There’s never been a more exciting time to be building a startup in Asia Pacific. Across the region, a diverse, talented and energetic group of founders is on the rise. And these entrepreneurs have an unprecedented opportunity to find the support they need to grow, with record venture funding flowing into the region.

For Google, supporting startups of all sizes is part of our commitment to help digital economies grow. Today, at a virtual Google for Startups event, we shared some of the key insights from our partnerships with founders throughout Asia Pacific: how they’re targeting global growth, moving technology forward, and seeking out support to help realize their potential.

Building for the world

In April 2021, there were almost 200 unicorns (startups valued at $1 billion or more) in Asia Pacific, second only to the United States (290) and ahead of Europe (69). Many of Asia’s leading startups are making a global impact, whether by influencing new business models — like Grab and other Southeast Asian ‘super apps’ — or by tackling universal challenges — like CogSmart in Japan, which is working to help prevent dementia at an early age.

At the same time, the impact of COVID-19 has created greater demand for new digital services that startups are ideally-placed to build. In Southeast Asia, for example, 60 million people have become ‘digital consumers’ — using at least one online service — since the pandemic began.

Exploring emerging technologies

To meet the changing needs of the region’s online population, Asian startups are exploring what’s possible with the next wave of advances in technology. Many want to help solve entrenched social, financial and environmental challenges. Often they’re focused on areas where technology hasn’t made the same progress it has in more established sectors of the digital economy.

• In artificial intelligence, the region’s founders are working on a wide range of powerful applications. Indonesia’s Kata.ai is a leader in conversational AI, helping businesses provide better experiences for their customers, while India’s BrainSightAI is building new tools to help researchers and clinicians better understand the human brain.
• Decentralized finance (DeFi) is another growth area. Southeast Asian DeFi startups raised $1 billion in equity funding in 2021, six times the amount in 2020. With an eye on the shift away from traditional finance and trading, entrepreneurs behind startups like Korea’sDA:Ground are making it easier for people in the region to invest and access other financial services.
• Financial technology (fintech) and e-commerce in Asia is booming. Many founders working in the fintech sector are driven by the goal of making finance more inclusive and e-commerce an even better experience. The Philippines’ Advance is making it easier for Filipino workers to access zero-interest credit through responsible partnerships with their employers. In Singapore, Shopinks helps retailers better engage their customers through chatbots and personalized emails.
• In the wake of the pandemic, there is great momentum behind health technology startups such as India’s Zyla, which provides 24/7, personalized care through a mobile app, and Caredoc, a Korean platform that shares information on elderly care facilities.
• Other founders are increasingly focused on sustainability, given Asia’s vulnerability to the climate crisis. Startups contributing to the response include Indonesia’s Duitin, which is managing 2,000 waste management sites across Indonesia, and Taiwan’s Lockists, a shared transportation platform that helps improve air quality by reducing car use.

Laying foundations for growth

While there’s ample funding available for Asian startups, we know that the region’s founders need a much wider range of support beyond investment. Common challenges faced by startups in the region include keeping up with regulations (which differ at country, state and provincial levels), getting access to infrastructure or technologies, and increasing the current low rate of women’s entrepreneurship.

Our aim is to work with everyone in the startup community — including founders, venture capital firms and governments — to help move the entire ecosystem forward. This year, we’re running Google for Startups Accelerator programs in India, Korea, Japan and Southeast Asia, providing support and mentorship for growth-stage startups. Our new Startup Academy program — launched in Indonesia — will coach early-stage startups. We’re working to help a more diverse range of startups through the Women Founders Academy. And we continue to build close links with private and public sector partners who share our commitment, with initiatives like Project Hatcher in Taiwan and our Startups & FinTechs Program with Cyberport in Hong Kong.

At this moment of possibility for Asian startups, we want to make sure founders across the region have all the opportunities they need to grow, thrive and shape technology for the region and the world.

EngageRocket co-founder Dorothy Yiu and her husband were eagerly expecting the arrival of their first baby. But as Dorothy was preparing to start her maternity leave, she found herself battling feelings of guilt. She was hesitant to step away from her work responsibilities, her team and the company that she had been pouring her heart into.

EngageRocket — a Singaporean company that helps companies improve their employees’ experiences at work — recently celebrated its fifth anniversary. Dorothy, now pregnant with her second child, says those years have been a time of growth and self discovery for her. Not only has she learned to focus on important things and get rid of her self-inflicted feelings of inadequacy, she has also come to realize how important it is to initiate open conversations about the stigma, insecurity and imposter syndrome so many working women are struggling to overcome.

Today, on Women’s Entrepreneurship Day, stories like Dorothy’s are important reminders that there is still much more work to be done to empower women and girls so they can become confident entrepreneurs and equal participants in business. Promoting diversity and equal opportunities isn’t just the right thing to do – it also has a positive financial impact. Women Will research by Grow with Google notes that closing the entrepreneurial gender gap could boost the global economy by up to $5 trillion.

EngageRocket is one of 10 recent graduates from the APAC Women Founders Academy Program by Google for Startups. During this 12-week program, the founders received training and mentoring from Googlers across the region to help sharpen their leadership skills and address their unique growth needs, including funding. All the participants highlighted the important role of communities and mentors in helping them gain knowledge, overcome mental barriers and build confidence.

Many of them noted that to build true equity, it’s important to look past gender divides and recognise people’s achievements as entrepreneurs and professionals, not only as women. Dorothy wholeheartedly agrees. Today, 50% of EngageRocket’s senior management team are women, all of them working mothers. As a leader, she is determined to build an open, flexible company culture that empowers everyone to balance their priorities – both at work and in their personal lives.

At Google, we’re committed to helping more women like Dorothy grow and thrive in business. We know it’s one of the most powerful steps we can take to create new jobs and opportunities, advance equality, and contribute to an inclusive economic recovery that will benefit us all.

For many people, the most difficult part about surfing is just standing up on the board. But for diehard surfers — the ones who get up at 5:00 a.m. to catch the best waves — the real challenge is to find a wetsuit that actually fits. And that’s something that Los Angeles City lifeguard Andrew Park and marketing manager Grace Hsiang knew firsthand. 

Skintight garments sold off the rack couldn’t possibly fit every aspiring surfer, and Andrew and Grace saw a need for a premium, high-quality wetsuit designed to accommodate a wide range of body types. “When it comes to a technical garment like a wetsuit, fit is a necessity for performance,” Andrew says. “We wanted to help any individual find a fit that helps them perform at their very best rather than ask the individual to conform to our product.”

So in 2016 Grace and Andrew launched 7TILL8, a direct-to-consumer startup named for the “glass-off hour” when conditions are ideal for surfing and diving. Customers submit 16 measurements to 7TILL8 to produce a completely bespoke wetsuit, personalized down to their preferred style, color, and thickness. Crafted out of Yamamoto neoprene—affectionately known as “the cashmere of neoprene” as it is made from Japanese limestone rather than petroleum—7TILL8 wetsuits are top-of-the-line in performance, durability, and comfort. The company also provides free alterations and repairs throughout the life of the product, encouraging surfers to invest in a quality suit rather than cheaply-made alternatives. 

Surfing is one of the fastest-growing sports in the world, with thousands of people taking it up during the pandemic. Surfing will make its Olympic debut at the 2020 Tokyo Games this summer, and early results from Navy research shows that “surf therapy” may even aid with PTSD and depression. Google Ads has been key to helping 7TILL8 ride this wave of popularity and connect with the customers that need their product. Search engine optimization (SEO) and search engine marketing (SEM) in the Ads platform helped Grace and Andrew see more than sixfold return on investment on keywords like “custom wetsuits.” Constantly updating and editing their keywords has been essential to driving traffic to their website and growing their custom base — and ultimately helped 7TILL8 double their revenue.  

While thrilled that their business model saw immediate success, Andrew and Grace worried about scaling manufacturing to align with this rapid growth. Could they accommodate surging demand without sacrificing product integrity? Support came in the form of Strong Ventures, an early-stage investment firm that finances, supports and mentors Korean-Global entrepreneurs. The Strong Ventures team invited Andrew and Grace to Google for Startups Campus Seoul to pitch, and ultimately invested in their vision for a more inclusive surf community. “As a young company that wants to help challenge the way people look at surfing, we’ve found how important it is to find your tribe,” says Grace. “We have been incredibly fortunate to partner with organizations like Strong Ventures and Google for Startups, who align with us from a values perspective.” 

Through thoughtful work and collaborations, Grace and Andrew established 7TILL8 as a brand known for quality, service and intention. While they’ve shipped their suits to more than 45 different countries, their team of five is still based in Southern California. Despite the company’s rapid growth, Andrew and Grace remain particular about partnerships and publicity. “Surfing is sometimes perceived as a silly, superficial activity, but being in the ocean is such a blissful, magnificent experience,” said Grace. “We wanted to create a brand that would exemplify that by bringing integrity, dignity and respect to our wetsuits.”