Podcasts about shiyan

Jeremy Au and Shiyan discuss Singapore's election outcomes, unpacking voter behavior, opposition growth, independent candidates, and future policy challenges. They reflect on global trends, local issues like housing and education, and how politics, tech, and business intersect in a rapidly changing world. 01:27 Surprising Election Results: PAP exceeded expectations, rising above 66% vote share. Workers' Party retained voter support in key wards. Analysts underestimated incumbency and voter desire for stability. 06:10 PAP's Communication Strategy: Lawrence Wong and other leaders used podcasts and longer formats effectively. Jeremy highlights how this humanized the PAP and resonated with younger, thoughtful voters. 15:50 Independent Candidate Jeremy Tan: Jeremy Tan stood out with tech-forward and well-researched policies. His CPF Bitcoin idea drew mixed reactions but sparked debate. Other proposals, like scam prevention, were seen as creative. 22:15 Future Challenges and Hopes: Jeremy and Shiyan express concerns about AI, education readiness, and global trade risks. Singapore faces the challenge of adapting its economy if East-West trade tensions become permanent. Watch, listen or read the full insight at https://www.bravesea.com/blog/incumbents-hold-strong Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VakR55X6BIElUEvkN02e TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea English: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Bahasa Indonesia: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Chinese: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Vietnamese: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts

Shiyan Koh, Managing Partner of Hustle Fund, and Jeremy Au explored the growing challenges of youth unemployment in Singapore and how AI is fundamentally changing the job market. They discussed how the rise of automation is making entry-level roles less necessary, leading companies to prioritize experienced hires who can work with AI rather than train fresh graduates. They also examine how AI amplifies the gap between high and low performers, making adaptability and self-motivation more crucial than ever. They also talked about the need for educational reforms that focus on problem-solving and real-world applications, as well as how young professionals can position themselves for success in an AI-driven economy. 1. Youth unemployment rates are increasing – In 2022, 94% of Singapore university graduates were employed within six months, but by 2024, only 87% of fresh graduates had secured full-time jobs. 2. AI is displacing entry-level jobs – AI tools are replacing tasks traditionally done by junior employees, reducing the need for new hires, especially in roles like market research, legal functions, and writing. 3. Companies prefer experienced hires – Businesses are opting for experienced workers who are comfortable using AI tools, reducing the reliance on entry-level hires due to the high cost of training and managing juniors. 4. AI benefits top performers – High performers in companies are already leveraging AI, while low performers are falling behind, highlighting that AI does not necessarily level the playing field. 5. The challenge of learning through apprenticeships – Entry-level positions have traditionally been apprenticeships where workers learn the craft. With fewer junior roles available, the next generation of workers may lack the experience needed for senior positions. 6. Education needs to change to foster agency – Shiyan suggests that education should focus on helping students develop agency and problem-solving skills by working on open-ended real-world problems, rather than simply memorizing facts. 7. The importance of finding passion and adaptability – As AI changes the job landscape, young professionals must be passionate about their work and adaptable to new tools like AI to remain competitive in the evolving market. Watch, listen or read the full insight at https://www.bravesea.com/blog/ai-job-disruption Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VakR55X6BIElUEvkN02e TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea English: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Bahasa Indonesia: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Chinese: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Vietnamese: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts

Shiyan Koh, Managing Partner of Hustle Fund, and Jeremy Au discussed: 1. Trump's Economic Policies, Tariffs & Crypto Initiatives: They examined the economic impact of Trump's 2025 return, including a 10% tariff hike on Chinese imports and new tariffs on Canada and Mexico. The administration also ended the de minimis exemption for low-cost e-commerce imports, affecting platforms like Temu and Shein, which had relied on duty-free shipping to US consumers. These changes disproportionately impacted lower-income Americans, despite cost-of-living concerns being a key election issue. Canada and Mexico secured a 30-day tariff delay, while Trump also launched Trump Coin and proposed a US Bitcoin reserve, signaling a pro-crypto stance that could draw US crypto firms back onshore. 2. DeepSeek & US-China AI Dynamics: They discussed the launch of DeepSeek-V3, a Chinese AI model matching GPT-4 but with lower training costs, which Jeremy called a “Sputnik moment”. The model's success exposed the limits of US chip export bans, as Chinese engineers developed efficient AI training methods despite NVIDIA H100 restrictions. DeepSeek's open-source availability via Hugging Face complicated regulatory enforcement, leading US Senator Josh Hawley to propose severe penalties, including 20-year prison terms for users and $100M fines for corporations. Meta's AI lead, Yann LeCun, framed the issue as a debate between open-source and closed-source AI rather than a purely U.S.-China rivalry. 3. Grab-GoTo Potential Merger: They revisited ongoing Grab-GoTo (Gojek) merger talks, noting that Grab's stronger financial position made it the likely acquirer. While Singapore's regulators were expected to approve the deal, Indonesian authorities might impose conditions such as fare caps or job guarantees to prevent monopolistic practices. Reduced competition could push ride-hailing fares higher, with some Singaporeans already shifting back to public transport as Grab's peak-hour prices reached $40. SoftBank, a major investor in both companies, had long pushed for consolidation, and with Gojek's founding team no longer involved, negotiations had become more financially driven. Jeremy and Shiyan also discussed Waymo's self-driving taxis and their potential impact in Southeast Asia, Singapore's emphasis on “future-proofing” careers versus the US culture of embracing disruption, and how US trade and AI restrictions are accelerating Chinese firms' shift towards Southeast Asia and the EU. Watch, listen or read the full insight at https://www.bravesea.com/blog/deepseek-and-us-china-ai-race Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VakR55X6BIElUEvkN02e TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea English: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Bahasa Indonesia: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Chinese: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Vietnamese: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts

Shiyan Koh, Managing Partner of  Hustle Fund, and ​​Jeremy Au discussed: 1. eFishery Fraud Allegations: Once an Indonesian agritech darling, eFishery's end-to-end aquaculture solutions were lauded for their potential to improve farmers' productivity and incomes. eFishery had achieved a $1 billion valuation in 2023, backed by investors like Temasek, Sequoia, Northstar, and GGV Capital. Whistleblower allegations against the founders surfaced despite significant financial oversight, including audited accounts and reputable due diligence processes. Shiyan emphasized the trust deficit such incidents cause, and drew parallels to Zilingo's earlier downfall which caused a chilling effect on Southeast Asia's growth-stage investments. 2. Early Exits Signals: Jeremy highlighted the divergent strategies of eFishery's investors during its Series D round. Notable exits included Ideasource, which achieved a 40x return over a decade, and Sui Ling Cheah from Wavemaker, who bought in via secondaries in 2019 and accomplished a similar return in five years. These moves showcased varying approaches—early-stage investors seeking liquidity versus late-stage investors balancing signaling effects. They also discussed the challenges of timing exits in Southeast Asia's market context, balancing growth ambitions with prudent capital recovery. 3. Ecosystem Red Flags: Jeremy and Shiyan debated how weak financial governance impacts Southeast Asia's startup ecosystem. Citing eFishery's CFO resignation and earlier signals as red flags, they stressed the need for stricter board oversight and robust due diligence practices. Jeremy noted how fraud incidents strain ecosystem trust, making diligence processes longer and more expensive. Drawing parallels to the U.S., Shiyan emphasized how trust and long-term reputation are critical for founders aiming to sustain multiple ventures. They discussed how practices like misreporting revenue—common in sectors like e-commerce—distort valuations and create cascading governance failures. Additional topics included Southeast Asia's funding culture, revenue-quality metrics, exit dynamics for early employees, and honest advice to founders. Watch, listen or read the full insight at https://www.bravesea.com/blog/efishery-unicorn-fraud Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VakR55X6BIElUEvkN02e TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea English: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Bahasa Indonesia: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Chinese: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Vietnamese: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts

Join Jeremy Au and Shiyan Koh, Managing Partner of Hustle Fund, as they share 5 bold predictions about Southeast Asia's tech ecosystem, including how VCs continue to shift their strategy, silent death of funds and the second-order impact of US-China decoupling on regional markets. Balancing optimism with pragmatism, they also discuss 5 wishes for the region, including overhauling financial accounting operating standards and supporting "failed" founders to bounce back into the talent network. === Shiyan Koh is the Managing Partner at Hustle Fund, a venture capital fund that invests in pre-seed software startups in the U.S., Canada and Southeast Asia. Prior to that she was VP Business Operations and Corporate Development at NerdWallet, a Fintech Startup that helps users with a range of financial decisions through content, community and tools. Over the course of six years at NerdWallet, she led product teams, ran business operations and corporate development, and helped grow the company from US$1M to US$150M in revenue. === Watch, listen or read the full insight at www.bravesea.com/blog/ 5-predictions-5-wishes Nonton, dengar atau baca wawasan lengkapnya di www.bravesea.com/blog/ 5-predictions-5-wishes 观看、收听或阅读全文，请访问 www.bravesea.com/blog/ 5-predictions-5-wishes Xem, nghe hoặc đọc toàn bộ thông tin chi tiết tại www.bravesea.com/blog/ 5-predictions-5-wishes Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VakR55X6BIElUEvkN02e TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea Spotify English: https://open.spotify.com/show/4TnqkaWpTT181lMA8xNu0T Bahasa Indonesia: https://open.spotify.com/show/2Vs8t6qPo0eFb4o6zOmiVZ Chinese: https://open.spotify.com/show/20AGbzHhzFDWyRTbHTVDJR Vietnamese: https://open.spotify.com/show/0yqd3Jj0I19NhN0h8lWrK1 YouTube English: https://www.youtube.com/@JeremyAu?sub_confirmation=1 Apple Podcast English: https://podcasts.apple.com/sg/podcast/brave-southeast-asia-tech-singapore-indonesia-vietnam/id1506890464 Learn more about Nika.eco! Reach out to info@nika.eco if you are a geospatial data scientist or climate researcher who is interested to partner on a pilot or research opportunities #DeepTechSingapore #SoutheastAsiaTech #USChinaDecoupling #VentureCapitalTrends #TechInnovationHub

Shiyan Koh, Managing Partner of Hustle Fund, and Jeremy Au discussed: 1. 6 Million Population: Singapore's population reached 6 million in 2023, up from 5 million in 2010. Shiyan noted the population was 2.7 million when she left two decades ago in 1990, highlighting rapid growth. Increased density has boosted economic diversity, comparable to New York City's business environment. Unlike USA or the EU, Singapore's population growth is driven by legal immigration due to strong border enforcement. International events like the F1 Grand Prix and Token 2049 contribute to an influx of expatriates, reinforcing Singapore's role as a global business hub. 2. Anti-Immigration vs. Education Assimilation: With Singapore's GDP per capita at USD 88,000, which six times higher than neighboring Malaysia, Shiyan highlighted that Singapore naturally attracts workers from ASEAN countries. She emphasized that immigration often fills jobs that the local population does not. Jeremy noted that immigration, while necessary for economic growth, is controversial globally, especially when people feel its benefits aren't equally shared. They both suggested that schools should serve as platforms for integrating immigrant children, given Singapore's declining birth rate. They also discussed how international schools, equal government funding across local schools, socio-economic factors, tuition, and parent self selection drives competition across families for local school slots. 3. US$230M Bitcoin Theft Lessons: 20-year-old Singaporean Malone Lam was arrested in Los Angeles for stealing 4,100 Bitcoin, worth USD 230 million. He partied hard with the proceeds, gave away Birkin bags at nightclubs, and bought luxury cars. Prioritizing long-term thinking and value creation leads to sustainable success, rather than chasing short-term career gains that sacrifice integrity. Jeremy and Shiyan also touched on fostering "kampung community spirit”, the impact of alumni networks and socioeconomic background on local school performance, and the role of expatriates in Singapore's business ecosystem. === Shiyan Koh is the Managing Partner at Hustle Fund, a venture capital fund that invests in pre-seed software startups in the U.S., Canada and Southeast Asia. Prior to that she was VP Business Operations and Corporate Development at NerdWallet, a Fintech Startup that helps users with a range of financial decisions through content, community and tools. Over the course of six years at NerdWallet, she led product teams, ran business operations and corporate development, and helped grow the company from US$1M to US$150M in revenue. === Watch, listen or read the full insight at https://www.bravesea.com/blog/singapore-population-growth Nonton, dengar atau baca wawasan lengkapnya di https://www.bravesea.com/blog/singapore-population-growth 观看、收听或阅读全文，请访问 https://www.bravesea.com/blog/singapore-population-growth Xem, nghe hoặc đọc toàn bộ thông tin chi tiết tại https://www.bravesea.com/blog/singapore-population-growth Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VakR55X6BIElUEvkN02e TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea Spotify English: https://open.spotify.com/show/4TnqkaWpTT181lMA8xNu0T Bahasa Indonesia: https://open.spotify.com/show/2Vs8t6qPo0eFb4o6zOmiVZ Chinese: https://open.spotify.com/show/20AGbzHhzFDWyRTbHTVDJR Vietnamese: https://open.spotify.com/show/0yqd3Jj0I19NhN0h8lWrK1 YouTube English: https://www.youtube.com/@JeremyAu?sub_confirmation=1 Apple Podcast English: https://podcasts.apple.com/sg/podcast/brave-southeast-asia-tech-singapore-indonesia-vietnam/id1506890464

Shiyan Koh, Managing Partner of  Hustle Fund, and ​​Jeremy Au discussed: 1.  Trump Win vs. Southeast Asia Trade: Trump's 2024 landslide election victory across the White House, Senate and House of Representatives, will reshape Southeast Asia's economic landscape. His proposed “global 10% tariff” on all US imports and a targeted 60% tariff on Chinese goods may severely disrupt Southeast Asia's trade flows. Singapore could face challenges for export-driven industries and its role as a key transit hub for US-China trade. Chinese-funded products manufactured in Southeast Asia—such as solar cells produced in Vietnam— may now face similar tariffs as those directly from China. Biden-era “reverse CFIUS” restrictions, which limit US investment in Chinese firms across sectors such as AI and advanced manufacturing, coupled with Trump's new China hawk administration will further accelerate American LPs and MNCs to redirect foreign direct investment (FDI) towards Southeast Asia instead of China. 2. China Talent Flows: Known as the “Delaware of Asia,” Singapore stands to benefit as both US and Chinese firms seek a neutral and stable base for regional Asia operations (versus Hong Kong). As US-China tensions deter many Chinese families and professionals from pursuing American education and career paths, Singapore has become an appealing alternative. Singapore, a nation built by immigrants, has long maintained a social contract that includes national service (NS) obligations as a cornerstone of fostering social cohesion among its diverse population. However, the country has historically faced complex challenges in determining which types of immigrants to accept, how best to integrate them into society and to improve income inequality. Jeremy shared a story about a former Thai employee who had to leave America after her H-1B visa renewal was denied during Trump's first term, illustrating how Trump's immigration policies could drive talent to return to the regional tech ecosystem. 3. Silicon Valley Divided: Opinions remain split, with Trump's pro-deregulation stance sparking optimism in some corners, evidenced by a surge in Bitcoin prices and positive reactions from equity markets. Supporters point to potential gains for sectors like crypto and tech equities, alongside corporate tax cuts that help maintain profits, boost R&D, and provide attractive exit opportunities for venture capitalists. Concerns were raised that while deregulation under Trump may fuel market growth, higher tariffs could exacerbate economic disparities and be the wrong solution for the middle class. Jeremy and Shiyan also talked about how China exporters like BYD electric cars will now increasingly focus on Southeast Asia markets, Singapore's low birth rate like Japan and the growing number of startups building digital AI companions. Watch, listen or read the full insight at https://www.bravesea.com/blog/trump-win-vs-se-asia Nonton, dengar atau baca wawasan lengkapnya di https://www.bravesea.com/blog/trump-win-vs-se-asia-id 观看、收听或阅读全文，请访问 https://www.bravesea.com/blog/trump-win-vs-se-asia-cn Xem, nghe hoặc đọc toàn bộ thông tin chi tiết tại https://www.bravesea.com/blog/trump-win-vs-se-asia-vn Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VakR55X6BIElUEvkN02e TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea English: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Bahasa Indonesia: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Chinese: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Vietnamese: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Learn more about Nika.eco! Reach out to info@nika.eco if you are a geospatial data scientist or climate researcher who is interested to partner on a pilot or research opportunities

Shiyan Koh, Managing Partner of  Hustle Fund, and ​​Jeremy Au discussed: 1. Singapore Vetoes Allianz $4.4B Insurer Acquisition: They discussed the Singapore government's veto of the NTUC Income and Allianz merger, primarily over concerns of an undisclosed plan for $2B capital withdrawal post-merger. This case illustrated the delicate balance required between pursuing financial strategies and adhering to a social mission, especially in a cooperative structure transitioning to a corporatized entity. 2. NTUC 1961 History & Income Cooperative Mandate: They expanded on the broader historical role of National Trade Unions Congress with the People's Action Party since 1961, vs. the now-defunct leftist Singapore Association of Trade Unions (SATU). The central workers' union is the parent organization of NTUC Enterprise, which is a holding entity of multiple cooperatives and mission-based corporations like NTUC Fairprice (supermarkets), First Campus (childcare) and Income (insurance). They referenced analysis on other successful single-country insurer cooperatives benchmarks from former NTUC Enterprise & NTUC Income CEO Tan Suee Chieh. 3. Trump vs. Kamala Impact on Southeast Asia: Jeremy and Shiyan debated how the US election's potential outcomes could lead to dramatically different White House policies on free trade, capital gains and China relations - leading to significant ripple effects on Singapore & Southeast Asia. This highlights the deep interconnectivity of American political decisions with regional economic outcomes. Jeremy and Shiyan also touched on the impact of US interest rate cuts on global markets, the acceleration of Chinese companies entering Southeast Asia, and Singapore's higher number of work hours vs. America and the EU. Watch, listen or read the full insight at https://www.bravesea.com/blog/singapore-vetoes-allianz-acquisition Nonton, dengar atau baca wawasan lengkapnya di https://www.bravesea.com/blog/singapore-vetoes-allianz-acquisition-id 观看、收听或阅读全文，请访问 https://www.bravesea.com/blog/singapore-vetoes-allianz-acquisition-cn Xem, nghe hoặc đọc toàn bộ thông tin chi tiết tại https://www.bravesea.com/blog/singapore-vetoes-allianz-acquisition-vn Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VakR55X6BIElUEvkN02e TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea English: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Bahasa Indonesia: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Chinese: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Vietnamese: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Learn more about Nika.eco! Reach out to info@nika.eco if you are a geospatial data scientist or climate researcher who is interested to partner on a pilot or research opportunities

Shiyan Koh, Managing Partner of  Hustle Fund, and ​​Jeremy Au discussed: 1. Johor Special Economic Zone (SEZ): They explored the potential impact of the upcoming Johor-Singapore SEZ agreement, scheduled for signing in November. The SEZ, which is more than 4 times the size of Singapore, is seen as an opportunity to deepen economic ties between the two regions by leveraging Singapore's capital, technology, and skilled workforce alongside Johor's land and infrastructure. They noted regulatory challenges such as Johor's year-long permit approval process, which contrasts with quicker timelines in other Malaysian states like Selangor. Both emphasized that political cooperation across Malaysia's federal government, Singapore and Johor's state government & king would be essential to the SEZ's success, particularly in attracting multinational corporations (MNCs) and improving labor mobility across the border. 2. US Anti-China "Reverse CFIUS": The discussion covered the upcoming introduction of America's "reverse Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS)" legislation, which restricts US citizens, entities and LPs from investing in Chinese funds or companies involved in sectors like artificial intelligence (AI), quantum computing, and microchips. These measures are expected to reduce China VC investments as US LPs steer clear of the compliance risks associated any funds that invest into China-linked companies. Reverse CFIUS reflects a broader change in global capital flows, signaling the end of the globalization era that had previously driven much of the world's economic integration. This shift could redirect capital towards Southeast Asia, offering opportunities for local investors but also presenting serious challenges. 3. Regional Trade Diversification: They examined Southeast Asia's growing significance as part of the “China Plus One” strategy, where MNCs diversify operations beyond China due to rising trade tensions. The SEZ's strategic location and proximity to Singapore's financial and skilled labor markets could become a key hub for industries such as electronics and automotive manufacturing. They noted that improved infrastructure like direct international flights would enhance the region's connectivity and attractiveness for global businesses. They also underscored that seamless collaboration and regulatory improvements to streamline bureaucratic processes are critical to fully capitalizing on these emerging opportunities. Jeremy and Shiyan discussed several emerging topics including diabetic horses healthcare, Singapore's longevity, crypto and VC conferences and the challenges of maintaining balanced diplomatic and economic strategies amidst global policy shifts. Watch, listen or read the full insight at https://www.bravesea.com/blog/johor-singapore-sez Nonton, dengar atau baca wawasan lengkapnya di https://www.bravesea.com/johor-singapore-sez-id 观看、收听或阅读全文，请访问 https://www.bravesea.com/blog/johor-singapore-sez-cn Xem, nghe hoặc đọc toàn bộ thông tin chi tiết tại https://www.bravesea.com/blog/johor-singapore-sez-vn Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VakR55X6BIElUEvkN02e TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea English: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Bahasa Indonesia: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Chinese: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Vietnamese: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Join us at Geeks on a Beach! Use the code "BRAVESEA" for a 45% discount for the first 10 registrations, and 35% off for the next ones.

Shiyan Koh, Managing Partner of  Hustle Fund, and ​​Jeremy Au talked about three main points: 1. Disney+ Arbitration PR Crisis: A woman died from an allergic reaction after eating at a Disney-affiliated restaurant. The husband sued Disney for "wrongful death" and $50,000+ of damages. Disney in May 2024 alleged that the husband accepted a forced arbitration agreement when signing up for Disney Plus in 2019. This caused a firestorm of public criticism about the company's accountability. The hosts discuss the broader implications of such legal strategies on public trust and branding, and Disney's withdrawal of this legal case serves as a cautionary tale about balancing tactical legal defenses with keeping a broader strategic eye. 2. Good vs. Bad Startup Sci-Fi Ideas: Shiyan stressed the importance of personal dedication to a business idea, given the substantial time commitment involved. They also explored how sci-fi plays a role with simultaneous innovation, the concept of "founder-problem fit" and the critical need to align personal interests with the entrepreneurial venture. They also discussed the suitability of ideas for venture capital investment, distinguishing between good business ideas and those that are venture-backable. 3. Defence Tech Rise: Jeremy discussed the role of startups like Anduril and Palantir in transforming defense technologies. YC-backed startup Ares Industries is producing cruise missiles that are 10X cheaper and more effective than existing models. Private sector innovation is increasingly crucial to government budgets looking to buy large volumes more cost-effectively. Jeremy and Shiyan also touched on topics like longevity and sleep quality, biohacking amongst tech enthusiasts, and the importance of market validation. Watch, listen or read the full insight at https://www.bravesea.com/blog/good-vs-bad-startup-ideas Nonton, dengar atau baca wawasan lengkapnya di https://www.bravesea.com/good-vs-bad-startup-ideas-id 观看、收听或阅读全文，请访问 https://www.bravesea.com/blog/good-vs-bad-startup-ideas-cn Xem, nghe hoặc đọc toàn bộ thông tin chi tiết tại https://www.bravesea.com/blog/good-vs-bad-startup-ideas-vn Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VakR55X6BIElUEvkN02e TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea English: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Bahasa Indonesia: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Chinese: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Vietnamese: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Join us at Geeks on a Beach! Use the code "BRAVESEA" for a 45% discount for the first 10 registrations, and 35% off for the next ones.

Shiyan Koh, Managing Partner of  Hustle Fund, and ​​Jeremy Au talked about three main points: 1. Allianz Insurance Acquiring NTUC Income: Jeremy and Shiyan dissected the business logic and new facts that have emerged, especially regarding the current competition and performance challenges facing NTUC Income. They addressed the confusing public communications, emphasizing the need for transparent messaging to maintain stakeholder trust and societal confidence. They also reflected on the lessons for nonprofits and social enterprises regarding the importance of the constitution to safeguard social objectives. 2. USA Civilian Nuclear Deal: Singapore signed a thirty-years long “123” agreement to access US nuclear energy technologies and expertise that are under export controls. 95% of Singapore's electricity is powered by fossil fuels, with low opportunities for solar, wind, geothermal and other renewable sources. Nuclear modular reactors would be one of the few ways to achieve Singapore's ambitious 2050 net zero carbon emissions pledge. America signed similar deals with Australia, India, Indonesia, Japan, Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam - with implications for energy security, diplomatic alliances and optionality for national defense. 3. Politicians vs. Technocrats: They explored the contrasting leadership styles and political approach of Tim Walz, JD Vance, and Mitt Romney. With different experiences as teacher, veteran, venture capitalist, management consultant and community organizer, they exhibit the difference in skillsets between governance and winning votes. They compare this to Singapore's policy and political landscape, and whether technocrats or retail politicians better serve their communities. Jeremy and Shiyan also discussed the role of regulatory oversight in corporate transitions, the influence of legal structures on organizational missions, and the cultural implications of business practices across different regions. Watch, listen or read the full insight at https://www.bravesea.com/blog/singapore-usa-nuclear-deal Nonton, dengar atau baca wawasan lengkapnya di https://www.bravesea.com/blog/singapore-usa-nuclear-deal-id 观看、收听或阅读全文，请访问 https://www.bravesea.com/blog/singapore-usa-nuclear-deal-cn Xem, nghe hoặc đọc toàn bộ thông tin chi tiết tại https://www.bravesea.com/blog/singapore-usa-nuclear-deal-vn Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://chat.whatsapp.com/CeL3ywi7yOWFd8HTo6yzde TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea English: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Bahasa Indonesia: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Chinese: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Learn more about Evo Commerce at bback.co and stryv.co 

Shiyan Koh, Managing Partner of Hustle Fund, and ​​Jeremy Au talked about three main themes: 1. Kamala vs. Trump USA Election: Jeremy and Shiyan discussed Kamala Harris stepping into the presidential race, and speculated on her potential policy directions and how her leadership might influence relations with Asia. The excitement around her candidacy and the shift in political dynamics were key points, along with how both parties still view being tough on China as beneficial. 2. NTUC Income Insurance Privatization by Allianz: Jeremy and Shiyan explored the implications of selling a majority stake of NTUC Income, Singapore's insurance cooperative, to Allianz. Allianz CEO's “We're not in Asia to buy top line; we want to build a resoundingly profitable business” reflects how this acquisition will transfer wealth from policyholders towards current shareholders. They debated the public policy rationale behind the decision, in light of the complexities of balancing profitability with social benefits in the insurance sector. 3. Indonesia D2C & Productivity Solutions Grant (PSG): Jeremy and Shiyan talked about the income distribution and purchasing power disparities in Indonesia, and shared about a founder who pivoted from a B2B SaaS model to a direct-to-consumer retail business called Lucky Bundle, which focuses on serving the lower-income 80% of the population. They also discussed the productivity solutions grant (PSG) in Singapore, discussing how government subsidies can impact market competitiveness. The implementation approach of these subsidies may accidentally support sub-standard vendors, thus hindering the development of globally competitive businesses. Jeremy and Shiyan also covered the challenges of building in different GDP per capita zones, differences between public and private healthcare costs, and the role of cooperatives in balancing market dynamics. Watch, listen or read the full insight at https://www.bravesea.com/blog/singapore-insurance-cooperative-privatization Nonton, dengar atau baca wawasan lengkapnya di https://www.bravesea.com/blog/singapore-insurance-cooperative-privatization-id 观看、收听或阅读全文，请访问 https://www.bravesea.com/blog/singapore-insurance-cooperative-privatization-cn Xem, nghe hoặc đọc toàn bộ thông tin chi tiết tại https://www.bravesea.com/blog/singapore-insurance-cooperative-privatization-vn Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://chat.whatsapp.com/CeL3ywi7yOWFd8HTo6yzde TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea English: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Bahasa Indonesia: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Chinese: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Learn more about Evo Commerce at bback.co and stryv.co 

Shiyan Koh, Managing Partner of  Hustle Fund, and ​​Jeremy Au talked about three main points: 1. Singapore Port Traffic Jam From USA Tariffs & Middle East Conflict: Shiyan and Jeremy examined the severe traffic congestion at Singapore's port, now at unprecedented levels. Yemen's Houthi rebel attacks on Red Sea commercial shipping (in support of the Gaza conflict) has diverted container ships from the Suez Canal to the Cape of Good Hope route, thus forcing ships to refuel and unload cargo in Singapore instead of Middle Eastern ports. The USA Biden administration's increased tariffs on China have prompted Chinese exporters to expedite shipments before the tariffs take full effect, further exacerbating the congestion. The broader manufacturing "China Plus One" decoupling strategy has also compounded the supply chain management issues. 2. Climate Change Creating Arctic Shipping Route: Global warming is melting the Arctic North Pole ice, thus empowering ships to soon bypass traditional shipping routes through the Straits of Malacca and thus Singapore. They discussed why Russia and China are interested in overcoming the substantial infrastructural and financial challenges to establish viable northern ports, and why this is a negative for Singapore's shipping industry over the course of the next 100 years - similar to the fall of the Venetian empire due to shifting trade routes. 3. Trump 10% Global & 60% China Tariffs: Jeremy noted that if Trump wins the 2024 election, his proposed tariffs could dramatically alter global trade dynamics, with tariffs as high as 60% on Chinese imports. They discussed how this trade war scenario would force Chinese companies to accelerate relocating to Southeast Asia or other regions. Shiyan shared insights from her recent trip to China, emphasizing the country's robust infrastructure capabilities and the strategic responses of Chinese companies. Jeremy and Shiyan also talked about Singapore's historical role as a deep-water port, technology's role in shaping future economic landscapes, and the potential for increased domestic manufacturing in the US. Watch, listen or read the full insight at https://www.bravesea.com/blog/global-supply-chain-disruptions Nonton, dengar atau baca wawasan lengkapnya di https://www.bravesea.com/blog//global-supply-chain-disruptions-id 观看、收听或阅读全文，请访问 https://www.bravesea.com/blog//global-supply-chain-disruptions-cn Xem, nghe hoặc đọc toàn bộ thông tin chi tiết tại https://www.bravesea.com/blog//global-supply-chain-disruptions-vn Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://chat.whatsapp.com/CeL3ywi7yOWFd8HTo6yzde TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea English: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Learn more about Evo Commerce at bback.co and stryv.co 

In this episode you will learn:00:00 Introduction to Big Business and Market Size01:23 Conversation with Xi'an Co on Big Markets01:28 Importance of Identifying Big Markets03:18 Challenges and Considerations for Founders05:07 Defining and Evaluating Big Markets05:58 Insights from Famous Market Examples09:51 Understanding Customer Experience and Market Dynamics12:20 Evaluating Unit Economics and Team Dynamics15:21 Prioritization and Roadmap for Startups24:09 Challenges of Digital Targeting25:15 Importance of Customer Experience26:53 Product and Market Dynamics27:25 Creating New Markets31:39 Understanding Customer Problems37:02 Iterative Product Development40:17 Surprising Success Stories44:42 Final Thoughts and ReflectionsAboutShiyan Koh is an experienced operator and investor. She is currently a Co-Founder and General Partner at Hustle Fund, a global pre-seed venture fund. Prior to Hustle Fund, she was VP of Business Operations & Corp Dev at NerdWallet (employee #10), growing annual revenue from $1 million to more than $150 million. Before NerdWallet, she was an investor at Institutional Venture Partners and Bridgewater Associates.

Shiyan Koh, Managing Partner of  Hustle Fund, and ​​Jeremy Au talked about three main themes: 1. $3B Money Laundering Family Offices: Jeremy and Shiyan highlighted recent fraud cases in Singapore involving Chinese nationals, focusing on a massive $3 billion scheme by a group of 10 individuals who set up five family offices. This prompted tighter regulations from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) across the entire industry. Shiyan pointed out the vague and advantageous nature of family offices, stressing the need for more stringent due diligence and transparency. Jeremy discussed identifying fraud signals, like lacking mutual LinkedIn connections and dubious educational claims. He emphasized the importance of thorough vetting and trusted referrals to mitigate risks in investment circles. 2. Apple AI Integration: Jeremy and Shiyan analyzed Apple's AI announcement at the Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in June 2024. They discussed Apple's potential to drive AI adoption due to its vast consumer base and seamless integration. Shiyan highlighted Apple's focus on privacy and on-device processing as significant differentiators from Google and Microsoft. They speculated on how AI could enhance Apple's ecosystem, debating the strategic value of integrating apps like WhatsApp and Gmail. They compared Apple's approach to Google's, particularly in search and maps, noting Apple's potential to create a more cohesive and secure user experience. 3. VC Fraud Maze: Jeremy and Shiyan dove into the challenges in finding reliable investment opportunities. They pointed out the varying levels of market maturity and transparency across the region, making it a tricky terrain for investors. Shiyan emphasized that building trust and meticulous due diligence are crucial, especially as many early-stage VCs and ecosystem players are still finding their footing. Jeremy shared his personal struggles with dealing in environments with nascent regulations and informal networks, stressing the need for vigilance and adaptability in such markets. Jeremy and Shiyan also discussed several other topics, including the differences in children's learning abilities, advancements in technology and privacy implications, cultural challenges in language learning, strategic partnerships in tech, and market trends in Southeast Asian startups. Watch, listen or read the full insight at https://www.bravesea.com/blog/money-laundering-family-offices Nonton, dengar atau baca wawasan lengkapnya di https://www.bravesea.com/blog/money-laundering-family-offices-id 观看、收听或阅读全文，请访问 https://www.bravesea.com/blog/money-laundering-family-offices-cn Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://chat.whatsapp.com/CeL3ywi7yOWFd8HTo6yzde TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea English: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Reach out to joe@heymax.ai to learn more about Heymax

Shiyan Koh, Managing Partner of  Hustle Fund, and ​​Jeremy Au talked about three main themes: 1. USA VC vs. Southeast Asia Fund Performance: Bain's 2023 private equity report shows that Southeast Asia's VC returns have been lower over the past decade, with median LP distributions of 0.4X for Southeast Asia, China 0.6X, Europe 0.7X, USA 1X and India 1.3X. Shiyan attributed this due to the oversupply of capital - despite an order of magnitude increase in venture capital into Southeast Asia, this influx has not led to a proportional increase in scalable, successful companies, thus leading to inflated valuations and reduced returns​​. 2. SGX & IDX Capital Market Challenges: Jeremy and Shiyan examined the hurdles faced by Southeast Asian companies in accessing capital markets. Jeremy noted the low liquidity on local exchanges, with turnover rates at 32% in Singapore, 19% in Indonesia, and 73% in the Philippines, compared to the New York Stock Exchange's 103%​​. Shiyan emphasized that local regulatory constraints, such as the Singapore Stock Exchange's requirement for profitability (to protect retail investors), deter many tech startups, prompting them to seek international listings, particularly in the US, where they can list at higher valuations despite ongoing losses​​. They also discussed the role of capital controls in limiting retail investors' access to offshore equities in China and India, driving demand for domestic listings​​. 3. Post-AI "Good Jobs": Jeremy and Shiyan examined the impact of AI on Southeast Asia's labor markets, focusing on how integrating AI with lower-cost labor could create a competitive advantage against purely AI-driven models in the US​​. Shiyan suggested that developing AI-native companies could drive innovation in service sectors like call centers and business process outsourcing (BPO). They also touched on the concept of the “iron rice bowl”—a metaphor for job security and stability in traditional sectors, such as government-related roles, which might be less affected by AI​​. They noted that while AI could make some roles obsolete, particularly those involving repetitive tasks, it might also open new opportunities by automating routine aspects of jobs, thus enhancing overall productivity. Jeremy and Shiyan also talked about the importance of mid-sized companies for talent recycling, AI's role in the creative fields, and how global economic trends impact founder fundraising in the region. Watch, listen or read the full insight at https://www.bravesea.com/blog/post-ai-good-jobs Nonton, dengar atau baca wawasan lengkapnya di https://www.bravesea.com/blog/post-ai-good-jobs-id 观看、收听或阅读全文，请访问 https://www.bravesea.com/blog/post-ai-good-jobs-cn Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://chat.whatsapp.com/CeL3ywi7yOWFd8HTo6yzde TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea English: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Reach out to joe@heymax.ai to learn more about Heymax  

Shiyan Koh, Managing Partner of  Hustle Fund, and ​​Jeremy Au talked about three main themes: 1. Singapore vs. USA Education Systems: Jeremy and Shiyan discussed differences in structure, funding, and outcomes. In Singapore, the education system is centralized with high academic rigor, while in the USA, quality varies significantly due to local property tax funding, leading to disparities between affluent and less affluent areas. They highlighted how the Singapore system is envied by global peers for its academic outcomes but faces internal criticism for being a "pressure cooker.” Shiyan also emphasized the personal nature of educational choices and the high costs associated with private international schools, which can be prohibitive for startup founders. 2. WEIRD AI Teddy Bears: Jeremy and Shiyan debated AI integration into children's toys and education. Jeremy expressed concerns about AI potentially replacing difficult human conversations with always-pleasant AI interactions. They discussed the inherent biases in LLM models, which are trained on data from Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, and Democratic (WEIRD) societies. Embedding AI into education thus further propagates this worldview to the next generation, which may not reflect current, local or parental cultural values or norms. 3. US Senate $32B AI Investment Bill: Jeremy and Shiyan discussed the proposed legislation advocating for a $32 billion annual investment in AI. Jeremy added that the US is already a leader in AI investment, with private investments expected to reach $82 billion next year, more than double that of China. She questioned the need for further government investment in an area already heavily funded by the private sector and argued that government funds might be better spent on education, which offers broader societal benefits. Jeremy and Shiyan also talked about parental competition for "good jobs”, the challenges in balancing academic rigor and student well-being, and the future implications of AI in the workforce. Watch, listen or read the full insight at https://www.bravesea.com/blog/weird-ai-teddy-bears Nonton, dengar atau baca wawasan lengkapnya di https://www.bravesea.com/blog/weird-ai-teddy-bears-id 观看、收听或阅读全文，请访问 https://www.bravesea.com/blog/weird-ai-teddy-bears-cn Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://chat.whatsapp.com/CeL3ywi7yOWFd8HTo6yzde TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea English: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Join us at the startup conference Echelon X! We have 30 exclusive complimentary tickets for our podcast listeners. Sign up and use the promo codes BRAVEPOD or ECXJEREMY to claim your free tickets now!

Shiyan Koh, Managing Partner of  Hustle Fund, and ​​Jeremy Au talked about three main themes: 1. New Prime Minister Transition: Jeremy and Shiyan discussed the transition of Prime Minister leadership from Lee Hsien Loong to Lawrence Wong. They discussed the potential challenges that the new Prime Minister would face such as addressing wealth inequality and evaluating the efficacy of current social programs. They also speculated on potential policy shifts that might occur under the new leadership including those related to property taxes, GDP growth focus, and social welfare enhancements. They empathized with local negative/ positive sentiments regarding the future and the dropping Total Fertility Rate (0.97 in 2024) which eventually leads to a shrinking population. 2. Immigration Assimilation & Schools: Jeremy and Shiyan discussed Singapore's distinctive "barbell" immigration strategy, which primarily attracts either high-skill individuals through initiatives like the Tech Pass and Global Investor Program or blue-collar workers, leaving a notable gap at the mid-skill level where many startups find their needs. They highlighted that startups often employ young, promising talents compensated more heavily with stock options, which are not adequately recognized in Employment Pass criteria, and lack eligibility for EDB support typically reserved for MNCs. This situation compels local founders to opt for remote hiring and training, nurturing the next wave of startup leadership in the region instead of inside Singapore. They suggested that the government should broaden and increase the ASEAN scholars program. 3. CTO & Engineering Pass: They proposed the introduction of a "CTO/ Head of Engineering Pass" to attract highly skilled technical rising stars (rather than Tech.pass which is for senior, mature executives). These individuals are more plugged into the next generation of tech needs (e.g. AI, biotech), hungrier to lean in and build, and leverage "robots" that can upgrade the productivity of their startups, clients and the broader SME sector - thus increasing the Total Factor Productivity of Singapore's economy, boosting GDP and thus tax revenues for social welfare programs. In contrast, Malaysia has launched a new open-door tech talent policy to attract and poach startup founders and highly productive immigrants who cannot get to work in Singapore. Jeremy and Shiyan also shared how they hadn't foreseen that USA legislation could be structured into a "collective deadline/ ticking time bomb" phasing - law to be established in principle and win political points - but 1. implemented far out enough to mitigate political repercussions for the US elections 2. give a longer preparation/ migration period for affected advertisers and consumers, 3. structure in discretionary extension periods for more negotiating power 4. given enough space for legal battles over whether it can actually be implemented. They compared this approach to Singapore's swift and China's retroactive law enforcement for passed legislation. Watch, listen or read the full insight at https://www.bravesea.com/blog/singapore-new-prime-minister Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://chat.whatsapp.com/CeL3ywi7yOWFd8HTo6yzde TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea English: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Join us at the startup conference Echelon X! We have 30 exclusive complimentary tickets for our podcast listeners. Sign up and use the promo codes BRAVEPOD or ECXJEREMY to claim your free tickets now!

Shiyan Koh, Managing Partner of  Hustle Fund, and ​​Jeremy Au talked about three main themes: 1. 51% SE Asia Favor China (vs. USA): Jeremy and Shiyan debated how the region is politically and economically reacting to the China vs. USA's "strategic competition". If ASEAN decision-makers were forced to pick sides, 51% opted for China vs. 49% for USA (ISEAS Institute poll). Pro-China: Malaysia 75%, Indonesia 73%, Thailand 52%, Singapore 39%, Vietnam 21%, Philippines 17%. 2. Sequoia & GGV VC Decoupling: Jeremy and Shiyan discussed how global investment firms are structuring themselves to mitigate US-China risks. Sequoia spun off Peak XV and Hongshan, while GGV announced their split into Granite Asia and Notable Capital (USA). They discuss how Limited Partners (LP) are driving the geographic re-delineation of investment coverage, and why GGV and other funds are exploring more debt instruments. 3. Mobility Competitor Game Theory: Jeremy and Shiyan analyzed the bike-sharing market in Singapore, including public-private partnerships and challenges like weather and infrastructure. They were amused that Anywheel, a bootstrapped (unfunded by VC) company outlasted VC-backed competitors such as Mobike, Obike, and Ofo to win and become the market leader. They discussed how cash efficiency interacted with economies of scale, the promise of winner-takes-all markets, negative blitzscaling, and competitive game theory created the "boom vs. bust" nature of last-mile mobility startups. Jeremy and Shiyan also replied to listener feedback about overlooking Trump investment links in the TikTok ban issue, the role of public-private infrastructure partnerships in supporting infrastructure projects, and blitzscaling vs. sustainable growth strategies. Watch, listen or read the full insight at https://www.bravesea.com/blog/sea-favor-china Nonton, dengar atau baca wawasan lengkapnya di https://www.bravesea.com/blog/sea-favor-chin-in 观看、收听或阅读全文，请访问 https://www.bravesea.com/blog/sea-favor-china-cn Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://chat.whatsapp.com/CeL3ywi7yOWFd8HTo6yzde TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea English: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Bahasa Indonesia: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Chinese: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Learn more about Grain here: https://www.grain.com.sg

Shiyan Koh, Managing Partner of  Hustle Fund, and ​​Jeremy Au talked about three main themes: 1. TikTok Trump vs. Biden Ban Resurrection: Jeremy and Shiyan delved into the USA political establishment's snowballing momentum to nationalize TikTok via divestment due to national security, anti-China, social media regulation and moderation of public opinion concerns. China is most likely to veto a forced sale of the TikTok algorithm and team, thus leading to a possible total market exit of TikTok rather than the sale desired by American legislators. They concluded on the low likelihood of a ban before the US election to avoid turning off Gen Z and millennial Democrat voters but speculated on the higher likelihood of an eventual ban in the Biden 2024 electoral victory scenario since Trump is now against the Ban. They also touched on the negative impact on mental health, and the importance of encouraging in-person interactions outside of digital platforms. 2. Grab "Too Big To Fail" Debate: Jeremy and Shiyan critiqued the recent media speculation of Grab being "too big to fail," arguing that this concept traditionally applies to financial institutions with systemic importance, rather than tech companies. They also debated Grab's competitive position, its eventual profitability after years of market subsidies, and how fast Gojek would be able to substitute for Grab's logistics, mobility, and consumer operations. 3. ShopBack Best-In-Class Layoffs: Jeremy and Shiyan discussed ShopBack's layoff and commended the professional handling by the founder and executive team. They highlighted the transparent communication regarding their prior decision-making, comprehensive support package (e.g. severance, immigration support, job transition services, etc.), and the surrounding tech industry's boom and bust cycles. They discussed whether this was comparable to Silicon Valley packages and whether this approach had been best-in-class in terms of process in Southeast Asia. Jeremy and Shiyan also discussed the impact of rapid scaling on startup sustainability, the regulation of social media platforms, and the nuances of employment and layoff policies in different jurisdictions. Watch, listen or read the full insight at https://www.bravesea.com/blog/tiktok-us-ban Nonton, dengar atau baca wawasan lengkapnya di https://www.bravesea.com/blog/tiktok-us-ban-in 观看、收听或阅读全文，请访问 https://www.bravesea.com/blog/tiktok-us-ban-cn Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://chat.whatsapp.com/CeL3ywi7yOWFd8HTo6yzde TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea English: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Bahasa Indonesia: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Chinese: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Join the Singapore Growth & AI Summit with Sean Ellis! Use code seanbrave7 today.

Shiyan Koh, Managing Partner of  Hustle Fund, and ​​Jeremy Au talked about three main themes: 1. Taylor Swift $500M Singapore Economy Boost: Jeremy and Shiyan discussed the Singapore government's strategic chess moves for Taylor Swift's concert exclusivity in Southeast Asia. They discussed the excellent return on investment of the $3M move for a $500M increase in Singapore's tourism receipts, stimulating national GDP by 0.25% points for Q1 2024. They also discussed the regional competition for hosting such blockbuster events, along with the underappreciated aspects of the nationalization of the Singapore sports hub, travel logistics hub infrastructure and sensitivity to cultural norms. 2. Barbell Entertainment Blockbusters vs. Long Tail: Jeremy and Shiyan explored the Internet's explosion of the content industry, leading to bimodal distribution, where both blockbuster events and niche content find substantial audiences thanks to the zero marginal cost of digital consumption - and the plunge in middle-tier content. They also discussed how generative AI will impact the shape of this barbell. They reference the book Blockbusters by Harvard professor Anita Elberse and The Long Tail by Chris Anderson. 3. City Talent Vortex & Industry Concentrations: Jeremy and Shiyan discussed the challenges and opportunities presented by talent concentrations. They discussed how cities become industry hubs, such as finance in Singapore, entertainment in LA and tech in SF, with a thought experiment on whether Southeast Asia could produce a global superstar like Taylor Swift. They stressed the structural and cultural factors that influence where talent flourishes, the role of national policy in nurturing ecosystems that can compete on the global stage, and how individual talented individuals should react. Jeremy and Shiyan also talked about the social aspects of fasting vs. eating, the fan communities of avatar-driven Vtubers, and their personal preferences for content consumption like Dune by writer Frank Herbet vs. director Denis Villeneuve. Watch, listen or read the full insight at https://www.bravesea.com/blog/taylor-swift-economics Nonton, dengar atau baca wawasan lengkapnya di https://www.bravesea.com/blog/taylor-swift-economics-in 观看、收听或阅读全文，请访问 https://www.bravesea.com/blog/taylor-swift-economics-cn Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://chat.whatsapp.com/CeL3ywi7yOWFd8HTo6yzde TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea English: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Bahasa Indonesia: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Chinese: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts

Tune in to a special episode featuring Shiyan Koh, co-founder and General Partner at Hustle Fund, a firm that specializes in seed and pre-seed investments. We'll dive into Shiyan's impressive career journey, covering her investment roles at Institutional Venture Partners and Bridgewater, her pivotal role in scaling Nerdwallet from $1 million to $150 million in annual recurring revenue, and her experiences founding and leading investments at Hustle Fund. Join us to also learn why business school is a perfect matchmaker, the significance of acquiring investing experience as recent graduates, and Shiyan's insights on what really needs venture funding currently. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/nyu-svs/support

Dmitry Levit, General Partner of Cento Ventures, Shiyan Koh, Managing Partner of Hustle Fund, and Jeremy Au talked about three main themes: 1. 2023 vs. 2024 Investment Landscape: Dmitry, Shiyan and Jeremy discussed the Cento Southeast Asia Tech 2023H1 report and noted the discrepancy between the economic doom perception in the media and the reality of Southeast Asia's funding numbers. Dmitry pointed out a "reset" in investment activity, with stable "core early funding stack" (Seed to Series A/B) maintaining momentum while later-stage growth deals significantly decreased. This bifurcation reflects a broader trend of cautious optimism among early-stage investors and a recalibration of expectations among late-stage financiers. They also underscored the importance of understanding these two parallel ecosystems for founders and investors alike, suggesting that strategies need to be adjusted depending on the stage of investment. 2. $9B Annual Capital Intake & Realistic Exit Expectations: Dmitry Levit observed that the long-term average capital intake for the region averages around $9 billion. He highlighted that prudent exit expectations in Southeast Asia should consider $100 million exits as very good, with exceptional cases potentially exceeding $250 million, and added further details on the growth rate. He emphasized the importance of disciplined fund strategies across IPO, trade sales, and secondaries. 3. Overreaction, Dislocation & Confusion: They discussed the fog of war in the region's tech ecosystem driven by global economic pressures, media hype and doom cycles, and changing investment flows. Missed opportunities, strategy-market misalignments, and pressure on value-creation teams are currently being sorted out. They discussed how founders and investors need to urgently align their growth and exit strategies with the region's market's realities. They also talked about the time lag of news absorption across the Vietnam ecosystem and how the search for the next "Indonesia" story is on pause. Dmitry, Shiyan and Jeremy also talked about the role of perception vs. reality in shaping investment strategies, the challenges for the multi-country expansion narrative, and the "small-cap private equity without leverage" VC theme in play. Watch, listen or read the full insight in English at https://www.bravesea.com/blog/overreaction-dislocation-confusion Saksikan, dengarkan atau baca wawasan lengkapnya dalam Bahasa Indonesia di https://www.bravesea.com/blog/overreaction-dislocation-confusion-id Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://chat.whatsapp.com/CeL3ywi7yOWFd8HTo6yzde TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea English: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Bahasa Indonesia: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Learn more about HDMall here:  htps://www.hdmall.co.th https://www.hdmall.id

In this discussion, Shiyan Koh, Managing Partner of  Hustle Fund, and ​​Jeremy Au talked about three main themes: 1. Founders Reviewing VCs: Shiyan reflected on founders conducting due diligence on their funding sources. They discuss the value (and further improvements) of public reference lists like TechinAsia's Glasswall which indexes the fundraising process, and how founders should seek private feedback from (post-fundraise) portfolio companies. 2. Startup Fraud Triangle: Jeremy and Shiyan examined the darker side of the regional startup culture, including fraudulent accounting trends and their impact on the local funding ecosystem. They agree that while most founders don't set out to defraud, poor decisions under pressure can take the opportunity to conduct unethical actions. 3. Difficult Wind-Down Decisions: The vast majority of startups fail to meet expectations after substantial fundraising. Shiyan shared the rarity but reputational importance of attempting to return capital to investors when a pivot isn't feasible. She advises founders to treat investors with respect during wind-downs, as the startup industry is a "repeated game" where one's actions can influence future opportunities. They also talked about the emotional toll of admitting failure, potential for biased VC reviews, and the societal role of media in reporting startup successes and failures. Watch, listen or read the full insight at https://www.bravesea.com/blog/founders-reviewing-vcs Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://chat.whatsapp.com/CeL3ywi7yOWFd8HTo6yzde TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea English: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Bahasa Indonesia: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Learn more about HDMall here:  htps://www.hdmall.co.th https://www.hdmall.id

Shiyan Koh, Managing Partner of Hustle Fund, and ​​Jeremy Au covered three main topics: 1. Sovereign Wealth Fund Investment Shifts: Jeremy and Shiyan talked about how GIC conservatively deployed 46% less capital in 2023, and Temasek 53%. Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) deployed $31.6 billion in 2023, 53% higher than the $20.7 billion it invested the previous year - alongside other Gulf funds. This is due to high oil prices, investment mandates and national strategies to diversify their economies away from energy dependence. 2. Unicorn Silicon Box: Jeremy and Shiyan discussed Silicon Box (Singapore's latest unicorn), their veteran leadership and $2 billion Tampines facility build-out. They highlighted its role in the shifting landscape of semiconductor manufacturing in Southeast Asia and its implications for the region's economic growth. 3. TheAsianParent Acquisition of Motherswork: Jeremy and Shiyan touched on the parenting platform's strategy to expand from its digital roots into omnichannel physical retail. They also talked about the challenges brought by declining birth rates in several Asian economies, the dynamics of education, and national fertility & family policies. They also touched on Noah Smith (Noahpinion with 139,000+ subscribers) wanting to work for Jacqueline Poh of Singapore's EDB (at the same managerial level as Patrick Collision of Stripe), and the reasons behind the interest in parenting startups in Southeast Asia, spanning services across childcare, IVF and egg freezing. Watch, listen or read the full insight at https://www.bravesea.com/blog/fund-investment-shifts Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://chat.whatsapp.com/CeL3ywi7yOWFd8HTo6yzde TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea English: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Bahasa Indonesia: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Learn more about HDMall here:  htps://www.hdmall.co.th https://www.hdmall.id

Shiyan Koh, Managing Partner of Hustle Fund, and Jeremy Au talked about three main themes: 1. Podcast Hosting Gratitude: Jeremy and Shiyan reviewed their year-long journey of podcasting covering Southeast Asia tech. They reflected on the growth, challenges, and rich interactions they've had with their audience, and shared their appreciation for each other. 2. 2023 Startups & VC Bear Market: Jeremy and Shiyan recapped the challenges that regional startups, especially in later stages, faced in adapting to the bear funding landscape of 2023. Beyond founder mindset changes, they touched on the importance for VCs to conduct structural reflections on their investment decisions (both successes and failures) and the challenges due to the different incentives and lifecycles for junior and senior investors. 3. 2024 Southeast Asia Tech Predictions: Jeremy and Shiyan shared their predictions for 2024 such as the continued bear market challenges for later-stage companies that need to thus grow more to justify their bull-market valuations and/or conduct significant cuts. They view the press to be a lagging signal of these impending decisions. They also predicted deeper press and LP scrutiny on regional VC's individual investments (business models, operational efficiency and bottom-line sustainability). They also raised the upcoming political inflection points (and thus confluence) for the 2024 elections of Taiwan, USA, Indonesia and India. They also talked about the significance of understanding unit economics for startups, the understated role of customer selection in business success, and the importance of understanding the multi-factorial causes of failure in the VC process. Watch, listen or read the full insight at https://www.bravesea.com/blog/2024-tech-forecast Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://chat.whatsapp.com/CeL3ywi7yOWFd8HTo6yzde TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea English: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Bahasa Indonesia: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Learn more about Hive Health here: https://www.ourhivehealth.com

In this episode, Shiyan Koh, Managing Partner of Hustle Fund, and Jeremy Au talked about three main topics: 1. $1.5B Bytedance Tokopedia GoTo Deal Analysis: They discussed ByteDance's $500 million payment to acquire a 75% stake in the merged entity of Tokopedia and TikTok Shop Indonesia. This would create the new Indonesia e-commerce market leader with 40% market share. ByteDance committed to investing a future $1 billion into the operations of the new entity, which will contractually not dilute GoTo's 25% minority stake. The deal was motivated by TikTok's need to resume its Indonesia operations after a ban by the Indonesia government, Tokopedia's -0.4% adjusted EBITDA as % of GTV (Q3 2023), and the opportunity to create the #1 Indonesia e-commerce platform with larger economies of scale, a new media-led growth engine and a wider seller base. 2. Indonesia E-Commerce War: They discussed Indonesia's $52B e-commerce market: Shopee (36% market share), Tokopedia (35%), Lazada (10%), Bukalapak (10%), TikTok Shop (5%), and Blibli (4%). They explained how this consolidation reflects the regional trend of increasing focus on efficiency, logistics, and leveraging technological synergies to gain dominance, similar to Uber Southeast Asia's strategic sale to Grab to concentrate on core markets. Credit goes to Momentum Works and Freeman Ding for their analysis. 3. Winners, Losers, and Future Moves: They identified Indonesian consumers as clear winners due to continued intensive competition on lower prices and innovation in services, similar to the Uber vs. Grab vs. Gojek rivalry. They also discussed other beneficiaries, how this reflected the growing maturation of the region for M&A activity, and how competitors like Grab and Sea Group would react to this market development. Shiyan and Jeremy also talked about the challenges of founders fundraising during the holiday season and their own upcoming family vacation plans. Watch, listen or read the full insight at https://www.bravesea.com/blog/bytedance-tokopedia-investment Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://chat.whatsapp.com/CeL3ywi7yOWFd8HTo6yzde Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4TnqkaWpTT181lMA8xNu0T YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@JeremyAu Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/sg/podcast/brave-southeast-asia-tech-singapore-indonesia-vietnam/id1506890464 Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkLnBvZC5jby9icmF2ZWR5bmFtaWNz TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea Learn more about Acme Technology here: https://www.tryacme.com

In this episode,  Shiyan Koh, Managing Partner of Hustle Fund, and Jeremy Au talked about three main themes: 1. OpenAI Developments & Leadership: Jeremy & Shiyan delved into the recent leadership changes at OpenAI, including Sam Altman's reinstatement as CEO after a controversial board shuffle. They highlighted the philosophical divide within the board regarding OpenAI's direction between accelerationism (pushing for rapid acceleration and commercialization) vs. advocating for cautious progress). They noted that the accelerationists had prevailed, with Sam Altman's leadership signifying a continued push toward commercialization. They also touched on OpenAI's extraordinary growth, scaling from zero to a billion dollars in revenue in a short time, and the practical challenges of halting AI development, given its open-source nature and widespread adaptation. 2. Business and Workplace Impact: Jeremy and Shiyan talked about the Coatue AI report where Shiyan expressed admiration for the slide demonstrating the tangible value AI brings to productivity and job functions. Jeremy emphasized the dynamic interplay between AI and human labor, highlighting a shift towards leaner organizational structures due to AI integration, and cited a scenario of a three-person unicorn company. They speculated on the possibility of ultra-lean companies, like a 'three-person unicorn', driven by AI efficiencies. They also emphasized the urgency of adopting AI to maximize benefits, considering the potential changes in job displacement and replacement dynamics. 3. AI-Driven Societal Shift: Jeremy and Shiyan shared that the rise of AI will create distinct winners and losers. They discussed that corporations that effectively leverage AI will likely dominate and significantly transform their operations and productivity. Jeremy identified specific professions, such as those in marketing and customer service, as being at higher risk of displacement by AI technologies. They also touched on the evolving nature of human relationships in the age of AI, particularly the growing trend of parasocial interactions with AI. Jeremy compared the impact of AI on social relationships to the effect of the birth control pill on society. He highlighted how just as the birth control pill revolutionized sexual relationships and family planning, leading to changes in social norms and personal freedoms, AI is poised to transform how humans interact and form relationships.  They also talked about the changing nature of workplaces and industries, the concept of loneliness epidemic, ​​the need for responsible deployment of AI technologies, and the misconception of AI as a co-pilot.  Watch, listen or read the full insight at https://www.bravesea.com/blog/openai-acceleration Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://chat.whatsapp.com/CeL3ywi7yOWFd8HTo6yzde Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4TnqkaWpTT181lMA8xNu0T YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@JeremyAu Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/sg/podcast/brave-southeast-asia-tech-singapore-indonesia-vietnam/id1506890464 Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkLnBvZC5jby9icmF2ZWR5bmFtaWNz TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea Learn more about Acme Technology here: https://www.tryacme.com

In this discussion, Shiyan Koh, Managing Partner of Hustle Fund, and Jeremy Au talked about three main themes: 1. Bad Conferences: Jeremy and Shiyan highlight the aspects they find frustrating, e.g. low-value, low-density conversations. Shiyan discusses her disappointment with unnecessary pre-panel preparation calls and panels with too many participants, which inevitably dilutes the quality of conversations. 2. Speakers & Moderators Hacks: Jeremy advises speakers to focus on nailing at least 2 out of these three key elements: factual descriptiveness, a fresh/ contrarian point of view, and charm. He shares a trick he frequently uses as a moderator, which involves encouraging panel members to intentionally speak at an expert level. 3. Democracy vs. Republic vs. Serendipity: Jeremy and Shiyan disclose their approach to conference participation, emphasizing the importance of serendipity as key to an enriching experience. They also debate the democratic vs. republic approach in audience engagement. They also discussed founder 1-minute pitches, great attendee experiences, and their personal conference approaches. Watch, listen or read the full insight at https://www.bravesea.com/blog/bad-vs-great-conferences Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://chat.whatsapp.com/CeL3ywi7yOWFd8HTo6yzde Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4TnqkaWpTT181lMA8xNu0T YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@JeremyAu Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/sg/podcast/brave-southeast-asia-tech-singapore-indonesia-vietnam/id1506890464 Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkLnBvZC5jby9icmF2ZWR5bmFtaWNz TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea Learn more about Fluid! Get in touch with Trasy, Fluid's cofounder at trasy@gofluid.io

Shi Yan Ming is a 34th Generation Shaolin Warrior Monk and Founder & Abbot of USA Shaolin Temple. Named “a real-life superhero” by The RZA from Wu-Tang Clan, Shifu's 1-inch punch is more powerful than a car at 35mph as recorded by History Channel's show, Stan Lee's Super Humans. His disciples and students include Bokeem Woodbine of Spiderman, Wesley Snipes of Blade, RZA, Rosie Perez, and many more. As one of the most respected martial art legends of all time, he has been featured in numerous publications & interviews across the world, including National Geographic, The New York Times, The Atlantic, The New Yorker, VICE Sports, VICE China, Grazia Homme (France), Vogue, Great Big Story, NPR, and more. For his generation and age, Shifu's physical abilities, wisdom, knowledge, and upbringing make him truly one in 3.3 billion on earth.   What You'll Learn ●      What daily life is like in the Temple. ●      The nature of devotion. ●      How to build confidence. ●      How Shaolin helps in other areas of life. ●      How to know once you've found yourself. ●      The importance of living in the moment. ●      How to find balance. ●      How to take authority over our thinking.   Timestamps ·       [06:14] Shifu's story. ·       [11:42] What foundation of the Shaolin Temple. ·       [14:49] Day in the life in the Temple. ·       [16:08] Lessons learned. ·       [18:46] Devotion. ·       [28:54] How to build confidence. ·       [33:18] How does Shaolin help in other areas of life? ·       [39:37] How to know if you've found yourself. ·       [43:35] Be honest with yourself. ·       [46:28] Cherishing the moment. ·       [49:59] What is balance and how do we find balance within ourselves? ·       [56:07] Taking more authority over our thinking. ·       [59:25] Where to start. ·       [61:18] Happiness vs love.   Memorable Quotes ·       “Everyone needs help.” – Shi Yan Ming [20:32] ·       “Every moment, every day is precious.” – Shi Yan Ming [20:51] ·       “Life has everything.” – Shi Yan Ming [31:01] ·       “We come from nothing. We leave with nothing.” – Shi Yan Ming [49:49]   Websites usashaolintemple.org.

Shiyan Koh, Managing Partner of Hustle Fund, and Jeremy Au dissect the intricate dynamics of initial founder-investor interactions. Here are the three main themes: 1. Initial Engagements & Decision-making Dynamics: Shiyan and Jeremy stress the value of the first meetings. For investors, it's a chance to see the viability of the partnership, gauging not just the business's potential but also the founder's vision and adaptability. For founders, it's an opportunity to understand the investor's decision-making process. They share that both parties should have a set of clear expectations and an understanding of the next steps. They also see the first meeting as a helpful way to build trust, align visions, and ensure that both the founder and investor are on the same trajectory toward a potential long-term collaboration. 2. Technical Aspects of Pitching: They discuss the significance of the preparation for the pitch. Practicing their pitch, testing their tech setup, and even recording themselves to check for any issues can make a big difference. A smooth meeting exhibits professionalism and respect for time. 3. Navigating the Conversation Framework: Jeremy and Shiyan talk about how conversations between investors and founders can focus on various topics such as the business model, its overarching strategy, specific industry or vertical, or even personal qualities of the founder and how it's vital to know which "frame" the conversation is in. They point out that while various questions might arise, the underlying query remains as to whether the two parties are capable of collaborating over the next decade to build a successful company.    They also talk about pitching horror stories related to poor technical setups and how bad audio can ruin a good pitch, the art of striking a balance between high-level overviews and in-depth discussions during pitches, and the value of building rapport in the first meeting. Watch, listen or read the full insight at https://www.bravesea.com/blog/first-meeting-dynamics Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://chat.whatsapp.com/CeL3ywi7yOWFd8HTo6yzde Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4TnqkaWpTT181lMA8xNu0T YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@JeremyAu Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/sg/podcast/brave-southeast-asia-tech-singapore-indonesia-vietnam/id1506890464 Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkLnBvZC5jby9icmF2ZWR5bmFtaWNz TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea Learn more about Ringkas here: https://www.ringkas.co.id #Pitching #Founders #Investor #Startups #fundraising #ConversationFramework #BuildingRapport #Partnerships #venturecapital

Shiyan Koh, Managing Partner of Hustle Fund and Jeremy Au discuss three main topics: 1. Down Rounds, Recaps, & the Psychological Implications: Jeremy and Shiyan talk about the complex dynamics startups face when fundraising expectations aren't met. Shiyan shares that startups consider accepting down rounds, which might come as an ego blow, or considering recap, rewriting the cap table to accommodate new investors and ensure the incentive for existing stakeholders. Jeremy explains that it's pivotal for management teams to exhibit their adaptability and lessons learned, both at a company and personal level, while making actionable changes, such as cost-cutting or strategic shifts, that validate their readiness for the next phase. 2. Failure Patterns in Southeast Asia: They explore common failure patterns that often result in down rounds and recapitalizations, such as market saturation, lack of product differentiation, and rapid, uncontrolled expansion. Shiyan notes that many startups in Southeast Asia share these failure patterns due to a mix of hyper-competition, immature ecosystems, and differences in consumer behavior across countries in the region. Jeremy adds that external economic factors and regulatory changes, especially in diverse markets like Southeast Asia, can also lead to such scenarios. They advise founders to keep a close watch on market trends and be agile in their strategies. 3. The Role of the Founder and Investors on the Board: They stress the pivotal roles that both founders and investors play during challenging times and highlight the necessity for founders to maintain open lines of communication with their investors, sharing both good and bad news. Investors should also offer guidance and support. They share that effective boards can facilitate difficult but necessary conversations about layoffs and pivoting and that the founder's role also shifts from being a visionary to being a crisis manager, which is crucial for the survival of the startup. They also discuss the significance of customer segmentation for maximum business impact, mental resilience, and emotional intelligence for founders during tumultuous times, strategies to generate revenue such as lending and SaaS models, and the importance of concentrating on a single product or offering before expanding. Watch, listen or read the full insight at https://www.bravesea.com/blog/downturns-and-recaps Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://chat.whatsapp.com/CeL3ywi7yOWFd8HTo6yzde Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4TnqkaWpTT181lMA8xNu0T YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@JeremyAu Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/sg/podcast/brave-southeast-asia-tech-singapore-indonesia-vietnam/id1506890464 Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkLnBvZC5jby9icmF2ZWR5bmFtaWNz TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea Learn more about Ringkas here: https://www.ringkas.co.id

“I'm incredibly optimistic about this ecosystem. There's a lot of macro stuff that is really pushing us along that I don't think we could've imagined five years ago. Some of it is geopolitical, but in terms of what we, as an ecosystem, can do to help move it along further, there's this notion around information exchange and community building. Helping each other is really important. We want to encourage people to do that, to connect more, create more moments of this serendipity, and then, we can all prosper together.” - Shiyan Koh “We need to get more comfortable sharing imperfect things and works in progress. Not everything is shiny and perfect. That's how we progress as an ecosystem. We have to show what we got, be transparent about where we're struggling, and ask for help. That's how we're going to progress together. That's a point that we are still immature in this ecosystem. We want perfection, and we like to exalt people too early. We hold them up and be like, ‘This is a paragon of entrepreneurship.'” - Shiyan Koh “Founders are generally more reticent in the region. I had a founder conversation recently. He didn't really want to show weakness to his investors. That's something we want to change. We want people to ask for help more. Everyone is figuring it out. It is okay not to know. It is normal, and you are going to know faster by asking, not pretending. We should be open about helping each other progress.” - Shiyan Koh Jeremy Au and Shiyan Koh, Managing Partner of Hustle Fund, discuss the Southeast Asia startup ecosystem and the key considerations for fostering growth. The conversation covers three key takeaways: 1. Biden Administration VC Investment Ban: Jeremy and Shiyan discuss that the ban is a progression in curtailing investments in Chinese semiconductors, quantum computing, and certain AI applications. This prompts VCs to reevaluate strategies and diversify into other regions due to concerns over reporting requirements and potential long-term legislative changes. 2. Ecosystem Density & Serendipity: They talk about entering Singapore's tech ecosystem, especially in regards to getting access to local communities and information asymmetry. They also talked about how Singapore is small yet the benefit is a dense ecosystem that allows for serendipity, interaction, and high-velocity networking. 3. Information Asymmetry vs. Sharing: They highlight the tension between sharing knowledge and keeping ideas secret. Shiyan believes that true value comes from unique execution rather than just knowing the concept. Jeremy points out that market players do benefit from information asymmetry especially incumbents and emerging market leaders, and has been weight against other pros and cons. They agree that fostering an environment of open collaboration is key to the growth of the region's startup ecosystem. Also, they talked about the challenges of reentering the Singapore ecosystem as a sea turtle, sharing imperfect work, and the role of media in highlighting startup success stories while acknowledging that fundraising announcements do provide a market signal of validation from gatekeepers. Watch, listen or read the full insight at https://www.bravesea.com/blog/china-investment-ban Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://chat.whatsapp.com/CeL3ywi7yOWFd8HTo6yzde Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4TnqkaWpTT181lMA8xNu0T YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@JeremyAu Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/sg/podcast/brave-southeast-asia-tech-singapore-indonesia-vietnam/id1506890464 Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkLnBvZC5jby9icmF2ZWR5bmFtaWNz TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea Learn more about Baskit here: https://baskit.app/

“There are a lot of requests from people wanting to break into the VC space. I encourage people to start thinking about the VC processes like sourcing, picking, helping, exiting, and demonstrate their competence by writing about it. Show a record of your thinking because that's essentially what investing is. It's thinking and making a decision. I don't encourage people with pure finance backgrounds to go straight into early-stage VC where it's pretty hands-on and operational and you won't have a lot of context or empathy for that stage. I always encourage people that if you've only done two years banking or you're fresh grads, go work at a company first instead of trying to get straight into VC.” - Shiyan Koh "You have to meet and believe in the founder, but you also have to do the math on the market size, the product market fit, and the acquisition costs. If you do the math, you're better than a good chunk of investors out there. You have to be thoughtful about putting the numbers in writing and ask yourself if you believe it. There's a huge value added to the founder when you have that conversation with them openly, and it's also a great way for you to better differentiate between good and great companies” - Jeremy Au “We strive for an unbiased, open application process and if it's someone we know personally, we try to ask someone else on the investment team to evaluate it. We try to remove bias from all parts of the system, and that's our part of the universe that we're trying to make as fair as possible. That goes back to what is the zone that you can control. We want to promote other women, suggest them for speaking spots, and make introductions for them, but at the end of the day, there are other things that we're not going to be able to control.” - Shiyan Koh In this insightful conversation between Jeremy Au, and Shiyan Koh, the Managing Partner of Hustle Fund, they discuss various aspects of venture capital and investing. They highlight the importance of diversity and representation in the VC industry, the need to address biases, and a fair and unbiased approach to the investment process. They also delve into the challenges faced by women and minorities in the field, along with the significance of mentorship and support in breaking into VC. Jeremy and Shiyan share advice for aspiring VCs, emphasizing the importance of understanding companies deeply and demonstrating competence in sourcing and picking. They discuss the indeterminate nature of venture investing and the need to enjoy the process, despite its uncertainty. Reflecting on their experiences, they offer insights into the journey of a VC and the value of continuous learning. Key Topics: • Importance of diversity and representation in the VC industry • Addressing biases in the investment process • Challenges faced by women and minorities in VC • Significance of mentorship and support in breaking into VC • Understanding companies deeply and demonstrating competence • Embracing the uncertainty and enjoyment of the venture investing process • Continuous learning and growth as a VC Watch, listen or read the full insight at https://www.bravesea.com/blog/women-vc-representation Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://chat.whatsapp.com/CeL3ywi7yOWFd8HTo6yzde Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4TnqkaWpTT181lMA8xNu0T YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@JeremyAu Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/sg/podcast/brave-southeast-asia-tech-singapore-indonesia-vietnam/id1506890464 Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkLnBvZC5jby9icmF2ZWR5bmFtaWNz TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea Learn more about NodeFlair here: https://www.nodeflair.com/

“Grab has laid off 10% of the workforce, which is a very sizeable dynamic. Previously, they have been letting people leave and haven't been adding people. Effectively, a hiring freeze has been a way for them to tighten expenses. I did feel that the communication of it was done straightforwardly and no one's surprised about the layoffs in this crisis of tech winter. Since the announcement, their stock market price has jumped by another 6% and shareholders are appreciative of this move.” - Jeremy Au “Full employment in Singapore is continuous. There are still jobs people are hiring for. It's more of taking a job that wasn't necessarily your dream job, thinking about different versions of how your skills can be applied and being open to new opportunities, or taking a bit of time off, regrouping, and doing something independent. The good thing about Singapore is that the costs aren't totally out of control, whereas in the Bay Area, the housing cost is very high, so it can be quite challenging to stay if you're not getting paid, and that leads to more dislocation.” - Shiyan Koh “I remember an interesting paper that said that if you graduated during a downturn, your lifetime earnings are some percentage lower. It was an interesting analysis where you have your first job's salary, then you get increments on that job at your second, third, fourth job. There's an interesting cohort effect where if you graduate in a downturn, you're always one bound smaller in terms of total compensation, which is a tragedy for a lot of people in this current tech space situation. If you're in different verticals like hospitality or communications, there are a lot of jobs that are still available to you, but it's interesting to see that the tech side suddenly loses that shine.” - Jeremy Au Jeremy Au and Shiyan Koh engaged in a discussion covering various topics, including Elon Musk versus Mark Zuckerberg, the Grab and Gojek layoffs, and the Singapore Press Holdings report. Regarding the hypothetical cage match between Musk and Zuckerberg, Jeremy expressed his bet on Elon Musk, envisioning a media event of significant magnitude. While both individuals shared their perspectives, it remained a light-hearted speculation about the outcome. The discussion then shifted to the layoffs at Grab and Gojek, acknowledging the potential impact on employees. They highlighted the importance of handling such transitions with care and sensitivity, recognizing the challenges faced by those affected. Lastly, the conversation delved into the Singapore Press Holdings audit report. Jeremy commended the transparency and detail provided in the report, emphasizing the value of acknowledging mistakes and learning from them. Shiyan shared a similar sentiment, valuing the comprehensive nature of the report and the opportunity for accountability and improvement within the organization. Throughout the conversation, the focus was on understanding different viewpoints and engaging in thoughtful analysis. The discussion highlighted the significance of transparency, empathy in managing layoffs, and the value of comprehensive reports in fostering accountability and improvement within organizations. Watch, listen or read the full insight at www.bravesea.com/blog/sph-audit-report Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://chat.whatsapp.com/CeL3ywi7yOWFd8HTo6yzde Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4TnqkaWpTT181lMA8xNu0T YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@JeremyAu Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/sg/podcast/brave-southeast-asia-tech-singapore-indonesia-vietnam/id1506890464 Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkLnBvZC5jby9icmF2ZWR5bmFtaWNz TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea Learn more about Pollen here: https://www.pollen.tech

“I think what else was interesting was Rachel Lim, a Singaporean co-hosting with Sam Altman as part of the Open AI team. The key phrase that became the headline was about humanity co-evolving with artificial intelligence. It was a striking statement, indicating a generational shift and an accelerant to evolution itself.” - Jeremy Au "People's energy can be sensed, and they may withhold it from you. However, it's understandable. The reality is, it's challenging. When I was a founder, I honestly placed more trust in certain investors over others. Even with the investors I did trust, I had to consider that I only had limited time, perhaps just one hour a week or even one hour a month, to process various matters. So, was I going to discuss my emotions? I'd rather focus on work or decisions since there are so many topics to cover. As a founder, I experienced stress, and I would probably place myself in the category of the 90% who did not confide in their investors about their stress." - Jeremy Au - Jeremy Au “When I was in the thick of it, my coach advised me to take four hours off and disconnect. Sometimes, it's crucial to remind people to do just that. Another important aspect, especially in the remote work environment, is encouraging founders to prioritize their teams' well-being. I once advised a founder, saying, 'You and your team have been working relentlessly for the past 12 months. It's essential to take them on an offsite that isn't solely focused on work. Just have fun together. Otherwise, you'll risk burning out your team.' Sometimes, it's about reminding people and normalizing the idea of taking breaks, even if they didn't explicitly seek my permission." - Shiyan Koh In the discussion between Jeremy Au and Shiyan Koh, several key insights emerged. They explored the concept of founders dealing with success and failure, particularly during the winding-down phase of a startup. Shiyan emphasized the importance of founders conducting themselves with integrity, treating everyone well, and communicating effectively during this challenging period. The conversation also touched on the issue of founder stress, burnout & failure report by Startup Snapshot. Shiyan highlighted the significance of taking breaks and encouraging founders to prioritize their well-being by allowing themselves to disconnect and recharge. Jeremy shared his personal experiences of finding restoration and clarity through hikes and off-the-grid experiences, including his month-long hike on the Pacific Crest Trail. He emphasized the value of giving oneself time and space for personal growth and reflection, and encouraged founders to seize opportunities for off-the-grid experiences, especially during transition periods.  Additionally, the discussion addressed Sam Altman's push for the regulation of AI and the use of "co" language such as "co-evolving" or "co-pilot" in relation to artificial intelligence. This highlighted the need for humanity to co-exist and evolve alongside AI, suggesting a paradigm shift and a call for responsible development and utilization of this technology. Watch, listen or read the full insight at https://www.bravesea.com/blog/open-ai-founder-stress Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://chat.whatsapp.com/CeL3ywi7yOWFd8HTo6yzde Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4TnqkaWpTT181lMA8xNu0T YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@JeremyAu Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/sg/podcast/brave-southeast-asia-tech-singapore-indonesia-vietnam/id1506890464 Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkLnBvZC5jby9icmF2ZWR5bmFtaWNz TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea Learn more about Esevel here: https://esevel.com/it-services-carepacks/

"At the end of the day, people are, in some weird way, mourning the drop of Sequoia because it feels like it's splitting up. So there's a little bit of grief in the short term. But I think it could be a good thing, honestly, in the medium to long term. Obviously, Hong Shan, they're going to do what they want to do and invest in what they want to do, and I think it would be a good thing for Peak. Everybody recognizes that Southeast Asia and India are different markets from America and Europe, and it's a very different market from China. So you might let them build a focused approach tailored for the ecosystem." - Jeremy Au "The Apple Vision Pro could be cool if, like, part of the workflow now is sometimes I'll ask someone, 'Can you read this email? Do I sound angry?' It would be cool if you could be side by side and flick something over to them, like 'Hey, check this.' It seems very possible in the Apple universe, considering we can already share wifi passwords, which is the best feature ever. Why can't you airdrop documents or views back and forth? If that were possible, it would be a lot more interesting and have a more interactive quality." - Shiyan Koh "There was an article where someone was talking about what was the societal impact of the button. So like in, Google Docs or in Microsoft Word, right? Basically, they're integrating GPT, and so there's a button that's basically just like start writing, and it's always easier to kind of edit than it is to come up with new like de novo stuff. But what does it do to the quality of our thinking as a society if no one has to struggle to come up with new things? Like you just kind of edit derivative things." - Shiyan Koh During a discussion between Jeremy Au and Shiyan Koh, several key insights were revealed. One notable topic of conversation was Sequoia Capital spinning off HongShan 红杉 and Peak XV. This split was seen as a strategic move to adapt to geopolitical tension, changing VC landscape and better cater to the specific needs of startups in different regions. Additionally, this move reflects the dynamic nature of the VC industry, where adaptability and specialization are crucial for success in a rapidly changing global landscape. Another significant point of discussion revolved around the Apple Vision Pro. They mentioned the product and contemplated its potential purchase for research purposes. They briefly touched on the contrasting strategies of companies like Tesla and Facebook. While Tesla started with high-end products and gradually expanded to a broader market, Facebook adopted a more affordable and mass-market strategy from the beginning. This comparison highlighted the different business models and revenue streams of these companies. Furthermore, Jeremy and Shiyan explored the educational and entertainment possibilities of VR and AR. They discussed immersive learning experiences and innovative storytelling in the entertainment industry. Additionally, they considered the social implications of these technologies, including the blurring of physical and virtual boundaries and the impact on human connection and empathy. Watch, listen or read the full insight at www.bravesea.com/blog/sequoia-capital-spins-off Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://chat.whatsapp.com/CeL3ywi7yOWFd8HTo6yzde Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4TnqkaWpTT181lMA8xNu0T YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@JeremyAu Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/sg/podcast/brave-southeast-asia-tech-singapore-indonesia-vietnam/id1506890464 Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkLnBvZC5jby9icmF2ZWR5bmFtaWNz TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea Learn more about NodeFlair here: https://nodeflair.com/

“Financial education and financial access are not the same. I get pitches on this all the time. They say they are democratizing access and teaching people. When I read the deck, I ask about what they teach. They teach about technical analysis and how to day trade, but I think that's an incomplete lesson. You can teach them about the current practice of others, but in the context of what's happening, that's really hard because you don't even talk about the fundamentals of capital formation.” - Shiyan Koh "There's something you can do with a day-to-day sort of off-market, public markets investment, whether it's good or bad, but you're not going to slide to zero straight away in a sense of off-private equity. We all know venture capital, as an asset class, is very risky. You have 1 out of 20 that's a home run if you are an above-average VC, and 19 out of 20 do right and effectively go to zero. Some are going to land the plane gracefully, some will lean the plane very roughly, and some of them will just crash." - Jeremy Au "The most interesting markets for crypto are emerging markets because that's where the rails are the worst and that's where people have a real need for alternatives that are not subject to the whims of their government per se. They really need to transact. In LATAM, you see a lot of use cases around inflation hedging and I'm interested to see some of those. People want to get their money out of the peso or the real and get into USDC. It's not even a speculative use case, it's literally just wanting my money to hold value." - Shiyan Koh In their discussion, Jeremy Au and Shiyan Koh touched upon several key insights, with a particular focus on crypto and Temasek's independent review of FTX. They emphasized the risks and potential rewards associated with different investment strategies. Jeremy highlighted the contrasting nature of public markets and private equity investments, emphasizing that public market investments can fluctuate day-to-day but are unlikely to plummet to zero as quickly as off-private equity investments. He emphasized the inherent riskiness of venture capital as an asset class, where only one out of twenty investments may yield significant returns while the rest may result in zero or negative outcomes. Shiyan brought attention to the potential of emerging markets as the most intriguing areas for crypto adoption. She pointed out that these markets often face inadequate financial infrastructure, making them more open to alternative solutions that are not subject to government control. Use cases in Latin America, for example, demonstrate a demand for inflation hedging, where people seek to protect their money's value by exchanging it for stable cryptocurrencies like USDC. Furthermore, the discussion touched on the distinction between financial education and access. Shiyan expressed skepticism towards approaches that merely focus on democratizing access without providing comprehensive education. She cautioned against teaching individuals solely about technical analysis or day trading, emphasizing the importance of understanding the broader context of financial markets. Watch, listen or read the full insight at https://www.bravesea.com/blog/temasek-ftx-pay-cut Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://chat.whatsapp.com/CeL3ywi7yOWFd8HTo6yzde Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4TnqkaWpTT181lMA8xNu0T YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@JeremyAu Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/sg/podcast/brave-southeast-asia-tech-singapore-indonesia-vietnam/id1506890464 Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkLnBvZC5jby9icmF2ZWR5bmFtaWNz TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea Learn more about Pollen here: https://www.pollen.tech

"In the teaser deck, there should be a money slide. When you hit that slide, you should immediately feel compelled to take this meeting. Many people overlook this aspect and end up with lengthy blurbs that leave investors questioning why they should meet. Spend time crafting a concise and captivating blurb and teaser deck that aims to grab someone's attention and secure the meeting. Save the detailed explanations for the actual meeting itself. Remember, to get the meeting, you need a strong hook from the start." - Shiyan Koh "Chemistry matters in fundraising. While it's important to focus on raising money for your business, it's equally crucial to understand the person you're partnering with on this journey. Take the time to assess their compatibility by reaching out to other founders they've backed, both successful and unsuccessful ones. Gain insights into what it's like to work with that person. Ultimately, you don't want to find yourself three years into the journey, despising the investor on your board. Building a positive and productive relationship is beneficial for everyone involved." - Shiyan Koh "Don't be overly sales-oriented, especially if you come from a professional services background like consulting. I've personally experienced this transition from being a consultant to a founder, and I was too quick to provide easy answers. It's important to acknowledge the reality of what's truly challenging in the startup journey. Not everything can be easy; otherwise, it wouldn't be a startup. Be candid and sincere about the genuine difficulties and don't hesitate to admit that you haven't solved them yet." - Jeremy Au Jeremy Au and Shiyan Koh engage in a valuable discussion on the fundraising process for startups, offering key insights to navigate this crucial aspect of the business. They stress the significance of creating an attention-grabbing blurb and teaser deck that entice potential investors, advising founders to invest time in drafting these materials to secure meetings. The duo suggests focusing on a concise set of 10 slides that cover essential elements such as revenue, traction, team, market problem, solution, and fundraising goals. They caution against going overboard with slide numbers and instead encourage founders to make these slides clear and crisp, rather than perfecting design aesthetics. The importance of honesty and transparency in fundraising emerges as a recurring theme. Jeremy and Shiyan emphasize the need for founders to refrain from lying or exaggerating, as trust is crucial in building investor relationships. They suggest that founders should be prepared to say "I don't know" when faced with questions, but should also articulate their plan to find answers. Setting milestones is deemed crucial, allowing investors to gauge progress and the startup's ability to deliver on promises. The chemistry between founders and investors is highlighted as a key consideration, prompting founders to investigate potential investors' track records and seek input from other founders they have supported. By internalizing these insights, startups can navigate the fundraising landscape more effectively, fostering trust and increasing their chances of securing funding. Read the transcript at https://www.bravesea.com/blog/mastering-fundraising Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://chat.whatsapp.com/CeL3ywi7yOWFd8HTo6yzde Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4TnqkaWpTT181lMA8xNu0T YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@JeremyAu Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/sg/podcast/brave-southeast-asia-tech-singapore-indonesia-vietnam/id1506890464 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau Learn more about NodeFlair here: https://nodeflair.com/ #bravesea #FundraisingTips #PitchPerfect #InvestorRelations #StartupJourney

“There's going to be a net increase in carbon emissions across the region. The growth is slow for developed markets and there may be some ways to plateau or shrink carbon emissions. For developing markets, their priority and popular vote is taking on more energy consumption, which leads to carbon emissions as a byproduct. The awkward reality for Southeast Asia is that everybody wants to be more carbon-efficient in their future energy growth expansion, but that still results in a slower rise in total emissions.” Jeremy Au “People want to work on things that are meaningful, but there are a lot of other things we can do like walk, ride a bike, or use public transit. Those who walk and bike more will also be less costly to the public healthcare system later. These structural changes can lower people's carbon footprint and benefit society as a whole. It isn't all the touchy-feely, feel-good type of things.There are dollars and cents associated with that.” Shiyan Koh "There are so many climate tech companies dependent on carbon credits. My bearishness stems from the fact that nearly 20 years ago, we talked about carbon credits and pricing carbon to create commercial incentives. It's been tough for startups relying on a carbon credit price. Monetizing and selling are difficult, and there's not much conviction in a significant future uptake." - Jeremy Au In a recent discussion between Jeremy Au and Shiyan Koh, they touched upon various topics, including climate change, electric vehicle (EV) adoption, and sustainable businesses. Shiyan highlighted the importance of transitioning to low-carbon transportation solutions, noting that if individuals chose to walk or bike for short trips, it would benefit both personal health and the planet. Jeremy agreed, hoping for increased availability and acceptance of e-bikes and scooters in the coming decade. The conversation also covered a variety of sustainable business models. They mentioned Tiger Energy, which aims to develop a battery-swapping network in Indonesia to accelerate EV adoption, and Pollen, which focuses on reducing waste and increasing manufacturing efficiency by reselling overproduced FMCG products. Another discussed venture, Unravel Carbon, works on carbon accounting, highlighting the growing interest in tracking and mitigating emissions. Jeremy and Shiyan acknowledged the challenges of promoting sustainable practices but remained optimistic about the future. They both expressed hope that EVs would become more widespread and accessible, contributing to the fight against climate change. Read the transcript at www.bravesea.com/blog/climate-change Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://chat.whatsapp.com/CeL3ywi7yOWFd8HTo6yzde Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4TnqkaWpTT181lMA8xNu0T YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@JeremyAu Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/sg/podcast/brave-southeast-asia-tech-singapore-indonesia-vietnam/id1506890464 Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkLnBvZC5jby9icmF2ZWR5bmFtaWNz TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea #bravesea #ClimateChange #ClimateTechRevolution #CarbonEmissionsReduction #CarbonAccountability #CleanEnergyFuture #SustainableLiving #NetZeroCarbon #ClimateInnovation #GreenTechSolutions #LowCarbonEconomy #RenewableEnergy #climatech #ev #esg

"I think finding win-win solutions may be the most contrarian thing. Not thinking of the world as zero-sum. I grew up pretty competitive, but I'm not sure if that's the best thing actually. It might be more productive to teach them to be less competitive with others and more about better global outcomes. I don't know how to teach that though. There's a set point in children where they don't like losing, so even when you try to explain to them why this loss is irrelevant or it's in their head, they get upset." - Shiyan Koh "Teachers don't want students to generate essays using ChatGPT and submit them, but there could be a learning process where you write an outline in class first, then feel free to interact with ChatGPT at home and go through the iterative process of improving the essay. Educators need to restructure how they assign work and get work out of kids because so much can be automated. It doesn't have to be a zero-sum game. There are ways to incorporate automation into the learning process that would improve the quality of learning." - Shiyan Koh In this discussion between Jeremy Au and Shiyan Koh, they talk about the impact of artificial intelligence on parenting and the challenges and opportunities that come with it. They discuss how AI can help parents in various ways, such as monitoring children's behaviour, providing personalized learning experiences, and automating routine tasks. However, they also recognize the potential risks associated with relying too much on AI, such as the loss of human connection and the potential for bias. Regarding parenting in the age of AI, they emphasize the importance of balancing technology and human connection. They suggest that parents should view AI as a tool rather than a replacement for human interaction and that they should stay informed about its potential risks and benefits. When it comes to their hopes for the future of their children, Jeremy and Shiyan express the desire for their children to be well-equipped to navigate the rapidly changing technological landscape. They want their children to develop critical thinking skills, emotional intelligence, and adaptability to succeed in an increasingly automated world. Overall, the discussion between Jeremy Au and Shiyan Koh highlights the potential benefits and challenges of AI in parenting and the need to approach technology with caution and balance. Read the transcript at https://bravesea.com/blog/parenting-ai WhatsApp Weekday Insight: https://chat.whatsapp.com/CeL3ywi7yOWFd8HTo6yzde Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4TnqkaWpTT181lMA8xNu0T Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@JeremyAu/featured Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/sg/podcast/brave-southeast-asia-tech-singapore-indonesia-vietnam/id1506890464 Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau?lang=en Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau Visit our community at: www.bravesea.com #bravesea #ParentingInTheAgeOfAI #AIandEducation #TechEducation #FutureOfWork #ContrarianParenting #WinWinSolutions #GlobalOutcomes #AIAssistedLearning #EdTech #LearningSolutions #FutureOfEducation #TechInEducation #ValuesInEducation #AIValuesEducation #FutureOfLearning

In this episode of BRAVE, Jeremy Au and Shiyan Koh discuss luxury, startup marketing, and the three types of human stories. Shiyan explains how talent and supply chain management drive economies of scale in the luxury industry. Jeremy emphasizes the importance of understanding consumers and being a great communicator to succeed in marketing. The discussion also touches on how the three types of human stories relate to branding and marketing strategies. “Marketing is often seen as the company communicating to the consumers and the market is the consumers' feedback on product features and campaigns. At an early stage of a startup, there are so many adjustments based on market feedback and it can be a bit of a shock for marketers. Both performance and brand marketers can fail if they don't use the time to really understand what a consumer wants, so a great marketing officer is also a great communicator, both on brand and performance. ” Jeremy Au  “Luxury is special because it's limited and not everyone can have it. The economies of scale come in terms of talent and supply chain. Supply chain is easier to think about but talent is really interesting. If you are working inside a single family-owned brand, you can't advance unless your boss leaves, but if you own a family of brands, you can have opportunities to move laterally and learn from lots of different brands. You can disproportionately attract better talent, both on the creative side and on the managerial side, which you both need for a luxury business.” - Shiyan Koh Read the transcript here at: www.bravesea.com/blog/luxury-conspicuous-consumption WhatsApp Daily Insight: https://chat.whatsapp.com/CeL3ywi7yOWFd8HTo6yzde Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4TnqkaWpTT181lMA8xNu0T Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@JeremyAu/featured Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/sg/podcast/brave-southeast-asia-tech-singapore-indonesia-vietnam/id1506890464 Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau?lang=en Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau Visit our community at: www.bravesea.com

Koh Shiyan is the Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Hustle Fund, a venture capital fund that invests in pre-seed software startups in the U.S., Canada and Southeast Asia. Prior to that, she was VP Business Operations and Corporate Development at NerdWallet, a fintech startup that helps users with a range of financial decisions through content, community and tools. Yiping Goh is Partner at McKinsey & Company and the former partner at Quest Ventures, a top venture capital fund in Asia. Prior to this, Yiping was the co-founder and chief product officer at MatahariMall.com, the largest omnichannel fashion e-commerce site in Indonesia, backed by the Lippo Group. Lippo Group also acquired All Deals Asia, the Southeast Asia e-commerce aggregator and group-buying platform that was also co-founded by Yiping. Mohan Belani is the Co-founder and CEO of e27, a startup and tech ecosystem platform focused on helping startup founders build and grow their companies. He is also a Partner at Orvel Ventures. He believes that startups can make the world a better place, and in order for Southeast Asia's tech ecosystem to be relevant, it needs to be driven by sustainable and impactful companies solving problems at scale. He enjoys working with Founders and helping them alleviate the challenges of building great companies specifically around the areas of talent, funding and market access. The BRAVE 10: The Singapore Edition anthology showcases the top 10 journeys of Singapore's technology leaders. We aim to inspire the next generation of leaders to tackle our region's challenges. Profits from the book sales are donated to The Codette Project, which helps minority women break into tech and improve the diversity of our startup ecosystem. Get a limited hardcover copy here at www.jeremyau.com/book Show notes at: https://www.jeremyau.com/blog/panel-vc-outlook

The BRAVE 10: The Singapore Edition anthology showcases the top 10 journeys of Singapore's technology leaders. We aim to inspire the next generation of leaders to tackle our region's challenges. Profits from the book sales are donated to The Codette Project, which helps minority women break into tech and improve the diversity of our startup ecosystem. Get a limited hardcover copy here at www.jeremyau.com/book Yiping Goh is Partner at McKinsey & Company and the former partner at Quest Ventures, a top venture capital fund in Asia. Prior to this, Yiping was the co-founder and chief product officer at MatahariMall.com, the largest omnichannel fashion e-commerce site in Indonesia, backed by the Lippo Group. Lippo Group also acquired All Deals Asia, the Southeast Asia e-commerce aggregator and group-buying platform that was also co-founded by Yiping. Koh Shiyan is the Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Hustle Fund, a venture capital fund that invests in pre-seed software startups in the U.S., Canada and Southeast Asia. Prior to that, she was VP Business Operations and Corporate Development at NerdWallet, a fintech startup that helps users with a range of financial decisions through content, community and tools. Mohan Belani is the Co-founder and CEO of e27, a startup and tech ecosystem platform focused on helping startup founders build and grow their companies. He is also a Partner at Orvel Ventures. He believes that startups can make the world a better place, and in order for Southeast Asia's tech ecosystem to be relevant, it needs to be driven by sustainable and impactful companies solving problems at scale. He enjoys working with Founders and helping them alleviate the challenges of building great companies specifically around the areas of talent, funding and market access. Show notes at: https://www.jeremyau.com/blog/brave-10

Barry O'Reilly welcomes Shiyan Koh as this week's guest on the Unlearn Podcast. Shiyan is Managing Partner at Hustle Fund, a VC fund that invests in pre-seed software startups in the US, Canada, and Southeast Asia. What makes Hustle Funding different is that, beyond the usual criteria that VCs look for, they tend to prioritize founders that have speed of execution. In today's show, Shiyan and Barry discuss her professional experience, from her beginnings in finance to her current role at Hustle Fund. A Whole New World “I've never been one for ten-year plans, so I cannot tell you that [I knew] I was going to end up here,” Shiyan tells Barry. One major interest was policy creation and regulation, which she defines as “systems being enacted on people,” so she surprised herself when she delved into investment banking after receiving an internship in college. “I didn't really know what I was showing up for, but opened up a whole new world,” she says. The company that offered her the internship, JPMorgan, invited her to work for them as a full-time employee, which she accepted. Eventually, however, she decided that the job and the industry weren't in her long-term game plan. [Listen from 1:46] Finance, to Growth Stage Venture Capital Shiyan talks about how she transitioned from investment banking, and how that experience helped her determine what to do next. “I thought [to myself], ‘I don't want to be an investment banker anymore, but let me reflect on the things I enjoyed about the job.' [So I] made lists… When I thought about all the different projects I've gotten to work on over the course of my time there, I realized that my favorite ones were the young companies, the ones who were just going public. And so I went ‘You know what, I want to do more of that.'” [Listen from 7:43] Growing Beyond Growth It's much easier to model growth in an Excel sheet than it is to make it happen. Shiyan recalls what she learned from her stint in growth stage venture capital. “I often felt like a fraud in those board meetings because I had never sold anything in my life… there was a huge gap between theory and practice.” Emboldened by her lack of knowledge, Shiyan resolved to attend business school to grasp a better understanding of how to build and run a business. Yet once again, she determined that this wasn't what she wanted to do. Just because something is intellectually interesting to you, it doesn't necessarily mean it's a good job for you, she affirms. [Listen from 11:08] NerdWallet and Takeaways Shiyan dives into her time at NerdWallet, where she was VP of Business Operations and Corporate Development. Incidentally, the founder of NerdWallet was a friend of hers. They were together for a casual meetup when she asked him if he knew of any interesting companies in New York, to which he replied with an offer to join his company. She goes on to describe her experience commuting from New York to San Francisco every few weeks. “The big takeaway from startups is that only 2 of the 100 things to do on your list are existential; you just need to let 98 things burn until they [reach that level],” Shiyan advises listeners. “You just have to focus on existing topics.” [Listen from 19:58] Alignment and Action “One thing I personally struggle with is finding the balance between the appropriate amount of time to invest into getting people aligned with what you're trying to do, and getting them to take action,” Barry shares. If you spend too much time on alignment, no action will take place, and vice versa. One thing that's hard for a lot of people to imagine is that startups move so fast, and as human beings, we're unaccustomed to that rate of change, according to Shiyan. We develop routines for control, but when things shift too quickly, we become stressed and emotional. You then have to investigate ways to help people continue to be productive and high-performing. [Listen from 30:08] Resources Shiyan Koh on LinkedIn | Twitter Hustle Fund

This week the dead spacelift Shiyan 10 rises from the ashes. Rocket Lab get ready to recover another rocket, and, Megan whants to know all about the Lucy spacecraft

On The Space Show for Wednesday, 29 September 2021: Dr Chris Boshuizen, a former NASA engineer at the Ames Research Centre and co-founder of Planet Labs (now Planet), is set to become only the third Australian to go to space when he launches aboard Blue Origin's New Shepard 18 suborbital mission, which is scheduled for October 14. Soyuz MS-19 crewed mission to the International Space Station is scheduled for October 5. The three-person crew will include director Klim Shipenko, actor Yulia Peresild and cosmonaut Anton Shkaplerov, hoping to be the first feature film to shoot scenes in space. Construction of the launch pads at Equatorial Launch Australia's Arnhem Space Centre has begun with formwork and concrete pours completed recently. Meanwhile, a NASA contingent has arrived at the Arnhem Space Centre in preparation for a historic sounding rocket launch campaign from the site next year. SpaceOz Pty Ltd has announced the development of the Space Centre Australia launch facility at Weipa, in far north Queensland, with initial construction expected in Q1 of 2022. If successful, Space Centre Australia will join Southern Launch's Whalers Way Orbital Launch Facility in South Australia, Equatorial Launch Australia's Arnhem Space Centre at Nhulunbuy in the Northern Territory and the Queensland Government's proposal for a launch facility at Abbot's Point in Queensland, as sovereign space launch facilities in Australia. Round 3 of the Australian Government's Moon to Mars Supply Chain Capability Improvement grants have been awarded to four local companies — Gilmour Space Technologies (Qld), Crytalaid Manufacture (Qld), Black Sky Aerospace (Qld) and Inovor Technologies (SA) — to improve their technical capabilities and help them enter new national and international markets. Space Machines Company and the CSIRO have partnered to test an innovative Australian printable solar cell technology in space. Microsoft to build a set of satellite ground stations in Australia. Chinese satellite, Shiyan-10, fails in orbit after a successful launch but not before causing a great “UFO” mystery to unfold in the skies above parts of northern and eastern Australia. Planet Earth Episode 21: NASA and the U.S. Geological Survey successfully launch the next Earth observation satellite in the series — Landsat 9

Koh Shiyan is the Managing Partner at Hustle Fund, a venture capital fund that invests in pre-seed software startups in the U.S., Canada and Southeast Asia.  Prior to that she was VP Business Operations and Corporate Development at NerdWallet, a Fintech Startup that helps users with a range of financial decisions through content, community and tools. Over the course of six years at NerdWallet, she led product teams, ran business operations and corporate development, and helped grow the company from US$1M to US$150M in revenue.  Shiyan’s first exposure to technology was as a summer intern writing technical documentation for a small 30 person startup Telenav, that is now listed on NASDAQ. She has also worked in a series of finance and investing roles at JPMorgan, Institutional Venture Partners and Bridgewater Associates before joining NerdWallet. Shiyan graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Biomechanical Engineering and a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Stanford University as well as an MBA from Harvard Business School.  Shownotes at https://www.jeremyau.com/shiyan-koh You can join community discussions at https://club.jeremyau.com/c/podcasts/60-shiyan-koh-on-choosing-bosses-learning-acceleration-building-investor-founder-trust

In this week’s movie, Nic Cage, an Irish mobster gone straight, finds out that his daughter has been Taken! Not to be confused with 2012’s Stolen (where he’s  a jewelry thief) or 2011’s Drive Angry (where he’s broken out of literal Hell), this is 2014’s Rage. This slog of an action movie bravely presents bad accents, worse wigs, and truly stinky acting. Comedian comedian Shiyan is here to work through her Rage at having to watch this nonsense.

Nuovo lancio per il razzo Lunga Marcia 7A che ha portato in orbita il satellite sperimentale Shiyan-9

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Aero/Space News Roundup! Without further ado, the news update from the week of 8 - 14 March. 1) A new dedicated spaceport for commercial launch companies?With China’s 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-2025) being finalized in the coming days/weeks, we noticed an announcement on Saturday 13 March from the Science and Technology Daily (科技日报), the official newspaper of the Ministry of Science & Technology. Notably: 1) Build an integrated communications, EO, satnav space system with global coverage, and 2) build a commercial launch center.The first point--building an integrated communications, EO, and satnav space system with global coverage, is not particularly new or surprising. China has been talking about the Belt and Road Spatial Information Corridor, and about the idea of “Integration of Comms,EO, and Satnav” (通导遥一体化) for several years.The second point is more surprising. China’s announcement to build a commercial launch site is not something that has been as widely discussed as the above-mentioned integrated network. To now, China’s four launch sites remain controlled by the People’s Liberation Army, and while commercial launch companies have been able to launch from Jiuquan, it is believed to involve some rather prickly regulatory hurdles. 2) What role will commercial companies play in China’s future satellite internet? Every year in China, the National People’s Congress, China’s national legislature, holds a session, generally in early Spring (with the exception of 2020 due to covid19). At the same time, China’s People’s Political Consultation Conference is held, bringing together delegations from the CCP but also business people, the military, and academics. It acts as an important advisory platform bringing multiple facets of China’s society and economy into one place. Both sessions represent a moment where past policies are reviewed and future policies discussed. A great place to listen and get hints of what is coming next in terms of space policy.3) China successfully launches Long March 7A Y2 one year after the rocket’s maiden launch (and failure)China successfully launched for the first time the Long March 7A rocket on Thursday March 11th, putting a satellite named Shiyan-9 into GTO. This is a significant event for several reasons. First of all, this is a nice addition to the Chinese Long March rocket family. The current workhorse for China’s GEO launches is the old LM-3 rockets, in service since the 1990s. This rocket uses extremely toxic hypergolic fuels, a issue for operations on the ground but also post-flight as the boosters come crashing back down on Chinese territory.Perhaps more importantly, LM7A fills in a gap within China’s GEO launch capabilities. LM3 in its heaviest version (LM3B/E with enhanced boosters and core stage) is only able to put 5.5 tons into GEO, while LM7A is able to put 7t. LM 7A fills a gap between LM3 and the much larger (although same height) LM5, which puts 14t in GTO.4) Galactic Energy Appears at Jianyang Investment ConferenceChinese commercial launch company Galactic Energy appeared at an investment conference held in Jianyang, near Chengdu, on 10 March. The article, posted on Galactic Energy’s official WeChat account, notes that the company’s Ceres-1 intelligent manufacturing base in Jianyang is nearing completion, with the base expected to come online in May of this year.---------------------------------------- Follow us on YouTube, LinkedIn, Twitter (https://twitter.com/DongFangHour), as an audio podcast, and on our official website: https://www.dongfanghour.com/

Alexandra Mosher: [00:00:00] This is part two of the interview with Sarah Parish, one of the founders of Torch Coffee in Seville, Spain. Sarah expands on her background growing up in Guatemala and how this affected the why behind her opening up a coffee shop. She also expands on how a trip from Torch's founder helped her and her sister to press on and what it looks like to be clear about your business's culture and the systems within your business. Sarah shares her story here with SCI's Alexandra Mosher.How's it been like knowing that it's your last, your last month there? Cause what you've been there for five years? Four years? Sara Parish: [00:00:45] Almost nine... eight, eight and a half years. Alexandra Mosher: [00:00:48] Almost eight and a half?!Sara Parish: [00:00:49] Yes. Yeah, by the time we got a residency, we got all the paperwork done, we looked for a locale, remodeled, everything else... so the business has been open five years, but it took us about six months before. So just by one thing after another it's we've been here a little over eight years now. Alexandra Mosher: [00:01:10] Okay. Yeah. Cause that's what I was kind of wondering, because I know you guys have had the shop for what, like four years now. Right? Sara Parish: [00:01:17] September 15th would have been five years. So two weeks till five years. Alexandra Mosher: [00:01:23] Yeah. I was trying to figure out the timeline for like how everything started. So can you walk me through like the timeline of what happened for those eight years? Sara Parish: [00:09:11] Going back to the very beginning, when I first had the idea of opening coffee shop, I think it wasn't so much about coffee for me. I know a lot of people get into coffee shops cause they love coffee. For me, I think it was the idea of like I've always loved business. I've always been really drawn by it, but it was also the idea of community around the whole coffee shop and the coffee community. That was really appealing to me. I probably didn't understand or grasp the full concept of it until I actually got into coffee, but that was super appealing for me. Like just to have a space where you can just connect with people and have conversation. I think that was one of the main motivators for me was more the business aspect and the community aspect of coffee. Sara Parish: [00:01:34] When we first got here, we moved to Spain with just a regular tourist visa, just to try to get information. Spain is really well known for horrible bureaucracy and nothing is clear and the immigration system is just a mess. Like there's tons of blogs and jokes and memes about it, but we could not find any information whatsoever online about what type of visa or residency we needed to apply for.So we're like, well, we have a 90 day tourist visa. Let's just go to the offices, try to get some information, hire a lawyer, whatever we need to do. We are here on six months and then we were able to extend it several times so we could stay here while we applied for the residency. But it took us almost a year and a half just to get the residency paperwork done.It was, it was just a huge mess. Like we would go to one office, no one could give us information or they'd say, "you need this document from this place." So we'd have to make an appointment, the appointment was a month away. So we have to waste a whole month. Finally get to our appointment and we show up to that office they're like, "no, this isn't the right office. You have to make an appointment somewhere else." And wait another month, it was just a year and a half of basically being sent from one place to another, trying to figure out what paperwork we needed to send in. So after a year and a half, we were finally able to figure out what it was that we needed to do, what paperwork was required. We were able to get everything together [and] submit the paperwork. So it took us about a year and a half. And then once we finally got our legal residency, then we started trying to look for locales, which was also very... wasn't easy. When we first got to Spain, I was 25-26 [years old]. My sister was 23-24. And that age in Spain is like really, really young. In the States, I think that they have this [idea] like once you're 18, you're an adult. You move out, you live on your own, you're self-supporting, you pay for your own things. But the culture in Spain is like, you can be 35 - I have friends, guy friends, that are lawyers and engineers, and they're like 35-40 [years old] and they still live at home.And so at 25... two single women in their twenties was like, "What? You guys have no idea what you're doing." Like no one wanted to rent us a place. They thought that we didn't know what we were doing. Which is partially true, but so it took us another eight months or so I think to finally find a locale that we liked that was a reasonable price and that was willing to rent to us.And then once we got that worked out, then it took us, I think, four or five months for the remodel and getting it all ready for opening. Alexandra Mosher: [00:09:52] Okay. And you started it with your sister, right? Sara Parish: [00:09:54] Yes. Alexandra Mosher: [00:09:55] So was that the same thing for her? Like, tell me what that was like with you to like, talking about it. Sara Parish: [00:10:00] We're very, very different. I'm probably more of the business side. She's super talented in a bunch of stuff, but I don't think Vicky ever was drawn to opening a business. I think she just opened the business cause it sounded like a good idea and she want to do it with me, but she's not the business person. She's super creative. She's really good at decorating. She's super good at coffee. But she wasn't drawn into coffee so much for the business as I was, she just got on board because I threw the idea at her and it sounded really cool. And we work really well together and now she loves it. But I think at the beginning it was just the idea of working together and starting a project together.Alexandra Mosher: [00:10:40] Okay. So starting a coffee shop is a pretty big commitment and like, where did it go from like a fun idea to like, "okay, let's actually do this."Sara Parish: [00:10:48] I think it was very progressive. One thing led to another and we kept trying to take steps in a certain direction and then one door would open up another door When we first decided that's what we wanted to do, and we both decided that we wanted to do it in Spain I had this idea that I was like, "we'll be back in six months, open in six months" and it ended up taking almost two years to finally get back and have the finances and have everything ready to open, but it was just the way things worked out were super, super cool, because we had the idea, we were determined that's what we wanted to do, but we had never worked in coffee. We knew nothing about coffee. We had never opened a business. We worked a lot, had management experience and that kind of stuff, but it was basically "let's open a coffee shop," but we had no background and [had] never worked in a coffee shop before in our lives.And so it was... it was that just one thing led to another. It was of love, like social entrepreneurship. So I found a business/social entrepreneurship course in Thailand, and that's where I met Samuel! Samuel was of one of the speakers there. He invited us to go - he heard that we were opening a coffee shop - and he invited us to go to China, to Greenhouse and get our coffee training. And he had lived a while in Guatemala. We knew a couple of the same people in Guatemala. So I was like, "Hey, why not?" And so we went and we spent, I think it was a little over three months in China learning coffee. So it was basically, we were at the coffee shop all day. We had trainers, there were two types of coffee. So it was just like hands-on practice for about three months. And that was all the coffee training we had before opening. After China we went back to the States to look for investment, get all our paperwork together and that kind of stuff. So it was more like meeting Samuel in Thailand - he was the one that kind of introduced us into specialty coffee and helped us get trained and have a little bit of experience before opening.Alexandra Mosher: [00:12:41] Wow! That seems so divine that you would meet Samuel, who's been in Guatemala… and I always thought you guys met in Guatemala. That's so crazy that you guys met in Thailand. Okay. So before that, were you thinking about not doing specialty coffee or just going to do, like... Sara Parish: [00:12:56] I didn't even know that was a thing.Alexandra Mosher: [00:12:59] Okay. Sara Parish: [00:12:59] My first introduction to specialty coffee was with Samuel. He was telling me third wave coffee. I was like, "what the heck, is this?" And that was the first time I ever saw latte art. And that was weird. Because growing up in Guatemala, you're surrounded by coffee, but most of the good quality coffee was always exported. And so I've been drinking coffee since I was a little girl, but it was just coffee. [You] know, we understood that it was from the area, but I had absolutely no concept of specialty coffee then. So he was our first introduction to it.  Alexandra Mosher: [00:13:33] If you can think back to when you first started thinking about opening a coffee shop, what was your ideal vision? What was like your dream coffee shop? Sara Parish: [00:13:44] Decor-wise. I think Vicki, my sister was the one that had more of an idea. And I think what we ended up opening up with is pretty much on what we were envisioning. It was a little more industrial. We played off a lot of the Torch brand with blues, black accents and stuff like that, but, it did - eventually it would change over like the two years that we're looking at or planning opening a coffee shop - our end product is pretty much what we wanted. Alexandra Mosher: [00:04:57] When you first were going into it, did you kind of expect that it was going to take that long? Or did you have like a different idea? Sara Parish: [00:05:06] No... I didn't think it was going to take that long at all. I think the most frustrating part, it took us a while to find investment, but that was kind of, we kind of knew that was going to happen, just trying to find investors for a different country. We knew it wasn't going to be easy. But I think the part, the most frustrating part was trying to get residency just because we're opening business, so we have an entrepreneurship visa or residency, or had... you would think a country that was in crisis would be more willing or a little more motivated to try to get entrepreneurs to open businesses here, but it was a drawn out absolutely stressful, confusing process.And like the whole time we were here, we weren't working and we were still having to like pay rent and, and all that kind of stuff. So I think that was the most frustrating part of the process. Alexandra Mosher: [00:05:58] It's interesting because I feel like, especially in the United States, we have this idea of Spain, like, "I'm going to move to Spain and I'm going to start a business and it's like, woohoo! like party all the time!"Sara Parish: [00:06:10] No, it's, it's not like that at all. It's, it's actually pretty sad in my opinion. It's really, really sad to see because like, you talk to young people here and I don't know anybody, anybody that's my age or younger - I'm 34 - my age or younger that actually wants to open a business.Because everyone knows how, how difficult it is and how high taxes are and how many regulations and paperwork and bureaucracy and roadblocks and everything that they put towards for you that it's, it completely kills anybody that has any desire to do so. And that was even before, like this whole situation and everyone here wants to work for the government.And so I think in the States, almost like they have this idea that anyone that works for the government is kind of like... like even like you think about like post office, like who wants to work in a post office, but here that's like actually, people... that's, for them, that's a great career choice because they know no matter what you'll be working for the government, you'll have a steady paycheck, they can't fire you because it's impossible to get fired here. Any kind of crisis, like right now, COVID, everybody that works in the government has a stable paycheck. So it's kind of sad that like, they don't incentivize entrepreneurship at all here. And I didn't see that until moving here and being here for nine years that I don't know very many people that actually have the desire to open businesses here. Alexandra Mosher: [00:15:57] Right. Okay. So take me back to when you guys first opened up the coffee shop, what was that like for you guys? Sara Parish: [00:16:04] It was tough. We were the very first specialty coffee in the city and we were one of the very first in the country. So no one understood the concept.It was something completely different that was done in the city. And we were in a very, very traditional city. There's even a saying here in Seville called de todo la vida, which is "of all your life," and they say it constantly. You just hear people and it's just like a common theme that comes up with every conversation where they say "de todo la vida."So they like things that they're used to that have been normal for them during their whole life. And so when people would come in, that's what they'd ask us. They're like, we want a coffee. So we explained to them the difference in specialty coffee is going to taste different. Like we would kind of educate them a little on specialty coffee."No, no, no, no, no, no. I just want one my whole life. De todo la vida." And we're like "it's going to be different." The first two years of the coffee shop was most of our time was spent with just explaining and educating and communicating what specialty coffee was. So it was, it wasn't so much serving. It was more communicating and educating, and it was just really long hours trying to introduce a new product to… or create a market where there was [none]. There was no specialty coffee market in Seville at all.It went from the coffee they serve here in Spain is a low quality or robusta and they roast it called torrefacto, which is they roast it with sugar. So it's like charred black, really dark coffee, and it's super, super cheap. So they're used to buying coffees at a bar that they drink in 30 seconds and leave for less than a Euro.And we were charging two to three times that, and it took us a lot longer to make because you have to follow certain steps and you heat up milk only once. And so it was a totally different concept of coffee from going, "coffee is something you drink really quickly just to give you caffeine in the morning at a really, really low cost or price" to something artisanal that takes very long to make and their concept that was very expensive.So it was a big shock. We just thought, "Oh, people are going to want to try it. Cause it's something new and cool and different." And we didn't realize how traditional the city was and how hard that transition was going to be to try to get people, to try this new product.Alexandra Mosher: [00:18:36] So you were like not only dealing with starting your first business, but also in a different culture too, like putting it into a different culture. Sara Parish: [00:19:09] I think it was, it was a huge emotional rollercoaster because we weren't making money. We were losing money the first three and a half years that we were open... four years that we were open. Expenses are super high here. Taxes are very high. So like during the first three, three and a half, four years, we wanted to make it work, we were super passionate about it. We were really excited about [it] being our first business. We were very motivated to make it work, but it was an uphill battle the whole time. We weren't making money. We were losing money. We weren't making... There were times where we didn't even get a salary. We're working 80, 90 hours a week, every single day, had no time off. Had no social life, had no personal life. And there was months where we were like, “okay, we did all that. And we're not even making a salary.”Sara Parish: [00:23:20]  You get into this routine of like, and you just get used to being in this routine. Like now I look back at them, like I have no idea how we were working 90 hours a week, but I think your body, you just get on adrenaline and you just get on this routine of, that's just what you do every day.You wake up in the morning, you go to work at 7:30 in the morning, you get off work at 9:30 at night, you go home, have dinner, go to sleep. It's just this routine that you get on. That it's like a, what is that called… a hamster wheel, that you just don't get off and you don't really realize how you're on the same routine, but I think it hit us when we started [thinking] like, “okay, we've been doing this for three years and what have we done other than the coffee shop?" And so, it's hard to describe because you get in this routine, but at the same time, you're like you see that time is passing by. And you're not getting any younger and you've missed out on a lot of stuff that people are doing that... oh, I'm going to get emotional! And that part's hard. Alexandra Mosher: [00:24:24] Yeah. You felt like you had missed out on stuff cause you had to focus so much on the business. Sara Parish: [00:24:29] Yeah. When, like my friends are traveling and having fun and get to go on holidays and like for five years of my life, I didn't have vacation. I didn't have a personal life. I didn't have a social life.So that's, what's been, that was tough. Yeah. And so it wasn't just like the stress of our- the business isn't making money. How are we going to cover the expenses of the business? But on top of that, the personal sacrifice, we weren't even making money on a personal level. So I was like, is it worth it? Is the business worth all the sacrifices we're making on a personal level?So it was just like a huge mix of stuff of like, we really wanted to make it work. Because there was a project that we loved and we were passionate about, and we put a lot of effort and sacrifice and we invested a lot into it. But at the same time, on a personal level, you sacrifice a lot, a lot to try to get the project up and running.So it was a huge rollercoaster of emotions of like some days where we're excited because people - it was starting to pick up and we're starting to get recognized and we're doing really well on TripAdvisor. And we were starting to get recognized in the European coffee community. So there were highs and like emotions of like it's working a little, but then lows once you start looking at the finances and you're not making money and how we're going to pay rent and how we're going to pay taxes.And so it's just like every single day was an emotional roller coaster and you never knew what it was going to be like, it was going to be a great day or really, really bad day or... It was very, very tough. Alexandra Mosher: [00:14:09] Okay. And was it like the community feeling that you were looking for?Sara Parish: [00:14:12] Different! Very, very, very different. We had never worked in a coffee shop. We had never opened a business before. So I think before opening the coffee shop, our vision was we're going to have so much time off and we're going to have time just to sit down with customers and talk to them for hours on end. We just like everyone's idea when they go into the coffee shop, of just how peaceful it is. And the reality was totally different. There were days we didn't even have a chance to sit down and have lunch much less sit down and have conversations and community with people inside the coffee shop.So it was very different the way we had imagined it at the... before opening. But we did find that even if we were working and we didn't have a chance to sit down with people, community was still created, especially with our team. now we have a really good relationship with even the other coffee shops in the city.We have a WhatsApp group and we're always talking on there. We get together to have coffee or drinks or whatever about once a month. So community naturally happened, but it wasn't the way we envisioned it.Alexandra Mosher: [00:15:21] So you felt like, maybe - correct me if I'm wrong - like for you, you had community more with like your team and other coffee shops, but you were kind of expecting you to have community with like the patrons, the people. Sara Parish: [00:15:33] There was also a lot of community there with our locals, with the customers that would come in every day. But just the way we envisioned it was a lot more us behind the bar working and that interaction and conversation and that kind of stuff. It wasn't so much, we had envisioned it was more going to be like, we're going to sit at the tables and we're going to be able just to have conversation with everyone all day. Alexandra Mosher: [00:24:46] Yeah. So you had the business for five years, total? Sara Parish: [00:24:51] This month we turned five years. Alexandra Mosher: [00:24:53] Okay. Sara Parish: [00:24:53] So like really hard sacrifice was I think three and a half years.Alexandra Mosher: [00:24:59] But even the year and a half recently, you still were not able to do a whole lot besides the business? Sara Parish: [00:25:08] I would say maybe six to eight months before COVID, it was going very well. We're finally, we weren't having to work. We weren't needed, there was days we'd go into the coffee shop and like, we're like, "okay, we're leaving," because there's nothing for us to do. We were able to hire enough staff. Everything was running by itself. Basically we were there just to supervise, roast coffee, do admin work, paperwork, that kind of stuff. But like the daily work of the coffee shop, we were completely not needed anymore. I would say about eight months before COVID hit. So during that time it was really nice, cause we, we finally saw that it was working. We had time off, we were able to build friendships with people. That period of time was good. Alexandra Mosher: [00:25:48] So for someone who wants to start a coffee shop, would you tell them that it's worth it? That it's a good idea? What would you say to them?Sara Parish: [00:25:57] Me and my sister talk about this quite often. We're like, if we could go back, would we still do it? And we both say yes. It's super weird, because like I look back at it and I'm like, "it's emotional, but I don't see myself doing anything else." And also during COVID and everything that's been going on right now, we've been trying to decide what to do.And we're both like, I can't see myself working for anybody else. It's been super hard and it's been an uphill battle. I wouldn't have changed it at all for anything. Just because like the lessons you learn, your personal development, how you grow as a person, experience that you have, the people that you meet... for me, that was all worth all the sacrifice for sure. Alexandra Mosher: [00:26:38] Would you say the hardest part was just missing out on certain things that you would've liked to be at? Sara Parish: [00:26:43] Yeah.Alexandra Mosher: [00:26:45] Why do you think that part was the most difficult for you out of like everything that could have been the most difficult?Sara Parish: [00:26:50] I think just being like completely honest and raw and vulnerable, I think the aspect that I'm a single woman about to turn 34 years old, that hits you hard. And so it's like, I only have a few more years left. Like I'm 34. Like that starts, that starts creeping up on you. And so, I think that's been the hardest part.We knew before COVID - we have been talking to Samuel about it for a long time now - we knew eventually we wanted to sell the business and move back to Guatemala. So we always knew that was kind of the direction we wanted to go in. But business in itself was doing great. We paid off our last debt two weeks before COVID hit. We had gotten a couple months behind on rent and two weeks before COVID hit, we caught up on all our rent. We had a line of credit that we had gone into the negatives quite a bit. We had finally gotten up to zero on that. So two weeks before COVID we're like, "okay, we're finally from here on out, we're going to be able to start making money." So we were making that to cover all the expenses and then to be able to get caught up a little on our debt and stuff.Alexandra Mosher: [00:28:18] Okay. And then what happened? How did COVID affect everything? Sara Parish: [00:28:24] At first, here in Spain, they just announced a two week shutdown. That first it was literally within 24 hours. We went into work on Saturday and we started just hearing "they're shutting things down in Italy. All the businesses are closed in Italy." There was a lot of rumors of it happening in Spain. So we were trying to work on Saturday. The weekends were really, really busy for us. Like it was nonstop. So I was trying to work and produce and be with customers and all that kind of stuff. At the same time, it was trying to figure out what was going on with the news and if the government was making any announcements. And then all of a sudden I started noticing on Instagram, on social media that a lot of the coffee shops in the country were closing voluntarily. And I was like, what do we do? I had eight people on staff. So I was like, I can't just close my business for two weeks when I have eight people that depend on their jobs, like four out of our eight staff have families, have kids, and it's a huge responsibility.And so I was like, I don't know what to do. I don't know what to do. And so, that was just during one day, by the end of the day on Saturday, we were getting a lot of pressure from people through our Instagram, our social media of why we hadn't closed yet. This wasn't even 24 hours. We had no time to even make a decision.And tons of pressure. We're getting pretty nasty messages. And so by Sunday, we decided for our staff not to come in and me and my sister would work by ourselves until we could figure out what was going on. By Sunday night, they announced that all the hospitality businesses had to be closed by Monday morning. We did not even have time to go through our fridges. We had just stocked up on a bunch of food. We had just ordered a bunch of green coffee. They didn't even give us a chance to go through everything that we had ordered. It was literally 24 hours and they shut us down. And what started off as two weeks ended up being two and a half months that we were completely closed down.It was very difficult, very difficult. Luckily in Spain, all of our staff was able to go onto unemployment. So for the two and a half months that we were closed, we didn't have to pay salaries or social security for them. So we just had to figure out what we're going to… how we're going to pay all the other expenses.We still had to pay rent.We had to pay all our taxes. We had to pay light, but luckily we didn't have to pay salaries during the two and a half months that we were closed. Alexandra Mosher: [00:30:56] Pre-COVID, you guys were thinking about going to Guatemala. What was influencing that decision? Why were you deciding to sell the business and go back to Guatemala? Sara Parish: [00:31:06] I think it was a big mix of a lot of different reasons. I think we realized what we wanted on a personal level. We weren't going to be able to accomplish that in Spain. Vicki, and I have always had the vision of like, for us, it wasn't just about opening one coffee shop. I've always wanted to open several coffee shops and do a roastery and like eventually do school. And like, we had a vision of a lot more and we realized that in Spain we were always going to be limited just because expenses are so high, taxes are ridiculous. Bureaucracy is... it's just difficult.So we just felt like we were never going to be able to accomplish what we really wanted to here in Spain. We would always be like, okay, if we just want to open up one coffee shop then it would work. But when we expand and stuff like that, it'd be very difficult here. So I think it was a mix of that. And then just on a personal level, we were kind of ready to go home, be back with our family and our friends. We were also excited about the possibilities or the prospects of what we could do in Guatemala. So I think it was just a mix of everything. Alexandra Mosher: [00:32:09] How did COVID kind of change what ended up happening? Sara Parish: [00:32:16] It's actually been a progression. So when we were able to open up again, we were only able to open up at a 30% capacity and at that amount we lost all the tourism. Before COVID we were… about 85% of our customers were tourism. And now borders are shut down. So there is a little bit of tourism in Spain, but it's just European tourism right now.When we opened up, it was just me and my sister working all our staff is still under unemployment for a while, but we knew tourism probably wasn't going to be coming back until 2021. And with the expenses we had with rent, just all the expenses that we had, that it would be very, very difficult to get back on our feet.And if we were able to, we'd get back into debt, we'd accumulate quite a bit of debt just trying to make it through that next year. So we were opened up for another two months, just me and my sister working by ourselves. And then we decided at the end of August to close. Our idea at the end of August was to look for a different locale - find something really small, something really cheap. And at least that would reduce the expenses and try to survive this year. And then by next year, maybe we can save the business and try to sell it. So if we save the business, try to sell it, we'll take that money and we'll move back to Guatemala. But just this last, two weeks, we've decided that it's not even worth trying to reopen here and we're just going to head out to Guatemala and try to set up there.Alexandra Mosher: [00:33:55] What was that decision like? How did you guys feel about that? Sara Parish: [00:33:59] It's tough because pre-COVID a broker had valued our business at like $280,000. We were going to make a lot of money. We were able with that money, we were [going to be] able to do a lot of things in Guatemala. And now our idea of going to Guatemala went from being able to sell our business for $280,000 and having a big chunk of cash to be able to do something in Guatemala to now, basically all we have left is our furniture and our machinery, and that's it.Alexandra Mosher: [00:34:45] What you want to do in Guatemala is you want to start some more coffee shops? Sara Parish: [00:34:50] For now I think our idea is just to open a small coffee shop and maybe focus more on roasting. More roasting, sourcing coffee, buying coffee directly from farmers there, eventually getting into education, but I think we're going to focus more on roasting and education and not so much on coffee shop. We've realized coffee shops is a huge investment of time. And so we were thinking about maybe focusing a little bit different. Alexandra Mosher: [00:35:15] So like, even though you wouldn't have done it any differently with starting the coffee shop you've kind of like moved away from, for now, doing another coffee shop.Sara Parish: [00:35:26] I think eventually I would be open to opening a large one like we had here, but I think for our next step would just be a smaller coffee shop. Alexandra Mosher: [00:35:34] Okay. So you would eventually like to open up another coffee shop. Sara Parish: [00:35:38] Yeah. Alexandra Mosher: [00:35:38] So you mentioned the reasons why you wouldn't have done it any differently. You said personal development, all the lessons that you learned, what were some of the other things? Sara Parish: [00:35:51] Just experience. Just the experiences we've had here. I think that opening your own business, being pushed to your limits, having to deal with all the mix of emotions, all the problems that you have on a daily basis. I think that is like, on a personal development side, is huge. Lessons and learned that I don't think you'll ever learn - Alexandra Mosher: [00:36:29] Could you imagine that when you first had this idea about the coffee shop, that it would take you like through this whole journey, and like...Sara Parish: [00:36:36] No...sometimes ask us - people that kind of understand the Spanish market ask us - like, what were you guys thinking?I was like, it was pure ignorance, honestly it was pure ignorance. We got into this, not having any idea what it was going to be like. We had heard people say opening a business is difficult, but I don't think until you're in it and you experience what's really like you fully grasp that. Cause it's like a whole other level of difficulty. Cause like before I was working a job, so you have difficulties, you have a boss that's behind you. You have stress, you have deadlines, but never to the level where it's like 24-hour non-stop where you're waking up at 3:00 in the morning, trying to figure out what you're going to do with your espresso machine that's broken or little things like that is.. It's a totally different level of stress that unless you're in it, I don't think you'll fully grasp it or understand it. We knew it was going to be hard and we knew it was going to require a lot of work and a lot of effort, but you don't fully get it until you're there.Alexandra Mosher: [00:37:41] So can you tell me something that people wouldn't necessarily think about? Like, what was one of your favorite parts of owning a coffee shop? Sara Parish: [00:37:50] There's tons of things that I love about it. Something that's been super cool for me is like, we can literally go to any city in Spain right now and have connection with someone. So like, I go to Barcelona, I can write anybody at any of the coffee shops in Barcelona and already have a contact there. So that's super cool. Like basically it's like this huge worldwide community, that's all connected just because we all have the same passion through coffee. And I think that is that's super neat. I could just go anywhere and not even know somebody and just walk into a coffee shop and be like, "Hey, I work in coffee," and how that automatically creates a connection with someone. I think that's super cool. Alexandra Mosher: [00:39:37]So because of Samuel, I've learned some things about what is challenging with a coffee shop. One of the things that we talk about sometimes is location. How was that for you guys finding location build out… Sara Parish: [00:39:57] In parts it was difficult and other parts we actually [got] pretty lucky with the location we got. The hard part for us was when we moved here, we were looking for a for a coffee shop. I was 25 or 26, new in the country, had no history here. And in the United States – the United States is very entrepreneurial - being 25 or 26 opening your first business is quite common. In Spanish culture it's not common at all. At all. Everyone's dream here is to work for the government or be employed by some government office. And so entrepreneurship is not incentivized here. And so being 26 years old and trying to open a business, especially the size that we were doing, was unheard of here. Alexandra Mosher: [00:07:33] You like have more faith in Guatemala's situation as far as like opening up a business or you guys want to do like, you said you wanted to do like, maybe like a smaller cafe, but you wanted to also maybe focus on roasting, right? Sara Parish: [00:07:48] Yeah, we're looking at doing more roasting, like wholesale roasting, education and maybe just a small coffee shop. But I feel like it would be a lot easier, I think both the United States and Guatemala are countries that incentivize entrepreneurship a little bit more. They already understand the difficulties of being an entrepreneur just by itself and aren't going to put 20 million roadblocks for you. Just to give you an example here since... this is just one out of like dozens of paperwork I have to fill out every day.But everything, any machinery or anything maintenance-wise that I'd have to do at the coffee shop, I have to fill out paperwork for down to if a light bulb goes off during the day, I have to fill out paperwork stating that the light bulb went out, what date and time and what actions I did in order to fix it. If the refrigerator breaks, I have to call a technician. If the grinder needs repairing, I have to call technician for every little repair I do during the day I have to fill out paperwork for, and that's just one out of dozens and dozens of things I'd have to do every day. And so just putting so many requirements like that, it's just like, then your whole day is filled up with just trying to be legal every day, and have all your paperwork done just in case you have an inspection that it doesn't leave any time for creativity or growth or for anything else. So I think in the United States and Guatemala they kind of facilitate businesses a lot more.  Alexandra Mosher: [00:09:18] Okay. That's good news. I'm excited for you guys to go back to Guatemala and see what that's like to do something similar, like... well would you say it's something similar? Are you still going to be under the Torch brand? Sara Parish: [00:09:30] Oh, for sure. Yeah. That was one thing that I knew for sure. I love working in coffee and I absolutely love the coffee community and I love working with Torch. And so the thing that wasn't the easiest was trying to do business in Spain, but I knew, I knew right off the bat I didn't know where I wanted to be in the world for a while, I didn't know, leaving Spain, if I would want to go to another European country or go back to the States, or... we were kind of playing with, where for awhile, but what we knew for sure is that we want to continue working on coffee, and we wanted to continue working with Torch.Alexandra Mosher: [00:10:07] Okay. And so right now, the vision... when you say education, what do you mean?Sara Parish: [00:10:12] Courses. Coffee courses. So everything from sensory, roasting, brewing, barista...Alexandra Mosher: [00:10:18] What is kind of like the purpose behind that? Is there a certain demographic that you're going for? Or like, what are your hopes with education? Sara Parish: [00:10:26] In Guatemala, from last time I looked - I haven't looked in the last couple months, I've been kind of trying to get this closed out - but last time I checked there isn't a certified - SCA certified - coffee school in Guatemala. So there's some smaller coffee schools, but I think we have the huge advantage of it's - we're wanting to do Sustainable Coffee Institute, but also SCA, but we have the advantage of both languages. So we're looking at running courses for people in Guatemala that are wanting to work in coffee, but also opening it up to outside of Guatemala. So people from the States, they can do... we can do coffee tours or processing camps or, anyone that wants to go to Guatemala, learn coffee in a country of origin, we can run classes in English as well. So we're looking at running classes in both languages. Alexandra Mosher: [00:11:13] You probably have to be like SCA certified, right? Sara Parish: [00:11:16] My sister is, I'm not there yet. Vicki's good!Alexandra Mosher: [00:11:21] Amazing. Okay. So I wanted to ask you some questions kind of about like... I realized that I didn't really understand your background a whole lot. So I know that you grew up mostly in Guatemala, right? Can you tell me kind of like your background? Sara Parish: [00:11:38] I'm a huge mix, so... I get that question a lot and sometimes like, I don't know how to answer it. I come from a very multicultural family. My dad has three passports, Canadian, American and Guatemalan. But my grandfather, his dad was raised in Columbia.And so my dad is American/Canadian/Guatemalan, but was born and raised in Guatemala. But my mother is from Georgia. Alexandra Mosher: [00:12:03] The state or the country?Sara Parish: [00:12:04] The state, the United States. Yeah, Georgia. They met in the United States. They were both studying there. They got married, went to Guatemala and we were all born and raised in Guatemala.So when... the short story, what I give people just to simplify my story, I just say I'm half/half. I'm, half American, half Guatemalan. I was in Guatemala till I was 19 or 20 spent my whole life Guatemala. And then I went to Texas for a few years to study. I think I was in Texas for four years and then I moved to Spain.Alexandra Mosher: [00:12:35] Okay. What did you study in Texas?Sara Parish: [00:12:38] Business. Alexandra Mosher: [00:12:39] Okay. Sara Parish: [00:12:40] Yeah. Alexandra Mosher: [00:12:40] And so if I'm correct, isn't like your family... aren't they missionaries, or no? Sara Parish: [00:12:45] I personally don't consider them missionaries because like, when I see other missionaries in Guatemala, my family is not like that at all. Like really, my family are locals. Like they're, they're like... my dad is, he's tall and white, but culturally speaking, language, the way he views things, he's 100% Guatemalan. And like, he's been speaking, he learned English when he met my mom, so he's half American, but he didn't even speak English until he was 20...like 20... 19-20. And so our way of interacting and stuff, like, I don't know, maybe I just have a picture of what missionaries were like in Guatemala and they all like did social work or feeding children, or like, in my family, my parents were church planters.And so I don't consider them missionaries because for them that's home. For us that's home. My mom, my mom is the foreigner, but actually she's super Guatemalan now. Like, I think she feels more at home in Guatemala than she does in United States now. So I would say we were, we were in ministry, but I wouldn't consider us ourselves or like my parents missionaries.Alexandra Mosher: [00:13:47] It would be like saying like I'm a missionary in Portland, but... Sara Parish: [00:13:50] That's home for you. Yeah. Alexandra Mosher: [00:13:52] Yeah. That makes sense.Okay. So what like town, or what area in Guatemala did you grow up in? Sara Parish: [00:14:04] I grew up in a town called San Cristóbal, which is right outside of Guatemala city. It's actually closer, it's on the way to Antigua. So coffee people they know Antigua, Guatemala. It was a town right outside of the city, like kind of going towards Antigua.Alexandra Mosher: [00:14:20] Okay. So did you experience a lot of like coffee culture growing up? Sara Parish: [00:14:24] I think in a sense I did. I don't think growing up, I really paid attention to it, but I think just being from a producing country, I remember my whole life just driving by coffee farms and it was just like normal. It wasn't... I'd never even stopped to think about it.And even in Guatemala City, there're certain areas of the city that you drive by and it's like a house and then there's a farm. And it's just very much part of the views around Guatemala City. So you see a volcano and then you see farms around it. And so, I think in a certain sense, you kind of grow up with a coffee culture. You start drinking coffee, very young there. I remember drinking coffee when I was a baby and it's very typical to have coffee after dinner, around the table. You have dinner, you clear off the table and then people bring out coffee. So you sit around the table after dinner, still drinking coffee. So it was very much like a cultural thing, but I think it's just, you don't really realize it. It's the same as Spain. Like people have cultural understanding of wine, but because they're around it. But I wouldn't say I knew coffee, like it was just... we were around coffee farms and kind of knew what they looked like and you had a sense, or... I have a sense or understanding what the weather needs to be like for, for coffee to grow. Cause that's just like where I grew up. Alexandra Mosher: [00:15:36] Okay. So I'm trying to understand where this coffee dream was born from. Was it just like, “well, yeah, that sounds like it could be fun,” or like, was there something else behind it? Sara Parish: [00:15:47] I think it was, I think a lot of people get into coffee cause they first love coffee. I think for me it was, I got into coffee because of my love for business. And I think business came before coffee for me. And so I always knew I wanted to run a business. And so I think being my first business, I always had the idea or I was in love with the idea of a coffee shop. Cause like, I think when you're a customer at a coffee shop, you have this like romantic idea of what it's like, and it's not like that at all, but of just like sitting down and enjoying a cup of coffee with your friends and like the community around it and like the pastries and just how, how enjoyable it is. I think I was in love with that idea and I, I got into coffee or starting learning coffee because of, I wanted to open a business. Alexandra Mosher: [00:16:31] Yes. Especially if you have this tradition in Guatemala where like, after dinner, you and your family even get around coffee. You know, like in the United States, it's like, oh, you meet up with a friend or a colleague and you go out to coffee, but it's like every night after you have this, like this moment with your family have dinner and how like familial that is, and then you have like coffee, like, it just sounds like it's so much more built into how you're social. Sara Parish: [00:16:58] Yeah, no, even on the weekends. So during the week, it's you drink it a lot and family or at home, but on the weekends, you go out with friends and you get together for coffee. But I, I even remember we would have family dinners once a week where my aunts and uncles, everyone came to the house, and after dinner we would sit there for hours drinking coffee and just talking and talking and talking and talking and talking. This is very much part of the family life, but also your friends and family and socializing and everything like that as well. Alexandra Mosher: [00:17:29] Well, that's interesting too, because it, to me, I feel like in the United States, I could replace that with like drinking alcohol almost, you know, like after dinner, it's pretty normal to have like some kind of like alcoholic drink afterwards. But personally I like the idea of coffee, like better. I dunno. I think it's more... like there's more energy behind it or something. Sara Parish: [00:17:53] Maybe like drinks and like alcohol or beers and stuff would be more like on the weekend type thing. But then like during the family, during the week, it would be more, it would be more coffee.Alexandra Mosher: [00:18:01] Hm, okay. So you were talking about before, like Vicki wanted to just like really do a business with you, even though she wasn't super business-orientated. Did she also have this romantic view of coffee shops and coffee? Sara Parish: [00:18:16] I think so. I think Vicki and I, we both have very different motivations for wanting to do this and we both have different strengths and different roles within the business. So she's never been the type of like wanting to open a business or... that's more my side, but I think she really enjoys, like, I wouldn't use this word, but I can't think of another, another word for it. Maybe the more artistic or the creative side of coffee. And so she's the one that focuses on like the education or the brewing methods or extractions. Like she's more into the coffee side, I'm more into the, the business side. So it works out great, because we both have our own focus and we're able to get a lot more done that way. Alexandra Mosher: [00:18:55] Yeah, that's amazing. And Samuel was also, he mentioned something like how coffee is this interesting business because there is so many people who do go into coffee with this romantic idea, but because of coffee shops. But you don't see that in a lot of other businesses, for instance, like, if I was opening up like a paper company or I was opening up, like, you know, he used the example of like a port-a-potty company to go into it with the business mindset. Like, there's not like romance behind it. You're like going into about like, okay, how are we going to be profitable? What is the business model? And like, you're very focused on that. What would you say about the beginning? Like, if someone was opening up a coffee shop right now, like how they could be more prepared when they go into it, if they are the kind of person who is like very, "I'm going to do this for the social aspect," or something like that. Sara Parish: [00:19:51] I think it's not necessarily a bad thing, depending on how you go into it. I think having that, like that illusion or that romantic idea of coffee shops kind of is what helps you create that environment. And so if you're able to recreate that environment where people also fall in love with that idea, then you're doing your job pretty well. If someone comes into a coffee shop and all these sense is like chaos, disorder, too much commotion, disorganization, like if they don't come in with that same sense, then you're... in a sense you're not doing your job right. And so I think that having that romantic idea helps you also to kind of focus and like recreate that same atmosphere for somebody else. But the negative aspect is you don't realize how much work [there is] behind the scenes. So when, when someone has the only experience they have at a coffee shop is just being a customer and they've never worked behind the bar, they have no idea how much work goes into it. And it's just, it could kill the romance really quickly if you don't have a good idea of what all it goes into it. And so we always joke around saying we spend more time cleaning bathrooms and washing dishes then we do sitting down and having coffee. And that's the truth.There'd be days I don't even get a chance to sit down and have a cup of coffee. Like you can get a shot real quick behind the bar cause you're trying out the shots all day and like that kind of stuff, but really sitting down and enjoying it? There's days that you don't even have a chance to do that. You're washing dishes, cleaning floors, cleaning bathrooms, picking up napkins off the floor, just the million and one things that go behind running a coffee shop. And I think going in with an understanding that it's not as romantic behind the bar as it is in front of the bar, then at least your expectation, you go into it with correct expectations.Alexandra Mosher: [00:21:45] Okay. Yeah. That makes sense. So, something that you had talked about is when you were in China, did you go through these courses of like understanding your culture and like your value and everything? Sara Parish: [00:21:58] Understanding of the company culture or... Alexandra Mosher: [00:22:01] Yeah, like did you do... cause SCI has these coffee management courses, did you kind of go through a course like that?Sara Parish: [00:22:06] This was way before that? No, this is actually before Samuel had any schools open. This was in Greenhouse Coffee. So he didn't open schools I think until he had... there was one school in Shiyan that we went to. I think we were only there for like two weeks. So we got to Shiyan, we first got to Shiyan, we were there for two weeks. We were actually in the school upstairs and we did some like official coffee, like espresso machine courses. Like, "this is how you make an espresso machine," "This is how you do the tamping," like, set courses. But then we ended up going to Xining, which is in the North, and there wasn't a school there. And so most of our training was just hands-on.It was either at the roastery, like the headquarters that they had, jumping in on any courses that were like classes that were given or cuppings that they were doing, or we would go to the coffee shop and just go behind of the bar and just like pull shots all day. So there was a trainer, Nick, that he was basically sitting with us for a lot of time in doing training with us, but the school wasn't... there wasn't like an official school yet. And so most of our training, Vicki and I, it wasn't, we didn't even do like official courses or anything like that. It was just getting in there and learning, just doing coffees and jumping in the cuppings and observing the roastings and that kind of stuff. So this was before there was even schools open. Alexandra Mosher: [00:23:33] So did Samuel ever go through any of that with you? Like, clarifying your culture? What are your values? Sara Parish: [00:23:41] Yeah, he's done it with us quite a few times on a personal level. The first few years of Torch, we... think the two or three times, I can't remember, we had yearly meetings. So once a year, we'd all get together and that was what we discussed. Like we're... as a company, what is our culture? What are our values? What is our vision? So we did that altogether. It was Samuel, there was a few of us involved in Torch those few years. And then Samuel came to Spain a few years back as well, and we looked over it again. So we've done it quite a few times already. Alexandra Mosher: [00:24:12] Did you find that like helpful for you? Sara Parish: [00:24:15] Oh, I found that super helpful. Super, super helpful. Yeah. I think on two different levels: on a level... personal level, in the sense of where are we going as a company, and on a local level in Spain. So what is our main motivators? Like what is the core of our company, but also to make sure that we're being in line with Torch and other places. So it was very difficult because like, even though we've known Samuel and Marty for years and years now, we don't have like a constant daily communication. It's, it's… he has tons of stuff going on, I don't know how he does it. And so I think having the set values across the board for Torch, even though we don't have a daily communication or a constant communication between all of us, it kind of ensures that we're all going the same direction. And so we don't have to, in my sense, I don't feel like I have to discuss everything with Samuel, or I don't have to ask his opinion on everything because I feel like we already have the set values across the board.And so even though my decision might be a little different than he would make, at the end we're all kind of going the same direction. And same thing I think for me, at least having that clear vision has helped me feel that there's like a set standard or like there's something that's unifying us across the board.Alexandra Mosher: [00:25:33] Do you feel like it has given you more mental space or the ability to make decisions more clearly? Sara Parish: [00:25:41] I think so, yes. I think so. I think one of the ones, for example, making everything repeatable. I think that was the correct word. I'm trying to think of translating in Spanish and English. That helped me a lot with like every... clearly everything that we do system-wise or in the coffee shop is this repeatable, is this repeatable, can this be repeated easily? So it's just like having those in your head constantly helps you make little decisions across the board of like, no, I'm not going to do this. If it can't be easily, easily repeated. Or you can make decisions easier, understanding what the vision is. Alexandra Mosher: [00:26:14] Okay. Yeah. And like Samuel talks about this idea of idea fatigue, where maybe coffee shop owners get in this place where they're just trying to make something work, or they're just trying to change things to make themselves more profitable. And they get to a place where, because they're not aligned with why they're doing it, they're just kind of trying everything. Did you guys ever experience a point like that or were you always like, we are only making these kinds of decisions in line with who we want to be? Sara Parish: [00:26:45] I just, I honestly, I don't feel like I ever did that. Cause I think we were very... we had a very long-term clear vision of where we wanted to be. Our staff would kind of joke around about it too. Like, they would say that I'm terca. I don't know if the word is English... shoot stubborn? I guess the word would be. Because I had a very clear vision. And so sometimes they would bring ideas to the - like ideas up, of like, "why don't we do this?" Or, "why don't we do this?" And I would bring up like, “what's our long-term vision?” And so there were ideas that they would bring that did fit in and we ended up doing it, but I was very clear on what, what we were supposed to be doing. And so I think having that long-term [vision] helped me, like kind of weave out things. I didn't even consider things that weren't part of the long-term. Alexandra Mosher: [00:27:30] So like, what was the long-term? Sara Parish: [00:27:33] We knew what type of products we wanted to offer. We knew that the coffee had to be the focal point. So any food items that we did had to be secondary and couldn't clash with the coffee. For example, the... our Baker. Our Baker's from Seville. He is very, very traditional Sevillano. And a lot of the food items here, like they're very set on what type of foods they like, and they don't kind of go outside of that. We're going to introduce some new lunch items. So we had a meeting like to give ideas of what we could put in for, for the lunch. And one of the options he brought up was a sandwich with chorizo. And which is, everyone loves chorizo here, so it would have sold really well, but we already knew that the flavors of chorizo would clash completely with the coffee. So we discarded that because we knew the coffee has to be the main focal point, anything that goes around it or is accompanied by it has to compliment it.So that's just like a small example, but having that clear vision helped us make decisions easier. Alexandra Mosher: [00:28:38] What else was part of the vision? The coffee's the priority, what else was in that? Sara Parish: [00:28:43] I think also keeping everything simple in preparation. So like one of the ideas is like, “let's make waffles.” I was like, “waffles are great, but it's very difficult when you're behind the bar, like in the systems, in the workflow.” That would have taken up way too much time.And so, the product might be great. It might've sold really well, but it would've thrown off our workflow completely. And the time-wise, like we, our goal was to have everything on the table for breakfast: 15 minutes. And we would make breakfast in the kitchen, like poached eggs and all that kind of stuff. So our max time was 15 minutes. So we knew if the food item was too complicated. Or couldn't be done within that timeframe then we wouldn't even consider it. So we just had these kind of guidelines of like service, how long it was going to take what the workflow would look like. Does that fit into the system easily? The ingredients, how many new ingredients would be added to the ingredient list? Because the less amount of ingredients use the easier it is to prep stuff in the kitchen. So there's just a bunch of stuff like that. Keeping it simple, keeping it fast that helped us kind of discard things that, that didn't fit into that.Alexandra Mosher: [00:29:51] Okay. Yeah. I guess I'm kind of going backwards cause I feel like that's maybe a little bit, even like down the line, because there's probably a question that you answered before that, to where you knew that only 15 minutes for breakfast.Sara Parish: [00:30:06] And if it couldn't be prepped and served on the table, like on a plate on table within that time that we wouldn't even consider it.Alexandra Mosher: [00:30:12] Right. So like, why did you make even that decision?Sara Parish: [00:30:16] That decision? I think it came down to several things. First, we... because of the high cost of social security and everything here we were always on a very, very limited staff. And so sometimes when I talk to people outside of Spain, and I would tell them how many tickets we'd see how many tables we have, how many people came into a coffee shop, how many coffees would sell per day - and I was like, and there were days we're working with three people on a busy, busy, chaotic breakfast rush. And it's one person in kitchen, one person on register, one person on machine. And they're like, how did you guys do that? And it was because we had really good systems, but we made sure that everything was super simple to make, and that it was super easy to prep like prep before breakfast, prep during breakfast, and then we'd be able to take it to table really quickly. And so it was a mix of necessity because we couldn't hire any more help, so we need to make sure that everything that we're doing was simple enough and easy enough for the limited amount of stuff that we could hire, and two, because we were working with a lot of tourism. And so, people that are here for tourism don't want to sit down and have breakfast for an hour. They want to have breakfast in half an hour, and then get back to their tour, get back to the city. And so we needed to make sure that we were serving our customers well, in that sense of if they're from tourism, if they're a tourist here, they have the option of eating breakfast really quickly and moving out. But we were also serving and customers quickly enough that if they want to stay and enjoy they can. But then we also have the ability of rotating tables pretty quickly too. Alexandra Mosher: [00:31:45] Okay. That makes sense. And that sounds like something that you probably had to develop more once you got there, once you understood what you were working with.Sara Parish: [00:31:52] Yes, definitely. Definitely. Alexandra Mosher: [00:31:54] Yeah. That's something Samuel also talks about is that a lot of coffee shop owners are looking for, "okay, what works and what doesn't work," like the very like black and white kind of answers. And he's like, it just really depends on your market. There's so many different answers and there's not really like a, "this works and this doesn't work," kind of thing.And so I want to go back to like the first question that he probably would have asked you is like the why behind your coffee shop? Like, what would you say was like the why behind Torch Seville? Sara Parish: [00:32:26] I think there's, there's several, I think our core heart or core reasoning for even doing business for Torch was our heart for the producers, coffee producers back in Guatemala and other countries, because we would see how difficult it was for them and having the ability to be on the other end of selling specialty coffee and selling it at, or purchasing it at a reasonable price to where that producer's actually making money. Alexandra Mosher: [00:32:57] Yeah. Do you work with the coffee farmers in Guatemala? Sara Parish: [00:32:59] Not directly. That's kind of our, that was our long-term like, that's what we really wanted to do. I think our... even coming to Spain, we wanted to start working directly with farmers right away, but it never, we were never able to do it. The same thing, bureaucracy, importing, just, it was just a mess and it wasn't just, it wasn't something we could do, but that was always like our motivation, but we weren't ever able to do it. I think on a local level, I think for us, it was really big about community creating a space for where people could find community, which is something that's very difficult here. So I think that was our, our motivation for starting the business and then our motivation for specifically doing it in Seville. Alexandra Mosher: [00:33:40] How did you go about trying to make a place for community in the city? Sara Parish: [00:33:47] The atmosphere that we tried to create, it was very different from the coffee shops here in Seville. The coffee shops here are they're called barras. The bar. Basically you come up to a bar it's like Italy: stand up at a bar. They give you a coffee, you drink it really fast and you leave. And so I think we were the first like actual sit-down, relaxed-type coffee shop other than Starbucks. And so I think it was a mix of the location, the actual locale that we found, the furniture and seating that we tried to create, and then the atmosphere. So the noise level, the type of music, stuff we offered, we were very intentional on every aspect just to make sure that it was comfortable and that community would happen naturally. Alexandra Mosher: [00:34:30] Okay. And so Samuel also talks about like your values, like the, the way that like you as a staff and as a team kind of behave in order to uphold that... kind of your why. Right. So like what were the behaviors or the values that you upheld the most for you and your team? Sara Parish: [00:34:49] I think one that was very noticeable - and I think even if you would talk to our staff now is one that kind of stuck out a little bit more, especia

We are joined by Shiyan Zhang on today's episode--Journey to Self. This episode shares the emotional impacts institutions have on us. Shiyan and her family had no option but to move abroad due to the one-child policy. She shares her experience finding an undocumented community for the first time in college and navigating life after. Shiyan talks about the importance of centering our mental health in order to survive. Along with the responsibility we have to our families as first-generation immigrants. Her message is all about having compassion for oneself. Enjoy!

In this week's episode, a Fulbrighter from Western Kentucky University travels all the way to Shiyan, China to study math teacher education and discovers that both math and American sitcoms are truly universal languages.

Mike Lovett loves everything Harry Potter while Michael Trainor knows next to nothing about the boy who lived. Each episode Mike shows Michael one of the Harry Potter films to get Michael's grown adult opinions of his beloved childhood characters. Along the way they are joined by fellow Harry Potter fanatics from the Boston comedy scene. Will Michael Trainor love or hate Harry Potter? Listen to find out! New episodes on Tuesdays!

Mike Lovett loves everything Harry Potter while Michael Trainor knows next to nothing about the boy who lived. Each episode Mike shows Michael one of the Harry Potter films to get Michael's grown adult opinions of his beloved childhood characters. Along the way they are joined by fellow Harry Potter fanatics from the Boston comedy scene. Will Michael Trainor love or hate Harry Potter? Listen to find out! New episodes on Tuesdays!

Mike Lovett loves everything Harry Potter while Michael Trainor knows next to nothing about the boy who lived. Each episode Mike shows Michael one of the Harry Potter films to get Michael's grown adult opinions. Along the way they are joined by fellow Harry Potter fanatics from the Boston comedy scene. Will Michael Trainor love or hate Harry Potter? Listen to find out! New episodes on Tuesdays!

We speak with Study Cat CEO Mark Pemberton about language learning outside of the classroom. As the corona virus causes schools around China to temporarily close, we consider the possibilities and limits of using apps and technology for language learning. Ross Thorburn: Hi, everyone. Welcome back to "TEFL Training Institute Podcast." I'm Ross Thorburn. Here, we usually bring you one episode every couple of weeks focusing on a topic.We usually don't do anything related to current events, but at the moment, the coronavirus, as you may have read in the news, is having a huge effect on a lot of students. A lot of listeners are also, like I am, in China. Today, we're going to do a special episode about learning English at home.To help us do that, we have Mark Pemberton. He's CEO of Studycat. Studycat's a company that makes fun and effective language learning apps for kids in English, Chinese, French, Spanish, and German. Before starting Studycat, Mark was also a teacher.In this episode, I asked Mark about how students can use technology to help them learn the language at home. Enjoy the interview.Ross: Hi, Mark. Thanks for doing this at such short notice. Obviously, over here in Shanghai, a lot of the schools are shut and a huge amount of the population's working from home. It's a really strange time, with the coronavirus, both for business and for education.Mark Pemberton: I was reading today Bloomberg saying that this is going to be the largest work‑at‑home experiment in the history of mankind. From our perspective, it's going to probably be the tipping point for home education.Realistically, people might not be back at school until after Easter. In the meantime, there is no way that people can't turn towards online education to fill that void. It will be very interesting times.Ross: Right. I guess a lot of studying from home is going to happen over the next few weeks and months. That's obviously not necessarily a bad thing. What are some of the advantages of getting students to study at home in general?Mark: To me, it is obvious that if you want to learn a language, the more touch points you have with that language, the quicker you're going to achieve fluency. The gold standard for language learning is to drop yourself, immerse into a new culture, and have to speak the language, which is exactly what happened to me when I moved to Thailand.If you don't speak the language, you can't order food. It's sink or swim. Therefore, take that assumption and build immersion around the learner. When the kids go home, you put the cartoons on in English. You put the radio on in English. Put music on in English. Surround the kid with English, and the kid will do the rest.A lot of parents would say, "I don't know how to do this." Or, "I don't speak English." That's OK. It doesn't matter if you can't speak English. You can create the environment around your child where they will acquire the language very naturally and very quickly.If watching cartoons is a part of that, if playing interactive games is a part of that, then even better, because there's not a lot of research or data about this.To me, it's obvious that when a kid is in a puzzle or doing some kind of brain‑teasing activity, where they're using all of their focus and concentration, then they're learning quicker than they would be if they were just passively watching a cartoon.Ross: I suppose as well as the motivation aspect of needing to learn a language with immersion. I guess you're also just getting fewer opportunities to forget what you've learned because everything will be recycled all the time. That seems to be a big advantage of learning on an app.For example, for a few minutes every day, compared with going to a class once a week for a couple of hours at a time. Anyway, learning at home also allows parents to get a lot more involved in their kid's learning. What are some advantages of getting parents involved in the language learning process?Mark: Our brand is connected learning. What we mean by connected learning is connecting the home and the school to get the best learning outcomes. There's a couple of layers to our connected learning.The first one is connecting the home and the school. The second one is connecting parents, teachers, and kids. The kids are at the center of the learning process. If the parents are involved and the teachers are involved, and they triangulate, that is very, very powerful.I've got pictures of me teaching back in 2001 in my school. I had this hardcore cohort of parents that came to every class, which was great because they helped me manage the class. They helped me translate sometimes.Those parents would go home and they would walk with the kids. They play the tapes with the kids. They do the homework with the kids. Those kids just excelled because they were recycling. They were doing more work than the kids that weren't able to stay home work to...What we're able to say is, put the CD on, put the tape on, sing the song. There's nothing else you could set them at that time. Whereas now, you can assign them homework on their favorite devices.You can track whether they've done it or not. You could see what they did or didn't understand. It's a brave new world of language learning. I wish I had all these tools when I was teaching.Ross: Do you want to tell us a bit about how parents can best be involved? Imagine that parents being involved can either have a huge positive effect or definitely also seeing have a negative effect sometimes on kids as well.Mark: The kids like it as long as the parents handle it well and don't do that overpowering, "You must do this, you must do that." If the parents play a role of like, "Let's do this together," the kids learn so much faster, and they're so much more fluent.The parents who got such clunky pronunciation, that the kids get this, "I'm doing this better than mom or dad." You get this nice dynamic going if the parents play it right.Ross: The teachers listening to this might not fit into this category, but there's definitely a lot of teachers out there who are less enthusiastic about integrating technology into the student's language learning. How do you think apps can make teachers' lives easier?Mark: When we started doing EdTech early 2000s, I thought that there would be technology in every classroom by 2007, 2008. Then I thought, "OK, well, this is going a bit slow. It's education, maybe it's because teachers are fearful of technology, or maybe it's because the ministers of education are too slow."Now, it's 2020, I would say, with the exception of China, education and the adoption of technology in classrooms have really hasn't progressed at all. Obviously, not all teachers, but why aren't most teachers embracing technology?I don't understand. I've heard people say that they find it cumbersome. Maybe it's the technology's fault. Maybe they find it's a distraction in the classroom.Maybe they find that it's hard to manage a class and manage a technology at the same time. When we were building [inaudible 6:23] schools, we were very, very aware of these issues.We never assumed that the teachers wanted their lives made easier. We assumed that the teachers wanted to be more effective teachers. They didn't want to do monotonous report writing.We don't want to waste time prepping for all these lessons. We don't want to waste time marking all these lessons. We want to walk into a classroom with the kids [inaudible 6:51] knowing the vocabulary. We can actually use their vocabulary in scenarios, in sentence building, in dialogues, and in fun stories.EdTech, I've always believed, has massive potential to level the playing field. Children can go home and learn at their own pace, at their own speed. They can do it again, and again, and again until they're comfortable with the language. Then they can bring that into the classroom and practice the vocabulary learned. I think that's a wonderful outcome.Ross: You mentioned leveling the playing field there, Mark. How can technology do that? What do you mean exactly by leveling the playing field?Mark: There's two layers for that. The first layer is, in a specific classroom, no two kids learn the same way. No two kids have the same personality. It always struck me that the silent kids that would sit in class, they would not speak for the first year, a year and a half.We're always trained how to deal with these kids. The way I dealt with them, I just let them be. They were never making any trouble. They're just very shy. They're only five years old.I remember one of the silent kids, after a year, a year and a half, put a hand up, walked over to me, and said, "Teacher, may I go to the bathroom, please? I'd like to use the toilet." This kid had never spoken one word ever but she had understood all the language. She can speak complete sentences when she was ready to do so.If you're shy and don't want to speak, how nice it would be at home, in your bedroom with the device, rather than being told to stand up and repeat this sentence, or make a sentence, or it's your turn to do this, your turn to do that. When I said level the playing field there, I was also alluding to profit on purpose.EdTech can reach parts of the world that other education solution haven't had the ability to do. You're seeing really progressive governments in Colombia, Uruguay, that are shipping devices out to rural areas, where kids can just start learning where they can't build schools.EdTech will be able to deliver education to the 1.5 billion kids that, right now, don't have access to education. Of course, they need devices to be able to do that. I believe that there will be a day where companies like ours will work with companies like Huawei and other major device manufacturers, and then major charities with big footprints like Room to Read.Then we can deliver these devices with loads of educational software uploaded, and then deliver these devices to the communities.Ross: I love that example of the quiet student just absorbing all that language. I also heard Stephen Krashen give an example of talking about, at a conference giving a presentation, and walking up to someone in the front row with a microphone and seeing the look of fear in their faces.He was saying that, as teachers, we hate being asked questions at conferences. That's something that we do with our students all the time.Anyway, your app, I believe gets used by a lot of teachers in their classes. You must have seen lots of examples of teachers in schools encouraging students to use technology at home and to help in the language learning. Can you give us an example of how that actually works in practice?Mark: We did a big launch a year ago in Shiyan with a group of 40 kindergartens. It went really well. The teachers complained that they didn't know what to do because the kids knew all the vocabulary when they came into the classroom, which always made me laugh.They did some really cool stuff. They would ask the parents to record the kids at home doing their app activities. We got all these videos of kids singing, dancing around the living room, really got lit up by the songs. They started getting the kids to sing the songs every afternoon at the end of class outside the kindergarten.When the parents arrive to pick them up, the kids are all there singing the songs and doing all these different motions and actions. The feedback from the principals of those schools was that the parents had stopped having to send their kids to after school to learn English because they were learning so much English in the school.The blended learning, the flipped learning was working. That, to me, is a success because you're saving the kid's time. The kids in China are not having much of a childhood. The pressure is on from when you're two, three years old. It's the same in Japan. It's the same in Korea.The pressure on kids to do a 7:30 start all the way through to 9:00 or 10:00 at night, when they're only four years old, I just don't think that's right. I don't think there's enough time for them to play. I don't think there's enough time for them to sleep.I would hope that by using their time more efficiently, they could get more rest, more sleep, and more playtime, which is what children need when they're growing up, especially their age.Ross: You mentioned that by using that flipped classroom approach, students learn more effectively and didn't actually need to go to after school English programs anymore. Can you imagine that time in the future when apps or other technology will eventually just replace teachers completely?Mark: Technology would never replace teachers. There will be books in classrooms for the next 50 years. There will be teachers in classrooms for the next 50 years.The notion that AI and robots and technology are going to replace education systems is a fallacy. Everyone should embrace technology as a tool to enhance your ability to teach. That's what it is.Human beings are very unique in the sense that we have this urge to teach. We have this urge to pass knowledge down. It's in our DNA, like it is in no other animals to pass on and to teach, the love to teach.We love teaching and we love being taught. The way that society is being built and developed with kids going to schools, I just don't see that changing in the next 50, 100 years.I've gone full circle as well. I've built systems in 2007. My mindset was, replace the teachers, replace the classroom, build systems that don't need teachers or classrooms. Now, I've come around to a much easier state of mind. If there is a classroom, there is a teacher.That's much easier to build and design technology because you all work together to get the outcome that you want. I'm not saying that the way we educate or the way we use education right now is optimal. I'm not saying that at all. I'm saying that it's not going to change.Ross: One other opportunity I wanted to ask you about, Mark, was with AI. A lot gets written and said about AI. Can you tell us about what you think the potential is for AI in helping language learning in the future?Mark: AI, I'm not so sure about this. So much hype about what AI is going to do in education. It's a lot of VC hype about that right now. I wouldn't be putting my money to have into AI. We use very simple AI in our systems for adaptive learning. We are able to see whether a child has issues with certain words.Then we simply use a very simple machine algorithm method to keep reintroducing the words in reward games. We pull trouble words out and we keep re‑displaying them to the kids so that they learn them. I think that's very powerful.I don't think that the brave new world that a lot of people are investing in in terms of AI is going to be as big as people are hoping it will be.Ross: Mark, thanks so much again for coming on. I also know that because of the Coronavirus, you've open up your app for teachers and students to use for free for the time being. Can you tell us how can teacher's listening get access to that?Mark: We've just released a campaign today, Ross, that we are opening up all of our language learning apps to all communities affected by school closure for free usage until this crisis has passed. If you go to studycat.com, you will see all of our apps available there to be downloaded.In China, we have a WeChat platform. If you search for Studycat, you'll find our WeChat platform. Fun English is available there on all Android devices, all iOS devices for the next month, for free. We've survived these things before with SARS. In the meantime, Studycat will do what we can to help you entertain your kids.Ross: Great. Thanks again so much for joining us, Mark.Mark: Cheers.Ross: For everyone listening, please stay safe. We'll see you again next episode. Goodbye.

http://vchunting.com/shiyan-koh - Show notes!

This week’s special guest is Shiyan Koh from Hustle Fund. Shiyan is an experienced operator and investor. She was most recently  VP of Business Operations & Corp Dev at NerdWallet where she was the employee #10, growing annual revenue from $1M to $150M+. Prior to NerdWallet, she was an investor at Institutional Venture Partners and Bridgewater Associates. She is a graduate of Stanford University and Harvard Business School.

Listen Here: iTunes | Overcast Subscribe to my Monday Musings Newsletter to Keep Up with the Podcast Tyler Cowen is an economics professor at George Mason University. He runs the Mercatus Center, which bridges the gap between academic ideas and real-world problems. He blogs every day at Marginal Revolution, writes for Bloomberg, and hosts his own podcast called Conversations with Tyler. He writes about economics, arts, culture, food, and globalization.   As I prepared for this episode, I settled on three things that I wanted to focus on: how Tyler thinks about travel, the rise of China and India, and how he learns so much. Enjoy this exploration of knowledge and culture, and I hope you laugh with us along the way.  I particularly recommend Tyler’s most recent book, Stubborn Attachments. Transcript David:             Tyler Cowen, welcome to the North Star. Tyler:              Thank you for having me. David:              So tell me a little bit about where you grew up in northern New Jersey. What was growing up like for you and what were you into as a kid? Tyler:              I was born in Kearny, New Jersey, Hudson county, which was a blue collar town, and my father climbed some kind of career ladder from having been bankrupted at thirty, to being upper, upper middle class, so I caught different parts of that income stream. I went to a great high school where I had four or five close friends who were super smart and had a blast. We were like a nerd fest before nerds were cool and I learned something every day but not from the teachers. I loved it and I just knew New York City. David:              Well, let's dive into it. I think that one thing that's really interesting about the Internet is I like to say it rewards obsession in a way that the world didn't use to and I think a byproduct of that is nerd culture is, is cool now. Tyler:              You know, I specialized in the style of learning before there wasn't an internet and then when the Internet came along, I feel it made me like 20 times more productive. So I'm very lucky to have gotten this extreme productivity boost at about age 40, which is very rare in careers. There are people who might have some kind of productivity turning point when they're 29 or 22, but to get it at age 40, it's given my life a very different trajectory. David:              So I know you wrote a book about that, but talk about what was that productivity boost like, how do you think about productivity, and how did that boost manifest itself? Tyler:              Well, I worked very hard for years at trying to absorb more information and absorb it quickly and order it effectively and when the way you do that is driving around to used bookstores and carry used books home and read them, well, that's a wonderful thing to do, but when you can just go to your iPad or your laptop and whoosh, it's all there, you're going to do a lot better. Tyler:              Whereas people who say do research, they've been made more productive by the Internet in other ways, but they're less concerned with absorbing information. So I feel I've gotten a relative gain compared to many other people. David:              So does that mean that you're hopping around between different subjects? Like if I go on marginal revolution, I could go from traveled economics to then yesterday, right, about North Korea and America. So are you hopping around or how has that style of learning changed over the years? Tyler:              I have long-term study plans, like part of my long-term study plan is to understand India and China much better. So that's kind of a 10 year project that I'm always in the middle of, but of course using the Internet to help me makes it much easier. Plus travel, travel being a key to learning. We'll get back to that. Uh, and then during the day I just try to keep up with the flow, the flow of good articles and new ideas. Tyler:              And you know, the flow always beats me. But you wake up at seven, you go to bed at 11:00 PM, there's interruptions, you exercise, you eat, but the day is the flow, the flow is your day, like it or not. David:              Dodging bullets and trying to survive. So there was analogy I got a couple months ago of if, if you're learning is a ship, when you try to steer something for long-term, so say that you want to learn about India in the next 10 years. The advice that I got which I thought was quite good was just steer your ship. So change your twitter feed, change your social streams one or two degrees. How do you think about it? Tyler:              I view myself as a prisoner of my passions. So what helps me is to be very motivated to do what I do. So I don't sit down and strategize like what's my optimal career plan? Tyler:              I just think what'll keep me involved and I figure they kind of compound interest on that learning will just accumulate and as long as I'm having fun, I'll stay motivated like way past other people and that's going to go well for me. So it's almost a deliberate absence of strategy except for motivating me. Compounding fuels success in almost anything. Albert Einstein once called it the 8th wonder of the world. pic.twitter.com/1QcE9Q1hsU — ᴅᴀᴠɪᴅ ᴘᴇʀᴇʟʟ ✌ (@david_perell) October 23, 2017 David:              What are those core passions? Tyler:              Travel of course, food, just social science and generally walking through the world on a given day and you see things like you go to Barnes and Noble, they offer like a loyalty card, buy more books with us, we'll give you a discount and you think, well, why are they doing that? How does that make economic sense? And you want to try to figure it out so you just want to try to figure things out. It's almost a Sherlock Holmes like game and there's always more and more and more and more and more and it drives you crazy, but it's fun. David:              What is it about China and India in particular that appealed to you? Tyler:              Obviously they're two highly populous countries. The US could have a billion more people and we'd still be, you know, the third most populous country in the world. China now by at least one measure has the world's largest GDP and I'm an economist. India is probably headed to having the world's largest GDP. So it does go back and think, imagine you're a British person in 1910, like what should you study? Where should you travel? Well, the United States. To complain that you don't like the pollution or not all the food is what you expect. It's irrelevant, right? You go to the United States, if you don't, you're kind of a dummy. So for me right now, China, India, that's like the United States in 1910. I feel obliged to learn it more by obligation, but it's fun. It's also a passion. David:              So when you're going about learning something like China, India, of course you'd go to the Bloomberg New York Times, but I think that there is, to back to nerd culture, there are probably certain sections of the Internet of the world that will give you a very rich experience that the average person wouldn't get. David:              You seem to be very good at that. How have you been thinking about studying China in India in a way that most people wouldn't think about? Tyler:              China and India I consider hard to learn because when you read about their histories, things don't fall into intuitive categories that maybe they do for Chinese people for instance, but all the different dynasties, they tend to blur together. You could read the same Chinese history book a bunch of times in a row and at the end you're still confused and you don't really know how to place it all, so to pick some side areas, so for me, Chinese food or Indian classical music or certain features of Chinese geography or ethnic regional culture and to learn those well and just keep on attacking the elephant from all these different sides rather than just, "Oh, I'm going to sit down and read this book on Chinese history.". Tyler:              That tends not to work. It works really well for like Paris or the Florentine Renaissance, but for unfamiliar parts of the world and I look for these sideways in the door. David:              Well, let's dive into China first. Where in China have you been and what have the really striking experiences been for you during your travels set? Tyler:              My goal is to go to all the provinces in China in a significant way and not just putting a toe in. I'm past the halfway point. My favorite part of China is the west and the southwest, especially Yunnan province. It's highly exotic. It's about half regional minorities. That has some of China's best food. It's extremely reasonably priced that has remarkably little pollution by Chinese standards. People are very friendly, uh, there are actually quite pro-american because of the history of America. Helping them out in the war against Japan is just amazing fun. Tyler:              I think right now it's probably the best trip in the world is to go to western China. David:              Wow. So western China and eastern China, of course, because we're just talking about GDP, it seems like most of that would be concentrated in eastern China. So let's start with western China. What is it about it that makes it so interesting and is it authentic to what's happening in China because it is so different demographically. Tyler:              Authentic is a tricky word. So if you go to Oregon is not authentic America. Well yeah, but it's not typical either. Nor is New Jersey. So southwestern China, it's just accessible and it's fun. So Beijing I love. It's fantastic. Everyone should go multiple times, but in some ways it's a tough slog. A lot of the city is ugly. The pollution can be awful and it's so large. It's not really walkable for the most part, although it's walkable within neighborhoods. Tyler:              You can go to Beijing and think you don't really like China. That's the wrong impression. So I would say Udon, it's like this backdoor into China and it will open up ways of thinking about China and then when you go to Beijing you'll like Beijing a lot more. So you know, to get to Udon, you probably have to go through Beijing to fly there. So yeah, stop in Beijing for a day, but find the back doors that get your passions and that's going to be western China. David:              And now in terms of what I would consider, I don't know if this is totally true, but that's how I model China. There are four big mega cities. You know there's, there's the manufacturing center, Hong Kong, Shanghai and Beijing. Can you talk about the differences between them? Tyler:              Well, Guangzhou and Chongqing are also mega cities.  Some people believe Chongqing, which now has been made its own province is bigger than any other locality in China. We don't even know because there are so many people who are within China, in essence, illegal migrants. We're not sure how many people are are there. The different parts of China until recently have not been economically integrated, so they have cuisines that are quite unlike each other, maybe more unlike each other than different European cuisines. Visually, some parts will look the same because these mega cities have been built up recently using more or less common patterns so you can have the deceiving impression that you're going to the same place over and over again, even though you're traveling to many parts of China, but European say that about the US often like "Oh, the whole country feels the same." If you live here, you know, it's not true, right? There aren't really significant differences. Tyler:              So to go to Hunan Province or to go to Shenyang in the northeast, which is near North Korea, or go to, you know, Chengdu in Sichuan and forgive all my pronunciations which are not proper Chinese. Uh, you're seeing much more diversity than anything you're likely to do in either Europe or the US. You're seeing what's now the world's most important country. Again, I can't stress how favorable the prices are. You can stay in a five star luxury hotel in most parts of China other than Beijing or Shanghai for less than $100 a night and it will be, you know, a wonderful quality experience and the best food in the world, you know, a meal will never have to cost you more than $20 unless you order a highly unusual dish like shark fin soup. So if you're on any kind of budget, there was no reason not to go. Tyler:              Crime is close to zero for women overall it's quite safe. I mean everywhere it has some problems, but as the world goes, one of the best areas to travel in solo if you're a woman. The main reason not to go is air pollution. But again in the west that's a much smaller problem. David:              Right. I was reading that there have been 16,000,000 new bikes installed in China in the last year and a half and, and a lot of people are saying that the changes in transportation there may do something at least to help boost the air pollution, which I thought was interesting, but I want to dive into infrastructure. How has being in China, uh, changed the way that you think about infrastructure and sort of the way that you think about how development happens? Tyler:              Infrastructure is their specialty. They have, what is one of the world's two or three best train systems given how large the country is, that's important. A remarkable thing about traveling and mainland China is you can wake up in the morning and one city and be in almost any other part of China the same day just by taking a train trip and you'll see amazing things on the way. But in terms of planning your journey, everything is within a day without having to mess around with flights and with flights, you don't see what's in between. So you can go like Beijing to Shiyan see the terracotta warriors, that's maybe about six hours. So there's this remarkable sense of freedom you have because of the infrastructure. Along so many dimensions, now they are probably more innovative than we are. And to see that is impressive, we Americans are so complacent and smog. We think where the world's innovators, the Europeans lag behind true on average, but China does something like the payment system. Tyler:              There's this way quicker and much better and you'll come back here and curse, like having a, you know, stick your chip in the thing and it doesn't always work. They're rebuilding their world in some ways. They're outdoing us. David:              In terms of innovative. How do you define innovative and in what sense do they have an advantage by by not having had the PC and being able to jump straight to sort of a mobile first world? Tyler:              In some cases, they're just not locked into older systems as you mentioned. Also, this is more disturbing. We should be bothered by this by having less rule of law. They can just "do things and get them done" and that's not always a good thing. A privacy law. They don't have the concerns you would have in Europe or the United States, but a Chinese payment typically is you take out your smartphone, you scan a qr code, it can be done in a second and a half. Tyler:              The error rate seems to be very low. Uh, it's processed perfectly well. It's cheaper, better, quicker and more convenient than what we do and they beat us and we're not really catching up. And we need, uh, to absorb that lesson for the first time maybe ever. But at least for a long time, the US now has a peer country. Like Soviet Union was never that peer, only with weapons were they a peer. China in terms of creativity and GDP. Arguably right now is a peer. You ought to go and learn from your peer, right? How can you not do that? David:              Yeah. I couldn't agree more. I was talking to a friend last night. I think Hong Kong might be a good place or Shanghai might be a good place to spend a couple of years, but I want to talk about travel in terms of how do you think about travel? David:              So I'll be honest, I did a euro trip recently and I didn't get quite the experience that I wanted because before we had never really come to a consensus on what does travel mean and it's not something that a lot of younger people, at least in my, in terms of my friends really think about. So how do you think about travel and what are you looking to do when you do travel? Tyler:              I like to go weird places. So I did a European trip this summer. It was in August. I went to Macedonia. The country where people hardly ever go. Most of the tourist are either Russian or Serbian. Uh, but certainly not many Americans are there. Again, it's completely safe. Prices are very favorable. I had perfect weather, beautiful sights, tenth century monasteries, all kinds of sculpture. Remarkably good cheeses, breads and meats, wonderful food, wonderful lake fish. A lot of history. A lot of geopolitics you understand much better why the Balkans are messed up and just like how Bulgaria, Greece, Macedonia, Serbia, Kosovo fit together together. Tyler:              I've tried reading that in books. I can't grasp it. I go there, but the mix of going there and the books, somehow it all works and you see this country where the politics are so different from what we're used to in Europe. You just again have to reexamine everything. So I say to people like, go weird, like yes, at some point you should see Paris, but if all you do is see Paris, maybe you'll be a little bored. Where did you go? David:              In Europe? Tyler:              Yeah. David:              We went to Amsterdam, Berlin, Prague, Vienna, and Budapest. Tyler:              You should have seen Paris! Those are all the same, it's like an airport shopping mall. David:              I couldn't agree more and exactly. And then, so over the new year's I was in Chile. Tyler:              One of my favorites by the way.   David:              So my dad is a total nut. And so what we did was, it was new year's day and we went to go see some hieroglyphics up in the Atacama desert in the northern part of the country. It's the driest place in the world. Tyler:              And one of the best trips you can take. David:              Yes, it was wonderful. So it's new year's day and we'd go to the person at the front of the hieroglyphics and we say at where's the closest place to get lunch? And he said, it's new years day, it's all closed. So he said, but I have a friend, she can cook you food. So we go into this little town, all adobe houses, just a gravel streets. And this woman, Sherry and her husband had left her. She was quite lonely unfortunately, but we spent the entire afternoon with her. She, you know, she had chickens in the backyard, llamas in the backyard and it was the richest experience I had in a long time traveling. Tyler:              And the food there is excellent, right? It's quite safe. Infrastructure is surprisingly good given how remote it is and there's some magic to Chile, some kind of warmth but also efficiency where it just hits that sweet spot and it's both familiar and exotic at the same time. David:              Yeah. All right, back to India. So, now we'll get into India. So how have you been thinking about learning about India? I know at least in India is much, it's very different in terms of there's a lot of different languages, lots of different cultures. I think a lot of westerners don't realize that. Tyler:              I've been quite a few times to India. I've never gotten sick. I'm very fortunate. Some people do. I'm not sure how to weigh this risk, but I've done all kinds of things. Eating what I've wanted and just been fine every day. Maybe it's just because I travel a lot. Indian classical music I think is one of mankind's greatest creations ever. I would say going to the classical music festival in Chennai in December, I took my daughter to that. We both loved it. For food, India and China. Clearly the two best countries in the way better than any Michelin Guide and way cheaper. Everything is new and fresh and undiscovered and diverse. India's tough in a way that China isn't. So, China is poorer than what we're used to, but there's some grinding poverty in the countryside, but for the most part going around is not depressing. In India it can be. The air pollution can be worse than in China. The population density, the cities are out of control in a way you would not say about China. Chinese cities are way less dense than outsiders expect. Tyler:              Hong Kong is much denser than most parts of the typical Chinese city would be. So being in a Chinese city is a lot more pleasant than people expect, especially, uh, if it's not a major city, but India, my goodness, traffic, monsoon, disease. But there's something about the notion of ideas there. The religion, spirituality kind of syncretic something that is just magic and creative and nowhere else in the world do you get it and you're just bombarded with it the whole time. And people fall in love with India and they should. And you will. It's tough. I could, you know, you gotta be ready. David:              Talk more about the spirituality aspect because it's almost become trendy to talk about the eastern thought and, and, and whatnot. And I'm not discrediting it, but I think it's miss misinterpreted by many westerners. Tyler:              Keep in mind, I'm not myself a religious person. I wouldn't even say I'm spiritual. I don't really believe in anything in particular. So when I say it's rich in religion and spirituality, that for me actually has mixed sides and it may be partly a reason why India is not richer or has problems with public health, but the old saying when it comes to religion, every Indian is a millionaire, maybe is true, but don't think it's an entirely positive thing. But the ways in which religious ways of thinking suffuse the entire culture, uh, there are few other countries where that runs so deep and so thick and also in a diverse way. You have multiple religions including Christianity. And to learn those by going to India is one of the things you get there. It's one of the world's largest countries with Muslims, right? Maybe it's number three and I think. Indonesia number one, Pakistan, number two. Tyler:              I'm not sure if India is ahead of Bangladeshi behind it for Muslims, but obviously it's significant for Muslim culture. Janes, different kinds of Hindus, Sikhs and every city, every state is so different in a way people will engage with you is so fresh and this kind of deep burning curiosity to somehow incorporate what you know into what they think. Uh, to me there is very strong and I find very attractive. David:              This is going to be sort of part of a broader question. Are you reading books, blogs and we'll start there and then we'll get to the distinction between books and blogs and different forms of media. Tyler:              If it's India and China, uh, I take very different approaches. India, I find reading books much more useful than for China. Maybe it's because of the history intersects with European history more. But reading books on India, a lot more sticks with me than with China. Uh, I haven't found that many good blogs on India. It may just be my defect, but if you just read plenty of books on India and go and in terms of cinema and music and cuisine, try to actually learn things about those before you go. Fashion, design, textiles, studying history of Indian textiles is one of the best ways to learn Indian history and it can structure your tourism and where you go and maybe even what you buy. So there were more entry points for India. Whereas for Chinese music, I mean I've tried, I liked Chinese opera, but I don't find it that useful. A lot of it to me, I just don't enjoy Chinese popular music. I enjoy much less than Indian popular music. So for China it's much more important that I be there and talk to Chinese people, which you can do here as well of course. Tyler:              So I approached those two countries in a very different way. And India also I find I have a kind of stamina problem. I'm in very good health. I walk a lot, travel a lot, but it's hard for me day after day to be outdoors in Indian cities all day long. Just like pollution, noise, different indignities. I can't do it. Uh, with China, unless it's a very smoggy day I can. In India I paced myself much more. I spent a lot more time indoors. It's a little bit inefficient. David:              So let's get back to different forms of media. How do you think about books versus blogs? It's something that I debate a lot with my friends. Um, how do you think about it and what advice would you give to younger people as media begins to shift like it is. Tyler:              I mean mostly books are still better. There's way more knowledge in books than blogs and it's easier to find out how good a book is by reading reviews. Not that reviews are perfect, but you get a sense, you know, maybe blogging peaked about 10 years ago and I'm happy that I'm still blogging. Like our readership actually is not down at all. It's maybe up a little, but I don't think in general, blogs are a good way to learn about countries. They're very good for a particular food scenes. Like where should I eat in Mumbai? There'll be a food blog about Mumbai that will be way better than any book and then use the blog. But history of India, you know, just read some good books and they're there, read Indian fiction. Find these other entry points, like history of Indian textiles. David:              That's interesting that you talk about entry points. Is that something that you apply in other domains? Tyler's secret to learning: Don’t try to learn things head on. Look for entry points instead.

Once upon a time, a wise old Jedi claimed that “fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, and hate leads to suffering.” He stopped after suffering, though, so we have to wonder: what does suffering lead to? Is there a chance that suffering can lead to new possibilities? From suffering, there are opportunities for growth, for change, and for evolution. Suffering can be the catalyst for so many qualities necessary in a travel, and, sometimes, all that you need to do to obtain those qualities is to “rough it” when traveling. Tom Butler makes his triumphant return to discuss the benefits of “roughing it,” as well as his time in China. Tom returns to Hayden to talk about his life since he last visited in season three, as well as how he has begun to settle down with his family, which includes his three-year-old daughter and will soon include another child, coming this summer. He talks about how the logistics of traveling have had to shift since he has started adding children to his family, since the travel bug has not been dissuaded regardless of how many kids he has. Tom also discusses how to manage your budget and finances when you travel. The highlight of Tom’s episode is in his story, based in China and given the alluring title of: “On the Right Track.” He talks about his journey with his family from Shiyan to Beijing, how they decided to stop over in Pingyao, but also decided to take the most overpacked train directly following Chinese New Year. What followed was a lesson in not overbooking trains, and in trusting those around you when something goes wrong. Tom also discusses with Hayden cultural divides, differences from location to location, and how even the slightest deviation from your usual routine can count as a travel experience. They also continue their thread of how “toughing it” can make an experience that much more powerful and interesting to go through and learn from, as well as how to follow your own flexibility when scheduling and spending on a trip. When it comes right down to it, though, you will never know if you don’t give it a shot; “do or do not - there is no try.” 0:57 - In the last episode of season four, Hayden re-introduces Tom Butler, one of our most popular guests from season three. Tom has been around the world with his wife and is starting to settle down with a family, with his second child on the way this summer, but the travel bug has never left him. 8:05 - Hayden and Tom discuss the price spectrum of traveling and how to manage your budget and your finances when you travel. Tom mentions how your own comfort and experiences can play into your financial decisions, as well as how flexible you can be in your scheduling and your spending. 15:27 - Hayden shares a... --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/backpackdigital/message

The Improv Saved My Life Podcast Episode #95 (Will Luera, Shiyan AKA Bee) III In the final episode of "The Will Luera Podcast Trilogy", Tom is joined by Will Luera (“The Artistic Director Emeritus of ImprovBoston”, Director of Improvisation for The Florida Studio Theatre) & Shiyan aka Bee ("Bodega", "The Quarry" & "Straight Out of Context") Topics discussed include Will’s time in Sarasota as Director of Improvisation for The Florida Studio Theatre, directing at a theater other then ImprovBoston, relocating his family spending time with family and being nice to each other. Stories Without Roofs is looking for volunteers of all kinds to assist with helping homeless youths produce short stories and fully realized plays based on their work. It is an awesome cause and could use all the support that can be given. Contact Tom Boyer or Misch Whitaker for volunteering opportunities. Do me a favor and subscribe and rate "The Improv Saved My Life Podcast” on iTunes at this link https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/b.i.t.s-boston-improv-talk/id786818514?mt=2

The Improv Saved My Life Podcast Episode #67 (Mike Descoteaux & Shiyan AKA Bee) In this episode Tom is joined by Mike Descoteaux (Artistic Director of ImprovBoston) and Shiyan AKA Bee ("The Quarry" & "Bodega"). Topics discussed include Mike's extensive improv background including his time as the head of the music program at Second City Chicago, The Charles River Creative Arts Program and his time as Creative Director of IB. Other topics include the importance of music in improv, the gender equality issue in improv and Shiyan's disappointment over the lack of "The Made Up Movie Game" in recent episodes. Should you check lout this episode? Yes, and... check out all of the great shows and classes at ImprovBoston at www.improvboston.com Do me a favor subscribe and rate "The Improv Saved My Life Podcast” on iTunes at this link https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/b.i.t.s-boston-improv-talk/id786818514?mt=2

The Improv Saved My Life Podcast Episode #66 (Nils Vaule & Shiyan AKA Bee) In this episode Tom is joined by Nils Vaule (Performer & Instructor at ImprovBoston) and Shiyan AKA Bee ("The Quarry" & "Bodega"). Topics discussed include the worst lines on the MBTA, Nils' improv and teaching background, working with children and the importance of good teachers. Should you check lout this episode? Yes, and... check out Tom perform at Improv Asylum House Teams this Tuesday at 8:00pm or Robot Arms perform at The Riot Theater in JP this Thursday, 2/26 at Indie Night. Do me a favor subscribe and rate "The Improv Saved My Life Podcast” on iTunes at this link https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/b.i.t.s-boston-improv-talk/id786818514?mt=2

The Improv Saved My Life Podcast Episode # 59 (Ari Stern & Shiyan AKA Bee) In this episode, Tom is joined by frequent co host, Shiyan AKA Bee (“Bodega", "The Quarry") and guest, Ari Stern(Main Stage Cast Member at ImprovBoston, "Two Gentlemen”, instructor at ImprovBoston). Topics discussed include Ari’s improv background, assigning roles to improvisers based on appearance, quotas and ratios in casting and validation in improv. Should you check out this episode? Yes, and… also check out Ari on the Main Stage of ImprovBoston soon. get tickets here: www.improvboston.com Also if you are a fan of independent improv please come out and support "Indie Improv Night at The Middle East Upstairs" on Monday, January 5th from 8:00pm to 10:30pm featuring Boston’s best independent improv teams. Do me a favor and subscribe and rate "The Improv Saved My Life Podcast” on iTunes at this link https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/b.i.t.s-boston-improv-talk/id786818514?mt=2

The Improv Saved My Life Podcast Episode #50 (Will Luera, Shiyan AKA Bee & Chris Griffin) EPISODE 50!!! In this episode, Tom is joined by co hosts, Shiyan aka Bee & Chris Griffin and the guest is “The Artistic Director Emeritus of ImprovBoston”, Will Luera. The hosts pick Will’s brain one last time before he sets out on his new journey, as Director of Improvisation for The Florida Studio Theatre. Will touches on all sorts of topics including passing the Latino torch at IB, his poker face, putting improv into perspective & his influence over the Boston Improv community. We also took your questions Facebook and Will answered them all. Should you check out this episode? Yes, and… “Follow the Funny" Do me a favor and subscribe and rate "The Improv Saved My Life Podcast” on iTunes at this link https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/b.i.t.s-boston-improv-talk/id786818514?mt=2

In this episode, Tom is joined by co host, Shiyan aka Bee (“Russian for Elephant”,”Bodega") and the guest is “The Artistic Director Emeritus of ImprovBoston”, Will Luera. Topics discussed include Will’s distinguished improv career, balancing being both a family man & successful improviser, Will’s new LLC “Atomica Arts” and “Improv Utopia East”. This weeks edition of “The Made Up Movie Game” features “Human Behavior”, a Bjork song inspired movie about a couple caught in a blackout in NYC on a very special night. Should you check out this episode? Yes, and… also check out all of the awesome shows at ImprovBoston