Commentaries: Gojek’s dilemma 🏍️

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Dear Readers,

Recently, I was asked, “What’s the end goal for Tech in Asia?” My answer is pretty simple: I want to build a sustainable, happy, and mission-driven company. I’m delighted with our progress so far, and I’m also getting a healthy work-life balance.

Usually, there’s also a follow-up query on whether TIA has considered an exit. I’ve certainly thought about it, but I also quickly learned that it’s not something that’s entirely within my control. So instead, I focus my energy on building a great company – something that’s more within my scope – and let my work speak for itself.

You can find last week’s Commentaries here. If you’re a TIA subscriber, you can read all our Commentaries here.

Enjoy!

– Willis, Tech in Asia

1. Are you recession-proof?
A quick search on Tech in Asia shows that many new venture capital funds were set up in the last couple of years. But just how much capital was deployed? When I asked around, some speculated that to get better buys, VCs are just waiting for the impending economic recession to happen. But some had a different opinion: they said there aren’t that many good companies to back in Southeast Asia.

Another interesting perspective is that the rise of super apps and decacorns in the region has limited the chances of budding startups. Or maybe a lot of folks are doing deals without letting the media know.

Like it or not, a recession is coming our way, and I hope more fellow startups can ride it out and emerge as winners. So we startups need to make (or raise) more than we spend. Only time will tell if we’re recession-proof, and it will probably be the first big test for many startups in the community.

2. Same-day delivery in Southeast Asia
Years ago, there was plenty of hype around same-day delivery. Before Grab and Gojek came in, many startups tried and failed to make the same concept work.

Now that billions of dollars are flowing through the coffers of Southeast Asian unicorns, same-day delivery has hit its stride and is growing exponentially. But how much of this is sustainable, though? Focusing on speed inevitably results in inefficiency and higher costs. I expect same-day delivery to remain niche. During Single’s Day in China last year, the average delivery speed was 2.6 days – that’s definitely way down from nine days in 2013. → Read more

3. Is your valuation overly bloated?