Analyse Asia with Bernard Leong

"You will continue to see Western investment continuing to decline. The risk-reward calculations won't change in the next 12 months, as far as I can see. The Chinese economy is not about to take off. What you will see is the beginnings of some people who are willing to take the gamble. They are going to try different ways to exit. You're going to see more people experimenting with domestic IPOs, and onshore IPOs because you can get the money off. For example, if you're investing in LiDAR or approved industries, you can do a joint venture or a WOFE or anything. It'd be a joint venture to be able to try and do some kind of onshore listings. I think by chance will stay in this weird suspended state. I don't think we're going to get a resolution from them. The big question is - how much stimulus will the Chinese government throw at the economy and how far are they willing to go to goose the economy?" - Shai Oster Fresh out of the studio, Shai Oster, independent consultant and former Asia Bureau Chief from The Information is back for the sixth time with the annual review of what is happening to the China tech ecosystem in 2023. The conversation started with Shai's predictions last year on what happened and what did not happen. From there, we discuss the major themes of the year: the decline and restructuring of venture capital in China, how the 2nd generation CEOs from Shein, Pinduoduo and Bytedance have successfully expanded globally as compared to their predecessors, the October surprise of Huawei's 7nm chip. Last but not least Shai offered his predictions in the road ahead for 2024. Episode Highlights: [0:48] Quote of the Day #QOTD by Shai Oster [1:42] Introduction  [2:20] What has Shai been up to?  [3:18] Experience in Thailand is similar to being in China as compared to Hong Kong [5:30] What did Shai get right or wrong in 2023 [6:00] Sequoia splits into 3: US & Europe, China and India & Southeast Asia [12:41] Why Sequoia split out India & Southeast Asia to Peak XV [15:08] State of Venture Capital in China, the 2023 Edition [22:38] The restructuring of China’s tech ecosystem and where Alibaba Group is heading [26:10] Why 2nd generation tech founders in Shein, Pinduoduo and ByteDance did a better job in expanding globally compared to BAT [33:40] Will TikTok be banned in the US and will it go IPO as well? [38:30] Investors in public China tech companies in the US have now read the regulatory risk section in their S1 filings.  [41:51] Huawei’s October surprise with their 7nm chip and the US sanctions might have accelerated the Chinese’s chip development and independence. [45:52] Macroeconomics in China due to the declining real estate market in 2023. [47:49] Why China is still booming despite the doom and gloom of less foreign-directed investments. [49:55] Shai’s predictions on China for 2024 [53:46] Chinese entrepreneurs coming to Southeast Asia to start companies. [55:49] Gaming in China and Tencent’s ability to respond to the Chinese government’s demands is still going on. [59:10] Closing Podcast Information: Bernard Leong (@bernardleong, Linkedin) hosts and produces the show. Proper credits for the intro and end music: "Energetic Sports Drive" and the episode is mixed & edited in both video and audio format by G.Thomas Craig (@gthomascraig, LinkedIn).  

"Consumer demand will accelerate the need for security, privacy and regulation. Like zero-knowledge (ZK) where you can prove something is true without revealing all information. And of course, security infrastructure, which is very interesting and important at this current moment, even before the next bull market. For example, one of the companies we invested into Ledger, a digital asset hardware wallet. You basically have an app store interface where you can trade, you can stake. We see a lot of adoption of crypto in not just a retail space because of increased awareness, in the media, and new DeFi applications coming up, but also in the adoption of enterprise space. So a lot of these enterprises will be thinking to themselves, okay, in my treasury, not just do I need to hold USD and other currencies, maybe I need to also hold Bitcoins, or something else. DBS Bank, They're now holding some of this Sandbox Land, but where do they hold it? They can't hold it just in a wallet and then they throw it into some cabinet somewhere. They need to have the right, security hardware. So we believe this, will accelerate the adoption of applications like ledger, which is like a hardware wallet, for both retail and enterprise. So we believe that age-old saying of selling shovels during a gold rush is still very true." - Kelly Choo Fresh out of the studio, Kelly Choo, founding partner from True Global Ventures discusses the state of generative AI and crypto in 2023 and what to look forward in 2024. Kelly started with his take on the recent departure of CZ from Binance and the ouster and return of Sam Altman in Open AI and how this impacts the AI and crypto landscape. From there, he broke down how they are looking at the next wave of generative AI companies specifically in the education, metaverse and legal space and crypto companies from ERC 6551 in non-fungible tokens (NFTs) to zero-knowledge proofs. Last but not least, Kelly defines what success would mean for both AI and crypto in 2024. Episode Highlights: [0:50] Quote of the Day #QOTD from Kelly Choo [1:43] What has Kelly Choo been up to? [3:19] CZ, Binance, and the Rise of Singaporean CEOs [4:32] SamAltman OpenAI and Microsoft [7:30] OpenAI Developer Event  [10:05] The Current State of GenAI [14:41] What Kind of Business Models are Going to be Proving Successful in the GenAI Space? [16:48] True Global Ventures and AI Startups  [19:23] Review of 2023 Web3 Megatrends [28:03] What is ERC6551? AKA Programmable NFT's [30:44] Web3 Tech We Should be Paying Attention To [32:36] Impact of AI and Web3 on Gamer User Experience [35:02] The Saudi Government Gets into Crypto [38:55] Is the Apple Vision Pro a Game Changer? [39:31] AR and VR Market Predictions [41:01] BTC ETF and their Impact [44:26] Regulatory Changes [45:39] What Does Great Look Like for Crypto and Web3 in 2024? [46:38] Closing Podcast Information: Bernard Leong (@bernardleong, Linkedin) hosts and produces the show. Proper credits for the intro and end music: "Energetic Sports Drive" and the episode is mixed & edited in both video and audio format by G.Thomas Craig (@gthomascraig, LinkedIn).

We've got a 330 trillion dollar industry here, which arguably a lot of it, we talk about stranded assets, CRREM pathways to stranded assets, et cetera. I talked to a lot of funds. I've talked to a lot of developers. They're getting very worried about this. And it's not just about their existing portfolios. It's about how they are going to exit portfolios. Because many buyers now actually build in the cost of retrofitting a building to bring it up to sustainability when they're looking at acquiring an asset. So, that might bring the price down. So, for us, we look at everything you've just mentioned. We look at materials. We look at hardware. We look at software and anything that gets us to some of these impact targets we want to achieve in the built environment and also is something which is commercially viable and fixes some particular pain point within this ecosystem. - Alexander Bent" Fresh out of the studio, Alexander Bent, founder & managing partner from Undivided Ventures, joined us in a conversation on why this is the time to invest in sustainability within the built environment. Alexander started with his background as a real estate developer and the inspiration behind starting his venture capital firm. He dived deep into his investment thesis and shared his perspectives on how transforming technologies from AI to materials engineering will transform the real estate industry. Last but not least, Alex shares what great would look like for Undivided Ventures. Episode Highlights: [0:50] Quote of the Day #QOTD by Alexander Bent. [1:40] Welcome Message from the host. [2:20] Introduction to Alexander Bent and his career journey. [6:40] Perspectives on investing in climate adaptation rather than mitigation. [7:30] Lessons from Alexander's career journey. [9:40] The Vision and Mission of Undivided Ventures and why focus on built environment. [11:50] The total market opportunity behind the real estate industry. [13:20] The investment mandate for Undivided Ventures. [14:20] Undivided VC is based in Hong Kong but invests globally. [15:20] Typical day of a venture capitalist for Alexander. [17:20] What are the traits of founders & startup teams that Alex index for? [19:10] Business Models for Startups focusing on sustainability and built environment. [21:20] What are the red flags in founders that you would watch out for? [23:20] How Undivided VC helps their portfolio companies. [25:30] Interesting companies under Undivided VC. [28:10] The one thing that Alexander knows about investing in sustainability & built environment that very few do. [28:35] Advice to startups focusing on positive impact in sustainability & built environment. [31:50] #AI in sustainability & built environment. [34:40] #internetofthings #iot in sustainability & built environment. [36:20] #blockchain in sustainability & built environment. [40:20] #materialscience & #materialsengineering in sustainability & built environment. [42:50] Putting AI into materials science [43:50] What does great look like for Undivided VC? [48:00] Closing Podcast Information: Bernard Leong (@bernardleong, Linkedin) hosts and produces the show. Proper credits for the intro and end music: "Energetic Sports Drive" and the episode is mixed & edited in both video and audio format by G.Thomas Craig (@gthomascraig, LinkedIn).

Sapna Chadha and Florian Hoppe discussed the key takeaways from the Google e-Conomy SEA 2023 report. They emphasized the importance of user participation in the digital economy and the potential for growth. They also discussed the decline in funding for startups in Southeast Asia and how they are adapting. The concept of high-value users (HVUs) who account for 70% of economy spending was highlighted. The growth potential of digital payments in the region and the risks of excluding certain users were explored. The role of exits, profitability, and new technologies in achieving future advancements was also discussed.

"And so what we do at Dow Jones, very specifically, is look at - What are the regulators demanding? What do they want you to do? What are the specific data points that you require? And which workflows do you want to use them in? And, there are very different workflows, which within, for example, a financial institution. You have the onboarding of your new customers, and in those situations, you may have a little bit more time. Obviously, there's the service level in terms of opening a bank account is faster and faster. But you have a little bit more time in that regard. You want to look at potentially more data. Then once you are a customer of a bank, you're gonna be amongst millions of customers. How do banks can then adapt to check additional data points? And, today the customer may be clean and have no adverse media, may not be sanctions, but that could change." - Joel Lange Fresh out of the studio, Joel Lange, executive vice president & general manager of risk and research from Dow Jones, discussed how the company is leveraging artificial intelligence and data analytics to help companies tackle risk and compliance and combat financial crimes and money laundering. Joel also explored generative AI's role in risk management and concluded by envisioning the future of Dow Jones Risk & Compliance and what great would look like in the Asia Pacific. Episode Highlights: [0:00] Quote of the Day #QOTD from Joel Lange [0:50] Introduction to Joel Lange, EVP & GM, Risk & Research, Dow Jones [1:28] Support for freeing Evan Gershkovich from Wall Street Journal on his 32nd birthday. [2:20] How did Joel start his career and eventually end up in his role with Dow Jones  [3:58] Lessons learnt in Joel's career journey [5:40] Introduction to Dow Jones and its global vision & mission [8:20] Risk Management, Money Laundering and Financial Crimes 101 [10:08] Impact on businesses and other organizations if their risk is not well managed. [12:00] How Dow Jones Risk & Compliance division helps businesses to navigate the challenges [14:50] The challenge of cross borders makes managing risk and compliance difficult on a global level [17:00] RiskCenter Advanced Screening and Monitoring (ASAM) solution based on AI and big data [19:50] What makes ASAM different from other risk management solutions out there? [21:00] How the AI solution tackles false positives and the tradeoffs made between the specificity and sensitivity of the data. [24:30] How does the diversity of APAC both economically & politically impact the complex anti-money laundering processes? [27:00] The mental model to balance between economic recovery & anti-corruption efforts [29:05] Perspectives on Generative AI and how it impacts combating financial crime & AML [32:05] Advice to C-suite executives and government officials on risk management with AI [33:40] What does great look like for Dow Jones for market expansion and ASAM in the APAC region? [35:30] Closing Podcast Information: Bernard Leong (@bernardleong, Linkedin) hosts and produces the show. Proper credits for the intro and end music: "Energetic Sports Drive" and the episode is mixed & edited in both video and audio format by G.Thomas Craig (@gthomascraig, LinkedIn).

“It is useful both to internal and external, but it's also a really great litmus test. If you sit down to write your public letter and you can't explain why you're doing something, if it doesn't fit in with your overarching strategy, it goes back to that first thing we said as PMs [product managers], which is sometimes you have to say no to it. You're like, I actually can't explain to anyone why we're spending time on this particular feature. It doesn't fit any of the four themes we said we're doing this year. Does that mean we have a fifth theme or does that mean we shouldn't be doing that? And that clarity and that kind of litmus test. Is really, really useful as a leader when few people say no to you.” - Tom Verrilli Fresh out of the studio in SXSW Sydney, Tom Verrilli, former Chief Product Officer of Twitch joined us in a conversation to discuss the intricacies of product management. Tom shared his perspectives based on his experiences from navigating the delicate balance between feature addition and reduction in product roadmaps and managing normal and power users' expectations. With the recent advances in generative AI, Tom offered his insights on how this new wave will bring about changes in user behaviour and interfaces, and how it will bring about new thinking in product management. Last but not least, he laid out what great would look like for product managers in the next decade. Author's note: We thanked SXSW Sydney and Sennheiser ANZ for the podcast stage and appreciated the opportunity to have our episode recorded live on 18 Oct 2023.  Podcast Information: Bernard Leong (@bernardleong, Linkedin) hosts and produces the show. Proper credits for the intro and end music: "Energetic Sports Drive" and the episode is mixed & edited in both video and audio format by G.Thomas Craig (@gthomascraig, LinkedIn).  

  Stripe isn't just payments. We actually build economic infrastructure for the global economy. And so we've got a lot more technology beyond payments. Our Stripe Tour is a cool venue where we get a chance to bring customers, partners and thought leaders together and talk about the current state of technology and future technologies - in a local Asian context. So it's been a lot of fun. And by the way, we're really enthusiastic about Asia here at Stripe. Not only because 60 per cent of the world's population is in Asia, but also because the Asian markets are very tech-forward. And you can see that by just looking at global trends, sometimes Asian markets completely leapfrog the trends like what happened to mobile. And so you got this great market that's huge, that's really tech-forward. And there's so much innovation possible.” - Mike Clayville, chief revenue officer of Stripe Fresh out of the studio, Mike Clayville, Chief Revenue Officer of Stripe, joined us in a conversation discussing Stripe's business in the Asia Pacific and shared invaluable insights into the evolution of financial infrastructure. Mike dived deep into how Stripe is adapting and expanding while at the same time with interesting customer stories in the Asia Pacific. He delved into Stripe's current innovations specifically on online payments & financial infrastructure within the dynamic Asia Pacific region. Last but not least, Mike shared the key trends in the financial infrastructure landscape and defined what great would look like for Stripe's future in APAC. Podcast Information: The show is hosted and produced by Bernard Leong (@bernardleong, Linkedin) and Carol Yin (@CarolYujiaYin, LinkedIn). Proper credits for the intro and end music: "Energetic Sports Drive" and the episode is mixed & edited in both video and audio format by G.Thomas Craig (@gthomascraig, LinkedIn).

"The global adoption index is something that we put out once a year and it comes strictly within the research domain and it's our attempt to really elucidate just how much activity is happening around the world. Crypto is a global asset with activity in over 150 countries around the world, but people feel like it's a black box because they don't really understand who are these crypto users. Where are they? But in reality, we don't have answers to those questions because we don't have survey data around them. The government does not collect that data. So it feels like a black box, but it's kind of a created black box in its own right. And we're trying to show that that's not the case, that there's a lot of transparency here, and we can see where adoption is happening, and we can see which countries are the leaders in crypto adoption." - Kimberly Grauer   Fresh out of the studio, Kimberly Grauer, the director of research from Chainalysis provided an in-depth analysis of the Global Crypto Adoption Index 2023, highlighting Asia's burgeoning crypto and web3 activities. We discussed how Asia is currently leading the crypto activity from the Philippines to Pakistan, and highlighted what users are doing with their cryptocurrencies in their respective markets. We discuss the surprise in India's crypto and web3 activities despite strong anti-crypto regulation and how Asia's favourable regulation is bringing innovation from the US to the rest of the world. Last but not least, Kim described great would look like for the Global Crypto Adoption Index report in the next few years. Podcast Information: The show is hosted and produced by Bernard Leong (@bernardleong, Linkedin) and Carol Yin (@CarolYujiaYin, LinkedIn). Proper credits for the intro and end music: "Energetic Sports Drive" and the episode is mixed & edited in both video and audio format by G.Thomas Craig (@gthomascraig, LinkedIn).

"But today,  the clouds are the new silos. They're like the silos in the data center, only they're public. But AWS is a bit of a data silo, as is Azure. We used to call it Hotel California - you can check out any time you like, but you can never leave. Right?  A big part of what Snowflake does is tear down those silos to allow customers to have the data where they want it. Because if it's on Snowflake, it doesn't matter which physical infrastructure is behind it; and to share that data easily around the world, that's a major change in the whole kind of cloud-silo infrastructure problem that we're facing today.” - Jon Robertson   Fresh out of the studio, Jon Robertson, President of Asia Pacific and Japan for Snowflake discussed the company's global vision & mission and their current expansion into the Asia Pacific and Japan region. Jon discussed the customer stories and how Snowflake's cloud data platform facilitates diverse workloads, from artificial intelligence to cybersecurity. Continuing the conversation, he explored the evolving trends in the data and AI landscape, amplified by notable advances such as ChatGPT and where it is heading. Last but not least, he shared what great would look like for Snowflake in the Asia Pacific region for the next 3-5 years.   Podcast Information: The show is hosted and produced by Bernard Leong (@bernardleong, Linkedin) and Carol Yin (@CarolYujiaYin, LinkedIn). Proper credits for the intro and end music: "Energetic Sports Drive" and the episode is mixed & edited in both video and audio format by G.Thomas Craig (@gthomascraig, LinkedIn).

"Now the fundamental motivation is customers don't just want to buy a server, right? They want to buy an outcome. They want something to happen. They want to get business value. So, the SSG [Services & Solutions Group] is Lenovo's pivot to meet our customers where they are, and also to lead our company into the future because as they have more sophisticated requirements, they need a simple way to manage and deploy all that I T across their organizations. When they want that holistic view, providing the services via something which is now SSG gives them that integrated offering. In a single contract, they can focus on using their technology in a smarter way. So that's where the SSG is within the context of Lenovo, and as the technology and delivery officer, I'm responsible for helping think about how new technology can make the experience better. It can make the outcomes better for our customers, as well as running the teams that are often because we have managed services that are delivering for customers 24 by 7. All year round. And so the global team of delivery network and experts is also what I run to help bring those outcomes to the customers today." - Arthur Hu Fresh from the studio, Arthur Hu, SVP & Chief Information Officer at Lenovo, discussed the transformative role of the Solutions and Services Group (SSG) in the era of Generative AI. He shared his career journey and Lenovo's mission to assist customers end-to-end in their journey with the Lenovo Solutions & Services Group (SSG). Hu explored SSG's impact and Lenovo's sustainability initiatives in the Asia Pacific. He emphasized the promise of AI for businesses, including Lenovo's approach and shared a glimpse into the future of SSG's contributions to the tech landscape in the Asia Pacific and beyond. Episode Highlights: [0:00] Sponsor Announcement: Esevel [0:50] Quote of the Day from Arthur Hu [2:00] Introduction to Arthur Hu, CIO, Lenovo. [4:46] Arthur Hu shares his lessons on his career journey [7:04] Arthur's thoughts on remote working and how Lenovo is re-imaging the workplace by designing thought interactions between employees [10:02] Introduction of Lenovo and its global vision and mission [12:07] Lenovo Solutions and Services Group (SSG) and its role in Lenovo's enterprise business [14:54] Arthur balancing between two roles in Lenovo: Global CIO and CDTO in SSG [18:10] How does Lenovo SSG approach problem-solving for customers? [22:49] Success customer stories of Lenovo SSG in Asia Pacific [25:19] What is the one thing Arthur knows about Lenovo SSG that very few do? [26:17] Lenovo's focus on ESG [33:37] Challenges & Prospects for Lenovo SSG in the Asia Pacific [37:31] The myth of the talent gap in the Asia Pacific [39:91] Advice for CIOs on digital transformation [43:00] Opportunities for AI in the Enterprise [47:56] Lenovo's Role on AI in the Enterprise [50:03] What does great look like for Lenovo SSG in the next decade? [51:13] Closing Podcast Information: The show is hosted and produced by Bernard Leong (@bernardleong, Linkedin) and Carol Yin (@CarolYujiaYin, LinkedIn). Proper credits for the intro and end music: "Energetic Sports Drive" and the episode is mixed & edited in both video and audio format by G.Thomas Craig (@gthomascraig, LinkedIn).