Welcome to Tech in Asia’s daily newsletter, your essential dose of Asia’s tech and startup buzz. Not on the mailing list? Register here. Got a story tip? Send it to editors@techinasia.com.
In focus
- Collin Furtado on how SEA’s tech companies rank in terms of revenue per employee
- An agentic AI startup showing that LLMs aren’t the only way forward
- A new unicorn is born in Singapore – no, it’s not AI
Hello reader,
At the Asia Economic Summit in Jakarta last month, a partner at a prominent VC firm said he has seen bootstrapped AI companies in Southeast Asia with teams of just three to five members earning as much as US$5 million in revenue.
I spoke to another VC who also observed the emergence of the “three-person unicorn,” a new breed of AI startups that are profitable due to low overhead costs. Many of these startups are reluctant to seek VC money because of the scaling pressures that come with it or they’d rather take the seed-strapping route, the VC added.
Who can blame them for being wary? After all, VCs fueled the “growth at all costs” mindset among founders, driving them to quickly pivot to “sustainable growth” when capital becomes expensive. But that’s a story for another day.
This week, my colleagues Miguel Cordon and Duc Tran analyzed tech startups in Southeast Asia to find out if they are lean giants or labor armies. However, none come close to Cursor, a US-based AI coding assistant that hit US$100 million in annual recurring revenue with only 60 employees in 12 months.
Image credit: Timmy Loen
Do take a look at this piece: You might encounter a few surprises or maybe even find signs of a future Cursor in the region.
Like many newsrooms, Tech in Asia is doubling down on AI coverage.
This week, Glenn Kaonang unpacked the story behind Pokee AI, a startup established by ex-Meta AI scientist Zheqing (Bill) Zhu. It creates AI agents that can be better at planning and decision-making via reinforced learning, a machine learning method where models learn through relentless trial and error.
Currently, most AI agents like Manus AI rely on large language models to handle everything, from prompts to taking action. But leaning on LLMs leads to problems when the AI agents have to operate multiple tools.
Pokee AI is proof that there are many ways to build a startup, just like how three-person unicorns are a sign that AI is opening more paths to achieve scale without VC money.
Collin Furtado, senior editor
Editor’s pick
1️⃣ Lean giants or labor armies? SEA’s revenue per employee revealed
Short cuts
Weekend deep dive
Bridging the startup connection gap with AWS
Stay updated on the go with our mobile app.
Get latest insights with smoother, more personalized experience through TIA mobile app.
