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Hello reader,
One of my current fixations is Succession, the HBO series. Its hilarious script – laden with expletives and jargon – and realistic characters make the show an addictive watch.
Succession’s satirical, absurdist story centers around the Roy family, loosely based on the real-life Murdoch media empire and Shakespeare’s King Lear.
When despotic patriarch Logan Roy shows signs of deterioration, his traumatized children vie to secure his CEO position at his company, Waystar Royco.
Though the kids suggest different plans for the firm, which is primarily engaged in traditional broadcast and print news, the second-oldest son Kendall looks to tech. He persuades his father to bring Waystar into the 21st century through investments and acquisitions in tech-enabled startups and companies.
This notion can easily be translated into real life. Traditional companies are looking to diversify, investing in the tech ecosystem so they don’t get left behind. In this week’s Big Story, I look at the limited partners powering funds and startups in Southeast Asia and India.
Though venture capital firms get the most shine during startup funding rounds, we rarely ask about their inner workings. For instance, who powers VCs apart from general partners?
Institutional and angel investors, that’s who. Globally, the number of unique financiers falling into these categories has grown within the past year, while the number of investors in the VC category has shrunk.
Geographically, Singapore also tops the list of investing activities in the region. This comes as no surprise, with government-led initiatives such as the Global Investor Programme and Enterprise Innovation Scheme drawing high-net-worth individuals and corporations into the country.
On another note, Tech in Asia reported on how Temasek’s Aicadium had conducted an investigation involving Liu Feng-Yuan, a co-founder of BasisAI, a startup that the Singapore state investment firm had acquired around two years ago. Silvanus Lee, another BasisAI founder, shared his statement on the matter via LinkedIn after we published the story last week. More on this soon.
Speaking of investors, my colleague Nikita recently talked to Jakarta-based Venturra about its future plans. The VC, which focuses on early-stage startups, is looking for climate tech entrepreneurs and aims to close up to 12 deals this year.
In AI Odyssey, I look at Google’s place in the AI race after its wide release of Bard just last week.
— Shadine
THE BIG STORY
Tracking active LPs in SEA’s, India’s startup ecosystems
MAKING WAVES
AI ODYSSEY
NEWS YOU SHOULD KNOW
FYI
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