Podcasts are more than just audio versions of text content

Pocket FM, Sinagrt Materials Technologies, Tokenize Xchange, and more raised funds this week. [Read from your browser]( FOMO Saturday Welcome to Tech in Asia's free Saturday VC newsletter! Get full access to our subscribers-only premium content and other insightful analysis on the big and messy topics of Asia’s tech and startup community by [registering here](.  --------------------------------------------------------------- Hello {NAME} I used to listen to a ton of podcasts. I could regularly keep up with five or six basketball ones and one on gaming, the latter of which regularly releases episodes which are over three hours in length. Now, I only listen to the gaming podcast. Besides simply getting busier and having less time to listen to podcasts, I realized that the gaming one has endured because it gives me something that nothing else does - I really like the hosts. They’re extremely funny. The basketball podcasts are alright, but since the meat of their content lies mainly in the basketball games themselves, I can get my fix from articles and other sources. Additionally - and this is no slight to the people behind the pods - most sports podcasters and journalists can’t hold an episode on the power of their personality alone, even if they’re amazing writers. This is a long-winded way of saying that every medium demands specific skillsets to shine, even if the base material (e.g., the latest news in basketball or gaming) is the same. I would assume India-based Pocket FM is at least somewhat aware of this fact, seeing as it leads our funding deals this week. You can find all other important investment deals that happened in the last few days in our [weekly funding news wrap-up](. Let’s dive into the biggest deals that recently took place. -- Winston  --------------------------------------------------------------- THE BIGGEST DEALS BY COUNTRY  IN Hailing from India, Pocket FM is an audio over-the-top platform for audiobooks and podcasts. It received [US$103 million in a series D round]( led by Lightspeed Venture Partners. CN Sinagrt Materials Technologies is a manufacturing company that focuses on the development and production of high-temperature alloy materials. The Chinese firm got US$27.8 million in series C money from Aero Engine Corporation of China, BCT Capital, and Guoding Capital, among others. SG Singapore-headquartered Tokenize Xchange is a digital asset exchange. It [added US$11.5 million]( to its series A round from Trive and high-net-worth individuals. This boosted its total series A funding to US$23 million. VN Vietnam-based TechCoop is an agrifintech company aiming to offer optimal and sustainable supply chain solutions. It closed a US$5 million pre-series A round, with AVV, Ethos Fund, and TNB Aura among the participating investors. Here’s the complete list of this week’s funding chart: [49 deals worth over US$320 million](.  ---------------------------------------------------------------  M&As  ID Indonesia-based DycodeX is a startup that designs and develops AI-powered IoT products. It was [acquihired by aquaculture firm eFishery]( for an undisclosed sum. IN Indian School Finance Company is an education-focused lending firm. Its school portfolio was acquired by Varthana Finance, which specializes in loans for affordable private schools and for students pursuing tertiary education. The financial terms aren’t publicly available.  ---------------------------------------------------------------  STARTUPS THAT ARE RAISING FUNDS Fundraising is hard. To make things slightly easier, we’ve compiled this list of fundraising startups for our subscribers. Do you run a startup that’s raising at the moment or know someone who does? Sign your company up for listing [here.]( SG Based in Singapore, Cognotiv is an AI-powered HR tech platform providing learning and development tools. ID Indonesian firm Oriviu is an integrated learning management system designed specifically for schools, educational institutions, and football academies. SG AmarLab is a Singaporean company with a diagnostics marketplace in Bangladesh. The startup connects customers with labs that can offer a wide range of health tests at affordable prices and deliver reports online within hours. You can find the full list of fundraising startups in Asia [over here](.  ---------------------------------------------------------------  BEHIND THE GLASSWALL Fundraising often involves reaching out to multiple contacts, many of whom founders might not have dealt with before. To provide some transparency to this process, we created Glasswall, a platform for founders to give feedback and recommendations on investors. Check out the full list [here](. - ✅︎ “Very methodical and systematic as an investor, following a deep vetted process prior to committing. They may take some time to commit but the conviction-building process is important.” - [Read more]( - ❌ “Completely disorganized. They get a bunch of people on a call or in a room together to hear the pitch and are supposed to have someone in their group advocate for you. Ends up being really disorganized, with follow-ups with lots of people that ask to invest $10k - $50k, many of them not knowing how to make a decision and just waiting for someone else in the group to make a decision or support it.” - [Read more]( - ✅︎ “Humble investors with strong integrity which is frankly rare these days. They don't pretend to know everything about your sector nor your business but comes with wisdom only an institution can provide. Mostly take bets on founders given that they are early stage. liked the process even though they are much more valuation sensitive than majority of the market but at least they don't act like a douche or pretentious prick that gives you wrong advice.” - [Read more](  --------------------------------------------------------------- TECH IN ASIA CONFERENCE 2024 The rise of Malaysia’s tech ecosystem Tech in Asia Conference is back! This year, we’re thrilled to be hosting our flagship event not just in Jakarta but also at a new stop: Kuala Lumpur. Set for July 24 to 25, TIA Conference KL aims to provide a platform for founders, leaders, and innovators from Southeast Asia to come together, foster connections, and exchange insights on Malaysia's untapped potential. Through thought-provoking panels, curated networking sessions, and dedicated exhibition opportunities, attendees will gain fresh perspectives on what’s next for the country’s tech ecosystem. Tickets to this event are available now. Catch our early bird special, with prices starting from just US$40 (US$80 unit price) for a General Pass. [Grab yours while the offer lasts]( ---------------------------------------------------------------  EVENTS HAPPENING You can also check out a curated list of trending tech events [over here]( and Tech in Asia’s signature events [here](. - [Saigon Summit 2024 : Charting Vietnam’s Tech Future on May 30]( Saigon Summit offers an unparalleled fusion of cultural immersion, expert learning, and bespoke networking opportunities, all aimed at nurturing the undeniable potential of Vietnam as Southeast Asia’s next tech hotspot. Grab your tickets before March 25 to secure up to 50% off - while stocks last! - [Tech in Asia Conference Kuala Lumpur 2024 : Malaysia on The Rise on July 24-25]( TIA Conference KL aims to provide a platform for over 2,000 attendees to gain a fresh perspective on what’s next for Malaysia’s tech ecosystem through thought-provoking panels, curated networking sessions, and a dedicated exhibition segment. Catch our early bird special before March 25, with prices starting from just US$40 instead of the usual US$80 for a General Pass. Grab yours while the offer lasts! - [Product Development Conference (Jakarta, July 2024)]( This year’s conference, themed around “scaling product innovation from startup to enterprise,” will deliver tailored insights for attendees at any stage of their business journey. [Secure your spot now]( - our presale tickets are sold out, but you can get early bird tickets starting from US$25!  - [Tech in Asia’s Founders Meetup in Singapore on April 24]( Get the secret sauce from esteemed VCs on navigating the tech winter and have exclusive face time with them to find solutions to your funding challenges. Hurry - due to overwhelming demand, our early bird tickets have been snatched up in record time. [Secure your ticket now before it’s gone](  --------------------------------------------------------------- EXCLUSIVE LISTICLES Lists of most active investors in the region [China]( | [India]( | [Indonesia]( | [Japan]( | [Singapore]( | [Southeast Asia]( List of top-funded startups in Asia [China]( | [India]( | [Indonesia]( | [Israel]( | [Japan]( | [Hong Kong]( | [Singapore]( | [South Korea]( | [Vietnam](  ---------------------------------------------------------------  THOUGHTFUL READS  1️⃣ Managing sales Managing sales teams brings all sorts of challenges, and sometimes it can feel like putting numbers to a job that involves a lot of non-number things. How do you fully quantify the value of a business development rep who knows the specific intensity of matcha ice cream that a client’s son likes? Well, I don’t have the answer. But [this Harvard Business Review article might](. 2️⃣ Trickle-down economics? I’ll cut to the chase with this one: [this PitchBook piece]( posits that with family offices handing over the reins to the next generation - not to mention copious amounts of money - much of that will find its way to VCs and subsequently tech startups. The reasons? These younger heirs have greater awareness and support of innovation, and they possibly want to invest in industries outside of the traditional purview of their family office. 3️⃣ The business behind - and around - the Oscars Did you catch the Oscars? Personally, I’m not too fussed about the awards themselves - I can enjoy a movie without it having won anything. What is interesting to me is what the event portends for the future of entertainment and the business around it - which is exactly what [this episode of Masters of Scale]( is about. 4️⃣ Lessons from an exit Everyone wants to read about successful startup exits, especially straight from the founder’s mouth. That’s the dream, after all - build a thing and sell it for big money and then enjoy the time and financial freedom. Anyway, [here’s a former founder’s story]( on exiting his software startup. 5️⃣ The best of the new hotness Generative AI is everywhere - but which are the best consumer apps in the space? Let’s go into the listicle territory with this feature from the Andreessen Horowitz website: [The Top 100 Gen AI Consumer Apps](.  --------------------------------------------------------------- [ADVERTISE]( | [SUBSCRIBE]( | [HIRE]( | [FIND JOBS]( P.S. Don't miss out on the biggest tech news and analysis. Add newsletter@techinasia.com to your address book, contacts, or safe sender list. Or simply move us into your inbox. Too many emails? Switch to a different frequency or get new content through our [preference center]( or [unsubscribe](. You can also break our hearts and remove yourself from all Tech in Asia emails over [here](  ---------------------------------------------------------------  Tech in Asia’s newsletters are handcrafted daily with love - and sometimes powered by good kopi. Today’s edition was written by Winston Zhang. It’s edited by Dhania Putri Sarahtika. Copyright © 2024 Tech in Asia, All rights reserved. 63 Robinson Road, Singapore 068894