Okay, so the professional in me does not usually allow perspectives to swing between emotions when it comes to talking about events like these.
They are, after all, just what they are- a group of people coming together for a common purpose to interact and network with each other.
But there're some events which surprisingly come out different, and can I say that the one here in SMU's Yong Pung How School of Law was one of those?
It wasn't merely because I got to visit the cavernous basement lecture hall in SMU, nor was it because they were serving up a nice lunch (even though it was a bonus), but because the presenters- and the presentations were notably good.
It wouldn't surprise me if Cocoon Capital provided their cohorts with a good deal of all-rounded mentorship, including that of public speaking and clear, concise presentation.
Hardly was there anyone I found difficult to understand.
Whether it were the logistics startups presenting to us, whether it were the fintech startup, or whether it were the startup that talked about simplifying the 3D creation process for designers to use in the metaverse, the presentations were all pretty good.
One thing I liked about their slides were just how candid they were.
It's like you knew (more or less) where they stood.
And that's very much needed these days in a rather cynical world.
It's not new to hear startups make their pitch in a way as if they're going to take over the world.
But get them down to answer what their long term (I'm talking 10 year at least) plans are and they shift and stagger.
The answer I always get is a lengthy description about exit strategy.
Call me old-school boomer whatever, but if a startup only thinks of funding and exit strategy, then pray tell, what is the purpose of all that funding (which has to come from established resources to begin with)?
I don't mean that their work shouldn't be disruptive.
It should be, but surely, all that technique and technology has to be utilized for a longer-term purpose, say ten or twenty years roughly, at least?
I like to know just where startups stand.
And those that I heard at this Cocoon Capital event made no bones about that.
If they were doing something specific, they made sure you knew they were doing something specific,
Like the fintech startup who said that they weren't targeting the white collar workers of Indonesia, but the blue collared ones. These were the ones, they explained, with no credit standing in financial institutions, so their system was such that they loaned out certain amounts, and collected the debts back instalment style from the salaries they earned, not directly from the debtors, however, but through a partnership with HR in the manufacturing factories that these workers earned a living in.
The presenter didn't sugarcoat the problems either.
There were enough borrowers, they said, but the trouble was getting them borrowers to return.
Not every startup there was doing mind-blowing stuff with technology (even though there was a lot of AI somewhere)
Some were solving necessary issues or capturing opportunities.
Like the logistics startup based in the Indochina region who talked about their intention to expand into Myanmar)
Or the other logistics startup based in Indonesia who spoke about the potential growth of the industry, their real-time data and location tracking center, their fleet and all.
There was a startup whose representative came from the Philippines and she talked about her experience with FMCG and how she was sure it would enable her to speed up processes in retail.
There were some startups with unique offerings.
Like the startup involved in video game and mobile game creation. (I think they were a platform?)
And like the startup whose South African representative told everyone that the strength of their work lay in data real-time. She didn't talk about the kind of cameras they were using, what sort of clientele their company reached out to, or even the kind of security systems their company were working with, or working on.
Except for a brief mention of Hikvision on the slides, everything else was about the X-factor in their company.
I thought it intriguing.
And I was pretty glad to be there.
Perhaps it isn't so much to say that I met a lot of people or I got a grip on what was happening in certain capital investment companies, but I got to hear a bit, I got to network a bit, and I hope something good will come out from the interactions I had over at SMU there.