Singaporean rocket company Equatorial Space secures US$1.5M funding led by Elev8.VC

Singapore-based rocket company Equatorial Space Systems has raised US$1.5 million in a seed round led by Elev8.VC.

SEEDS Capital, the investment arm of Enterprise Singapore, and Masik Enterprises, also joined.

Equatorial Space is a rocket propulsion and space launch startup focused on enabling space access at greatly reduced risk, cost and environmental impact compared to incumbent solutions.

Besides its headquarters and principal R&D facility in Singapore, the company has a presence in the US and Australia.

Also Read: From aerospace engineer to building Google’s first int’l presence to cross-border investing

The funding will be used to develop Equatorial Space Systems’s Dorado commercial-sounding rocket family. It will provide low-cost space access for science experiments, technology demonstrators and academic payloads.

The Dorado will be propelled by a hybrid rocket motor using a combination of chilled Nitrous Oxide (cNOX), and a proprietary, patent-pending solid fuel formulation known as HRF-1AL, which delivers a high regression rate, high density and flight-proven structural integrity. The propellant combination is also non-toxic and low in greenhouse gas emissions. The first launches are slated for mid-2024.

“Equatorial Space Systems’s breakthrough in rocket propulsion holds the potential to lower barriers related to safety, cost, and sustainability that have traditionally impeded the adoption of space technologies. These advances will play an important role in developing other space technologies in Singapore and add to the vibrancy of Singapore’s innovation ecosystem,” said Tan Kaixin, General Manager of SEEDS Capital.

Elev8.VC is a Singapore early-stage VC fund investing early in technologies of the future and founders that create emergent industries with a global impact.

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Echelon Asia Summit 2023 brings together APAC’s leading startups, corporates, policymakers, industry leaders, and investors to Singapore this June 14-15. Learn more and get tickets here. Echelon also features the TOP100 stage, where startups can pitch to 5000+ delegates, among other benefits like connecting with investors, visibility through the e27platform, and other prizes. Join TOP100 here.

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Baskit, which provides technologies for wholesalers and distributors to make supply chains more efficient in Indonesia, has raised US$1.5 million in pre-seed funding.

Forge Ventures led the round. Sketchnote Partners, DS/X Ventures, Prasetia Ventures, and undisclosed global and regional angels also participated.

The startup will invest the capital in strengthening its technology and team.

Baskit was founded in 2022 by Yann Schuermans (CEO), Yoonjung Yi (Head of People and Communications), and Yasser Arafat Akhmad (Head of Technology).

Also Read: 5 smart ways to decarbonise supply chains and logistics with AI

In Indonesia, traditional distribution chains are often ineffective in their middle layers, driving many inefficiencies, including product stock-outs, lack of data visibility, and supply chain losses from expiry. Baskit aims to strengthen the distributors and wholesalers of these layers with commercial support and technology.

The firm sees opportunities to positively impact communities, including serving rural consumption better and promoting financial inclusion across previously unbanked distribution businesses and merchants.

Baskit claims it has experienced explosive growth since its official launch in November 2022, doubling in size month-on-month.

Its other backers are Shafie Shamsuddin (Chairman of Petronas), Reynold Wijaya (Founder of Modalku), Ankit Sethi (COO of Fung Investments), and APAC Foodpanda/Delivery Hero Leadership (Jakob Angele, Pedram Assadi, and Arun Makhija).

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Echelon Asia Summit 2023 brings together APAC’s leading startups, corporates, policymakers, industry leaders, and investors to Singapore this June 14-15. Learn more and get tickets here. Echelon also features the TOP100 stage, where startups can pitch to 5000+ delegates, among other benefits like connecting with investors, visibility through the e27platform, and other prizes. Join TOP100 here.

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Ever since the COVID-19 enforced lockdowns compelled educational institutions around the globe to radically alter the way they teach and engage their students, the hybrid learning model has been gaining traction worldwide. Combining elements of face-to-face classroom instruction with online teaching, this method of teaching has taken off, with more and more schools delivering online programmes.

According to a McKinsey report, the number of learners reached by massive open online courses (MOOCs) – online courses with video for many participants at the same time – increased from 300,000 to 220 million from 2011 to 2021. The number of hybrid and distance-only students at traditional colleges rose by 36 per cent between 2012 and 2019, and in 2020, COVID-19 sharply accelerated that rise by an additional 92 per cent.

Several variables have influenced the broad acceptance of hybrid education. First, the strength of unified collaboration has been enhanced by the rapid advancement of technology in video conferencing and collaboration tools. Second, classrooms are increasingly implementing a dynamic structure supported by technology to handle interruptions without interfering with the flow of instruction.

However, countries in the Asia Pacific are at various levels of development when it comes to digital infrastructure and perspectives toward hybrid learning. Traditional teaching approaches still predominate in some markets, while in others, they need to be modified to work with currently available technologies.

Regardless of the different market nuances, students gravitate towards this model. Many find that the hybrid learning experience allows them to learn in a more engaging environment while not restricting them to a particular time or place for learning.

Also Read: Why GoImpact believes that education is the key to promoting ESG investment

A report in June 2021 found that 49 per cent of the student population worldwide affirmed having enrolled in an online course in the previous 12 months. In addition, 95 per cent of students indicated being satisfied with online education and that web-based learning is more engaging and helps them retain information more rapidly. This is adding impetus to the need for schools to include some form of hybrid or blended learning instruction.

Challenges to making hybrid learning work

However, hybrid learning requires a multi-dimensional involvement made possible by technology. Roadblocks to implementing hybrid learning include not just inadequate technology but also the lack of compatibility among devices.

When the lockdowns arrived suddenly, many schools were faced with an urgent need to cobble together solutions utilising a variety of devices and platforms that did not “work well” with one another or were too difficult for instructors to use while teaching.

Additionally, faculty staff with little remote teaching experience have struggled to teach when using devices or platforms with less-than-intuitive interfaces. Poor audio and video solutions can further impact an instructor’s ability to teach effectively – especially when they are teaching from the classrooms where they are most comfortable.

The risk of security issues has also been a potential bottleneck. A broad range of devices run on a campus or district network and platforms or machines accessed by staff and students with limited cybersecurity oversight across less-than-secure public networks can be potential headaches for a school’s IT department.

The same holds true for on-campus faculty, guests, and devices – connectivity and access to the network must be carefully managed. School networks need to be protected from increasingly sophisticated malware.

Hijacked video services and bring-your-own-device type issues are also sources of potential security breaches as devices are transferred between home and the classroom for hybrid learning. To mitigate these risks, it is crucial that educational institutions educate students and faculty about data security risks; teachers themselves may also be unaware of the basic security problems and how to prevent them.

Giving everyone an equal seat

Besides taking into consideration the factors above, schools also need to be mindful of maintaining a consistent online learning user experience for everyone, no matter their location, while still tailoring the solution to the instruction or meeting space.

It is also important to ensure meeting equality in virtual sessions such that everyone has an “equal seat” at lectures, virtual classrooms, or group meetings. Schools need to ensure that the platforms are easy to use, are purpose-built, and are able to provide intelligent video, clear audio, localised AV options, intuitive content distribution, and effective video conferencing solutions for accessible and equitable learning experiences.

Hybrid learning solutions should also include scheduling tools as well. This ensures that classrooms and instructional technology are available when needed by faculty staff, thereby improving efficiency and productivity. Additionally, such solutions should offer the ability to scale by allowing web-based conferencing to be added to existing and new instructional spaces to support those environments. Lastly, the platform should be future-flexible – which means that it can handle upgrades as and when new technologies are developed.

Putting a hybrid learning solution together

To implement a hybrid learning solution, educational institutions should start by clarifying their needs and identifying the current issues and limitations in their infrastructure, and then choose the right solution that addresses their requirements. Different schools will have different needs depending on their platforms and operating system preferences, scale, and percentage of remote students and instructors.

Also Read: ChatGPT becomes the helper or killer to all occupations in Vietnam

The first step in implementing a hybrid learning solution is, therefore, Assessment and Awareness. Schools need to understand the challenges it and its chosen system will be confronting. They need to determine whether students and faculty want the flexibility of learning or teaching from anywhere and consider peoples’ preferences and need when it comes to using personal devices for collaboration and connecting with others.

They also must keep in mind that as new teaching methodologies emerge, IT pain points will increase. So, while the demand for software-based conferencing solutions is surging, they need to be aware that there could be initial compatibility and interoperability problems.

Second, schools need to define objectives and craft their plans accordingly. They should identify the limitations of current learning and instruction methods, examine how technology influences an equitable learning experience for students when learning remotely, conduct site audits and explore use cases.

Additionally, they need to define their desired outcomes for consistency, performance, and connectivity, as well as outline the institution’s objectives and needs for web-enabled conferencing and collaboration solutions.

Finally, educational institutions need to find the right partner in Implementing a hybrid learning solution.  An end-to-end partner — preferably with an ecosystem approach that provides a breadth of solutions and services to help schools meet their objectives – would be an ideal choice. Such a partner would help them craft a strategy that gives faculty the freedom to choose applications while staying fully interoperable with all tools.

Their solution should also be built on an open platform on which new web-based conferencing tools can be integrated with legacy technologies. Additionally, the partner should have an open sensibility towards natively supported third-party solutions and the expertise to deploy and manage every device across the campus or school district, and who will help keep the learning experience top-of-mind.

Combining these strategies together will help enable educational institutions to provide a seamless, meaningful, and equitable learning experience for students while at the same time empowering instructors and educators in their teaching experience.

With the right technology partner, schools and teachers can bring the education experience for students to the next level and be well-prepared to adapt to whatever new learning possibilities that the future interconnected world will bring.

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It feels like 2023 will be the year when things really return to the way they were. COVID-19 restrictions have largely been lifted, people are working in the office more frequently, and travel is returning to pre-pandemic levels.

Yet as we overcome one crisis, we’re starting to feel the effects of another – the cost-of-living crisis. Talks of a global recession and the recent spate of layoffs have put additional stress on people around the world.

Moreover, the pandemic has left an indelible impact on us as consumers. Even as we transition back to our pre-pandemic ways of life, our behaviours and habits have become influenced by how we lived for the past three years, where we relied on the Internet and social media for almost everything, from entertainment to shopping to completing our daily chores, and missed out on things like physical human connection.

With the many different forces at play, it’s hard to make sense of how people truly think and feel. Our latest Connecting the Dots report sheds light on the top need-to-know trends for the year ahead.

Search is no longer the same as before

Recent data shared by Google shows that nearly half of the young people look to TikTok or Instagram instead of Google Maps or Search when looking for answers. The percentage of Gen Z’s online time spent on social media is at an all-time high of 41 per cent, and social media is fast overtaking search engines in becoming the preferred platform for these consumers to start their purchase journey on.

Social media is now seen as a one-stop shop for one’s purchase journey. Social media is an avenue for Gen Zs to explore and find things they didn’t even know they needed.

Also Read: How to orient your brand to Gen Z values

We also found that 48 per cent of Gen Zs are heading to social media for product search, compared to 44 per cent who use search engines. Ads seen on social media have become Gen Zs’ top brand discovery tool when shopping online, and Gen Zs are now more inclined to get recommendations and ideas from real people rather than from an article that could have been sponsored when shopping. Gen Zs in APAC, in particular, are more likely than the average internet user to use vlogs in their product research.

When looking at APAC as a region and its consumers across age groups, our findings don’t deviate much from the above. 60 per cent of APAC consumers say they discover or research products/brands through social media.

With the number of people who are doing their shopping-related research on social media continuing to climb and with platforms testing new features to meet this growing need, brands need to keep track of what’s culturally relevant to their audiences if they want to cut through and make an impact.

Internet and social media behaviours and attitudes are shifting

As we shift back to our pre-pandemic lifestyles, the way we use and even feel about the internet has changed. While certain activities like online gaming continue to thrive post-pandemic, activities that used to be very much associated with ‘going online’ have plateaued.

For example, the number of people globally who use the internet to find information has fallen by 14 per cent since Q3 2018. There are also fewer consumers who are using the internet to share opinions (down 11 per cent), keep up with news (down 15 per cent), and engage in general browsing (down 14 per cent), demonstrating a shift in online habits and how such activities are gradually becoming less important to internet users as a whole.

Looking at social media, platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and, more recently, BeReal and Bondee have become a means for people to connect with one another. However, as we become inundated with more apps to download, more notification alerts on our phones, and never-ending posts from the friends and celebrities we follow, we might feel the strain that social media has on our mental health.

Also Read: Gen Z is redefining global consumption. Can companies keep up?

In fact, consumers who say social media causes them anxiety have grown 11 per cent since Q2 2020. Our latest report on Gen Zs reveals that this younger generation worries that they’re spending too much time on social media. A combination of heavy representation of unrealistic body images and more online abuse is leading female Gen Zs to feel the negative impact of social media.

The ramifications of this trend are incredibly broad, which is why brands need to be mindful of creating a trusted, authentic, and captivating online experience for users.

A cost-of-living crisis doesn’t mean that there isn’t room for treats

Although consumers are feeling the heat of economic pressures and being more selective in where they spend their money, financial confidence in APAC looks steady, where more than half of APAC consumers express a positive outlook towards their personal finances and only 10 per cent anticipate a decline in their financial situation.

Previous recessions have shown that products and services can quickly shift from essentials to treats in consumers’ minds. The most distinctive treats that people are allowing themselves to splurge on this year include clothing, skincare, and travel.

In APAC, 84 per cent of consumers made at least one major purchase in the last three-six months. As more people are getting out of the house and socialising, beauty and clothing have become categories that people are willing to spend on. Clothing has emerged as the most preferred indulgence for APAC consumers, with 33 per cent saying they have purchased clothing as a treat for themselves in the last six months. Even when money is tight, people generally make space for small indulgences that put them in a good mood.

Our research shows that quality is the top purchase driver overall, with 53 per cent of global consumers saying it’s important when deciding what to buy, so brands should hone their messaging around the durability of their items as consumers look to make their money count.

While we can’t be sure what lies ahead, it’s important for brands to remember that there’s still so much pent-up demand, and many consumers will be carving out space for affordable, high-quality and ‘must-have’ treats.

So much is going on around us that is influencing the consumer mindset. By connecting the dots between what people say, think, and do, brands can make sense of what’s happening and zone in on what really matters to consumers across the globe.

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Venture capital has become an increasingly popular investment option in recent years, fueled by a wave of innovation and disruption in technology and emerging markets.

However, breaking into this high-stakes industry can be a daunting task, especially given the current market conditions. With competition for funding at an all-time high and market volatility on the rise, it’s more important than ever to have a deep understanding of the industry and the key factors that can lead to success.

Our team at Insignia Ventures Academy has put together five essential factors to consider before diving into the world of venture capital. From developing a sound investment strategy to building a strong network, we’ll cover insights that can help you navigate the challenges and capitalise on the opportunities of this fast-paced industry.

Whether you’re a finance professional, a tech enthusiast, or an entrepreneur, read on to learn more about what it takes to break into venture capital in today’s ever-changing market.

Experience is important

But it’s a balancing act of being open to new ideas and data versus leveraging on your own past experience.

Having a solid background can give you a better understanding of the industry, the players as well as the trends. However, it’s important not to be too rigid in your thinking because the VC world is constantly changing.

Also Read: The secret sauce of de-risking early-stage venture capital

It’s essential for you to stay flexible and open to new ideas and perspectives. This means taking in differing opinions and perspectives, as well as being updated on the latest trends, and being willing to take calculated risks that can help you in the long run. 

Network can be a sourcing alpha that is unique to every individual investor

But developing a quality network requires intention.

A strong network can give you access to valuable deals, potential investments, or partnerships that would otherwise not be possible. In order for investors to grow their network, they need to be proactive in building and maintaining the relationships they’ve gained with other investors, founders, and industry experts. This involves being open to sharing your expertise and making time for others by offering help and support to those in the industry.

As the famous saying goes, it’s quality over quantity. It shouldn’t matter the number of connections you have. What matters is how these connections can benefit both parties. Investors should focus on developing relationships with other individuals who share the same values and investment strategies, which brings us to our next point.

Investment strategy alignment to experience is important

But formulating an investment thesis (or investment worldview) is not a one-and-done affair.

There needs to be a constant revisiting of investment strategy and evaluation of past decisions. The more systematic and disciplined the approach, the better.

Aligning your strategy with your experience can help you make informed decisions based on your past. Past successes and failures can be a helpful baseline for your decisions, but it’s necessary to remember that the investment thesis should not be set in stone, rather they should be revisited and updated on a regular basis.

This is because the industry is constantly changing, and so it’s best for an investment thesis to change along to ensure that you don’t fall back. This will involve analysing your investment performance, identifying areas of improvement, as well as adjust your approach to invest accordingly. 

As mentioned before, the more systematic and disciplined the approach, the better. This is because you’ll stay more on track and make more informed decisions. By re-analysing and revisiting your investment thesis, you are improving your chances of finding those fund returners and reducing the chances of making costly mistakes.

It’s a long-term, uncertain game

But it’s not just about waiting for returns.

It goes beyond making the investment. It’s important to position yourself as someone whose values go beyond the investment. Venture capital is a high-risk, high-reward industry. When investing in startups, there is always a high chance of failure. Startups won’t be profitable right off the bat. It can actually take years for them to mature and generate returns. Being an investor, it’s key to have patience and a long-term outlook on these companies.

Also Read: 5 lessons from 5 years in venture capital

However, this doesn’t mean that once investors have invested, they just have to wait for the returns. It’s quite the opposite. Investors are expected to actively keep up with the portfolio’s company’s status and growth, as well as identify any potential areas of improvement. So while patience is important, it’s also important not to just sit back and watch.

Collaboration is not just about making connections

But actually doing the little things to show your value to your network.

Collaboration goes beyond coming up to someone, introducing yourself, and exchanging contacts. It’s more important to maintain the relationship by proving your value. This can be done by facilitating valuable introductions.

For example, if you think that an industry expert can be of great help to a startup, you might want to introduce them to each other. Providing relevant insights to these startup founders will, in return, grow their company, which then increases the investor’s return. It’s the little things that are done to help other individuals in the industry that will solidify your relationship with others. 

Final thoughts

The public perception of venture capital often revolves around the idea that it is an exclusive club for the wealthy, only interested in making a quick profit. However, as the five key points highlighted above demonstrate, the reality of venture capital is far more complex.

Venture capital is a dynamic and constantly evolving industry that requires a deep understanding of both the market and the companies being invested in. At its core, venture capital is about creating value and helping to build successful businesses, not just making money. As such, those who are willing to stay flexible and open to new ideas can find great success in this exciting field.

If you’re keen on improving yourself and learning about investing from a VC’s point of view, there might just be a program for you. For fully immersive and experiential learning on SEA’s VC scene, check out Insignia Venture Academy’s VC Accelerator course, where you can take in knowledge from the hours of content and live sessions, as well as the practical learnings of what it’s like in a VC – learning VC by doing VC.

Aside from the VC Accelerator course, IVA has also newly launched the VC Launchpad program. Adapted from the content of the VC Accelerator, the program was designed for a light but still substantive exposure to the world of venture capital in Southeast Asia.

It is especially for professionals who are on the go or are starting from square one and want a teaser before diving into an experiential 12-week program. The VC Launchpad course is a fully online, self-paced course where you can develop your early-stage investment acumen with an extensive amount of content and practice. 

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Editor’s note: e27 aims to foster thought leadership by publishing views from the community. Share your opinion by submitting an article, video, podcast, or infographic

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