BasisAI co-founder investigated following Temasek acquisition

Liu Feng-Yuan / Image credit: Tech in Asia

A subsidiary of Temasek has concluded an investigation involving Liu Feng-Yuan, co-founder of BasisAI, a startup that the Singapore state investment firm had acquired in 2021, Tech in Asia has learned.

We understand that the subsidiary, Aicadium, has taken management action. The AI company did not reveal details when asked about it.

We also learned that Aicadium had started the investigation after receiving a whistleblower complaint against Liu relating to staff departures at the firm.

While working for the AI company as the vice-president of business development, Liu had also joined SPH Media as a technical advisor, where he was involved in the hiring of the latter’s engineering team, according to sources close to the situation.

For this story, Tech in Asia reviewed documents as well as accounts from former and current employees at BasisAI and SPH Media. Both Temasek and Aicadium declined to comment.

What happened?

During his stint as a technical advisor, Liu had allegedly introduced a BasisAl engineer to SPH Media, was involved in recruiting said engineer, and coordinated on the timing of his exit, according to texts and documents Tech in Asia examined.

That person left the AI company in 2022 to join SPH Media as an engineering executive, his Linkedin history showed. Two months later, another engineer also left the same firm for a job with the media company.

These departures were part of a post-merger exodus that involved at least 10 of the 15 original data science and engineering employees at BasisAI, which Tech in Asia previously reported.

See also: Mapping Temasek’s role in the startup space (updated)

Following the 2021 buyout, Aicadium owned a 97.8% stake in BasisAI worth US$14.8 million, as per VentureCap Insights data. BasisAI’s filings showed that it made US$390,000 in revenue and lost US$2.34 million that same year.

While it’s unclear how BasisAI’s valuation was derived, its experienced team of data scientists and engineers may have been factored into the calculations.

In addition, Rainer Burkhardt, a senior executive who managed Aicadium’s product managers, data scientists, and software engineers, indicated on Linkedin that he had left the company in December 2022.

Liu had a long career as a civil servant prior to starting BasisAI, with stints at the Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Trade and Industry, the Land Transport Authority, and GovTech.