What happens when two decacorns enter an emerging industry?

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Hello readers,

Would you trust a robot to invest money on your behalf?

After all, machines have accomplished many complex tasks without a hitch and handled tons more money than what most of us have sitting in our banks. But I’m not sure how I feel about the fact that a number of robo-advisors in the market are run by startups that could be gone tomorrow. I’m sure other people have had that same thought too.

With more prominent names like Grab and Gojek entering the digital investing game, though, people like me might be inclined to trust a little more and invest a little more, which could lead to a significant growth in the digital investment market as a whole.

Is the investment space about to see the rise of machines? Well, maybe. Scroll down for a quick summary or read the full article, Digital investing in Southeast Asia heats up as Grab, Gojek enter the fray, here

In the meantime, here are your quick bytes for today:

1️⃣ A Grab x Gojek super duper app?

Grab and Gojek are said to be resuming discussions on a possible merger – this time at the bidding of shareholders, which include Japanese conglomerate SoftBank. The development comes as the two super apps struggle amid the pandemic.

Just six months ago, when the duo first initiated discussions on the matter, SoftBank and its Vision Fund were reportedly opposed to the merger, with the Japanese firm’s CEO and founder Masayoshi Son saying that “the ride-hailing industry would be a monopoly industry.” People close to Son, however, say that he is now supportive of a merger.

2️⃣ TikTok chooses Oracle

TikTok parent company ByteDance announced that US tech titan Oracle will be its “technology partner,” though it’s not clear what that entails. According to The Wall Street Journal’s source, the deal likely won’t be “structured as an outright sale,” although Oracle is expected to have “a significant stake” in the business.

The announcement comes after ByteDance turned down Microsoft’s offer to buy out TikTok’s US operations. While the sale talks are ongoing, US President Donald Trump has signed two executive orders banning any US transactions with ByteDance as well as WeChat operator Tencent.

3️⃣ Nvidia buys SoftBank’s Arm Holdings for US$40 billion

Enter the decacorns

Making it easier to buy from streamers