Month: November 2019

Shanghai-based SOSV Chinaccelerator has announced nine startups to present their businesses on its 16th Demo Day. Chinaccelerator is the accelerator from China that aims to bridge China and the rest of the world, especially Southeast Asia, through sharing entrepreneurship and innovation lessons learned from the China market and bringing International methodology and best practices to China.

The accelerator claims that it has invested in over 150 startups from over 25 countries, which among many are from Southeast Asia and still running their business well in the region.

Among 9 startups in this batch, 4 startups are located in Southeast Asia or targeting Southeast Asia and two AI startups are from Hong Kong. Here are six out of the nine startups:

1. Angat, a tech remote hiring startup that enables companies to source, hire, and manage tech talent via remote tech hubs location in countries with strong, untapped IT talent such as the Philippines. The startup is based in the Philippines.

2. viAct.ai, a Hong Kong-based computer vision-powered startup that automates the real-time monitoring of construction and manufacturing sites to increase productivity and safety.

3. HomeCrowd, Malaysia-based digital mortgage crowdlending platform that uses a holistic credit scoring system to help underserved populations get access to mortgage and debt consolidation loans. HomeCrowd is the first company in Malaysia to be licensed for mortgage and consumer lending by the Housing Ministry.

Also Read: How to start a business in China as a foreigner

4. Neufast, Hong Kong-based startup that utilises AI technology to help hiring managers reduce time-to-hire, eliminate unconscious bias, and evaluate job fit scientifically, by providing companies with personalised question-answer interview bots and video-based psychometric assessments.

5. Tourplus, Malaysia-based online travel marketplace that connects travelers with thousands of local guides in Southeast Asia. Tourplus’ platform offers personal itineraries with local guides and transportation in real-time.

6. TravelFlan, Hong Kong-based AI-enabled platform that helps companies to sell travel services. TravelFlan unlocks flight, air, hotel, and experience booking revenue for super apps through its personalised chatbot travel engine targeted at customers in China, Japan, Korea, and Southeast Asia.

7. Travelright, a travel tech startup that provides an intelligent flight compensation solution for Chinese travelers to quickly and easily claim owed by airlines for flight delays and cancellations.

8. GetKno, a real-time analytics platform for brands, factories, and workers that allows brands and factories to scale ethical manufacturing and increase productivity.

9. Voilà!, a social commerce platform enabling US fashion KOLs and micro-influencers to monetise through e-commerce personalized with Voilà!’s visual search engine and product recommendation algorithm.

Also Read: Why China should be the next market for your startup or scaleup

Chinaccelerator is operated by the venture fund SOSV, which operates seven global accelerators. Chinaccelerator offers three months of guidance, training, and resources from mentors, partners, and investors with access to supportive alumni network

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Grab just launched online motorbike ride in Malaysia [Katadata]

Despite being established in 2012, decacorn Grab just announced that it finally kicked off the online motorbike ride operation, or known as ojek. The announcement came with the recent move by Gojek that also applies for operation permits in Malaysia.

Earlier this month, according to Katadata, Malaysian government announces the proof of concept stage for online motorbike ride operation in the country. The program will be done in Lembah Klang, Malaysia for six months before the operation commences in 2020.

The company said that the ride-hailing service will also cover food delivery, known as GrabFood.

Malaysian private investment firm RHL Ventures launches accelerator programme, to identify, scale Malaysian businesses [Press Release]

Malaysia-based private investment firm RHL Ventures announces that it has launched an accelerator programme with the mission to identify and scale Malaysian business.

“Our new accelerator programme underlines our firm’s stronger refocusing of efforts to grow Malaysia’s entrepreneurial and investment ecosystem along more sustainable lines,” said Rachel Lau, Managing Partner of RHL Ventures.

Also Read: Insurtech NTUC Income joins hand with Chinese insurer ZhongAn for Singapore scaleup

“With Malaysia’s innovation landscape now being more vibrant and dynamic than ever before, we are looking forward to identifying and work with the country’s best and most forward-thinking businesses – helping them to scale their innovations and grow them to become local and global champions.” Lau continued.

RHL Ventures earlier this year announced that it would raise a US$24 million fund to support the growth of local SMEs. The company also has several homegrown technology firms in its investment portfolio; including healthcare software company HealthMetrics, healthy snacks e-commerce platform Signature Market, and online interior design marketplace Atap.co.

WeWork expands to Vietnam, opening two new locations in Ho Chi Minh City [Press Release]

Global co-working space and startup community network WeWork announces the upcoming opening of its second and third locations in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, respectively at Sonatus, opening in November 2019, and Lim Tower 3, opening in February 2020.

Branching out from E.Town Central, WeWork’s first location in District 4, the two new WeWork locations are located in District 1, HCMC’s central district. Sonatus is situated downtown at 15 Lê Thánh Tôn, Bến Nghé Ward, while Lim Tower 3 is at 29A Nguyễn Đình Chiểu in the hip Da Kao Ward.

WeWork has established a strong presence in Southeast Asia over the past two years, since opening its first location in Singapore in 2017. It now boasts footprints in Vietnam, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, and the Philippines.

Carro partners NTUC Income, launching on-demand driving insurance [Press Release]

Carro, Southeast Asia’s automotive marketplace, partners with NTUC Income to enhance the company’s car subscription service. The new usage-based car insurance between Carro and NTUC Income is via a ‘pay-as-you-drive’ model that is based on how much the user drives the car; the less they drive, the less they pay.

From November 28 this year, all Carro car subscription customers will benefit from insurance savings via subscription credits based on how much they drive. Carro’s subscription packages include 1,500 kilometres of mileage per month for every standard subscriber. With this usage-based insurance scheme, subscribers will get charged only for the kilometres driven each month, and the rebates for the un-driven distance will be used to offset the subscription fees for the next month. Rebates for un-driven distance can be as high as over US$800 per annum.

Also Read: Automotive marketplace Carro adds US$30M to Series B round; acquires Indonesia’s Jualo.com

The new insurance service uses Vehicular Telematics to assess how much each of their cars is driven in a single month. This data accurately determines the exact premiums, down to the kilometres driven and charges the customers accordingly for the month.

Carro’s subscription model offers all-in flat monthly charges starting at US$1,024 that covers insurance, road tax, regular maintenance, and 24-hour assistance.
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E-commerce companies Shopee and Lazada are competing for the top spots in the Southeast Asian (SEA) market, according to the new The Map of Southeast Asian E-Commerce – Q3 2019 report.

Published as a result of a collaboration between iPrice Group, App Annie, and Similar Web, the report saw the two companies vying for the top spot in different categories.

Both companies top the category of mobile apps with the highest number of monthly active users (MAUs) in Q3 2019, where Lazada ranks first in four out of the six SEA countries that are being researched: Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand. Shopee itself tops the list in Indonesia and Vietnam.

Another top player in the region that made it to the list was Tokopedia, which followed Lazada and Shopee in categories such as mobile apps with most MAUs and downloads.

In its home market Indonesia, Tokopedia is the most visited e-commerce websites in Q3 2019 at 25 per cent of web traffic market share. In this segment, Tokopedia is followed by Shopee at 22 per cent.

Also Read: Singapore: The new “place to be” for e-commerce in Asia?

What we learned this quarter

The report also offered insights into trends that are displayed by e-commerce companies in SEA in Q3 2019.

It said that nine out of 10 applications with the highest number of MAUs offer products in multiple different categories, instead of just focussing on one vertical such as fashion or electronics.

“This shows that multiple-category marketplace platforms may be the future of Southeast Asian e-commerce due to convenience and their strong financial backing,” the report elaborates.

Another trend that the report pointed out is the rise of “shoppertainment” –a concept that includes the addition of features such as live streaming events and in-app games to increase user engagement.

Another interesting development in Q3 2019 is the apperance of newcomer Wish in the main categories.

A cross-border commerce app, Wish made it to the top five most downloaded mobile apps for the first time. According to the report, this indicated the platform’s serious foray into the Southeast Asian market.

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Image Credit: Markus Spiske on Unsplash

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Last year, the Asian mobile gaming market hit a revenue mark of over USD$41.5 billion. Japan, for instance, emerged among the top 3 digital gaming markets globally with revenue of over USD$19.2B in 2018.

According to Cam Pham, a blockchain researcher, 2020 could just be as lucrative especially thanks to blockchain technology.

With the planned inclusion of eSports into the 2022 Asian Games, the gaming boom in Asia is set to increase especially with blockchain capacity to enable fungibility of virtual gaming items.

Yat Siu, the co-founder, and chairman of Animoca Brands believes that the mass adoption of the blockchain industry will come through games.

In his opinion, “gaming has been an industry that has pushed forward technology in general.”

South Korea

Perhaps nowhere else in the world is a blockchain gaming set to succeed more than in South Korea.

Also Read: Singapores gaming chairs startup Secretlab gets funding from Temasek’s Heliconia Capital

With only 1 per cent of the global population, the country boasts of upwards of 30 per cent of the world’s cryptocurrency trading platforms.

What’s more, in 2018, the Korean government legitimized the blockchain and cryptocurrency industry with a move to draft industry classification standards that “recognizes crypto exchanges as regulated financial institutions.”

On this backdrop, giant South Korean tech companies have established platforms such as ONEStore that offer users access to decentralized blockchain-based applications like BUSKON.

However, despite last year’s move, the stance of the South Korean government on blockchain and cryptocurrencies is still unknown.

Just recently, the South Korean regulators, banned Infinity Star (a game that uses an Ethereum ERC721 token). Although the regulatory body insisted that the decision was not a total ban on games that use blockchain technology, onlookers and industry insiders believe that the move could spell doom for the industry.

Japan

In Japan, regulation seems to be taking a blockchain-friendly turn. The Japan Cryptocurrency Business Association (JCBA), a self-regulatory organization, last month released guidance for cryptocurrency custody operators. 

The guidelines stipulated the various responsibilities of cryptocurrency custodians and also suggested a virtual currency ranking that would ensure the safe handling of cryptocurrencies based on their specific characteristics.

According to Tran Ngoc Son, the CEO of Tomochain in Japan, “ownership and liquidity of virtual items are the current problems” facing blockchain gaming. 

With the new guideline, developers will now be able to comply with regulations while coming up with blockchain-based games that allow players to have greater control of in-game assets. 

With a revenue of $19.2B in the digital gaming market, Japan stands as one of the leading blockchain gaming markets with apps like My Crypto Heros (MCH) boasting the largest number of users in the world.

According to Kazuhisa Inoue, the CEO of Good Luck 3, “gaming and gaming economies offer a perfect fit for the circulation of tokens.” Inoue is the game maker behind CryptOink,  a blockchain-based game with crypto piggies that recently attracted 20,000 gamers. It is similar to Cryptokitties, but with more racing options, ie. gamers race, bet, breed pigs and compete in challenges. 

China 

While the rest of Asia embraces the gaming boom, the Chinese government is putting in place so-called “game-changing” laws that target more than 170 million minors online. 

The new law restricts playtime and instils spending limits for the country’s 20 per cent of its online users aged between 8 and 16 years old.

This comes at a time when Reality Gaming Group, a London-based blockchain, and AR gaming startup, plans to accelerate the development of its platform as well as other blockchain and AR games after signing a Memorandum of Understanding that gives it access to the Chinese market.

Although China is known for its harsh stance on cryptocurrencies, recent comments from Chinese President Xi Jinping show a blockchain-friendly viewpoint. 

In an article published last month, Chinese President Xi Jinping said that “major countries are stepping up their efforts to plan the development of blockchain technology.” 

He further added that China should put in “greater effort to strengthen basic research in the field and boost innovation.”

Hong Kong

In Hong Kong, political unrest is fuelling the popularity of an Ethereum-based game called Gods Unchained.

The popularity of the blockchain-based card trading game spiked after revealing its stance on Chinese censorship when Blizzard (the company behind Hearthstone) expelled a gamer who showed support for the  Hong Kong protests in an interview.

Although Blizzard later reduced its punishment on Chung Ng Wai (Blitzchung), Gods Unchained moved quickly to speak against Blizzard’s actions even promising to refund Blitzchung all his rescinded earning from Hearthstone.

Also Read: 3 top mobile gaming trends by Outblazes Yat Siu

With Hong Kong as the centre of pro-democracy protests, the popularity of God’s unchained increased to an extent where the transfer count of its token peaked past the previous high set by Cryptokitties.

Looking forward and beyond

Not only are there more people engaging with digital games, but gaming in Asia is also educating more people about the value of virtual assets and the power of blockchain technology.

Blockchain technology is solving the problem of scarcity of in-game items making gaming even more lucrative in the long run. However, it’s not all smooth sailing in Asia. Despite the positive stance that countries like Japan show towards blockchain and cryptocurrency, the volatile nature of regulation persists in places like South Korea and China.

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Everyone is talking about neobanks (alternatively known as hybrid banks or in the UK, challenger banks). In 2018 alone, consumers saved USD$5 billion by using neobanks rather than going through traditional avenues. That’s a lot of cash. Sure, neobanks are seen as “disruptors,” but they also may help with business growth and individual finance. The question is, are they the future of banking? 

Traditional banking route

Going through the traditional lending process has historically been the only route for small business owners and individuals to obtain a loan. There has been limited competition and let’s face it, slow processes that seemed to be accepted because it was simply the way things were done. 

For the bigger banks themselves, lending to small businesses especially was tough. Smaller loans, yet the same amount of paperwork and manual processes required for bigger-value loans. The smaller ones seemed unprofitable and perhaps that’s why neobanks have seen such a recent surge over the past 3 years.

Introducing neobanks

To date, Americans have opened approximately 3.25 million accounts with US-based neobanks. Just under USD$1.7 billion is held in these accounts. This equates to around 0.014 per cent of all deposits held in US banks. While this may not seem like a large disruption to the traditional bank route, they are definitely making waves. 

Also Read: Fintech and banks: collaboration or competition?

Neobanks tend to share a few characteristics such as offering microloans and fast digital customer experience. Their low-cost structure minimizes overdraft and monthly fees. However, as a result, customers tend not to earn that much interest on their deposits. And finally, for the budget-conscious customers, there are often budgeting and savings tools built into accounts so consumers can automate their financial transactions, which leads to better savings habits. 

Neobanks is definitely surging in popularity, and are certainly making headlines. In fact, in 2018, neobanks in America received four times as much funding as they did in 2017 and ten times as much funding than in 2015. While neobanks first found their home in the UK, mainly because the UK market isn’t as saturated with big banks like the US, they are popping up worldwide. So why are they gaining popularity at such speed?

The neobank success

For starters, unlike traditional banks, neobanks aren’t burdened by cumbersome systems and organizational structures. As well as this, because they tend to offer niche services, and certainly don’t provide the full banking experience, there are fewer regulatory requirements. 

For many neobanks, it’s about helping consumers lead healthy financial lives by providing helpful products and services with fewer fees. Banking is quick and simple. There’s no need to book an appointment at a banking branch and no need to fill out lengthy forms to set up an account. 

For the customer, there’s a seamless and useable platform to use and are changing the way people save and spend their money, with real-time updates on spending, transfers and incoming money, and the ability to send money through to friends using merely their names or contact numbers. 

Another bonus that comes with neobanks is the ability to save in a smarter, more user-friendly way. For example, many platforms will allow you to partition your savings into specific buckets that are kept separate, so if you’re saving for a holiday or a house deposit, you can allocate your funds accordingly. 

It’s a handy feature for the younger generation, and as an added bonus, it helps keep track of where the money is going. However, the traditional banks are taking notice, and some are even adopting the same techniques in order to retain their customers and encourage new ones. 

Some of the bigger banks are launching side projects of their own. One notable example is Goldman Sachs which launched a digital retail offering called Marcus by Goldman Sachs. 

JP Morgan is also chasing the neobank tail with Finn by Chase which is a completely digital bank, targeting the younger generation and those who live in areas of the US with a shortage of physical bank branches.

Will they last?

Sure, neobanks are shining at the moment, but not all shiny things last. They’re on the rise but it’s questionable whether they will fully overtake traditional banks, especially anytime soon. 

The traditional sector connotes a kind of trust that newer, challenger and neobanks simply don’t have at the moment. Second, the traditional banks offer a full-service model, whereas many neobanks rely on one particular niche area of service, such as debit cards. 

Also Read: Threat or opportunity? boosting digital banking in Asia

Most neobanks are enjoying success with the younger generation. Yet it may be too soon to tell whether the millennial customer base will remain with a digital-only bank. Are neobanks offering enough to take their younger demographic into their middle and older years? 

Neobanks are certainly transforming consumer banking and small business lending, it may be too early to tell whether they’ll survive. 

While people are certainly turning to neobanks to help them save, avoid fees and enjoy quick and simple banking, perhaps there’s still room for both traditional and challenger banks in our future.  

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Yangon-based on-demand trucking start-up, Kone Si has received a six-digit investment for nationwide expansion from Yangon Capital Partners (YCP), a Myanmar-focused venture capital under Trust Venture Partners, a local financial advisory firm, and Nest Tech– a Vietnam-based venture capital company as reported by local media.

This is the second round of investment for Kone Si after it initially received pre-seed funding from Phandeeyar in 2017, which has invested in Kone Si and 16 other local companies since 2016.

The start-up is planning to use the new funding to boost its technology platform, acquire talent, and expand to other commercial cities around the country to strengthen its user base.

A Top 100 contender, the ecosystem of Kone Si comprises more than 100 business shippers and over 2000 truckers; it also has an average month over month sales growth of 30 percent.

Ma Zar Phyu Tint Lwint, CEO of Kone Si said that in addition to understanding the power paradigm between the customers and truck suppliers, knowing the logistics freight flows throughout the year in the country is critical as that can help partner truckers get return loads and operate efficiently.

Also read: Don’t sleep on them: Here are food tech startups from Cambodia, Myanmar that you should know about

Businesses in Myanmar face difficulty in outsourcing transportation to third parties due to unreliability, lack of standardised procedures and non-transparent pricing among truckers, according to Kone Si.

Moreover, due to fluctuating transport pricing controlled by large trucking groups as well as unethical working nature, small fleet owners and individual truckers have to struggle to get regular jobs. Kone Si aims to bridge the gap between shippers and small fleet truckers.

“The services designed by market-savvy management will bring down logistics cost, a bottleneck of business operation across industries, and eventually benefit consumers in Myanmar” said Shinsuke Goto, managing director of YCP.

Just last week, Emerging Markets Entrepreneurs (EME), an early-stage venture capital firm, had also announced during its anniversary celebration on November 20 that it had invested a six-figure and five-figure sum respectively into two local start-ups: Natural Farm Fresh, a local company producing high-quality solar-dried chili powder and other dried products, and Yangon Broom, a home-services firm offering on-demand services including cleaning and ironing to residential homes and businesses.

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AppWorks, Taiwan-based startup community that claims to be the region’s longest-running accelerator, announces 18 startups joining its 19th Demo Day. With a focus on AI and blockchain, the 18 founders that will pitch in the Demo Day today demonstrated experiments in the AI, IoT, and Blockchain frontiers.

The Ai-powered industries include real estate, finance, and medical science, with a total of 14 AI, IoT startups and four blockchain startups. Six of the founders featured are from Taiwan, and the other 12 come from around the world and Greater Southeast Asia (GSEA), with half of the founders are serial entrepreneurs, bringing backgrounds in tech companies like Google, Qualcomm, Samsung, MediaTek, Agoda, IBM Watson, Initium Media, and PepsiCo.

After spending four months development in Taiwan, the pitching by founders only will happen in front of the investors and potential corporate partners from Taiwan and Southeast Asia, including investment professionals and executives from Fubon Financial Holdings, Taiwan Mobile, Cathay Life Insurance, Wistron Corporation, Hungtai Group, UDN, FarEasTone, as well as Taiwan’s National Development Council, and more, seeking an opportunity for investment and business collaboration for these founders.

Also Read: E-scooter-sharing platform Telepod raises funding led by SMRT’s corporate VC and incubator

With Taiwan as a launchpad, the products from these 18 startups are ready to be pushed into new markets for potential accelerated growth throughout the region.

• Telepod, an EV smart mobility startup based in Singapore with a mission to bring transport efficiency and climate harm reduction to cities in developing Southeast Asia markets. The startup was founded by Jin-Ni Gan, who claimed that it has shipped her EV smart mobility devices and battery kiosks to seven markets.
• Matters, a Hong Kong blockchain startup that enables content providers to be paid for their content, rather than to have their content and revenue opportunities that are often dependant on advertising algorithms and walled social media. The startup was founded by Annie Zhang that claimed to have scaled to over 20,000 customers during the accelerator session.
• Beseye, a startup that provides wifi-managed AI cameras allows the scanning of the movement of people near railway tracks to prevent accidents. The startup was founded by Shaq Tu, claimed to have already booked giant Tokyo Railways as a client.
• SELF TOKEN, Taiwan-based blockchain digital assets through Ethereum Smart Contracts that’s committed to creating an ecosystem of immersive entertainment experiences. Founder Jack Hsu also directed “The Last Thieves”, the world’s first film based on Blockchain.
• WeavAir, sensors and analytics company started by Singularity University graduate Dr. Natalia Mykhalova. The company uses AI and IoT sensors to build a recurring revenue business model that helps developers and landlords pinpoint trouble spots in their building control systems.
• Arical, a startup that’s co-founded by San Wong and Clement Tien from Hong Kong, is a platform that plans to “unlock the potential of property development.” Their 3-D AI envisioning tool enables clients like Henderson Land to spend only a few hours to map out hundreds of possibilities for designing buildings, as they have done recently in a project in Manila, the Philippines.
• Fourcons, Indonesia-based construction equipment platform started by founder Felix Hartantio. Fourcons provides an AI-driven platform for finding, verifying, and managing construction equipment.
• Blyng, an AI virtual assistant in real estate created by co-founder Julien Priour. It helps agencies cut down on missed opportunities in qualifying inbound leads.
• OnMyGrad, a career development, and workforce transition co-founded by Clement Tien and Anthony So, from Hong Kong. It works with recruiters to help students prepare for roles in several industries.
• KaChick, a platform for sourcing authentic photography from over 1,500 amateur and professional photographers, and have taken steps to pair those media assets with brands in the hospitality and entertainment space to drive more engaging marketing and branding campaigns at lower margin cost. The startup’s co-founders Peggy Cheung and Larry Lam.
• Dent & Co, a medical services AI chatbot created by dentist Steve Chu.
• Fluv, a pet care platform for local pet parents and sitters, is being demonstrated by former PepsiCo marketing staffer Candace Chen.
• Mellow, an app to help young people and families manage finances created by first-time founders Chester Szeen and Teresa Chan from Hong Kong. It enables children to use their “first money” through debit card usage and parent-regulated accounting.
• Dapp Pocket, a crypto wallet app created by Anderson Chen that’s in the vertical of payments.
• Portto, a blockchain startup created by three former members of the crypto company Cobinhood promises to make the KYC and onboarding process for using Blockchain simpler.
• Whoopee Robot, an AI/IoT startup created by founder Morris Lu, is now operating in five local shops and has served over 10,000 cups of robotically-delivered espresso beverages.
• SparkAmplify, an AI-powered PR service founded by Chien Lee that delivers an automated public relations system for clients.
• Gigvvy Science, a platform for speeding up the sluggish vetting and reviewing of critical science research co-founded by New Zealand-based co-founders Lisa Hsu and Mark Mai.

AppWorks Chairman and Partner Jamie Lin said at the opening of the event:
“Of the 31 teams that were admitted to the AW#19 program, 19 are working with AI/IoT, 10 with Blockchain/Crypto, and 2 are incorporating both technologies. What’s more, 23 per cent of founders from this batch are female, which marks one of our highest percentages in recent years. With the addition of the graduates from AW#19, there are now a total of 376 active startups and 1,113 founders in the AppWorks Ecosystem.”

Also Read: Our TOP100 Taiwan champion says let’s bring chatbots to real estate!

Founded in 2009, AppWorks is a startup community built by founders, for founders. With its commitment to mentorship, investment, and talent, AppWorks said it has established a one-stop-shop for founders willing to drive a change they see in the world through its three primary lines of service: Accelerator, Funds, and School.
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ADBRO, the Malaysia-based adtech startup that specialises in in-image programmatic marketing for publishers and advertisers, announces that it has secured financing from 500 Startups.

“Our next goal is to expand throughout the entire APAC. With a total of nearly US$100 billion in digital spend, 70 to 80 per cent will be spent on programmatic,” said Artem Titov, ADBRO Co-founder, and CEO. “The move from direct deals between advertisers and publishers to programmatic guarantees advertisers that their ads are only linked to premium content while allowing publishers to generate more revenue.”

According to Binh Tran, General Partner, 500 Startups Vietnam, adtech remains an area of interest in Southeast Asia due to the relatively nascent digital marketing ecosystem. “By leveraging computer vision and AI, ADBRO has helped marketers create premium ads that lead the market in engagement. By working closely with marketers to classify and understand images differently in each market, they have developed a deep understanding of consumer engagement that won’t be easily replicated”, said Binh.

Claiming to be the first to apply computer vision to serve ads in the region, ADBRO provides advertisers with ways to reach and engage their audiences. Using eye-tracking research, the computer vision feature enhances ad delivery by doubling the viewability, CTR, and video engagement rates as compared to traditional display options.

Also Read: E-pharmacy startup Gmedes raises funding led by 500 Startups, to boost G-MEDS service in the region

Founded in 2017 during YC School program, ADBRO serves the marketing tech sector by providing computer vision enhanced ads that are placed over contextually relevant images across publishers in Vietnam, Malaysia, and Indonesia. ADBRO’s proprietary technologies in computer vision and machine learning is used to scan articles, images, and other content types, bringing programmatically accessible in-image formats for advertisers.

The company is headquartered in Singapore, with three operational offices across Southeast Asia and development hubs in the Netherlands and Russia. Its investors include Future Matters and PilotX venture capital funds.
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Photo by Tran Mau Tri Tam on Unsplash

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Startups are growing at an unprecedented rate in the Philippines. The country has welcomed numerous fintech startups and celebrated funding rounds for remittance, healthtech, and logistics startups.

However, when it comes to foodtech startups, the country may not have a similar problem faced by other countries in the region where food startups are part of its citizen’s daily lifestyles. The closest similarities the Philippines may have in terms of its need for accessible, one-tap-away food service is with Indonesia, where it shares complex archipelago and traffic nightmares.

In the food and tech area, it seems like the Philippines might take its sweet time as we uncover these six local food startups.

Good Meal Hunting

Described itself as “an online food marketplace for home-cooked meals”, Good Meal Hunting provides options of a freshly-made, hearty meal cooked in gourmet style.

According to its official website, the startup empowers its kitchen merchants to manage their own food business out of the comfort of their homes and fully handles the logistical and technical aspects of food business, from providing food containers to coordinating with delivery services.

According to an article by Rappler, the startup also provides caterings for company events and parties, all done with a mission to empower home cooks in the Philippines.

Also Read: These agritech startups might be the next big thing in the Philippines

LalaFood

In an article by Spot PH, LalaFood was considered a newcomer in the food startup scene, especially in the heavily-congested Philippines. LalaFood lets users track their meal delivery and guarantees delivery in 45 minutes or less with no minimum order required.

The concept of LalaFood is obviously nothing new, but its presence definitely boosts a variety of the online platform for food delivery in the country, aside from the market leaders GrabFood and FoodPanda.

Delivery Guy

Launched in 2018, Delivery Guy is what its name suggests, a Filipino-owned delivery app. The startup was co-founded by logistics-background Neil Castillo, and his wife Finina Marie Tugade-Castillo.

According to an article by Rappler, Delivery Guy promises a delivery time of 60 minutes or under, within a 3-kilometer radius. The service also features delivery tracking, including a delivery journal that informs users what stage of preparation their order is.

In an article by Rappler, Castillo said that their strategy for restaurant partnerships leans more toward careful curation rather than having thousands of restaurants onboard to ensure every merchant gets distributed and exposed.

Mangan.PH

According to its website, Mangan.PH is an online food delivery service app that caters to Pampanga, the Culinary Capital of the Philippines. It offers a guarantee of delivery time under 60 minutes.

Also Read: Food Runner makes a dash for the Philippines by acquiring City Delivery

Restograph

Unlike its fellow food startups, Restograph is a new Philippines-based business intelligence software platform that helps restaurant owners store and analyse their legacy and offline PoS (Point of Sales) data to create actionable insights to increase sales.

In an interview with e27, Brian Dimarucot, Co-founder of Restograph explained about the company: “Restograph grabs your PoS data, translates that into something useful and delivers it in such a way that it’s easy to understand.”

Booky

Booky was founded by an Englishman Ben Wintle, who created Booky when he and his girlfriend, a well-known Filipino model and actress Iza Calzado, encountered a problem to find restaurants fast due to the Philippines’ poor Internet service.

According to an article by Rappler, Booky allows users to search for restaurants even if they are not online. Wintle explained that it works just like the influence Contacts list on the phone.
Using the search bar, users can search for restaurants by location, restaurant name, or cuisine.

By allowing the app to access users’ location, users can also search for restaurants “nearby” with an offline phone, showcasing restaurants within at least 500 meters distance.

Targeting food lovers, the app allows users to report incorrect information and share details on Facebook. The app offers free and premium content, wherein users can sign up for paid service to get more deals.

Philippines’ food scene is definitely not the main tech sector for the country at the moment given how locals already are used to GrabFood, Foodpanda, and Honestbee rather than starting a local operation with more Filipino roots. This leaves a vacant spot for potential local startups focussing on the Philippines and its food scene.

With food delivery, restaurant booking, and restaurant management apps already available, it remains fascinating to watch the sector closely for the next innovation.
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Photo by Eiliv-Sonas Aceron on Unsplash

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Ministry of Movement Pte. Ltd. (SWAT), an on-demand transport technology startup that pools passengers in high-capacity vehicles to route them to offer the highest utilisation rates and service levels has closed US$10 million in its Series A funding.

The funding is led by the University of Tokyo Edge Capital (UTEC), joined by investors include new investors SMRT Momentum Ventures, ComfortDelGro Ventures, Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB) New Ventures, EDB Investments, and LKJ Capital Japan. Pre-Series A investors iGlobe Platinum Fund II Pte. Ltd. and the Goldbell Group family office reinvested in this round.

SWAT said it plans to use the funds to grow and expand overseas. This investment will allow the company to tread new business verticals and establish its position as an intelligent transport technology provider in the region.

“SWAT is focussed on providing efficient transport for commuters through ride pooling in high-capacity vehicles. We see a need for such shared transport, especially in areas where the transport system has not caught up with rapid urbanisation and high population density,” said Jarrold Ong, Co-founder, and CEO of SWAT.

Ong continued: “Our solutions are designed to improve connectivity and reduce congestion within cities.”

Also Read: (Exclusive) Singapore startup SWAT raises US$2.2M to expand minibus ride-sharing services locally

Founded in September 2015, SWAT launched Asia’s first-ever dynamic on-demand bus service in Singapore the following year.

The company currently provides on-demand employee transportation for large corporations and industrial parks with operations in Singapore and Vietnam. It also operates an on-demand public bus service in Australia, providing first/last-mile connection from North-West Sydney to the new Sydney Metro.

Earlier this year, SWAT also conducted the Singapore Land Transport Authority’s public on-demand bus trials.

SWAT said it differs from ride-hailing services most people are familiar with, in that its algorithm allows for ridesharing, or essentially car-pooling, in vehicles of varying passenger capacity.

SWAT is set to launch projects in Japan, China, the Philippines, and Indonesia by the first half of 2020. As part of its expansion, SWAT also plans to support the growth of its commercial operations by boosting internal tech, data, and engineering teams, streamlining operations and increasing marketing activities.
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