Glenn Kaonang · · 10 min readSoutheast Asia’s AI unicorn whisperer
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Last October, we profiled PixVerse, an AI video startup that was chasing US$50 million in annual recurring revenue when few people knew it existed. This March, it closed a US$300 million series C round and officially became a unicorn.
We’d like to think Tech in Asia had something to do with it.
That brings us to this week’s top AI pick: Video Rebirth, a Singapore-based startup that has raised US$80 million to build a world model. It’s essentially teaching AI to predict what happens next in the real world using video as its training ground.
If our track record holds, you’ll want to remember the name.
Image credit: Made by Ulla/Tech in Asia with the help of AI
That said, being an early pick and becoming a winner are two very different things.
Video Rebirth still has to prove that video can lead to genuine world understanding – and build a sustainable business along the way.
And it has to do so before the category settles around someone else’s definition of a world model. The competition is formidable: World Labs and AMI Labs both have billion-dollar war chests and founders that the AI industry reveres.
Southeast Asia has seen local champions win before. Grab eventually pushed Uber out of the region.
But AI may be a different game. When companies like Anthropic are inching toward trillion-dollar valuations, being a unicorn can start to look less like an achievement and more like a rounding error.
It’s also worth noting Southeast Asia’s stake in this race. Singapore sovereign wealth fund GIC is listed as a co-lead investor in Anthropic’s latest funding round – a reminder that the region’s capital is already backing some of the companies its startups may one day compete against.
We’re still looking for the next hidden star. If you know a founder or team in Asia building something that deserves more attention, our inbox is always open.
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