Asia Tech Podcast

The Asia Tech Podcast was joined by Dr. Krystine Kua, a co-Founder and the Head at KSK City Labs.  KSK City Labs aims to revolutionize the real estate industry by building technology that contributes to a better quality of life for the communities and cities in which it operates. Some of the topics that Krystine discussed: Studying medicine and working as a doctor Teamwork in the emergency room to teamwork in the boardroom Switching career paths and ultimately deciding to join the family real estate business Building technology to improve the lifestyle of tenants The role of eCommerce Optimizing for sustainability The fun and challenge of working in a dynamic family business Learning important leadership lessons from her father Other titles we considered for this episode: It’s Almost Easier to Disrupt Ourselves We Didn’t Just Want to Build It and Walk Away The App Can Host Their Lives This episode was produced by Isabelle Goh.

The Asia Tech Podcast had an interesting conversation with Daan van Rossum, the CEO of FlexOS and Dreamplex.   Some of the topics Daan covered: Wanting to be an entrepreneur from an early age Leaving a good job in marketing strategy because he was not growing professionally The complexity of building businesses in Southeast Asia The entrepreneurial drive of Vietnam's younger generation The extent to which work and workplaces are evolving Dreamplex and FlexOS Other titles we considered for this episode: What Employees Want Need to Be Front and Center Building Workspaces Where People Live Now Anyone Can Work From Anywhere I’ve Somehow Made It to 7 Years in One City, One Country This episode was produced by Isabelle Goh.

The Asia Tech Podcast really enjoyed having Triveni Rajagopal, Senior Director, Personal Care Digital Transformation Lead at Unilever, on the show.  She humorously noted at the beginning of our conversation that she was "born into advertising, married into advertising, went into advertising, and is now in marketing." Some of the important topics that Triveni covered: How technology plays a role in the way communication evolves The impact of authenticity on imagination Message construction as a science The role that data plays in marketing Democratizing access to technology and working with brands that do so The oncoming metaverse and the potential impact on brands Being attuned to popular culture and how it keeps her young Other titles we considered for this episode: How the Shape of Communication Is Changing Every Day the Narrative Changes The Power to Change Ideas and People’s Minds We Make It Into a Science I Make All the Brands Young This episode was produced by Isabelle Goh.

With all of the recent activity in the cryptocurrency markets, I wanted to have a conversation with one of its most rational and informed participants.  I naturally invited a previous guest of the Asia Tech Podcast, Hayden Hughes, a co-Founder and the CEO of Alpha Impact. Hayden has been posting, blogging, and not-sure-what-to-call-it over the past few weeks and I wanted to cover some of the topics he was addressing: Algorithmic stablecoins The logistics around the crypto lending markets Terra and Luna's watershed event The implications of Celsius, Zipmex, and others halting withdrawals. What regaining trust looks like for firms in the crypto space The inevitability of the future of finance is digital What regulation could look like going forward Other titles we considered for this episode: The Market Has Run Out of Things to Be Scared Of Crypto Is Pretty Forgiving We Were in Several Months of Down Only It Has Been a Crazy Couple of Months! This Isn’t the First Time Crazy Finance Bros Have Taken Such Risks This episode was produced by Isabelle Goh.

Matas Danielevicius is a friend, so the conversation was easy...he is also a very talented guy.  And not just his marketing skills, his leadership skills and his company building skills.  Matas is also an accomplished actor.  He is also a co-Founder and the CEO and of Gaorai. Gaorai is an agri-tech platform that connects farmers to freelance agri-drone pilots. Gaorai is improving precision application and sustainability of crop protection products in Thailand and the region. Some of the topics that Matas and I discussed: Spending most of his professional career in Thailand The struggle to maintain a good work-life balance Filming and acting in a feature-length motion picture Building Gaorai Scaling drone technology and working with corporates Helping small-holder farmers Some other titles we considered for this episode: I’m Here to Improve My Skill, Not to Be Famous I Can Make More Daring Choices I Never Understood What I Was Eating If They See It They See It, but if Not It’s Gone Forever The Future in Drones Is So Massive This episode was produced by Isabelle Goh.

The Asia Tech Podcast sat down in the studio at Seven Peaks Software with Wimintra J. Raj, the Founder in Residence at NFQ Thailand.  I have been following Wimintra's career for years...she is not peaking, but she is surely accelerating! Some of the topics Wimintra covered included: Reinventing herself and accepting that one can not know everything The challenges of running a software company The importance of face-to-face meetings to truly connect to colleagues Mentoring and being mentored The difficulty of hiring great tech talent globally Technology as an enabler for all companies regardless of industry Some of the other titles we considered for this episode: I Thought I Was a Big Shot I Have to Go Somewhere Bigger Than Me It Took Me All the Way to Germany They’re Not Only Doing Their Job, They’re Teaching Me It’s Sophistication

The Asia Tech Podcast was joined by Jacky Lai, the CEO at Peeba, which is "Reinventing the supply chain for independent retailers in Asia". Some of the topics that Jacky discussed: Growing up in Canada Starting an eCommerce company while studying at Emory University Going back to Hong Kong to start a business there How a lack of technology inhibits scale Online-only stores being unsustainable Building a wholesale market for retailers What he learned from talking to potential customers Dropshipping versus more traditional eCommerce Raising capital What growth looks like for Peeba Other titles we considered for this episode: I Stumbled Across One, and I Thought I Could Make It Better It’s Too Much Work for Unclear Value We Only Make Money When They Make Money We Have to Grow Fast and Big It’s Hard to Squeeze Efficiency and Value This episode was produced by Isabelle Goh.

The Asia Tech Podcast was invited to attend the Chainalysis Links event in Singapore.  We were fortunate to be able to chat with Caroline Malcolm, the Head of International Public Policy and Research and Ulisse Dell'Orto, the Managing Director for APAC and Japan at Chainalysis. Some of the topics that Caroline and Ulisse discussed: The importance of building communities The necessity of Public Private Partnerships for the mass adoption of crypto Helping Society and Governments prepare for technological change New ways of achieving policy objectives - keeping people safe Blockchain and distributed ledger technology education and literacy The significance of working with regulators globally Access to data and sharing that data to make better policy decisions The sheer speed with which the blockchain industry is moving Other titles we considered for this episode: Even When It’s Your Full-time Job, It’s Hard to Keep Up With You Cannot Ban Cryptocurrencies Value Will Be Exchanged Differently Turning On the Lights Just a Bit It's Very Novel to Have This Level of Transparency This episode was produced by Isabelle Goh.

The Asia Tech Podcast traveled to the Fintonia offices in Singapore to have a chat with Adrian Chng, the Founder, and Chairman of Fintonia Group.  We are starting to get used to these in-person recordings! Some of the topics Adrian discussed included: His background in the startup space and being involved in a large acquisition Institutions getting more involved in bitcoin and cryptocurrency The pathway to mass adoption of crypto The necessity for more infrastructure to get built Working together with regulators Web 3.0 and the metaverse in the context of finance Fintonia and where it fits in the big picture Entry-level access to crypto products Other titles we really considered for this episode: You Can Reach People You Haven’t Reached Before Back Then I Was Very Skeptical Too If Everyone Thinks It’s Worth Something, It’s Worth Something What Is It, and Is It Big Enough? When It Bounced Back, We Bounced Back This episode was produced by Isabelle Goh.

The Asia Tech Podcast was joined by Denise Sandquist, a co-Founder and the CEO of Fika.  Fika is Vietnam's fastest-growing AI social & dating app...but when you listen to this episode, you will find it is much more than that.  Some of the topics that Denise and I discussed: Being born in Vietnam and adopted by a family in Sweden Inspired by the power of social media and how she found her birth parents The idea of Fika is more than just a dating app Connecting people through interests Understanding one's self and the complexity of relationships Building sustainable relationships The happiness of seeing other people happy Some other titles we considered for this episode: Relationships Are Very Complicated We Wanted to Solve Was Loneliness A Lot of It Is About Communication I Was Curious Why I Was the Way I Am It’s Difficult to Be Disciplined I Became a Spokesperson This episode was produced by Isabelle Goh.