Many eggs need many baskets

Mynt, Fourth Partner Energy, HT Aero, 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 must admit I do like to gamble a bit from time to time, mostly on American football. Having money on a game makes it more exciting. I feel like I can make money from footballdue to my unhealthy obsession with it, even if my results might beg to differ. My strategy is to spread my bets across different games each week so that I’m not too heavily reliant on one outcome over another. I think it’s a smarter way to go compared to putting all my eggs in one basket. Investing is gambling in a way, and one of today’s thoughtful tidbits features a look at Microsoft, which previously had a lot of investment eggs in the OpenAI basket. After the leadership drama at the AI firm in 2023, Microsoft wisely started spreading its bets, which means it’s less likely to suffer if things don’t work out for OpenAI. It also means funding for a widerrange of companies, and the featured firms today certainly represent a broad set of industries. 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 and M&As that recently took place. -- Peter  --------------------------------------------------------------- THE BIGGEST DEALS BY COUNTRY  PH [Mynt]( Mynt is a Philippines-based fintech startup owned by telco giant Globe Telecom. It raised US$393 million from Ayala Corporation Technology Innovation Venture Fund and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group. IN [Fourth Partner Energy]( Indian solar energy firm Fourth Partner Energy secured US$275 million in a series C round from the Asian Development Bank, DEG, and the International Finance Corporation. CN [HT Aero]( HT Aero is a Chinese affiliate of Xpeng Motors and is building electric “flying cars.” It raised US$150 million in a series B funding round. SG [Silicon Box]( Singapore-based semidconductor packaging company Silicon Box scooped up US$99.86 million in series B funding, with Event Horizon Capital, Prysm Capital, and Sutardja Family participating in the round. AU [DroneShield]( DroneShield is an Australian firm that provides unmanned aircraft systems security solutions. It received US$78 million in post-IPO funding. Here’s the complete list of this week’s funding chart: [95 deals worth over US$2.3 billion](.  ---------------------------------------------------------------  M&As JP Global investment banking firm Macquarie has acquired [Genuone Science]( a South Korean pharmaceutical company, in a deal worth US$552 million. SG [Skuad]( is a software-as-a-service company that offers HR solutions. US fintech firm Payoneer has acquired it for US$61 million. IN Instawork, a staffing startup based in the US, has acquired Indian hiring platform [Able Jobs](. The value of the deal was undisclosed.  ---------------------------------------------------------------  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 send fundraising startups directly to investors’ inboxes. There’s no better time to list your startup, and you can do so [here](. SG This Singapore-based firm helps small farmers improve their outcomes. VN This Vietnamese company offers a platform to organize sports. SG This Singaporen startup provides HR tech to hospitality businesses. 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](. - ✅︎ “Super helpful and responsive, giving advice that only former founders and operators can give. None of the generic something-I-heard-from-a-podcast-but-lets-pretend-I-actually-know-what-im-saying advice most VCs give.” - [Read more]( - ❌ “It was a streamlined fund raising process only until we had to repeat the same conversation with two different partners. We felt the process was on track and then it got derailed when we continued with more and more discussions. Really left a bad taste as the experience could have been so much better if these lot just communicated with each other internally.” - [Read more]( - ✅︎ “Very founder-focused, fast and easy process, extremely supportive throughout all stages before and after the raise.” - [Read more](  ---------------------------------------------------------------  MOVE OVER, CHATGPT. GOOGLE CLOUD IS HERE See real AI solutions in action Let's be real: Everyone's talking about AI, but how many of the solutions in the space actually deliver? Learn about this and more on August 22, where Google Cloud experts Vincent Tan and Jolene Teo showcase generative AI solutions built for real-world impact. Get hands-on with cutting-edge tech, walk away with actionable strategies, and leave ready to transform your business with AI. Fair warning: Seats are extremely limited. [Apply now]( before someone takes your spot!  ---------------------------------------------------------------  EVENTS HAPPENING You can also check out a curated list of trending tech events [over here](. [Tech in Asia Conference Jakarta on October 23 - 24]( Want to know what's next for Southeast Asia’s startup scene? Join us at TIA Conference Jakarta to hear from top VCs like Jefrey Joe of Alpha JWC Ventures, the founder-turned-investor Achmad Zaky and Agung Bezharie. They'll share insights on which market is still the hotbed for investment, the challenges and opportunities of transitioning from founder to investor, and many more. Join thousands of founders and investors at TIA Conference Jakarta. Tickets are now on sale for 50% off until August 11th. [Get tickets.]( [Investor Hour at Tech in Asia Conference Jakarta]( Ready to make your startup dream a reality? Investor Hour is your golden ticket. This exclusive one-on-one networking session brings together brilliant founders and seasoned investors in an intimate setting. Whether you're seeking funding or looking to sharpen your pitch, Investor Hour is your platform to build lasting relationships. Don't miss this chance to connect with the industry's top minds. Secure your spot at TIA Conference Jakarta now! [Get tickets.]( [Gemini Day for Startups: Singapore on August 22]( You want genAI solutions that actually deliver, right? Cut through the noise with Google Cloud’s experts and learn concrete steps to turn insights into real value for your business. Expect practical advice, clear next steps, and zero jargon – just real-world AI that gets results. [Apply now]( - seats are strictly limited. [Tech in Asia’s Founders Meetup: Thailand on September 11]( For one-night only, we’re offering entrepreneurs the opportunity to spend one-on-one time with seasoned investors. In our all-new VC office hour, founders can discuss funding prospects and more with VCs - no pitch decks required. [Get your early bird pass at 20% off now.]( Hurry, promo ends August 26! [SYNC 2024 on October 2024]( Remember last year's SYNC? Tech in Asia handpicked 100 attendees for a day of learning, sharing, and networking, all aimed at addressing climate tech’s challenges and mapping the future of the sector. This year, we're focusing on another exciting industry, and we’re turning up the dial with even more thought-provoking sessions, inspiring speakers, and rising stars ready to disrupt. Ready to be in the know? [Register your interest today]( for the latest on SYNC 2024. Stay tuned. --------------------------------------------------------------- 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 An egg-cellent move How many baskets should you put your eggs in? The answer is probably more than one, which Microsoft discovered last year amid OpenAI’s highly public leadership kerfuffle when CEO Sam Altman was briefly fired. Microsoft had invested US$13 billion in OpenAI (that buys a lot of eggs), but the tech titan has diversified its AI investments since then, as this Financial Times [story]( shows. 2️⃣ Batter up OpenAI, Salesforce, and Google Maps - that’s a pretty trifecta of companies to have been heavily involved with. So you can bet that it’s worth listening to someone like Bret Taylor. In this [podcast episode]( he says businesses need to “get at bats” with AI tech, which means they should get involved now instead of waiting till it’s perfect. 3️⃣ Lingua franca Unlike industrial behemoths such as Toyota and Hitachi, Japanese tech firms haven’t achieved much success outside their home country.There are many aspects to consider when a company goes global, and English language proficiency is one such factor. That was why ecommerce firm Rakuten changed its internal language to English in 2010, when it was expanding overseas. This [podcast episode]( dives into Rakuten’s decision and what it had achieved. 4️⃣ Death and taxes Hands up if you enjoy paying taxes. Nobody? Well, most of us can at least admit that taxes a necessary evil and this [visual story]( explains how a country benefits from having a high tax-to-gross domestic product ratio. 5️⃣ Crypto + AI = More power? Is there any problem crypto can’t solve? True believers will tell you that Web3 tech could even be used to help AI firms get access to the ever-increasing amount of computing power needed to run their solutions. Not so fast, though. [This Pitchbook piece]( dives into why marrying these two technologies may not be such an elegant solution.  --------------------------------------------------------------- [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