While traditional equity markets celebrated a historic relief rally, the cryptocurrency market posted a 1.42 per cent decline, settling at US$2.41T. This divergence tells a compelling story about the maturing yet still volatile nature of digital assets. As Wall Street surged on news of a temporary peace deal between the US and Iran and promises to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, crypto investors chose to lock in profits and unwind leveraged positions rather than join the broader risk-on celebration.

The contrast between these markets could not be starker. The Dow Jones Industrial Average logged its best day since April 2025, jumping 2.85 per cent to 47,910.79. The S&P 500 climbed 2.51 per cent to 6,782.83, and the Nasdaq surged 2.80 per cent to 22,635.00. Crypto showed a 69 per cent correlation with the S&P 500 and an even stronger 77 per cent correlation with Gold, which climbed to US$4,800 per ounce. Digital assets underperformed significantly despite these correlations. Internal market dynamics within the crypto ecosystem overpowered the positive macroeconomic backdrop that sent traditional markets soaring.

The primary culprit behind crypto weakness was a broad-based altcoin sell-off accompanied by aggressive unwinding of leverage. The Altcoin Season Index plummeted 12.82 per cent over the past week, signalling a clear rotation of capital away from higher-beta, riskier assets. Sectors such as the Binance Ecosystem and tokens under SEC or CFTC scrutiny fell approximately 1.6 per cent to 1.75 per cent, underperforming the broader market. This was not a panic-driven exodus triggered by negative news, but rather a calculated reduction in speculative exposure after recent gains.

Derivatives data reveals the mechanics of this de-risking. Bitcoin saw US$74.66M in liquidations over the past 24 hours, with short liquidations dominating. This indicates that leveraged positions were forcibly closed as traders scrambled to reduce exposure. Such forced liquidations often create cascading effects, amplifying downward pressure as margin calls trigger additional selling. The market essentially experienced a healthy flush of excess leverage, removing the frothy speculative positions that had built up during the recent rally.

Also Read: The CLARITY Act countdown: How April 16 could make or break the US$2.36T crypto rally

Institutional demand, while still present, showed signs of cooling just when the market needed fresh capital inflows to counteract the profit-taking wave. Morgan Stanley’s spot Bitcoin ETF launch drew US$34M in day-one inflows, a respectable start but insufficient to offset the broader outflow pressure. The Fear and Greed Index sat at a neutral 43, representing a significant cooling from fear levels recorded last month. This neutral sentiment reflects a lack of the strong bullish conviction needed to push prices higher amid widespread profit-taking.

The timing of this crypto correction amid traditional market euphoria reveals an important maturation in the way digital assets respond to macroeconomic events. While equities rallied on the geopolitical breakthrough that sent crude oil prices plunging 16 per cent to US$94.41 a barrel, crypto investors appeared more focused on technical levels and internal market structure. The US Dollar Index, retreating 1.17 per cent to 98.6 points, and the 10-year Treasury yield, holding steady at 4.30 per cent, created a generally favourable macro backdrop, yet crypto remained constrained by its own internal dynamics.

Traditional market sector performance highlighted the dramatic shift in sentiment. Commercial airlines enjoyed robust gains as fuel cost concerns receded. Delta advanced 3.8 per cent, United climbed 7.9 per cent, and Carnival surged 11.2 per cent. The Energy sector was the sole laggard, down 3.7 per cent due to a plunge in crude oil prices. Asian markets showed mixed reactions. Japan Nikkei 225 rose to 56,395 points on April 9, gaining 0.15 per cent. The index has rebounded roughly four per cent month-to-date after a brutal March selloff caused by energy supply fears. Hong Kong Hang Seng volatility remains high, with recent data showing the index struggling to hold gains above the 25,000 level.

Commodities reflected the dramatic geopolitical shift. Benchmark US oil WTI plummeted 16 per cent to approximately US$94.41 per barrel, a drop reminiscent of the depths of the pandemic. Spot gold climbed to roughly US$4,800 per ounce while silver prices fell slightly on April 9 to US$73.49, down 0.85 per cent from the previous day. Currency markets saw the US Dollar Index retreat to 98.6, down 1.17 per cent, as geopolitical risk premiums unwound. Fixed income markets remained relatively stable with the US 10-year Treasury yield holding steady at 4.30 per cent on April 9.

Also Read: Good Friday crypto analysis: Is low liquidity and volume setting up a crypto crash to US$2.17T?

Looking ahead, the market’s near-term health hinges on Bitcoin stabilising above the critical US$2.39T support level, which represents the 50 per cent Fibonacci retracement. A sustained break below this threshold could trigger a swift move toward US$2.34T at the 78.6 per cent Fibonacci level, particularly if ETF flows remain subdued. Conversely, a rebound above US$2.45T, the 38.2 per cent Fibonacci level, would signal that bullish control has been regained.

All my retail investor friends are eyeing April 16, when the SEC holds its roundtable on the CLARITY Act. They are hopeful that this regulatory development could provide the catalyst needed to shift sentiment and override the current technical weakness. The market finds itself in a corrective consolidation phase, where the flush of excess leverage and rotation out of altcoins represents a healthy reset rather than a fundamental breakdown.

For me, I think it’s “priced-in” already.

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The post Why institutional money isn’t saving crypto from this sell-off appeared first on e27.

India’s tech funding story is no longer one of breakneck exuberance. It is now a story of filtration.

Tracxn’s latest annual report shows Indian startups pulled in US$11.7 billion in FY2025-26, down 18 per cent from US$14.3 billion a year earlier. That decline is real, and it reflects a venture market that has become more selective, more valuation-conscious, and far less tolerant of growth without discipline.

But step back, and a more uncomfortable comparison emerges for Southeast Asia: even in a slower year, India still looks deeper, broader, and structurally more liquid than much of this region’s startup landscape.

Also Read: AI hype, hard lessons: Where SEA’s startup capital is really going

That matters because the gap is no longer just about market size, but it is increasingly about market shape.

India, despite the pullback, remained the fourth most-funded country globally, behind only the US, the UK, and China. Southeast Asia, by contrast, has spent the past two years grappling with a harsher reality: thinner late-stage pipelines, fewer outsized rounds, prolonged exit delays, and a capital base that has turned markedly defensive. The funding winter may have softened into a cooler spring in parts of Asia, but it has not ended.

If anything, Tracxn’s numbers underscore a broader truth. India’s correction is happening inside a still-functioning scale market. Southeast Asia’s correction is playing out across fragmented markets where scale itself is harder to build, defend, and monetise.

It’s a downturn but not a collapse

India’s US$11.7 billion haul is lower year on year, but it is still 20 per cent higher than the US$9.7 billion raised in FY2023-24. That alone tells a more nuanced story than the headline decline suggests. Capital has not disappeared. It has simply become choosier.

The stage-wise breakdown is where the signal gets stronger. Seed funding fell to US$1.3 billion, down 15 per cent from the prior year. Late-stage funding dropped sharply to US$5.6 billion, a 38 per cent fall from US$9.2 billion. But early-stage funding rose to US$4.8 billion, up 33 per cent year on year.

That is not the profile of an ecosystem in retreat. It is the profile of one undergoing repricing.

Investors are still backing younger companies, but they are doing so with more caution and a clearer view of what they want: stronger fundamentals, sharper product-market fit, and a more plausible path to profitability. That dynamic has also played out in Southeast Asia, though with a key difference.

In India, early-stage momentum is being sustained by a large domestic founder base and a market that can absorb multiple scaled bets. In Southeast Asia, early-stage appetite exists, but follow-on certainty remains shakier because the region still faces exit bottlenecks and cross-market execution risks.

In simpler terms: India is still funding tomorrow. Southeast Asia is still debating whether tomorrow will be financeable.

Fewer mega-rounds, more scrutiny

India recorded 13 funding rounds above US$100 million in FY2025-26, down from 23 the year before. That drop is significant. Large private rounds are harder to close, pricing is tighter, and investors are no longer willing to underwrite scale at any cost.

Also Read: Capital comes roaring back: Inside SEA’s March funding boom

Again, this sounds familiar to anyone tracking Southeast Asia. The region has also seen mega-rounds become rarer, especially outside AI, climate, and a small handful of strategic sectors. The difference is that India still has enough depth to produce large rounds in enterprise infrastructure, enterprise applications and fintech.

Standout deals such as Nxtra’s US$710 million private equity round, Neysa’s US$600 million Series B, and Inox Clean Energy’s US$344 million Series D show that serious capital will still move when the sector narrative and business model align.

Southeast Asia has not entirely lost that ability, but it has become far more episodic. Big rounds still happen, but they are less frequent and more concentrated among Singapore-based companies or businesses with a strong regional or global angle. The broader market has become less forgiving, especially for companies that depend on subsidies, weak gross margins or perpetual market-expansion stories.

That is the bigger shift now reshaping both markets: venture capital is no longer rewarding ambition alone. It is rewarding evidence.

India’s sector mix looks sturdier than Southeast Asia’s

One of the more telling parts of Tracxn’s report is where capital actually went.

Enterprise applications brought in US$3.6 billion, unchanged year on year. Fintech rose to US$2.4 billion, up 14 per cent. Retail also attracted US$2.4 billion, though that was down 32 per cent from the previous year.

The implication is hard to miss. Indian investors are still willing to back software and financial rails at scale even as consumer-facing categories become more difficult to defend. That is broadly consistent with what has happened in Southeast Asia, where B2B software, infrastructure, AI-enabled tooling, and fintech rails have generally held up better than pure consumer plays.

But India’s edge lies in the depth of its domestic market. Enterprise software built in India can sell locally and globally. Fintech startups can tap into a massive home market, benefiting from tailwinds from digital public infrastructure. Retail, even after cooling, still sits atop a massive and increasingly formalised consumption base.

Southeast Asia’s founders operate in a different geometry. A startup can gain traction in Singapore, Indonesia, or Vietnam, but regional expansion often means redoing payments, logistics, compliance, and go-to-market from scratch. “Southeast Asia” still exists more neatly in pitch decks than in operating reality. India’s market is not frictionless, but it is at least one market.

That distinction has become more valuable in a tighter capital cycle.

Exits show maturity and expose Southeast Asia’s lag

If funding tells one story, exits tell the one that investors care about more.

India logged 47 IPOs in FY2025–26, up 52 per cent from 31 a year earlier. It also produced six new unicorns, up from four in each of the previous two years. Acquisition activity softened, falling 15 per cent to 129 deals, but the market still produced sizeable outcomes, including Resulticks’ US$2 billion acquisition by Diginex and Brahma’s US$1.2 billion acquisition by Polymarket.

These are not just vanity metrics. They point to an ecosystem that, while imperfect, is still creating pathways to liquidity.

That is where Southeast Asia has struggled more visibly. The region has had notable public listings and M&A events, but the exit environment remains patchy. IPO windows are narrower, trade buyers are more selective, and many late-stage companies are still working through valuation resets from the 2021 peak years. The result is a capital cycle that feels slower and more strained. Without reliable exits, early-stage funding also becomes harder to sustain because investors cannot model returns with conviction.

Also Read: In Vietnam, the challenge isn’t talent but mindset, says Vertex’s Genping Liu

India is not immune to that problem. But it is further along in solving it.

Bengaluru looks like a gravity centre. Southeast Asia still looks scattered

City-level concentration is another revealing marker. Bengaluru accounted for 33 per cent of total funding, with Mumbai taking 21 per cent.

Southeast Asia has no direct equivalent to Bengaluru’s gravitational pull. Singapore is the region’s financial and legal centre, capturing a disproportionate share of venture activity. Still, much of that capital is deployed into companies building for Indonesia, Vietnam, the Philippines, and beyond. Jakarta remains critical for consumer and fintech scale. Ho Chi Minh City is emerging. Bangkok has depth in specific verticals. But the regional map is dispersed, and that fragmentation affects everything from talent density to investor access to follow-on funding.

India’s capital is concentrated because its ecosystem is concentrated. Southeast Asia’s capital is fragmented because its markets are fragmented.

That is not a moral victory for either side. But it does shape outcomes.

What this means for Southeast Asia

The blunt reading of Tracxn’s report is not that India is booming. It is that India is maturing faster than many of its regional peers.

Even after an 18 per cent drop in total funding, the country still commands global relevance, supports large rounds, generates IPO activity, and continues to produce unicorns. Southeast Asia, by comparison, remains investable but more uneven. Capital is available, yet increasingly reserved for businesses that can show regional defensibility, disciplined burn, and credible unit economics. The era of easy narratives is over.

For founders, that means less room for theatrics and more pressure to build substance. For investors, it means the India versus Southeast Asia conversation is no longer just about growth rates or demographics. It is about which ecosystems can convert innovation into durable liquidity.
Right now, India looks bruised but functional. Southeast Asia still looks promising but constrained.

And in venture capital, functionality tends to win.

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OnMic, the Vietnamese social-audio startup that once tried to build a local answer to Clubhouse, is shutting down.

In a LinkedIn post, co-founder Trung Nguyen said: “Today, we’re making a difficult announcement: we will be shutting down OnMic.” He added that the platform had been born during COVID-19, when the team wanted “to help people feel heard, connected, and less alone through audio”.

It is a short statement, and notably light on detail. There is no mention of runway, user numbers at shutdown, acquisition talks, or a strategic pivot.
But the closure is still telling. OnMic’s rise and fall say as much about the limits of social audio as they do about the realities of building a consumer internet startup in Vietnam.

Also Read: The fundable founder trap: How to build a business that survives, not just one that raises

Back in December 2021, e27 reported that OnMic had raised an undisclosed seed round from Touchstone Partners, a Vietnam-focused venture capital firm. At the time, the startup presented itself as a voice-chat and streaming platform for Vietnam’s young population. Founded in June 2021 by Khanh Nguyen, Lam Kim, and Trung Nguyen, it offered live voice rooms with no video and minimal text, covering topics from spirituality and dating to job counselling and financial advice.

It was a bet that the intimacy of audio could become a durable consumer habit in Vietnam.

That bet has now ended.

A startup built in the shadow of lockdown

Timing was central to OnMic’s story. It launched in the middle of the pandemic, when live audio briefly looked like one of tech’s hottest frontiers. Clubhouse had exploded globally. Twitter rolled out Spaces. Spotify, Telegram, Discord, and Meta all moved to capture some version of the format. Venture capital rushed in. Audio was framed as a lighter, more authentic alternative to polished video and algorithm-heavy feeds.

OnMic entered that moment with a local spin. Unlike Clubhouse, which in its early days leaned heavily on exclusivity, tech circles and celebrity-adjacent conversations, OnMic targeted Gen Z users in Vietnam and pushed a more grassroots model. In its 2021 fundraising announcement, the company said it was building community not through celebrities but through “sharing authentically the ups and downs of life, love, careers and struggles”.

That positioning mattered. Vietnam’s digital economy is young, mobile-first and socially driven. OnMic claimed early traction, saying it had racked up more than 11 million live minutes and more than 20,000 programmes since launch. It also said growth was 100 per cent organic, driven by micro-KOLs and their communities.

For a while, that looked like a plausible local wedge.
The problem is that a wedge is not the same as a business.

Why OnMic probably shut down

OnMic has not publicly laid out the reasons for its closure beyond the emotional farewell. So any diagnosis has to remain an informed inference rather than a definitive account. Even so, several structural pressures stand out.

1. The pandemic tailwind disappeared: Social audio was a lockdown product as much as a product category. It thrived when people were stuck indoors, over-socialised online, and willing to spend time in experimental digital communities. Once physical life resumed, the novelty weakened. Audio rooms demand attention in real time. That is a harder habit to sustain than scrolling short videos on demand.

2. Monetisation was always difficult: Live audio can be intimate, but intimacy does not automatically convert into revenue. Unlike video, it offers fewer obvious advertising surfaces. Unlike SaaS, it does not benefit from straightforward subscription logic unless users are deeply attached to specific creators or communities. A platform like OnMic needed to solve both engagement and monetisation at once, which is rarely kind to early-stage consumer startups.

3. Creator retention is expensive: Platforms built on user-generated content live and die by creator energy. OnMic’s early growth was reportedly driven by micro-KOLs, but keeping creators active over time requires better tools, clearer monetisation, and stronger audience conversion. If creators can build larger audiences on TikTok, YouTube, Facebook, or even podcasts distributed via Spotify and Apple, a standalone audio platform starts to look like extra work for an uncertain return.

4. Vietnam is digital-first, but highly competitive: Vietnam has strong smartphone adoption and a young online population, but consumer attention is brutally contested. TikTok dominates short-form entertainment. YouTube remains massive. Facebook is still deeply embedded. Messaging and community behaviour often run through apps that already have enormous scale. A specialist live-audio app has to fight for both time and habit in a crowded field.

5. Funding conditions turned colder: OnMic raised investments during a period when capital was still chasing consumer experiments. The market has changed sharply since then. Southeast Asia’s venture scene has become more selective, and securing later-stage funding has become harder.

Investors now demand clearer paths to revenue. For niche consumer platforms without obvious monetisation, that funding environment can become suffocating.

Also Read: “There’s no excuse”: Aqua-Spark calls out eFishery’s deception

In short, OnMic was trying to scale a difficult format in a market where user enthusiasm may have been real, but durable economics were far less certain.

OnMic versus Clubhouse: similar format, different market

The easiest label for OnMic was always “Vietnam’s Clubhouse”. It was not entirely wrong, but it was incomplete.

Both platforms were built around live voice rooms, low-friction participation, and the idea that people do not always need cameras or polished content to connect. Both leaned into spontaneity. Both also emerged in a pandemic context where digital companionship had become a category of its own.

But there were important differences.

Clubhouse began as a global, invite-only network with strong elite signalling. It grew through scarcity, Silicon Valley chatter and celebrity drop-ins. Its early appeal was less “community therapy” and more “digital salon”.

OnMic, by contrast, appears to have gone after a more localised and emotionally grounded use case. It focused on Vietnamese-language rooms, younger communities and everyday subjects such as relationships, spirituality and career struggles. It was not trying to be the app where global tech investors listened to Marc Andreessen. It was trying to be the app where ordinary young Vietnamese users talked.

That local relevance may have helped OnMic initially. But Clubhouse’s broader trajectory also offered a warning: if even the global category leader struggled to turn hype into durable growth, smaller local clones faced even steeper odds.

How Clubhouse makes money and why that matters

Clubhouse’s own monetisation journey helps explain the challenge.
The company experimented with creator payments, ticketed events, and other creator-led monetisation features. It also explored subscriptions and community support tools. But public evidence suggests Clubhouse never built a large, stable revenue engine on the scale of major ad-driven social platforms. It relied heavily, especially in its early years, on venture backing while searching for a business model that could match user behaviour.

That matters because OnMic was operating in an even tougher environment. Vietnam’s digital advertising market is growing, but monetisation per user is lower than in the US. Consumer willingness to pay for niche social products is also less straightforward. If Clubhouse struggled to build a robust business in larger markets with global brand recognition, OnMic’s path would have been narrower still.

Was the OnMic idea scalable in Vietnam?

As a feature or community layer, perhaps. As a standalone venture-scale consumer platform, the answer looks far less convincing.

Vietnam absolutely has the ingredients for strong digital content businesses: a young population, high mobile usage, improving digital payments, and a growing creator economy. Audio itself is not the issue. Podcasts, audiobooks, and conversational content can work. Players such as Fonos have already shown that there is demand for structured audio products.

But live social audio is a harder proposition.

It depends on:

• constant creator supply,
• recurring real-time attendance,
• careful moderation,
• healthy community culture,
• monetisation that does not alienate users too early.

That is a demanding stack. It becomes even harder in a market where visual content is dominant and where large horizontal platforms already own user attention. OnMic’s idea may have been scalable to a niche, but scaling to a large, durable, venture-style outcome in Vietnam alone was always going to be difficult.

What the shutdown says about Vietnam’s startup market

OnMic’s closure does not mean Vietnam’s startup ecosystem is weak. Far from it. Vietnam remains one of Southeast Asia’s most compelling long-term markets, supported by strong digital adoption, a growing middle class, improving technical talent and a government that broadly wants the innovation economy to expand.

But the ecosystem is also going through the same discipline cycle seen across the region.

The easy-money era has ended. Investors are more cautious. Consumer startups without obvious monetisation face tougher scrutiny. Founders are being pushed towards capital efficiency, clearer differentiation and sectors with stronger revenue logic, including fintech infrastructure, enterprise software, logistics, climate and applied AI.

Vietnam still produces ambitious founders and serious companies. What is less likely to be rewarded now is category enthusiasm unsupported by economics.

That is what makes OnMic’s shutdown more than a single startup story. It is a reminder that product-market fit during an unusual moment, especially a global lockdown, is not the same as long-term market fit. Social audio briefly looked like the future. In reality, it turned out to be a mood, a use case and, for some startups, a window that closed faster than expected.

OnMic managed to catch that window. It just could not keep it open.

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Singapore-based AI health tech company injewelme has closed a US$1.2 million funding round led by Catalytic Capital for Climate and Health (C3H), a catalytic vehicle of Temasek Trust, with co-investment from Richardson Family (RF), a UK-based family office.

The capital will be used to accelerate the development of injewelme’s proprietary Deep Health Vision (DHV) technology and support its commercial expansion across Southeast Asia.

injewelme’s DHV platform uses remote photoplethysmography (rPPG) to measure more than 20 vital health parameters — including heart rate, blood pressure and oxygen saturation via a standard camera in approximately 30 seconds, requiring no physical contact with the patient. Powered by in-house software and predictive AI models, the company said the system has achieved 95 per cent detection accuracy in real-world pilot programmes.

The new funding will enable injewelme to broaden the DHV platform’s capabilities, adding measurement of blood glucose, stress index, fatigue and hydration levels. A particular focus will be heat stress detection, a capability the company says is increasingly relevant as climate change intensifies physiological strain on workers and communities in tropical environments.

Ryan Tan, Head of C3H, said the technology addresses a pressing gap at the intersection of climate and public health. “A rise in climate-related stressors will result in increased physiological strain on individuals and communities,” he said. “We are pleased to support injewelme in the deployment and further development of their technology to anticipate and address the impact of heat-related stress.”

Also Read: Why corporate mental health fails and how AI can fix it

The DHV system has already been trialled through SingHealth Polyclinics and in private-sector settings in Singapore, and is currently being evaluated for deployment in healthcare, eldercare, insurance and workforce safety. SJ Integrated Solutions, a business line under SJ Group that delivers fitness and wellness programmes at active ageing centres, has used the technology as a contactless pre-activity screening tool, reporting that screening time fell by around 50 per cent compared with manual processes.

Koh Yong Jin, Director of Fitness and Wellness at SJ Group’s Integrated Solutions division, said the platform had improved both efficiency and safety by flagging individuals who may not be physically ready for exercise, allowing staff to focus on delivering a more inclusive experience for clients.

Digital impact marketplace Co-Axis, which connects funders with social and environmental impact opportunities, facilitated the introduction between injewelme and the round’s investors. Richardson Family’s participation forms part of a previously announced commitment of S$250,000 over two years to co-fund impact opportunities curated through Co-Axis, with support from C3H.

As a strategic partner, C3H will also provide injewelme with access to networks across the Temasek Trust ecosystem to help accelerate its commercial deployments and inform product development.

James Moon, Founder and Chief Executive of injewelme, said the financing would advance the company’s mission to deliver proactive, data-driven health monitoring at scale. “Beyond one-time health snapshots, we aim to enable anyone to easily and continuously track their health in everyday life, unlocking long-term health insights and advancing AI-driven predictive, preventive care,” he said.

The company intends to use the funds to deepen its customer base in Singapore while pursuing expansion into new Southeast Asian markets.

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Image Credit: injewelme

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Board diversity in Asia has improved meaningfully over the last decade, especially in the areas of gender representation and sector experience. But as companies enter an era defined by AI, geopolitics, digital disruption, climate risk, and workforce shifts, a new gap has emerged — one that cannot be filled by gender diversity alone.

Asian boards are beginning to recognise that the next competitive frontier will depend on cognitive, generational, and digital diversity. In other words, boards need different ways of thinking, not just different categories of people. The question is no longer, “Do we have enough diversity?” but rather, “Do we have the right diversity for the next decade of risk and strategy?”

The diversity gap no one is talking about

While gender representation has increased — with many markets implementing voluntary targets — other forms of diversity remain significantly underdeveloped:

• Digital and AI literacy is low across most Asian boards
• Generational representation is narrow, with a heavy concentration of directors over 55
• Cognitive diversity (different problem-solving styles, perspectives, and thinking models) has not been systematically incorporated into board recruitment
• Boards remain dominated by finance, legal, and industry veterans, limiting exposure to customer, technology, and workforce transformation insights

This creates a strategic blind spot. Companies are facing disruptions that did not exist a decade ago, yet boards are still structured for the world of yesterday.

To put it simply: you cannot govern the future with a board built for the past.

Why cognitive diversity drives better governance and strategy

There is deep research supporting the value of cognitive diversity — the diversity of experiences, mental models, and approaches to problem solving.

Boards with high cognitive diversity demonstrate:

• 20-30 per cent better performance in crisis navigation
• Stronger challenge culture, leading to fewer governance failures
• More robust strategic scenario planning
• Improved resilience during volatile market conditions

When boards include directors with backgrounds in technology, customer experience, geopolitics, sustainability, and human capital strategy, management receives stronger oversight and more innovative challenge.

Homogeneous boards may be harmonious — but they are rarely high-performing.

Also Read: Why the future of AI needs more of diversity and the arts

The skills Asian boards will need by 2030

The next wave of corporate leadership demands a board that is structurally different from today. By 2030, boards will prioritise directors who bring:

• Digital and AI literacy: Not coding skills — but understanding how AI works, what risks it creates, how it shifts competitors, and how it transforms business models.
• ESG and climate competence: Climate risk, energy transition, and supply chain ethics are strategic, not compliance matters.
• Geopolitical understanding: Boards must interpret macro volatility, trade fragmentation, technology bifurcation, and regional risk dynamics.
• Human capital and talent strategy: Automation, workforce redesign, leadership succession, and cultural health are now enterprise risks.
• Customer and experience insight: Digital behaviour, platform ecosystems, and data-driven engagement must inform board conversations.

Very few boards today cover all five areas. That gap is a governance risk.

How boards can reframe diversity: A practical framework

Boards often approach diversity reactively — filling a gap when it becomes visible. The future requires more intentionality.

Here is a structured roadmap for chairs and nomination committees:

Redesign the board skills matrix: Move beyond industry and functional experience. Include:

• AI & data
• Cybersecurity
• ESG/Climate
• Digital customer behaviour
• Supply chain resilience
• Human capital strategy

Also Read: Leading a multigenerational workforce: How Singapore’s employers can turn diversity into strength

Introduce term limits and staggered refresh cycles: Diversity without turnover is impossible. Term limits — even soft ones — create natural renewal.

Build a talent pipeline of future directors: Start identifying potential first-time directors from:

• Technology companies
• High-growth digital firms
• Sustainability and climate expertise
• International markets
• Younger executives with transformation experience

Conduct annual board capability reviews: Not just performance evaluations, but assessments of whether the board still matches the strategic direction of the company.

Focus on diversity of thought, not just identity: Identity diversity is necessary, but not sufficient. The strategic value lies in how people think — not just who they are.

The future: Diversity as a competitive advantage, not a compliance requirement

Boards that embrace Diversity 2.0 will have a far greater capacity to manage complexity, innovate under pressure, and guide companies through disruption.

This shift is not about political correctness or optics. It is about strengthening governance and future-proofing organisations.

A board that includes different generations, different thinking models, different industry exposures, and different lived experiences will be better equipped to:

• Anticipate risks
• Challenge assumptions
• Navigate ambiguity
• Create strategic resilience

As Asia enters a decade defined by uncertainty, boards must move beyond representation to true capability diversity.

The question chairpersons should be asking is no longer, “Do we have diverse directors?”

The real question is, “Do we have the diversity of thinking required to steward the business into the future?”

This article was first published on The Boardroom Edge.

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VinFast is taking a familiar electric-vehicle (EV) problem in Southeast Asia, namely high upfront cost, and attacking it with a less familiar answer for the region: long-term rentals aimed at ride-hailing and transport drivers.

The Vietnamese automaker said it is rolling out a green vehicle rental programme in Indonesia and the Philippines, starting in Greater Jakarta and Metro Manila. The idea is that instead of asking drivers to buy EVs outright, VinFast will let them rent models from its Green line through authorised dealers, with daily rates starting at IDR 312,500 (~US$18.6) in Indonesia and PHP 1,000 (~US$17.5) in the Philippines.

Also Read: Inside Thailand’s EV and battery push: Balancing growth with sustainability

While it may sound like a small product tweak, it is indeed a strategic attempt to open two markets where interest in EVs is rising, but affordability, financing, and access to charging are still hindering adoption. It is also another sign that VinFast is not merely selling cars in Southeast Asia, but is trying to build an operating model around fleets, charging, incentives, and urban transport economics.

Why rentals matter more than another EV launch

VinFast’s target is not the aspirational private buyer; instead, it is going after drivers who care less about brand theatre and more about whether the vehicle helps them earn.

That matters in Indonesia and the Philippines, where ride-hailing, shuttle services, and informal transport networks form a large part of urban mobility. In both countries, thousands of drivers work on thin margins, making the total cost of ownership more important than horsepower or touchscreen size. For this group, buying an EV outright can still feel risky. Battery concerns, patchy charging networks, and financing costs have kept many on the petrol treadmill.

A rental model changes this scenario. It lowers the upfront hurdle, shortens the time needed to start earning, and shifts EV adoption from a capital expenditure decision to an operating expense. In other words, VinFast is trying to turn electric mobility into a cash-flow product.

The company framed the move as part of the “green transition of the commercial transport sector”. That is fair enough. But the harder-edged reading is this: if consumers are still hesitant to buy EVs, get drivers to use them for work first.

Indonesia is the stronger bet

Of the two markets, Indonesia gives VinFast the clearer runway.

The country has the largest automotive market in Southeast Asia, strong government support for EV manufacturing, and a growing ecosystem that includes local assembly ambitions, tax breaks, charging investments, and aggressive competition from Chinese brands, such as BYD and Wuling, as well as Hyundai. Indonesia also has something else the EV industry loves to talk about: nickel. Whether that turns into a lasting competitive advantage is another debate, but it has unquestionably helped put EVs near the centre of industrial policy.

In market terms, Indonesia is already several steps ahead of the Philippines. Battery-electric passenger car sales have climbed sharply in recent years, crossing roughly the 40,000-unit mark in 2024 based on industry data, with penetration still modest but no longer trivial. Electric two-wheelers and commercial fleets add further volume. The overall market remains small relative to total vehicle sales, but it is now large enough for automakers to test more tailored distribution models.

Also Read: 5 ways Indian EV makers can achieve world-class manufacturing efficiency

The adoption drivers are clear:

• Fuel-price sensitivity among drivers and fleet operators
• Government incentives for EV production and purchases
• Urban congestion, which makes lower running costs attractive for high-mileage users
• Ride-hailing and delivery demand, which suits vehicles with predictable daily routes
• Growing charging infrastructure, especially in major cities

That does not mean VinFast’s strategy is guaranteed to work. Indonesia is already crowded, and price competition is becoming vicious. But if a rental-led EV model is going to gain traction anywhere in Southeast Asia outside Vietnam, Indonesia is one of the most plausible places.

The Philippines is promising, but harder

The Philippines is a different story: promising, but operationally tougher.
EV adoption is growing from a much smaller base. The Electric Vehicle Industry Development Act gave the sector a policy push, import duties on some EVs were eased, and higher fuel costs have made electric mobility more attractive on paper. But the country still faces stubborn constraints: a less mature charging network, a fragmented geography, and transport economics often dictated by daily cash flow rather than long-term cost calculations.

That said, Metro Manila is the place where an EV rental proposition can make sense. Traffic is brutal, daily driving distances are high, and many drivers need a vehicle they can monetise immediately. If VinFast can ensure dependable after-sales support and convenient charging, the rental model could remove some of the hesitation that has slowed EV uptake.

The Philippine EV market remains small by regional standards, with electric car sales still in the low thousands annually and overall penetration in the low single digits. Yet growth rates are strong, partly because the base is so small. For VinFast, that can be an advantage. It is easier to shape a young market than steal share in a fully formed one.

The risk is execution. A rental programme only works if vehicle uptime is high. Drivers will not tolerate a future-of-mobility pitch if it leaves them waiting for chargers, parts or repairs.

This is bigger than vehicle access

VinFast’s move is also about ecosystem control.

The company is not just offering vehicles; it is pairing them with financing, dealership access and support from V-Green charging stations, including free charging in Southeast Asia through March 2029. Its parent, Vingroup, has also been pushing related incentive campaigns, including trade-in offers and discounted Green SM electric ride fares in Indonesia.

Also Read: How electric luxury cars are reshaping the industry

This layered approach matters. EV adoption in emerging markets rarely hinges on the vehicle alone. It depends on whether the manufacturer can reduce friction across the entire ownership or usage cycle: financing, charging, servicing and resale. VinFast appears to have concluded that the region’s next wave of growth will not come from waiting for the middle class to buy in en masse. It will come from making EVs useful to workers first.

That is where the rental model differentiates itself. It shifts the sales pitch from environmental virtue to unit economics.

Is the EV market in these countries big enough?

Big enough to matter, yes. Big enough to be easy, no.

Indonesia is already one of Southeast Asia’s most important EV battlegrounds. In value terms, it is a multi-billion-dollar opportunity over the coming decade, supported by domestic manufacturing ambitions and steadily rising consumer awareness. Passenger EV volumes are climbing, commercial adoption is growing, and competition is intensifying.

The Philippines is smaller, but it has a credible long-term case. Urban transport demand is huge, fuel costs remain a political and economic issue, and policy support is gradually improving. The market is still embryonic compared with Indonesia, but that also means there is room for unconventional models such as rentals, especially in commercial fleets.

In both countries, the near-term winners are likely to be companies that can solve affordability and operating costs rather than simply import more models.

Is the Middle East war affecting EV sales in Southeast Asia?

Indirectly, yes, but not in the tidy way automakers might hope.

Conflict in the Middle East tends to feed volatility in oil prices and shipping costs, which can strengthen the case for EVs by making petrol and diesel vehicles more expensive to run. For commercial drivers in Jakarta or Manila, higher pump prices can sharpen the appeal of fixed-cost electric usage models.

But war-driven uncertainty cuts both ways. When households and small businesses feel economically squeezed, they often delay big-ticket purchases, including vehicles. That can dampen consumer EV sales even as the logic of electrification improves.

In Southeast Asia, the impact is therefore mixed. Higher fuel prices help the EV narrative, but they are not the main driver of adoption. Infrastructure, financing, policy support, battery confidence and after-sales service still matter far more. For VinFast’s rental strategy, however, Middle East-linked fuel volatility may provide exactly the nudge it needs. If drivers can avoid petrol price shocks by paying a fixed daily rental and charging at low or no cost, the maths becomes easier to explain.

The real question: can VinFast make the economics stick?

That is ultimately what this announcement comes down to.

VinFast is trying to crack two difficult markets not by waiting for EV demand to mature naturally, but by engineering a usage model that lowers risk for working drivers. It is a smart reading of Southeast Asia, where many consumers do not lack interest in electric vehicles so much as trust in the economics.

Also Read: SLEEK EV’s US$8.5M Series A funding signals a more mature EV playbook

Indonesia gives the company scale, policy momentum and stronger EV tailwinds. The Philippines offers a tougher but potentially high-upside urban transport play. In both markets, the strategy has a decent chance, provided VinFast can deliver the unglamorous things that matter most: charger availability, reliable servicing, low downtime, and predictable driver earnings.

If it cannot, this will look like another ambitious EV rollout dressed up as accessibility. If it can, VinFast may have found a more effective way to push electrification in Southeast Asia than simply opening another showroom and hoping sentiment catches up.

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In May, PLAUD introduced its wearable AI voice recorder, PLAUD NotePin, to the Singapore market, following recognition at the 2025 Red Dot Design Awards.

The device is designed to help users record, transcribe, and summarise spoken content using a minimalist, clip-on form factor. Intended for professionals, students, and creatives, it features tools such as one-tap activation, AI-generated summaries, and integration with services such as Zapier.

Available in Singapore from May 14, the device will be available through physical and online retail channels.

Nathan Hsu, CEO and Co-founder of Plaud.ai, said in an email interview with e27 that winning the Red Dot Design Award was an “incredibly meaningful” experience.

“The design philosophy was simple: make it so light and versatile that users forget they are wearing it … We wanted it to adapt to you, not the other way around. But good design is not just about looks – it is about the experience. That is why we focused on making it dead simple: one press to start recording with haptic feedback so you know it’s working, even without looking.”

Also Read: AI to add US$950B to SEA’s GDP—Here’s where the growth will come from

In this interview, Hsu shares the ideas behind developing this product, including why the company chose to release it as a hardware device. The following is an edited excerpt of the interview:

What inspired the creation of the PLAUD NotePin, and how does it address the evolving needs of professionals, students, and creatives in today’s fast-paced world?

The PLAUD NotePin was inspired by the need to free professionals from the mundane task of manual note-taking, allowing them to focus on creative, high-value work. It is more than just an AI device; it is designed to function as a “memory capsule” that helps users improve productivity and efficiency in their careers.

The device addresses evolving needs by eliminating friction, supporting diverse professionals, saving significant time, and enabling full engagement.

Given the dominance of mobile and cloud-based tools, why did PLAUD.AI choose to release its solution as a hardware device? What benefits does hardware bring to the user experience?

It is a great question: Why hardware when everyone’s phone can record? The truth is, we have all been in that moment where a brilliant idea strikes or an important conversation starts, and by the time you unlock your phone, find the app, and hit record, the moment’s gone. With NotePin, it is just one press and you are recording. No friction, no fuss.

Also Read: AI search is quietly eating Google — Here’s what startup founders need to know

The dedicated hardware also means you are not draining your phone battery or interrupting other tasks. Plus, there’s something about the audio quality – our high-fidelity microphones are specifically designed for voice capture, and you can position the device optimally rather than awkwardly holding your phone.

In professional settings, it is also more discreet and respectful than pointing a phone at someone. We have built in 30-hour continuous recording capability and 64GB of storage, which goes way beyond what most phones can handle. And here’s the thing – it works even without network connectivity, so you never miss a moment. Sometimes the best technology is the one that gets out of your way and just works, and that is exactly what dedicated hardware delivers.

Singapore is the first market in Southeast Asia to have the NotePin. What made it the ideal launchpad, and what have you learned from early adopters here?

We believe Singapore’s young, digitally native population will readily embrace AI solutions. We also value the professional demographics here, highly concentrated in knowledge workers who value productivity tools. A multilingual business environment aligns with NotePin’s 112-language support, a culture of early adoption for productivity-enhancing technology, and professional templates suited for Singapore’s business-first culture.

Can you share more about PLAUD.AI’s user acquisition strategy—how are you building awareness and encouraging adoption across different user segments?

Our user acquisition strategy is about meeting people where they are and showing them immediate value. We have positioned ourselves clearly as the “World’s No.1 AI Voice Recorder Brand” and created targeted messaging for different professionals – whether it is helping salespeople capture every client detail or enabling healthcare workers to focus on patient care rather than documentation.

Also Read: Why AI needs context and curiosity, not toxic positivity

The pricing strategy is key here: We offer a Free Starter Plan with 300 minutes per month so people can experience the value before committing. We are building credibility through recognition such as the Red Dot Design Award, integrating with tools people already use through Zapier, and expanding strategically—we recently opened our Japan office and launched “PLAUD for Business” for enterprise clients.

Most importantly, we let the ROI speak for itself: when users realise they can save 260 hours a year, that is US$8,845 in potential earnings. That message resonates across all segments.

Looking ahead, how does PLAUD.AI plan to evolve its product ecosystem?

We are excited about what is coming next. In the immediate future, we are launching a Template Community where users can share and discover templates for every professional scenario, expanding our integrations from Zapier to 50+ apps, and releasing a desktop application that can automatically record online meetings.

We’re constantly upgrading our AI capabilities – we are already working with the latest models such as GPT-4.1, Claude 3.7, and Gemini 2.5.

But beyond the technical roadmap, our vision is to create an ecosystem where PLAUD becomes essential. We are deepening our enterprise offerings, exploring new features based on user feedback, and expanding across Southeast Asia and beyond.

The goal is not just to be a recording device. It is to be the intelligent layer that captures, understands, and organises the information that matters in your professional life. We are building for a future where no important idea or conversation is ever lost.

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Image Credit: PLAUD.AI

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Artificial Intelligence (AI) is no longer a futuristic concept in Singapore; it has definitively arrived, reshaping the professional landscape and demanding a proactive response from employers and workers alike.

Since the mainstream arrival of generative AI in 2022, its influence has become deeply rooted across Singapore’s workforce, fundamentally altering how decisions are made and work is executed. This shift is not just beginning; it is accelerating.

AI’s mainstream arrival and workforce sentiment

The findings of a national study, “Work Ahead,” commissioned by Indeed, a leading job site and global hiring platform, reveal that Singaporean professionals are far from strangers to AI. Over one in three professionals (36 per cent) are already actively utilising tools like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Gemini in their daily workflows.

Also Read: Generative AI: The unstoppable force reshaping work and engagement across SEA

This pervasive adoption indicates that discussions around AI’s ability to boost productivity have moved beyond theoretical questions; the pressing concern now is how AI will redefine careers, create new jobs, render others obsolete, and fundamentally change the relationship with work.

Despite the rapid integration, the workforce exhibits mixed emotions regarding new technologies. While a significant portion remains optimistic (36 per cent), excited (34 per cent), and confident (34 per cent), a notable 11 per cent feel overwhelmed by the immense digital change impacting job opportunities. This highlights a critical insight: AI adoption is present, but the true opportunity lies in deepening its impact through more structured, consistent, and official training initiatives.

The critical role of employer-led training

For Singaporean jobseekers, the real draw of an employer is their tangible commitment to AI learning, fostering confidence to thrive in a rapidly changing workplace. This preference is evident in the fact that over two-thirds (67 per cent) of workers who currently utilise technology at work report receiving structured training or certification from their companies.
The demand for learning is robust, with nearly four in five (77 per cent) of these workers indicating a desire for more training in the next two to five years.

Intentional upskilling is not merely a beneficial practice; it acts as a career accelerator. Workers who build AI skills are better positioned for higher pay, promotions, and future roles. However, a significant barrier remains: 42 per cent of workers state they do not receive time off or compensation for training, while a third prefer hands-on learning over poor-quality instruction, and one in five are actively avoiding new technologies altogether. This suggests a gap between worker aspirations and employer provisions.

Bridging the digital divide and generational shifts

The report also sheds light on a crucial digital divide within the workforce. Blue-collar workers are more than five times more likely to avoid using new technologies at work (20 per cent) compared to their white-collar counterparts (4 per cent). This disparity exists despite both groups demonstrating similar levels of confidence in their current technology usage (26 per cent vs 30 per cent respectively).

Furthermore, business leaders are setting the pace for tech adoption, with 45 per cent describing themselves as more tech-confident than their teams, compared to only 26 per cent of non-leaders.

While younger generations show higher current usage of generative AI tools at work—42 per cent for 18-24 year olds and 40 per cent for 25-34 year olds—compared to older demographics, including 26 per cent for workers aged 55 and above, the core message remains clear: confidence in workplace technology is not inherently tied to age or job type. Instead, it hinges on the provision of support and opportunities. As tech access expands, stagnant confidence could push workers towards employers who invest in digital readiness, making training a key driver of retention.

Boosting confidence and retaining talent

For employers, attracting and retaining growth-minded talent in an AI-shaped economy hinges on providing practical, inclusive upskilling opportunities. The top five confidence boosters for tech adoption include:

Also Read: AI to add US$950B to SEA’s GDP—Here’s where the growth will come from

• Easy-to-use, well-documented technology.
• Structured training (e.g., workshops, courses).
• Using the technology in a safe, low-pressure environment.
• Access to self-paced online learning tools.
• Clear communication about upcoming tech changes.

Ultimately, the report underscores a fundamental truth for Singapore: “Talent thrives where growth is backed. In Singapore, inclusive upskilling is the edge in the talent game”.

As AI continues to accelerate, confidence among the workforce is lagging. Employers who prioritise practical, inclusive upskilling will not only retain their current talent but also actively attract the new wave of growth-minded workers.

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The image was generated using ChatGPT.

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Hasan Venture Capital has integrated AI across its investment processes to boost efficiency while maintaining its ethical investment principles. At the helm of this vision is Umar Munshi, Managing Partner at Hasan VC, who believes that AI is a technological advantage and a moral imperative in the evolving venture capital space.

The firm’s approach to due diligence exemplifies how AI can refine venture operations without compromising human insight. “AI is now embedded in our analyst processes to augment and empower our team to carry out faster and better evaluation of startups,” Munshi shares in an email interview with e27.

The firm has significantly enhanced its decision-making efficiency by integrating AI tools to collate and interpret data from various formats, including video interviews and documents. Yet, this acceleration in analysis is balanced by human judgment.

“We directly benefit from AI at low cost now, while simultaneously recognising the value of human input, perspective and intuition,” says Munshi. This hybrid model fosters an investment process that is “more intelligent, ethical, and geared toward long-term value.”

AI for portfolio empowerment

Hasan Venture Capital’s application of AI doesn’t stop at internal operations. As a venture capital firm with a strong focus on halal innovation, the firm actively helps its investee companies integrate AI in ways that align with their values.

“We promote a knowledge-sharing culture within our founders’ community,” explains Munshi. “We assist investees in strategic grants, global networks, and ecosystem bridges—specifically those aimed at scaling values-based AI-powered businesses.”

Also Read: Wan Wei Soh: Driving AI inclusivity and growth for innovators

One striking example is Qara’a, an AI-powered Quran learning app within the Hasan VC portfolio. The platform personalises learning for over two million users worldwide using machine learning, while adhering to strict ethical guidelines.

“All content is reviewed by qualified scholars, ensuring integrity and trust,” Munshi notes. “This reflects our broader vision: technology should serve humanity, not exploit it.”

With AI now saturating startup narratives, distinguishing substance from spin has become crucial. “We have observed that some companies engage in AI-washing, marking exaggerations of their use of AI,” Munshi cautions. Hasan Venture Capital counters this by examining the tangible impact of AI implementations.

Their evaluation framework is rooted in the AAOIFI Shariah principles, guided by Islamic finance ethics. With Adl Advisory as their Shariah advisor, every potential investment undergoes rigorous screening of commercial, legal, and financial practices to ensure justice and participatory investment terms.

Beyond compliance, the firm prioritises startups with authentic market fit and a community-first ethos. “Our focus lies on businesses that operate within expanding markets and cater to underserved populations, including Muslim communities,” says Munshi. “Founders must show deep passion, strong values, and a commitment to solving real-world problems.”

A future of purposeful, AI-driven investing

Looking ahead, Hasan Venture Capital views AI as a catalyst for ethical transformation in venture capital. Munshi envisions a future where “AI offers new ways to measure impact, improve transparency, and scale values-driven innovation.” This aligns with a model that Munshi refers to as the “camel startup model”—emphasising resilience, capital efficiency, and sustainable growth over rapid, risky expansion.

Also Read: Your supply chain isn’t just boxes, it’s personal data too

“We’re not interested in hype,” Munshi asserts. “We are actively supporting AI ventures that align with Shariah principles and embody the camel ethos: companies built to endure, deliver consistent value, and grow responsibly.”

This long-term outlook, coupled with a principled investment framework, sets the firm apart in a crowded, sometimes ethically ambiguous, venture landscape. “At Hasan VC, we prioritise long-term value over short-term trends, challenging the conventional VC mindset that often favours quick gains and fast exits over real, enduring potential,” says Munshi.

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Image Credit: HASAN Venture Capital

The post How Hasan Venture Capital uses AI to build an ethically grounded investment future appeared first on e27.

If you want to better understand where the future of AI is being built, stop watching the biggest stages and start looking at the edges.

While big tech dominates AI headlines, I believe the real progress is being made elsewhere, in the world of AI startups. Small, focused teams are quietly driving the true potential of AI and unlocking tangible AI products that are not only working, they are transforming how business gets done, not just in the future, but today.

And it’s time CFOs, boards, and executive leaders recognised their tremendous value.

Startups don’t just drive innovation; they are the innovation engine

In every major tech wave, it’s rarely the established incumbents who create the breakthrough products, services and apps; it’s often the outsiders.

Apple didn’t invent ride sharing, Uber did.

Google didn’t invent the leading online marketplace for accommodation, Airbnb did.

Amazon didn’t invent one of the first streaming platforms that provides us access to millions of songs for free, Spotify did.

Our smartphones and their app stores just enabled them. That’s the playbook. Big tech and their platforms scale the infrastructure, but startups often bring the ingenuity, urgency, and risk appetite to build the new ideas that change the world.

Also Read: 3 game-changing GenAI insights every digital-native business needs to know

The same is playing out in this new race to unlock AI’s potential.

In my work at Meliora, I’ve seen firsthand how generative AI founders are focusing less on hype and more on building tools that solve real problems for businesses today. From automating compliance to streamlining procurement, these founders aren’t imagining the future of AI. They’re distributing it.

Urgency beats infrastructure

While big rech fine-tunes large models and negotiates internal processes, startups are sprinting. With smaller teams and sharper focus, they’re closer to the problem and faster to the solution.

Take Quickfind AI, which simplifies purchasing decisions for SMBs with intelligent, conversational workflows. Or Fluency AI, which turns fragmented SOPs into usable, generative playbooks for large teams. These companies are delivering practical, scalable AI, not someday, but right now.

That speed, focus, and user obsession is what big organisations often lose. But it’s exactly what they need to recapture if they want to stay relevant in an AI-first world.

Real AI is already here, and it doesn’t look like AI

Forget the keynote hype reels. The best AI today doesn’t try to look futuristic. It just makes work better, enabling existing systems and the people behind them to work smarter.

Relevance AI is empowering teams to build sophisticated productivity tools without writing lines of code. Blunge AI is helping marketing teams generate brand-safe visuals in seconds. None of this is a “future vision.” It’s happening already and at scale.

Also Read: GenAI adoption is rising in Asia, but ROI remains elusive: Adobe

And that’s the shift we need to recognise. The future of AI won’t be one big leap. It will be thousands of small, usable innovations that spread quickly because they work.

Business need startups more than ever

Startups are no longer just disruptive, they are an essential part of the innovation ecosystem. In fact, many of the most powerful tools business uses today were born in dorm rooms, not boardrooms.

From Slack to Stripe to Canva, the pattern is clear. Startups build, platforms enable, and enterprises adopt.

It’s not a matter of big versus small, it’s an ecosystem. But if companies want to keep pace with AI’s next evolution, they can’t build everything in-house. They need to plug into the creativity, focus, and urgency that startup teams deliver best.

It’s this clarity and urgency that has shaped our approach at Meliora as we continue to back founders driving meaningful AI innovation.

The bottom-up future of AI

If you want to truly understand what’s truly next in AI, don’t default to the biggest names in the room. The most meaningful breakthroughs are coming from focused, fast-moving startups solving real problems with clarity, speed, and purpose.

Because this is where the creative intelligence of AI lives, and the future belongs to those who know where to look.

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