Khailee Ng thinks people are wrong about deep tech in Southeast Asia

Khailee Ng at Tech in Asia Tokyo 2018 / Photo credit: Tech in Asia

Five years from now, Southeast Asia will have abundant talent, funding, and multiple unicorns in deep tech, believes Khailee Ng, the Southeast Asia boss of 500 Startups.

The venture capitalist made the remark today at Tech in Asia’s Tokyo conference, dispelling a common notion that the region lacks all those in deep tech, a term referring to companies founded on scientific discoveries or meaningful engineering innovation.

Ng reminds the audience that five years ago, people also thought there was a shortage of talent, funding, and unicorns in Southeast Asia’s overall startup ecosystem – an observation disproved by its burgeoning scene today.

4 things to do right now

To achieve what Ng hopes for deep tech in Southeast Asia, however, there are things that the startups should take note of:

1. Stop talking about the tech itself. People are caught up with buzzwords while, fundamentally, technology is about solving problems for customers as well as generating revenue and cutting costs for businesses.
2. One doesn’t have to be a scientist to build a deep-tech startup. Deep tech already exists in university labs and big companies’ research arms. What the industry needs are “commercial geniuses” to help turn deep tech into tangible businesses.
3. One doesn’t have to be in Silicon Valley. Ng gives a list of game-changing biotech and AI companies that are based in Southeast Asia – some even outside the main tech centers, such as Indonesia’s Bandung.
4. Deep tech is not futuristic. As of 2017, more than half of the global population had yet to come online. What these future netizens want is likely more basic than futuristic – the type of convenience and luxury that internet users in tech-advanced countries are already enjoying. So go out and serve the next billion users.

500 in the region

As the tech sector in Southeast Asia takes off, investors are racing to pick the next winners, jacking up paychecks for investment rounds and valuations. The competitive landscape hasn’t affected 500 Startups, though, as the firm keeps its focus on seed-stage companies.

“Not a lot of people like to back [seed-stage startups]. Because of our reputation from the past few years, it’s easier for us to negotiate and identify things early, and make earlier bets. So we are able to get in a bit cheaper,” Ng told Tech in Asia.

Since launching 500 Durians – a fund dedicated to Southeast Asia – in 2013, the Silicon Valley venture firm has backed over 160 companies in the region including Grab, Bukalapak, and Carousell.

Grab founder Anthony Tan (left), Khailee Ng, and Quek Siu Rui (right), Carousell’s CEO and co-founder / Photo credit: Khailee Ng

While the venture firm runs a full-on accelerator program in the US, it hasn’t set up an equivalent in Southeast Asia. Instead, it takes the “pop-up” accelerator approach, flying mentors into the region to run shorter, lightweight programs tailored to specific startup needs.

“Accelerators work when you get a concentration of really, really good mentors,” explains Ng.

While Southeast Asia has sufficient mentors, Ng wants to bring something new to the ecosystem. “If you want to get help from Southeast Asian mentors, you can read a few articles on Tech in Asia or reach out and hustle. That’s why we think it’s better to fly mentors in and have pop-up workshops.”