It is all part of our plan to get the best startups at #Echelon2019

Don’t need to be convinced? Apply to TOP100 here for your chance to be crowned the top startup at #Echelon2019

Pitching competitions tend to be different feathers from the same bird. The host gathers an audience of community members, investors are nominated as judges and about a dozen companies take turns pitching their companies.

The problem with this setup is two-fold.

First, a lot of people are just politely waiting for the after-event networking. Phones are open, gazes are long and sometimes eyes are drooping. It is not the ideal environment to spark inspiration.

More importantly, this is not how the industry works. There is no audience when pitching for real investment, real customers and real partnerships. Public pitching is conveying the marketing strategy of the company, which is fine, but it never gets beyond the PR-approved angle.

We want the TOP100 startups to get the most out of their pitches, and this means revealing crucial company information, answering probing questions from investors and breaking down the math behind the thesis.

This is why we are making our TOP100 pitching competitions a private affair

We hope private pitching allows startups to get the most out of their TOP100 experience. They get to meet valuable stakeholders, but then while waiting they can chat with other startups and get work done.

The other hope is that, by not seeing the other pitches, startups get less caught-up in what the other people are doing and can focus on themselves.

This year, THE TOP100 pitching competition will be a no-distraction affair where the region’s best young Founders make their case to the people who matter most.

But don’t think we forgot about the networking and evening activities!

Echelon Roadshow will happen a few hours after the pitches in every city. During this event, we will bring together the local community, engage in fantastic conversation with thought leaders and create a friendly environment to meet peers (and hopefully future business partners).

Excited to see your company as a TOP100 startup at #Echelon2019? Apply here!

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This marks the first close of a US$2 billion round, valuing the Indonesian unicorn at US$9.5 billion

Go-Jek, the ride-sharing startup from Indonesia has reportedly continued its fundraising push, setting its goal at raising US$2 billion. Techcrunch reported that its existing investors like Google, Tencent, and JD.com all have agreed to invest around US$920 million into the latest round.

The company hasn’t released any official statement yet regarding the fundraising, which reportedly will put the company’s valuation at around US$9.5 billion. e27 has reached out for comment.

Also Read: Grab partners with micro retail tech startup Warung Pintar to champion digital inclusion

The funding is said to be directed towards regional expansion that was kickstarted last year. It will also be used to push fintech development.

Just last year, Go-Jek closed a US$1.4 billion round with valuation at US$5 billion.

The deal is said to also feature the acquisition of JD.com’s Indonesian counterpart, JD.id. e27 has reached out to JD.id to confirm the news.

If the acquisition is to take place, Go-Jek would have a solid position among the country’s infamous e-commerces unicorns like Tokopedia and Bukalapak.

Last year Go-Jek expanded into to Vietnam, Thailand, and Singapore. It recently acquired Coins.ph as a bid to enter the Philippines. It is claiming a record of 125 million downloads with over a million drivers.

Also Read: Singapore AI framework is a good start but will not make impact

Kevin Aluwi, Go-Jek’s co-founder, told Reuters that total transactions on its platforms crossed $12.5 billion last year.

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Outside of China, we also have updates from Indonesia, India, and the Southeast Asian region in general

China to target apps that obtain personal information illegally – SCMP

Chinese cyberspace authority announced on Friday a joint campaign with three regulatory agencies to vet the privacy policies of “some of the country’s most popular apps”, as part of a campaign to crack down illegal gathering of personal information.

According to South China Morning Post, the one-year campaign will start this month, with the goal to protect the security of personal information.

This new campaign followed a previous six-month crackdown that aims to eradicate “vulgarity” in internet content.

Tencent shares jump three per cent after games approval – Reuters

Tencent Holdings saw its shares jump more than three per cent on Friday, following regulators’ approval of the company’s mobile games titles, Reuters reported.

The Chinese government froze approvals for new game titles in March last year, which had costed the firm roughly 20 per cent of their market value since.

But in December, the government began to approve new game titles in batches, in which Tencent’s are coming in the fourth batch. The fourth batch included 95 titles, with two of them belonging to Tencent.

Also Read: Grab joins China’s ZhongAn Insurance to build digital insurance marketplace

Sequoia launches accelerator programme in India, Southeast Asia – Dealstreet Asia

Venture capital firm Sequoia launched its new accelerator programme for startups in India and Southeast Asia, called Surge, Dealstreet Asia wrote.

The programme planned to invest US$1.5 million in each participating startups and aimed to have around 10-20 companies in each cohort.

Selected companies will have the opportunity to be mentored by prominent names in the Indian and Southeast Asian startup communities.

The programme will also include five modules hosted in China, India, Silicon Valley and Singapore in order to provide global exposure.

Indonesian gaming startup Agate acquires Ekuador Games – Hybrid

Indonesian game developer and publisher Agate announced that it has acquired fellow gaming company Ekuador Games for IDR5 billion (US$355,000), Hybrid reported.

Following the acquisition, Ekuator Games Cipto Diguno will hold the position of Vice President of Consumer Games at Agate. Ekuator will also become its own unique division within the company.

Rumours about the two Bandung-based companies have spreaded since the end of 2018, as they had often collaborated together.

The majority of Ekuator Games founders were former employees of Agate.

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Image Credit: Yiran Ding on Unsplash

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Singularity might be closer than we think

It was in 2009, when the first cryptocurrency made its debut. The Bitcoin proof of concept and specifications was first published by Satoshi Nakamoto – the anonymous developer of the blockchain technology that would soon be a game changer for the world.

Although starting as the only cryptocurrency, thousands of other cryptocurrencies soon joined the Bitcoin in the crypto ecosystem. Today there are over 2000 cryptocurrencies, according to CoinMarketCap as of the time of this writing, with many more still to be joining the list, through STOs in form of securities tokens.

The crypto market has grown to attract the attention of investors globally. This is largely understandable as the market currently stands at a value of over $100 billion. However, while these developments are remarkable, the point of focus is the technology behind the cryptocurrencies – the Blockchain. The utilities tokens are only the tip of the iceberg compared to the securities tokens that will securitize all assets on earth, both tangible and intangible.

Blockchain Reshaping the Future

Blockchain technology has continued to garner an unprecedented level of attention. This is owing to the distributed ledger framework of the technology, which provides a completely decentralized transaction process thus, making all activities carried out on the platform free from external control.

Also read: A quick guide to digital marketing a blockchain project

The traditional system requires the need for arbitrators or central authorities to validate transactions. However, blockchain provides a trustless platform that allows parties to store information and transact without external interference.

The distributed ledger makes it almost impossible to manipulate or change information that has been stored on the blockchain, whilst also providing transparency as transactions are visible to all on the platform. Blockchain technology eliminates the need for middlemen or bureaucracy via the use of smart contracts.

The remarkable features of this technology is what has won it attractions and interests from business players in different fields. Although blockchain technology itself has shown its capacity to be applied universally, i.e. across all different fields and sectors. It has changed the way funds can be sent abroad, eliminating the need for middlemen or exorbitant bank charges. The secure framework for storing information is also of great benefit to the health sector, as patients’ information can be securely stored on the blockchain.

Blockchain also paved way for digitalizing assets. Assets are now digitally represented on the blockchain with all relevant information including, history, origin, and ownership, among others. This system makes it easier to exchange value and provide a more secure means of verification of product originality.

The world is yearning to be free from undue centralized control and free to create their own experiences. Blockchain technology has offered this opportunity, and we are gradually seeing a paradigm shift towards a decentralized, blockchain world.

 

AI Integration and the future of blockchain projects

Another development that’s also changing the world is artificial intelligence. Although its wave of development can be traced back to the 1950s, rigorous research and its rapid development only began a little over a decade ago. AI, which involves the process of computers learning and solving problems with little or no supervision from humans, has literally become an integral part of our daily lives.

From self-driving cars, smartphones, digital assistants to the new wave of smart home devices, Amazon Alexa and many others, AI is no longer a futuristic hope, it’s already our reality.

However, with these two groundbreaking technologies integrated, according to Aaron Tsai, Founder and Chief Capitalist of MAS Capital Inc. and MAS Capital Universal Exchange Inc. (MASEx), we can see the beginning of a new future. “Decentralized media and social media – AI media – will completely open the flow of information globally with as little government influence as possible,”writes Tsai in the bluepaper, Blockchain & Artificial Intelligence – Today and the Future he published on December 2, 2018 on LinkedIn. “The big-node alliances and high-computational AI groups will have the agenda-setting and governing power in the new era. Government controlled, centralized monitoring, video surveillance eyes-in-the-sky and cyber police will be counter-balanced with the individuals and groups of the decentralized era. The new world order, including the definition of a nation, the nature of institutions, the tribe, social interaction and economic trading systems are all changing!”

A statement of truth cannot be denied. We are witnessing a paradigm shift in global operations, as we gradually embrace the developments in AI and decentralized technology. This is a future that has already begun and the best we can do at this point is see to it that these developments are effectively managed for the benefit of humanity. The last thing we need is create a world that would be disastrous for future generations.

This is a vision also shared by Tsai: “As we move into the age of the Singularity, a new human species is been created with superintelligence, as man and machine become one to co-exist with the help of human-controlled or out-of-control AI.” The great importance here is that we embrace the reality, the future we now see and the need for everyone to work together for a future that is better and brighter for all humankind!

Tsai founded and launched MASEx, which is designed for the New Space Age, where people can trade Securities Tokens and transfer funds — not only on Earth, but the vision is that such transactions can also be done once we get to Mars, the moon, spaceships and space stations, etc. According to Tsai MASEx aims to be “The First and the Leading Exchange in the Universe!” MASEx will trade equity securities tokens, commodities tokens and stable coins. The platform aims to launch its Stock Listing Board for companies’ equity securities tokens in Q1 this year. There are plans to adopt AI based continuous due diligence on listed companies, with a monthly reporting standards, to move the stock exchange industry to a new and a higher standard.

The fate of our future largely relies on how well we manage what’s in our hands today. Artificial intelligence has come to stay, and blockchain keeps making its rapid advancements. If we are to make these worthwhile and sustainable for humanity then, a synergy is of great essence – a mentality of collaboration. The future can only be bright for us all when all parties involved put hands on deck in unison.

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Photo by Federico Lancellotti on Unsplash

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GBCI pursue mergers and acquisitions to put together the smart city initiative 

Singapore-based GBCI Ventures (GBCI) has announced a USD$100 million smart city development fund, which will be directed towards a variation of technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, big data, IoT and virtual reality (VR).

GBCI will take an active role to provide these startups with know-how, access to technology, financial investment, mentorship, and go-to-market support.

Also Read: Indonesian tech media rates top female founders, executives based on their beauty, popularity

What differentiates this fund, the company claimed, is the formation of mutually beneficial strategic alliances through mergers and acquisitions and the development of a smart metropolis for the future.

The fund aims to move beyond technology and finance and engage with governments, organisations, and businesses that come together to develop smart cities.

“The dawn of smart city evolution brings economic progress and people are able to enjoy a higher quality of life and better urban services in the ecosystem. This is our vision, especially for companies that can contribute to the development and building of sustainable smart cities for future generations,” said Douglas Gan, CEO and Co-founder of GBCI.

The concept of the smart city is to allow citizens to access real infrastructure services like parking, traffic conditions, electricity, and water, all in real time. The goal is develop intelligent systems in the area of safety, transport, environmental cleanliness, utilities management, and disaster management.

Also Read: Google, Tencent, JD.com to inject around US$920M investment in Go-Jek

“GBCI strives to give city dwellers a futuristic and an eco-friendly urban lifestyle using AI as the core framework for building smart cities.GBCI invests in AI, robotics, big data, IoT and VR with the plan to be at the forefront to roll out smart cities,” said Lee Changjin, General Partner and Co-founder of GBCI Ventures.

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