If I could have just 0.1% of this week's funding total

Meesho, TaiDoc Health, DEEPX, 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} This week’s deals cumulatively top the US$1 billion-dollar mark. I remember watching Who Wants to be a Millionaire as a kid and how life-changing it made a million dollars sound. Plus, it was far from easy to even get to the quarter-million mark in the game, which made it seem all the more impressive. Then I start working in tech and - even in a tech winter - we’re seeing funding rounds worth tens and hundreds of millions get closed every week. Of course, we’re comparing money for individuals with money for large corporations, but there’s still a slight dissonance. I guess we, as a tech ecosystem, can take some comfort in knowing that the money is out there - it just might be a little harder to convince investors to pony up for now. 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 Meesho, an online marketplace for Indian entrepreneurs and consumers, has closed a US$275 million series G round, via primary and secondary share sales. The participating investors were not made public. CN Chinese firm TaiDoc Health is a one-stop family doctor and medical service platform. It raised US$128 million in strategic funding from China Pacific Insurance Company, HongShan (formerly Sequoia Capital China), and Shanghai International Group Asset Management. KR DEEPX is a South Korean firm that specializes in developing AI semiconductors. It closed a U$80.5 million series C round, with Aju IB Investment, BNW Investment, and SkyLake Equity Partners the participating investors. SG Singapore-based Linnovate Partners is an asset services provider within the alternative investment sector. It [received US$40 million]( in debt funding from SeaTown Holdings. AU Australian firm Data Zoo is an international identity solution that enables digital businesses to conduct modern verification processes. It secured US$22.7 million in bridge funding from Ellerston Capital. Here’s the complete list of this week’s funding chart: [56 deals worth over US$1 billion](.  ---------------------------------------------------------------  M&As  SG TotallyAwesome, a Singaporean digital ad platform focused on marketing to Asia-Pacific youth, [has been acquired by Sqreem Technologies]( a Singapore-based company specializing in AI-powered digital behavior analysis. The financial details of the deal were not 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. We are launching a [new feature]( to send fundraising startups directly to investors’ inboxes. There’s no better time to list your startup, and you can do so [here](. ID An Indonesian firm is developing solutions to collect and sort waste for a more sustainable environment. ID An Indonesian startup offers solutions using AI for prescriptive retail analytics, helping chain stores better manage their inventories. SG A Singaporean firm provides an AI-powered, chat-based food and calorie tracker on WhatsApp. 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](. - ✅︎ “Investor friendly, smart and they do the right amount of due diligence without the nonsense. Super hard working and our success in raising each of our rounds was off the back of their advice, involvement and mentoring.” - [Read more]( - ❌ “Ensure you never have them on your board. They will ruin any prospect of exit and delay your entire process.” - [Read more]( - ✅︎ “Their assistance extended beyond financial backing, providing us with valuable insights and resources that have significantly contributed to our growth and development. Their hands-on approach and willingness to offer help have been instrumental in our journey.” - [Read more](  --------------------------------------------------------------- TECH IN ASIA’S FOUNDERS MEETUP: VIETNAM ON MAY 30 Limited time offer – here’s an extra 10% off your tickets! Investors and founders from Vietnam, Singapore, and beyond have already secured their spots at our Founders Meetup in Vietnam! Will you be joining them? Founders Meetup brings together leading minds from across the tech industry. Whether you’re a fintech founder, a software investor, or something in-between, the event is a great opportunity to connect with people from across the tech ecosystem, learn about new trends and opportunities, and be part of the exciting energy of Vietnam's tech scene. [Enjoy a limited-time 10% discount on tickets with VNTIASPECIAL10 (U.P. US$12)– secure your seat before it’s too late!]( ---------------------------------------------------------------  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 Exclusive: Deel Roundtable on May 30]( Building a global team isn't a walk in the park. Join our expert roundtable for decision-makers and get a crash course in navigating the exciting, and sometimes messy, world of international expansion. Get the opportunity to learn from experienced leaders, gain actionable insights, and connect with a community tackling the same hurdles. [Apply today - seats are limited!]( [Tech in Asia Conference Kuala Lumpur 2024 : Malaysia on The Rise on July 24-25]( Darius Liu of AI Singapore will talk about a project to build Southeast Asia’s own large language model while Susli Lie of Monk’s Hill Ventures will delve into the ins and outs of co-founder relationships. Meanwhile, Kamarul A Muhamed of Aerodyne will give a compelling look into the future of the drone technology industry in Malaysia. Second-release tickets are selling out fast. [Get yours now before prices increase on May 20, 2024.]( [Product Development Conference (Jakarta, 25-26 June 2024)]( We are delighted to announce that Bank Rakyat Indonesia will be joining us as our title partner for Product Development Conference 2024! ✨ Find out how BRI, one of the largest state-owned banks in Indonesia, continues to drive innovation of their products and ecosystem at "Enterprise Product Development by BRI" stage. Stay tuned on this page or through pdc.techinasia.com to get the latest update! Discounted tickets disappearing faster than a beta test bug! Score 35% off before May 22nd. [Get your tickets today!]( [Tech in Asia’s Founders Meetup in Vietnam on May 30]( Ever wondered what really goes on behind the scenes of a tech publication that led to its acquisition? Get answers to your burning questions straight from *Tech in Asia* founder Willis Wee, editor-in-chief Terence Lee, and more during our exclusive TIA Office Hour. [Get tickets today]( and enjoy a 10% discount with the code VNTIASPECIAL10 - limited quantity up for grabs! [Tech in Asia x Airwallex Startup Night on June 19]( Tired of being stuck in the same old routine? We’re shaking things up with an exclusive launch party and networking mixer! Expect a vibrant mix of entrepreneurs, industry disruptors, and fellow founders who dare to dream bigger. Forge connections that matter and unlock secrets to accelerate your startup growth. Limited seats, maximum impact - [secure your spot now]( --------------------------------------------------------------- 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 Product-market fit is hard to achieve… … and there’s at least 20 ways to do it, if [this article from First Round Review]( is any indication. Hopefully the lessons can at least point you in the right direction. 2️⃣ Wahey, here’s another article on AI AI is everywhere, but how much of it is real application and how much is just what’s been done before but not dubbed “AI”? That’s a question that needs more digging into, but for now we can at least remind ourselves [how to implement AI in a responsible manner](. 3️⃣ How to grow a company (this subheader is a failed vegetables pun) It’s time for another Masters of Scale episode, and this one is about a US-based [fast-growing restaurant business]( focused on salads and grain bowls. (I am once again reminded of the miniscule size of the Singapore market.) 4️⃣ User retention at AI companies It’s a new frontier but an age-old challenge. This article from the Andreessen Horowitz website provides [some tips for AI-native firms to encourage users to keep coming back](. 5️⃣ Do androids dream of electric sheep? I read the title of [this Harvard Business Review article]( and immediately thought of this subheader. I suppose it also harkens back to my opener in last week’s Saturday newsletter, about having a proper intention in place before working on anything. Don’t become another example for the saying: “So preoccupied with whether they could, they didn't stop to think if they should.”  --------------------------------------------------------------- [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