Arabia and the UAE learn from other markets, like Singapore, that haven’t made the most of their investment / funding of their local startup ecosystem? 30:00 Why are startups keen to be involved with SparkLabs versus the many other accelerator programs in the market? 33:00 Last week, SparkLabs listed it’s USD 100m SPAC (Special Purpose Acquisition Company) on Nasdaq. Can you give us an overview of how this came about and what your strategy for the SPAC is? More information on SparkLabs can be found here: Contact Bernard directly: bernard@sparklabsglobal.com  SparkLabs Saudi Arabia SparkLabs Korea SparkLabs Taiwan SparkLabs Cultiv8 SparkLabs Group  

In Part II of our Middle East Deep Dive, we talk with Carrington Malin to find out how the government's in the Middle East are driving unprecedented growth and innovation.  But it's more than just the tech, they are up-skilling their workforces and training students on how to leverage emerging technologies to transform the traditional industries that support their economies - and develop new ones. Exciting times to say the least... Show Notes: 1:00 Intro to Carrington Malin and the various roles he has played in the Middle East’s technology ecosystem for the past 30 years.  5:00 How Middle East governments are driving innovation that leverages emerging technologies like Artificial Intelligence by dedicating funds to support their initiatives and creating detailed action plans and deliverables to ensure they go beyond the hype.  11:00 The region’s plans to build “home-grown” taken to support it’s tech and innovation initiatives 16:00 The growth in large language models (e.g. Abu Dhabi’s Technology Innovation Institutes Falcom LLM that rivals ChatGPT and OpenAI) 23:00 How government policies and regulations will ensure the countries like Dubai will lead the way globally around autonomous vehicles - and not just self-driving taxis, they are getting ready for flying taxis 30:00 How government-led initiatives is transforming the region’s talent pool You can follow Carrington's Middle East AI News on Substack and LinkedIn.

This is the first in a series on Technology and Innovation trends in the Middle East. Things have gone quiet in Asia post-pandemic - and the global recession has not helped.  However, the Middle East is thriving.  Hardly a week goes by where there isn’t another jaw-dropping announcement related to emerging technologies like AI, autonomous vehicles and the Metaverse in the Middle East - or the massive investment in initiatives like Saudi Arabia’s NEOM.  To help us delve deeper into the Middle East’s technology innovation landscape, I’m joined by Danial Mausoof. He's based in Abu Dhabi, but covers the Middle East and Africa as part of his job, so we are lucky to have him with us to share his unique insights and perspectives. Show Notes: 02:45 Key market trends in the Middle East 06:30 The Talent Issue: How the Middle East is starting to build a local talent pool to drive and support innovation 08:30 Overview of the three key markets: Saudi Arabia, Dubai and Abu Dhabi 13:00 Why the recession has not derailed tech spend in the Middle East. 16:45 The state of 5G in the Middle East - and why they could lead in 5G monetisation 23:00 Artificial Intelligence: How the combination of investment, education and regulation is making the Middle East a leader in AI 28:00 Smart Cities: How the greenfield Smart Cities like NEOM will drive global innovation 33:00 Autonomous Vehicles: How the Middle East’s progressive regulatory environments have ensured they will lead in self-driving taxis and, believe it or not, flying taxis 40:00 Our future forecasts - when will we go beyond the hype on…. 5G 5G monetisation Artificial Intelligence Large Language Models (e.g. ChatGPT) Metaverse Smart Cities Autonomous Vehicles

In this episode, we are joined by Jordan Kostelac, co-founder of Deploy Capital, to discuss the current state - and what the future holds - for PropTech in Asia Pacific.  Show Notes: 02:50 What the hell is PropTech and is it still a buzzword? 02:45 Intro to Jordan Kostelac, Asia’s PropTech Provocateur 06:45 Jordan’s experience working with PropTech startups with the JLL & Lendlease “Propell Asia” accelerator programme. 08:05 Examples of PropTech startups in Asia that are delivering value 13:45 How will PropTech in Asia evolve in the future? 22:15 AI & PropTech: so many opportunities, but what about the security and data privacy risks? 34:20 How will the next wave of emerging technologies, including web3, the metaverse and ChatGPT, impact PropTech. 39:45 Jordan’s new venture, Deploy Capital, that combines blockchain, PropTech & venture capital.  43:45 Look to the future - if PropTech succeeds, what did we do right? And if it fails, what did we screw up? 45:45 Tell us something about yourself that will surprise us?  Stay in touch with Jordan Twitter: @scopelessness  LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/jkostelac/ www.jordankostelac.net Stay in touch with Deploy Capital Twitter: @deplo0x  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/deploycapital-online/  deploycapital.online  

We need to face the facts - our Return to the Office strategies are failing. Giving away free beer once a week is not enough to make our employees WANT to come back to the office. So what will make them? That’s what we are going to discuss today.  I’m joined by Helen Snowball, JLL’s Global Head of People Solutions and Experience, to discuss how showing empathy, creating purpose and delivering enhanced employee experiences are the keys to attracting and retaining talent in the post pandemic world.  Show notes: 00:30  Intro to Helen Snowball, Global Head of People Solutions and Experience, JLL 03:30  How delivering enhanced employee experiences can help attract and retain the best talent 07:55  How JLL has managed the transition back to the office for its 100,000+ workforce by implementing the hybrid model that employees want 12:30  How upskilling middle management to manage hybrid work environments is vital to make your return to the office successful  14:30  Why ignoring the human impact of the pandemic - and a lack of empathy - has led to the failure of most our return to the office strategies   18:30  The importance of trust when implementing a hybrid work strategy - and why hybrid should be viewed as an opportunity, not a threat 23:30  What can companies do (spoiler alert: focus on purpose) to attract and retain the best talent and mitigate the risk of the Great Resignation? 31:30  What mistakes do companies make with their return to the office strategies and initiatives? 34:30  What advice do you have for people trying to redesign their organisations for the Future of Work? 37:30  What do you do to keep yourself motivated, energised and inspired?

One of the challenges with Sustainability is that while people like talking about it, it can be hard to find people driving real impact. But luckily for you, today’s guest is one that it driving impact. In this episode of the TechBurst Asia podcast, we will speak to Adrien Desbaillets, the CEO and Co-Founder of Salad Stop, about the growth of his business - and how they were able to deliver SouthEast Asia’s first Net Zero F and B outlet.   00:30 Intro to Adrien & SaladStop!   05:00 How technology and a drive to innovate has contributed to their expansion to 65 stores in 8 markets across Asia 07:15 How SaladStop! Incorporates sustainability into its strategy and operations, including launching Southeast Asia’s first Net Zero F&B outlet 09:40 The challenges SaladStop! overcame to launch a Net Zero store - and what challenges they will have to overcome to have all their stores achieve Net Zero by 2030. 13:15 How SaladStop! Educates its customers on their sustainability journey  14:55 What does the future hold for SaladStop!? 16:15 What advice do you have for someone who is interested in starting a F&B business, raising Venture Capital funding and creating a Net Zero store? 19:45 Adrien’s passion for wearable technology 22:15 If you had to start a new business that couldn’t be in the F&B industry, what would it be and why?    

Apple recently announced it's latest smartphones and smartwatch, so it's time to bring Asia's top device analyst - IDC's Bryan Ma - back onto the TechBurst Asia podcast to discuss what these launches mean to the industry.  00:45  Overview of the Apple Launch Event 02:00 Apple goes after the competitive athlete market with the Apple Watch Ultra - what does it mean for vendors like Garmin and Suunto? Or the other leader smartwatch - the Samsung Galaxy Watch5 Pro.? 08:00 Bryan’s view of the new Apple iPhone 14 Satellite communications eSIMs 09:30 Why does the new iPhone 14 have a satellite connection?  12:00 Apple goes eSIM! Why they made the shift and what it means to the mobile operators.  15:15 Huawei’s launch of its Mate 50 flagship smartphone - nice device, but it’s still 4G only 17:45 When is keeping Apple from launching a foldable smartphone? And when can we expect it? And could there be a foldable iPad? 19:00 Comparing Samsung’s S22 to the latest iPhones 20:00 If you had to pick one device from the iPhone 14, Samsung S22, Samsung Flip and the Huawei Mate 50, which one would you pick and why? 21:00 The device manufacturer’s dilemma - how to differentiate in a mature market? 22:30 What’s the latest on the Chinese & Indian device markets - and has the pandemic slowed demand? 26:00 Is the chipset shortage finally sorted? 27:10 How do you see the market for smartphones and smartwatches developing - and how can the device manufacturers differentiate? 28:15 The latest on the PC market (pandemic driving growth) and AR/VR - and when can we expect an Apple VR headset?

Just 10 years ago, today's guest (Rafael Aldon) worked in telecoms in the UK. But over the past decade, he moved to Singapore as he first transitioned to Private Equity, then early stage Venture Capital, and finally into Impact Investing. It's been quite a journey! He’s also the co-host of 2 podcasts (Investing for Impact and Disruptors for Good) on Cause Artist, which is a discovery hub for conscious consumers, social entrepreneurs and impact investors.  If you don’t know what impact investing is, you’ll love this episode because it will give you a solid understanding not only of what it is, but why it is so desperately needed. And if you already do know about it, you’ll still enjoy hearing about his amazing journey.  Show Notes: 01:30 Rafael’s journey from Telecoms to Private Equity to Early Stage VC to Impact Investing 10:00 What led you to narrow your investment focus to Impact Investing? 12:00 Difference between ESG Investing & Impact Investing 15:00 Raf’s focus on regenerative businesses - and what does regenerative mean? 18:00  What is Regenr8? 22:00 The value you get from angel investing 24:00 What is the current state of Impact Investing in Asia & globally? Is it still niche? 26:30 What needs to be done to drive more Impact investing 29:00 Can we get enough momentum going to help us address the global climate challenges before it’s too late? 31:00 What are the biggest risks we face that will prevent us from making progress towards addressing those issues? 33:30 What advice do you have for start-ups that are playing in the Impact space? 37:30 You can do your career all over again. What would you rather be - an Impact Investor or a Rockstar?  

After a decade of struggling to live up to the hype, augmented reality and virtual reality are finally gaining traction in the B2C and B2B spaces. Today, we will sit down with Auggd’s Matthias Krampe to discuss the 3 main reasons for this. First, the technologies and ecosystems that support AR & VR have evolved considerably. Second, B2B customers are starting to understand how these technologies can be leveraged to deliver tangible business value through a variety of use cases. And third, they are intrinsically linked to the Metaverse, which has to be approaching the top of the hype curve.  Whether you agree with Zuckerberg - and believe that we will all live and work in the metaverse - or whether you agree with NYU marketing professor Scott Galloway that the metaverse is “a giant flaming bag of sh*t”, one thing is for sure, the hype around the metaverse is driving the AR & VR industries But the question is, can this new found interest help AR & VR reach mass adoption? 01:30 Intro to Matthias and his augmented reality  firm, Auggd 05:30 What types of AR industry solutions (e.g. construction) does Auggd create? 07:00 Glimpse Group - the AR / VR collective - acquired Auggd in 2021 08:00 Augmented reality has struggled for adoption. What has held it back from reaching its potential? 12:30 What are the key trends (industry trends, hardware and evolution, 5G, etc) driving the AR industry? And is the talent shortage holding the industry back? 16:30 What industries (construction, retail, training) are driving AR adoption?  18:45 How is the virtual reality industry progressing - and what trends are driving it?  21:30 How long will it be before we are having meetings in the metaverse? 30:30 On a scale from 1 to 10, how overhyped is the metaverse? 35:30 You have looked at hundreds of AR and VR solutions, what are some of the best - and worst - solutions you have seen? Auggd: www.auggd.com The Glimpse Group: www.theglimpsegroup.com

As we approach the end of 2021, we enter into one of the tech industry’s favourite seasons - 2022 Predictions. While all the industry evangelists will be predicting what mega-trends are going to transform our cities next year, I’m going to take a different approach. I’m going to focus on the mega-blockers that we need to overcome in order to live up to the industry hype.  And to do this, I am joined by 3 guests who sit in different areas of the Smart Cities ecosystem.  - Josh Sattler, A/CEO - General Manager Innovation, Growth and Development Services at City of Darwin in Australia - Tim Kobe, Founder & CEO of the global strategic design firm Eight Inc. - Zachary Wang, the Founder & CEO of Neuron Mobility, a leading rental e-scooter company and micro-mobility technology developer operating in cities across Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, South Korea and Canada. For simplicity’s sake, view it this way. Zach represents the tech innovator’s supplying Smart City solutions, Josh represents the market demand, and Tim the planning and design side that has to liaise between the supply and demand side.  Show Notes: 01:20 Guest Intros 03:40 Smart Cities have not lived up to the hype. What types of challenges have you encountered that are holding back innovation? 07:35 Mega-blockers for the adoption of AI / Facial Recognition: how to overcome citizen’s concerns over data privacy 15:00 Mega-blockers for the adoption of Urban Mobility: eScooters, eVTOLs (electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft - aka Flying Taxis), etc. 20:50 Mega-blockers for the adoption of Sustainability solutions: balancing ROI and social impact 27:40 We have the technology to deliver transformative solutions, but sometimes people and processes hold us back. What do we need to do as humans to become Smart City enablers instead of blockers? 34:00 Rapid Fire round Do we need more government regulation to drive innovation? What is the one thing that needs to happen to the Smart Cities ecosystem to drive more innovation? What’s the biggest risk that Smart Cities face in 2022? What’s your personal wish list?  - Tim - name one client you would like to work with - Josh - if you could lead any city’s Smart City initiatives, which would it be? - Zach - if Neuron could “win” one new city in 2022, which city would it be? Let’s close on a positive - tell me something that you are proud of that happened during the pandemic.   

Over the past few years, delivering sustainable solutions and reducing carbon emissions have moved up the corporate agenda. But while many people like talking about it, few are ready to act.  One reason that people claim that holds them back is that sustainability solutions come with a green premium  - which is the additional cost of choosing a clean technology over one that emits a greater amount of greenhouse gases. But that’s not always the case anymore.  In this podcast, we are joined by the CEO & Co-founder of Ampd Energy, Brandon Ng. His company proves that you don't have to increase your costs to decrease your carbon emissions.  01:40 Intro to Brandon & Ampd Energy  - How an approach from Gammon Construction in Hong Kong changed Ampd’s focus to reducing carbon emissions in the construction industry 05:00 Ampd Energy targets the construction industry, which is an industry laggard when it comes to driving productivity and innovation. However, you are seeing very strong traction in your home market in Hong Kong. What is driving your success? - Sole focus is on the construction industry - First customer was a marquee company - Gammon Construction - Electric Vehicles have been in Hong Kong for over 10 years, so battery technology is viewed as “ready for primetime”, not an emerging tech.  - The business case stacks up. Ampd Energy doesn’t come with a “green premium”, it actually reduces costs from the current solutions deployed.  10:00 Hong Kong’s Construction Industry Council partnered with Hong Kong’s Development Bureau to launch at HKD 1 Billion (USD 130m) Construction Innovation Technology Fund. How has this been adopted and leveraged by the construction industry and what benefits has it delivered? 12:45 What are the biggest challenges you face when trying to win new business? - Lack of product awareness leads to misconceptions and misunderstandings about what we do - Fear of change 14:45 What is your business model? Do customers have to buy (CapEx) yoru solution or can they lease (OpEx) it?  15:45 What are your key objectives to grow your business over the coming 12 - 24 months - Increase market share in HK - Expand to Singapore and other markets across Asia - Continue to educate and advocate for greener, cleaner and quieter construction sites using Ampd’s products 18:00 What impact has the rise in importance of sustainability and reducing carbon emissions had on your business? - Investment firms holding industry responsible for the carbon emissions 19:30 What are the Critical Success Factors for driving your long term (5-10 year) growth and success? And the biggest risks? - Urbanisation  - Bridging the gap in debt financing to give Ampd the working capital to build more product in advance of orders received - Attracting talent 25:45 What do you know today that you wish you knew when you started Ampd in 2015? 26:40 When you expand into new markets, will you go direct or leverage channel partners? 28:00 How can the audience follow Ampd Energy or get in touch with you? Website: www.ampd.energy LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ampd_energy/ Brandon Ng: https://www.linkedin.com/in/branng/

If you are a regular listener to the TechBurst Asia podcast, you’ll know I love talking about OpenRAN, which is kind of strange. I have spent much of the past 20 years looking at the solutions that can leverage the latest and greatest networks, but I am far from an expert when it comes to what it takes to build those networks - and even less of an expert on the technology they run on. So why does OpenRAN fascinate me? Well, it isn’t the technology behind it, it’s the disruptive business, operating and financial models that it creates. And I like to see how the industry will respond to this disruption.  And let’s face it, OpenRAN has been riding pretty high on the hype curve, so I want to understand what it will take for it to live up to that hype.  Today’s guest is uniquely suited to help me understand this. He has spent the past couple years working on the groundbreaking Rakuten OpenRAN deployment in Japan, so he’s seen first hand the benefits OpenRAN can deliver - and the challenges faced when deploying it.  In addition to that, he works for a company that, on the surface, looks like it would be one of the main companies disrupted by this new model, so I want to understand why they are embracing it.  He is Terry McCabe, Nokia’s Chief Technology Officer for Asia Pacific & Japan, where he spearheads Nokia’s 5G technology strategy. And yes, we’ll talk a bit about 5G - and 6G - as well.  Show Notes: 01:30 How does Nokia define OpenRAN? 04:10 OpenRAN has the potential to disrupt how mobile operators will purchase their networks in the future - yet that didn’t stop Nokia from being an early supporter of the OpenRAN Alliance.  What was the rationale behind that decision? 05:30 The first major OpenRAN network deployment was Rakuten in Japan - and Nokia was one of the vendors involved in it. What were your major learnings from this deployment? 09:30 What are Nokia’s plans for the next phase of OpenRAN? 10:45 It hasn’t always been smooth sailing for OpenRAN, not least when Nokia and some other vendors halted their participation in the OpenRAN Alliance due to concerns raised by the US government about IP protection. That has since been resolved, but is this a sign of the challenges OpenRAN will face in the future? 12:00 When some operators, like AT&T, talk about their plans for OpenRAN, they state their initial deployments will be for in-building and rural coverage. Does that mean we won’t see it deployed in city centres? 13:15 What does the ideal OpenRAN customer look like? 14:15 OpenRAN and its potential role in Private 5G 15:30 Who / What / Where should we be keeping an eye on for the next phase of growth for OpenRAN? 17:30 Some people believe that it’s too late for OpenRAN to be leveraged for 5G network deployments, meaning that it’s real impact would be on 6G deployments. Would you agree? 18:30 What are the Critical Success Factors for OpenRAN to live up to the hype? 19:30 What are some of the risks OpenRAN faces (e.g. energy consumption, openness) 21:30 How do you think the OpenRAN Alliance will evolve - and what impact will the hyperscalers have on the industry? 23:35 What’s your prediction for how OpenRAN will evolve in the near term (12-24 months)? 26:00 What are the Best & Worst Case Scenarios for OpenRAN in the medium to long term (5-10 years)? 28:00 Beyond OpenRAN, what else excites you about the future of connectivity? (spoiler alert: 6G, Enterprise Solutions, Private Networks)

Welcome to the final episode of our 3 part series on Emerging Tech Trends with our guest, Analyse Asia’s Bernard Leong. In part 2, we covered the latest developments in Drones, AI and digital transformation. For this final episode, we’ll dig deep into what’s going on with Crypto, what are NFTs, why have they become so popular and how can they be used - and then we’ll close out by addressing the big one - what the hell is going on with China.  (note: this podcast was recorded prior to China’s recent announcement that declares all crypto-currency transactions illegal - amazing how fast things change!) Show Notes: 00:40 What’s the latest trends we need to know about Crypto & Blockchain? - Private blockchains are just databases - and they have failed 02:10 The latest killer apps - Decentralized Finance (DeFi) & Non Fungible Tokens (NFTs) - NFT use cases beyond memes - Creating a syndicate - Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAO) - Countries issuing their one cryptocurrency - like the Digital Chinese Yuan  07:40 Bitcoin / crypto and the Sustainability issues 11:00 The latest on the US / China trade war - There will be two supply chains - China and the rest of the world 15:40 China’s crackdown on its own consumer tech vendors  - China’s trying to avoid the demographic time bomb that the US, Japan and Singapore face 18:30 How China imposes “shock therapy” on its own ecosystem - Making online education market non-profit - Killing off the 9x9x6 work culture - The US, Japan and Singapore killed off their own manufacturing industries - China wants to retain theirs and copy Germany’s model - Crackdown on children’s gaming - limited to a few hours per week during specific times 25:00 If I’m a Chinese tech billionaire, should I be scared right now? 25:40 What’s next for Bernard and Analyse Asia 28:10 What have you been reading lately that had the most impact on you?

In the first episode of this 3 part series, we did a role reversal, where I switched from being the host - to being the guest to share my views on the latest trends, opportunities and risks related to Smart Cities and 5G.  For this episode, it’s back to normal - I’ll be interviewing Analyse Asia’s Bernard Leong to get his take on the future of drones, the latest developments around AI and Machine Learning, and what digital transformation trends evolved due to the pandemic.  Show Notes: 00:00 Bernard hasn’t been on a podcast in two years, including his own Analyse Asia podcast. What has he been up to in the meantime? 01:30 How has the pandemic impacted the future of drones? Are you more or less optimistic? 09:15 What are the latest trends we need to know about in AI and Machine Learning? - How Machine Learning works - What’s real and what’s hype? - Artificial General Intelligence vs Artificial Narrow Intelligence 21:00 AI’s Ethics Dilemma - how do we overcome privacy concerns, the data bias problem, etc.  27:45 What are the COOL emerging solutions that are leveraging AI? 32:00 The pandemic has fast-tracked everyone’s digital transformation agendas - what are the key trends (e.g. eKYC) that we need to know about?  

Welcome to the first of a 3-part series on emerging trends in Asia’s technology and innovation ecosystems. In this episode, we are going to look at how the Smart Cities & 5G are progressing - and we have a special guest to help us delve into that topic...me. That’s right, the host becomes the guest - and we have a special guest host as well.  Many of you will know him as the former host of the hugely successful Analyse Asia podcast - and he was also the guest on my first ever TechBurst Asia podcast. He’s none other than Bernard Leong, making his first podcast appearance in over 2 years.  In parts 2 and 3 of this Emerging Trends series, we will revert back to the normal format, with Bernard joining us as the guest to discuss a wide range of topics, including the latest on drones, AI, digital transformation, crypto, NFTs and what in the world is going on in China. Parts 2 and 3 will be out in the coming days, so stay tuned.  Show Notes: 01:15 What are your learnings from doing the TechBurst Asia podcast? And what have you learned from interviewing your guests? 03:15 What is the right user experience for a citizen in a Smart City? 05:45 Smart Buildings: What is the ideal experience for the business owner or facilities manager?  09:00 Why have Smart Cities not lived up to the hype? 12:05 How has Covid pandemic changed the way that people look at Smart Cities? 14:10 How will cities evolve to address the remote working trend? 17:30 Smart City Rankings - why did you create the CRAP Smart City Ranking 19:15 What metric would you use to make a “good” Smart City ranking? 20:40 How do you evaluate the progress on Smart Cities, IoT & 5G? 23:10 What will be the key applications that will leverage 5G? 25:35 If I gave you a magic wand, what would you want to see in the next 3 - 5 years?  

In a recent TechBurst Asia podcast, we delved deep into Singapore’s startup and venture capital ecosystems. Not surprisingly, they are both evolving well. But what I wanted to do as a follow up is look at the wider Southeast Asia startup and venture capital ecosystems to see how countries like Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand and the others are progressing.  To help me with this, I am joined by my good friend Chris Tran, who has been supporting start-ups in those countries for the past 12 years. This makes him ideally suited to discuss how the markets are developing, identify what works and what needs improvement. And I’m also keen to learn more about the launch of his new Boutique Investment Bank that supports Southeast Asian Technology Entrepreneurs and Investors, Cap Connect.  Show notes: 00:00 Intro to Cap Connect and what led Chris to launch his own boutique investment firm 05:15 How does Chris source deal flow across the many countries in SE Asia 08:00 How is the startup ecosystem evolving across SE Asia, including Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines 16:00 How does the VC industry support SE Asia? Is it all Singapore-based or has each country developed its own funding ecosystem? 19:30 What’s the good, the bad and the ugly about Singapore innovation and VC industries? 21:30 What industries are driving innovation across SE Asia  26:30 How has the pandemic impacted startups across the region - and what has been the impact on valuations? 32:00 How Chris got into venture capital and what brought him to Singapore 12 years ago 33:00 What Chris looks for in a founder or startup - and what are the red flags 34:30 What advice do you have for aspiring venture capitalists? 37:45 Tell us something about yourself that will surprise us (note: I recommend listening to this, it is the funniest segment of any podcast I have ever recorded)

We hear the hype about how great our mobile networks are, yet when I speak with enterprise customers, they always talk about the challenges they face to get fast and reliable connectivity across their global sites and operations.  In this podcast, we are going to talk to a Singaporean-based start-up about how they help customers address those challenges. Blue Wireless started in Singapore in 2015, but already supports customers across 80+ countries. We are joined by their Founder and CEO, Ivan Landen, to discuss their start-up journey and how they are committed to doing one thing - and to doing that one thing well - Connectivity.  Show Notes: 01:45 Background on Ivan and his company, Blue Wireless 02:45 The Blue Wireless start-up journey 08:40 From one country to 80 in six years 13:00 Many tech vendors are moving into adjacent sectors, but Blue Wireless focuses on solving just one problem - connectivity. Why did you choose to only focus on your core competencies? 14:45 What does your typical client look like - and industry verticals do you target? 26:50 Is 5G impacting customer demand?  30:45 What’s next for Blue Wireless? 32:30 What do you know today that you wish you knew when you started Blue Wireless?    

In recent years, Sustainability has risen to the forefront of the strategic objectives for companies and governments. What concerns me is that when I speak with some of the leaders in ESG, they say there is still too much talk...and too little action. Well, that’s not the case for all companies. In this podcast, we’ll speak to Renee Peet, Head of Product Management and Marketing for Xylem, about how they lead by example. Xylem is ranked as one of the, if not the, world’s best company with regards to sustainability objectives and deliverables. If you want to learn how you - and your company - can make a difference, I truly recommend you listen to this episode.  Show Notes: 01:45 What does water have to do with Sustainability? 05:00 Who is Xylem - and what role do they play in the Sustainability ecosystem? 08:15 What types of solutions does Xylem provide  - and how do they differ for developed and developing markets? 13:50 Who are the major players in the Water Sustainability ecosystem? 14:30 What impact has the pandemic had on your customers? Are they moving forward or holding back? 18:30 How does Xylem drive innovation and how do they engage the wider ecosystem to deliver it? 23:30 Driving a Sustainability agenda at a high level is easy - how does Xylem ensure that it permeates to all levels within the organisation? 29:30 What are the biggest challenges the industry faces? 32:30 Bottom line - what’s the worst case scenario if we don’t address the world’s water issues? 34:30 And the best case scenario - what does the ecosystem need to do to make sure we don’t hit the worst case scenario? 36:30 What can I - and we - do on a personal level to help avoid water / climate disaster? Do your part, check out: https://www.xylem.com/en-ms/watermark/

Keeping up with Asia’s innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystems is challenging because the region’s DeepTech, Venture Capital and Start-up ecosystems are incredibly complex and diverse. Today, we are going to try to break it down by focusing on the ecosystems in just one country - Singapore.  We are going to discuss three key topics. First, we’ll look at DeepTech to discover the latest trends and to understand what unique challenges start-ups in this space face.  Second, we’ll look at the state of Venture Capital in Singapore, and, more specifically, is there enough VC funds available to support the longer commercialisation cycles of DeepTech Startups.  Finally, we’ll discuss how the start-up ecosystem is evolving and find out what cool new innovations are on the horizon.  To do this, we are joined by David Toh, the Interim CEO of NTUitive, which is the innovation and enterprise subsidiary of Nanyang Technological University (NTU), which is ranked Number 12 in the latest World University Rankings.   Show Notes: 01:00 Intro to NTUitive, including how it supports start-ups and engages with the technology innovation ecosystem.  06:00 How does NTU look at DeepTech? And some examples of DeepTech solutions coming out of NTU.  13:30 What unique challenges do DeepTech start-ups face? And due to their longer commercialisation cycle, how do they set near-term success metrics? 19:30 Where has NTUitive been successful, and where is there room for improvement? 21:30 David’s journey from semicon engineer to equity analyst to fund manager to the world of Venture Capital.  27:45 Some of the start-ups David has helped on their start-up journey 29:45 What’s the current state of Singapore’s start-up and venture capital ecosystems? 37:45 What characteristics does David look for in start-ups - and are there any red flags that would prevent him engaging with a start-up.  43:45 Let’s look five to ten years in the future, and DeepTech has been incredibly successful in Singapore. How did the ecosystem evolve to enable that success? Alternatively, let’s say that DeepTech bombs. What mistakes did the ecosystem make? 48:30 What advice do you have for someone who is thinking about creating a start-up? Or someone who wants to go into Venture Capital?  

The global pandemic has wreaked havoc on many industries - with the Food & Beverage industry one of the hardest hit. Most countries, at some point, have had to ban dining in - and even once that restriction is lifted, they have limited the restaurant capacity to only 50-70% of the pre-pandemic levels. To survive financially, restaurants have had to pivot their business and operating models online to create new revenue streams.  In this episode, we are going to look at the role tech has played in helping restaurants overcome these unprecedented challenges.  If you live in Asia and like food, you’ll know today’s guest, Dave Pynt. Dave is  the chef and owner of the one Michelin starred restaurant Burnt Ends - which is currently ranked #14 on Asia’s Top 50 Restaurants and #59 globally.  Show Notes: 01:30 Intro to Dave and how a surfer from Western Australia developed into one of Asia's top chefs 08:00 Dave's restaurant portfolio, including 2 x Meatsmiths in Singapore, another Meatsmith in Doha and The Ledge in the Maldives 10:50 How Dave leveraged tech in the pre-Covid world 12:45 How the Burnt Ends Group has used tech to transform their operations 18:30 How does a restaurant with no IT department drive digital transformation? 24:00 What's next for Burnt Ends Group (hint: BE to move from Teck Lim to Dempsey - and a Brew Pub launching in 2023) And more chats about Dave's favourite places to eat, the importance of good ingredients and what it's like to cook a wild boar on a spit on the slopes of Mt. Fuji.