Latest news and trends about tech

EU-funded Ontochain calls for internet innovators to co-develop software ecosystem

A total budget of 1.32 million euros is available to support the best proposals.

VC industry benefits from having diverse perspectives, says Amra Naidoo of Accelerating Asia [ORIGIN Innovation Awards Q&A]

In the TechNode Global Q&A, Amra Naidoo shared her story of how she started the early stage VC firm Accelerating Asia and her journey working in the male-dominated VC industry. She also shared the challenges she met working with startups and how Accelerating Asia is positioning itself to tap into opportunities that are overlooked by others.

For these three Vietnamese startups, COVID-19 is an opportunity amid the crisis

In face of adversity, that’s when the DNA of entrepreneurs comes into play. And the resurgence of COVID-19 is another opportunity for entrepreneurs to display their grit, tenacity, and flexibility to adapt to an evolving situation. For some high-potential Vietnamese startups, this is not the time to stand still and just plan for survival.

Mom-focused e-commerce platform Edamama raises $5M pre-Series A for automation, logistics & product development

The company was established amid the pandemic by its founder Bela Gupta D’Souza, who saw the pain points of mothers as consumers when purchasing online. She said that it is common for mothers to spend many hours in search of the best products for their children only to end up with inferior quality products from untrusted sources.

Robo-advisor & wealth management platform Syfe raises $30M Series B for product development & Asia expansion

The funds raised will be used to expand into new markets in Asia, invest in top talent and develop more high-quality investment products and services. Syfe has also pledged that everyone in the firm will become a shareholder, allowing all employees to benefit from future growth in the company.

Malaysia PropTech firm Speedhome eyes unicorn status in 3 years

Speedhome aims to expand regionally to 10 other metropolitan cities in the next five years, namely Bangkok, Manila, Jakarta, Taipei, Ho Chi Minh, Hanoi, Melbourne, Sydney, Hong Kong, and Singapore, to emerge as Southeast Asia’s PropTech unicorn.

Eric Cheng, CEO of Carsome Group

Carsome partners Catcha to create SEA’s largest digital automotive marketplace via $200M acquisition of iCar Asia

Catcha Group will become a shareholder of the Carsome Group in exchange for the sale of its shares in iCar Asia to Carsome.

Without legacy infrastructure, cloud-native digital banks are faster & more innovative than traditional banks, says UNObank CEO Manish Bhai [Q&A]

Singapore-based FinTech UNObank was granted the first new digital banking license under the Digital Banking License framework of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas. Manish Bhai shares insights on how digital-native banks can provide faster and more innovative services to address the needs of the underbanked and unbanked.

Tech is key to cost-effective sustainability reporting

Harnessing AI to automatically extract and compile data from disparate sources, it is possible to instantly calculate and report a company’s energy consumption and emissions, as well as those of the supply chain.

Gender diversity gap is ‘definitely stark’ in VC industry, says Quest Ventures’ Goh Yiping [ORIGIN Innovation Awards Q&A]

Goh said she enjoys setting an example that a female VC can be as logical, as non-emotional, as strong in dealmaking, as battle-tested, if not more than her male counterparts.