Less hype, more hustle in SEA’s AI scene

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In focus

• A look at how Southeast Asia’s AI startup scene is playing it differently
• Lessons from building a full-scale app from a successful MVP
• A past deep dive into what’s driving startups to pivot to AI

Hello reader,

Remember when every startup pitch deck had to include phrases like “AI-powered” or “AI-driven” to get investor attention? Those days feel like a lifetime ago, even though it’s been less than three years since ChatGPT launched.

Silicon Valley set the playbook: dream big, raise bigger, and worry about profitability later. OpenAI’s eye-watering funding rounds embodied that mindset.

But Southeast Asia seems to be taking a different path. While AI startups in the US have continued burning cash, many of the region’s founders are building profitable businesses instead of chasing unicorn valuations, even in a sector as hot as AI.

Today, that quiet rebellion looks pretty smart. As the global AI funding party shows no signs of cooling off, Southeast Asian startups that bootstrapped or raised modest rounds are thriving, with some already profitable.

In today’s first Top Story, I look at the startups reshaping the region’s AI scene. From AI agents that create presentation slides and book flights to tools that boost SME sales, Southeast Asia shows there’s more than one way to succeed in the AI era.

Our second story looks at the tricky path from minimum viable product (MVP) to full solution. One founder built her app first as a Telegram bot – fast, cheap, and good enough to attract thousands of users. But scaling into a native app revealed a dilemma: sometimes the MVP worked better.

It’s a reminder that MVP doesn’t mean mediocre. The real test is making the final product 10 times better.

Glenn Kaonang, journalist

The Top Stories

1️⃣ The key startups reshaping Southeast Asia’s AI landscape

In Southeast Asia, many founders seem to focus more on building AI solutions that can address customer pain points rather than chasing VC money.

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