EMDDI, a company that provides a ride-hailing management platform for taxi companies in Vietnam, has raised funding led by ThinkZone Ventures, with participation from several unnamed local investors.

Other details of the deal were not disclosed.

As per a press statement, the round was closed in July 2020.

Also Read: Why is Vietnam going to emerge the strongest post-COVID-19?

Launched in 2016, EMDDI allows ride-hailing companies to create and manage their own transport services, such as booking taxis, contract cars, motorbikes and cargo transport.

As for customers, they don’t need to install multiple ride-hailing apps on their mobile phone. Instead, they can use the EMDDI app to choose and use the service of their choice from multiple taxi operators nationwide.

At present, EMDDI (developed as part of a tech project of Hanoi National University) has more than 30,000 taxis on its platform across more than 40 provinces and cities.

As a strategic partner of the Vietnam Taxi Alliance, EMDDI also has been coordinating with nearly 100 taxi companies to manage and coordinate about 3 million rides through the platform each month.

EMDDI also supplies vehicle for third-parties such as VNPAY, ViettelPay, Momo, mobile banking apps and other ride-hailing apps.

ThinkZone is an accelerator-cum-early-stage startup investors in Vietnam, which unveiled its new cohort of five startups in April 2020.

Also Read: Is Vietnam the new golden child of tech startups in SEA?

As part of this deal, ThinkZone will accompany EMDDI in developing a network of partners, supporting it with many sales and marketing packages, legal consultation from commercial law firm Indochine Counsel, as well as technology infrastructure support from AWS.

ThinkZone is also working with EMDDI on its next round of fundraising, which is estimated to be US$2 million, and is already in talks with large funds.

The two are also preparing resources to further expand in Vietnam as well as into other countries.

With a population of 96 million, Vietnam is one of the fastest growing urban populations in the ASEAN region. It is a hot market for ride-hailing companies like Grab and gojek, and the industry is expected to grow at a CAGR of 26 per cent between 2015 and 2025.

With an estimated 92 per cent of the market-share in Vietnam, Grab looked poised to capitalise on all that growth.

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Image Credit: EMDDI

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Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning are quickly becoming highly sought-after technologies. However, Quan Pham, founder of PI.EXCHANGE feels that most companies that provide AI solutions focus more on enterprises –leaving little room for small business owners to keep up.

Compared to a few years ago when AI solutions could only be utilised by the likes of Google and Microsoft, there has now been a significant shift where AI is much more accessible. Yet still, at US$6,000 to over US$300,000 for custom AI solution, the costs of integrating AI is still not affordable enough for individuals and small businesses.

In addition to cost, there is also a barrier in the form of time and technical expertise that can prevent small businesses and individuals to implement the use of AI in their businesses.

Based in Melbourne with offices in Vietnam, Singapore, and India, PI.EXCHANGE is determined to solve this problem. The company provides a platform that enables businesses of all sizes and technical capabilities to build and operate machine learning applications quickly and cost-effectively.

After creating an account a user can simply upload or connect to a data source and The AI and Analytics Engine provides smart recommendations on how to wrangle and prepare the data for modelling.

The Engine then uses the prepared data set to provide smart model recommendations. These recommendations empower users to save time so user train only the recommended models. Users can achieve their tasks through the user interface or alternatively, tasks can be done via APIs to suit their requirements.

This is in line with the recent trend of low-code and no-code movement that has become popular today, where startups are providing platforms for users with minimum or even no coding skills to develop products.

PI.EXCHANGE claims that it is one of the few in the world that offers an affordable solution for AI deployment with only US$129 per month of signup cost for an individual. It also offers a free trial on its website for anyone interested.

Also Read: How Shopee uses AI, data to build a marketing strategy that suits changes in user behaviour

Pham tells e27 in an interview that the platform was built based on R&D efforts initiated by the company itself in Melbourne without any external help.

He shares that the technology is protected by Intellectual Property (IP) rights.

“Our IP is on how we are driving the computational costs for data preparation. If you think about it, its kind of like an AI agent which helps to compute and pick the right kind of data for each client. We maintain a very strong focus on IP and focus on perfecting our technology,” he says.

Meet the founder

Before kickstarting PI.EXCHANGE, Pham worked as the Chief Security Officer of Melbourne Water, a government-owned statutory authority which controls the water system in the city and the state of Victoria. He terms himself a “corporate dropout” after spending nearly over 10 years in the corporate world.

Aside from having an extensive formal background in cybersecurity, mathematics and science, Pham says that he learnt how to build data science and AI solutions through industrial experience –not by some school or university.

“My background in data science came from my previous life experience where I worked as a technology manager and a software developer. I came across different exercises and opportunities where I had to build a machine learning application all by myself with my team … so that’s how I got into the whole AI business,” Pham says.

Due to his prior roles in cybersecurity. Pham says that he takes privacy concerns very seriously. This is why the company has something called the “privacy by design and security by design principle”. He further stresses that the data is encrypted at all level in-transit address.

Also Read: AI-empowered data platform Sentient.io secures Series A funding led by Digital Garage Group

What is next

The company says that it will officially have a commercial launch in the next two to three months; it also has secured partnerships with Amazon Web Services and NVIDIA.

In terms of investment, Pham also says that PI.EXCHANGE is currently in funding talks with reputable VCs across the APAC region.

On the flip side, it is important to note that AI is highly complex and some may argue that making use of a packaged AI tool has a limited reward, and may not offer the disruptive competitive advantage that AI has the potential to deliver.

But, for the target audience that PI.EXCHANGE is aiming for, this could be the way to go.

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Image Credit: PI.EXCHANGE

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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For many years, there has been countless discussions and reports about the massive potential that the Southeast Asian (SEA) startup ecosystem has. One of the most outstanding of such reports is the Google Temasek Bain report which stated that the region’s internet economy is set to hit US$240 billion by 2025.

The general outlook of the future of this region has always been promising. But 2020 is the year where we can finally see that potential manifest –even during a global health crisis.

In August, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in major markets in SEA, global SaaS platform Intuit announced that it has entered an agreement to acquire TradeGecko, the Singapore-based inventory and order management platform that aims to ease omnichannel commerce for small businesses.

Financial details of the acquisition were not announced, but it was expected to close in September. The deal was the first Intuit had made in SEA, and one of the few a US-based tech giant had made in the region.

There are many reasons why this acquisition is outstanding. Yes, there is the fact that it happens at a time where the ecosystem is struggling to continue surviving. But apart from that, the acquisition is a manifestation of the potential of the SEA tech ecosystem.

Or we can say, a promise that we manage to deliver.

Also Read: Ecosystem Roundup: Intuit acquires TradeGecko; Synagie proposes US$45M sale of e-commerce arm; Ayoconnect, Wahyoo, Clik, Vesta secure investment

Acknowledging our place in the world

To discuss the acquisition, e27 sits down with David Gowdey, Managing Partner at Jungle Ventures, the VC firm who invested in the company in its pre-Series A funding round.

He begins by noting the two different approaches that SaaS companies in SEA tend to take in developing and marketing their solutions. There are companies that build products in their local language, aiming for a very specific target audience. But then there are companies with “global ambitions”.

“So the software that they’re building could be used by companies all over the world … and those businesses are very challenging because you’re not just competing against local competitors. You’re competing against companies in the US or China or anywhere else in the world that could be building software in that same space,” Gowdey explains.

But with great challenge comes a great opportunity.

“If you look at the different emerging economies, there are already some great software that was developed in Europe or Australia, but we haven’t had a large software company here that’s been able to get on the radar of a global software giant [until this acquisition],” Gowdey says.

“I think it adds a huge amount of credibility to founders in this part of the world that they can build a software that is globally best in class, and that will attract global buyers into it,” he continues.

How the pandemic makes it easier

Recently, there has been more investment coming for companies that are enabling digital transformation for conventional businesses, from SMEs to state-owned enterprises. It seems like enabling digital transformation is the key to win a pandemic-ridden world –perhaps beyond.

Also Read: [Updated] Intuit acquires TradeGecko to further strengthen its accounting platform QuickBooks

This is something that Gowdey acknowledges.

“If you think about the pandemic, there were small businesses that had to shut down their retail locations and move a lot of their sales online. An inventory management system that can allow small businesses to manage their inventory and orders effectively, it helps them digitise their businesses. It also creates a lot of operational efficiency within those SMEs,” he elaborates.

“So, I think part of the rationale [of the acquisition] has to be the pandemic and the shifts that a lot of families were making … how they can make that transition much easier,” he concludes.

In fact, this urgency for digital transformation might just be the push that Intuit needed to seal the deal with TradeGecko.

What is next for SEA and SV

In a statement to e27, Intuit spokesperson wrote that the company does not comment on any possible future plans or considerations related to company acquisitions.

But when asked about the reason that has drawn them to acquire a SaaS platform in SEA, the company wrote: “Intuit’s mission is to power prosperity around the world. We are always looking for opportunities to help our customers succeed and grow in an effort to fulfil our mission.”

There are certainly many ways to interpret the statement. But my take is that this acquisition is set to help Intuit in manifesting its mission; so there is always the possibility that it will not be the last.

In a recent webinar episode with e27, leading startup investors such as Paul Meyers and Jussi Salovaara highlights the rise of M&A and strategic acquisitions during the pandemic.

There is a great likelihood that these acquisitions will be by US-based tech giants. Why?

In this contributed post, Kyle Kling pointed out why global tech investors should be looking to invest in SEA, even during a pandemic. He brought an example of Indonesia, the largest SEA market, and the fact that it now has six unicorns and tax policy to encourage startup investments.

Also Read: SaaS inventory management platform TradeGecko raises US$10M from TNB Aura, others

“For a country that is home to 267 million people, of which at least 50 million are in the growing middle-class with rising discretionary incomes, the hunt for the next Indonesian unicorn is on. American VCs can bring their expertise and best practices to play. In Europe, Africa, South Asia, South America and Asia Pacific, Indonesia’s story is repeated, with slight variations,” he writes.

We feel that these reasons could also be the consideration for US-based tech giants to get into the market.

So how does the year 2021 will look like for SEA startup ecosystem? It seems like we can get a visualisation of it already.

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Image Credit: Mario Gogh on Unsplash

 

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Hong Kong-headquartered startup accelerator-cum-VC firm, Betatron, has unveiled the nine startups participating in its sixth cohort.

These startups were selected from a total of 2,500 applications it received.

“Cohort 6 represents our most competitive portfolio to date with an acceptance rate of only 0.36 per cent. The investments reflect our focus on companies in the B2B markets who have validated their business model and are ready to scale in Asia,” said Matthias Knobloch, Managing Partner of Betatron.

Unlike other accelerators, Betatron provides an investment of US$500,000 each to the selected startup immediately after they join the programme. Further investments are done based on their valuations.

Also Read: Facebook reveals 13 participants selected for its Community Accelerator programme in Asia Pacific

During the first three weeks, companies go through an intensive Bootcamp,  which involves introductions to mentors and networks who help them identify their scope in the next four months.

A spokesperson of the company told e27 that the accelerator is geographic-agnostic but primarily invests into companies that want to expand in Asia.

The nine startups attending this virtual programme are:

ShipsKart (Singapore, India)

A B2B e-commerce marketplace platform for the maritime industry.

Qwikwire (Philippines)

A cross-border payment solution for real estate brokers and property developers.

Phable Care (India)

Helps doctors provide personalised care to patients using AI/ML (machine learning) into one single platform. It digitises prescriptions, personalised health reminders and tracks vitals like blood pressure, etc.

Also Read: Hong Kong’s B2B accelerator Blueprint announces first batch

FreightBro (India)

Logistics startup that provides high-tech solutions to digitise cargo forwarding and shipping.

App4Legal (UAE)

Practice management software for legal practitioners.

Connected Analytics (Nigeria)

Helps businesses grow in Africa by utilising customer data.

SINAY (France)

Captures proprietary maritime data such as port arrival times and environmental indicators.

TakeTask (Poland)

Implements digital standards of procedures for the blue-collar workforces.

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Image Credit: Betatron

 

 

 

 

 

The post Meet the 9 startups selected for Betatron’s cohort 6 accelerator programme appeared first on e27.

According to Statista, the online gaming market is predicted to be worth over US$ 174 billion by 2021, and this sector has been dominated by the Asia Pacific region for years. With Southeast Asia’s steadily growing online population, thanks to increased internet penetration and smartphone usage, its mobile games market is the fastest-growing in the world. Amidst these trends, startups like ZeusX are unsurprisingly thriving.

Singapore-based ZeusX is a digital marketplace for gamers all over the world — enabling them to buy and sell gaming assets like accounts, in-game items, top-ups, services, gift cards and collectibles in a secure online environment.

In a nutshell, ZeusX eliminates the challenges of lack of transparency and security in online trade in the gaming space and provides gamers with a secure platform to trade virtual assets at competitive rates.

Also read: Superfanz: Growing visibility for creators in the wake of COVID-19

Launched in March 2020, ZeusX recently revamped their platform earlier this month to include more product categories. Despite launching at a time where the economic climate is probably at its worst as seen in decades, ZeusX has attracted thousands of interested parties from some 85 countries.

Alex Tay, the Founder & CEO of ZeusX, shared with e27 that he has been an obsessed gamer since he was nine. In fact, it was his passion towards gaming that led him to leave a 17-year old flourishing corporate career in the Insurance & Banking sector so he could chase his dreams full-time, and build a career in the gaming world.

Mobile gaming: Emerging trends and tech disruptions

Tay believes that mobile gaming is the future and he is not wrong. In Singapore alone, players spent a total of $327.2 million on mobile games last year. In the online population, 74% of men and 68% of women play mobile games as of 2019.

Tay foresees two fundamental technology disruptions that can potentially change the “game”: 5G and hyper-personalization.

“Telcos are already working with cloud gaming providers to eventually be able to deliver and stream high-end quality games on mobile that were previously only available on console and PC,” he said.

Tay added, “just imagine, 5 to 10 years ago, what we were watching at home was dependent on what devices we owned—cable, DVD or BluRay. Now, everyone streams HD movies from Netflix at any time to any smartphone while sitting on the train, and I believe that gaming is heading towards that direction”.

Also read: How VITA by Zing Healthcare empowers employee well-being through technology

Furthermore, the prevalence of AI and Big Data technologies are also changing the gaming landscape and there is a need to create highly personalized experiences for gamers.

Tay added that it is not a coincidence that their platform focuses on mobile games and that they are trying to differentiate with personalization and community integration. “We truly believe that is the future, and we have been innovating towards that vision from Day 1,” he shared.

What’s next

ZeusX plan to continue refining their offerings to achieve wider adoption with a primary focus on the Southeast Asian market given its massive potential.

Tay recalls that one of their very first transactions was by a gamer based out of Texas, USA who traded with a fellow gamer based in Slovenia.

“We want to leverage that global capability, and empower gamers in our regional market, including Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines and Vietnam, so they are able to easily trade with anyone in the world without worrying about payments and security,” he said.

Addressing challenges

The key challenge for ZeusX is catering to the diverse demographics of the Southeast Asian market, while still operating as a global marketplace. Each of the eleven countries within Southeast Asia has its own national language, preferred payment methods and spending patterns.

“While there is a big difference between supporting a global versus a local market, we also think it opens up vast opportunities for gamers anywhere to monetize their efforts, skills and virtual assets to appreciative gamers elsewhere in the world. We will pick one market and try to get it to work before getting ahead of ourselves,” Tay explains.

With more capital and access to better resources, they can slowly and steadily scale across the region.

To find better connectivity and in the pursuit of expanding their network, ZeusX has signed up for an e27 Pro membership so they can easily explore funding opportunities and discover relevant incubation programmes.

Also read: Workbean: Empowering the workplace in the time of COVID-19

“We were the most attracted to the membership due to the e27 Connect feature as it makes our search for potential investors super easy. Plus, other perks that came along are a bonus. We have been leveraging the benefits of the membership to offset our costs in AWS, Hubspot and Zendesk,” Tay shared.

He added, “our e27 Pro membership has helped us yield 8 direct introductions to notable VCs, plus a few more indirect referrals. It has addressed our issue of getting interested investors to talk to us as an early-stage startup and also given us insights into what VCs are specifically looking for.”

Despite the COVID-19 crisis and the ongoing economic upheaval, ZeusX has managed to not only launch themselves in the market this year but also establish a considerable user interest. With the rising mobile gaming industry, ZuesX’s innovative vision, and support form the e27 Pro membership, we can only expect great things from this startup.

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