"What’s happened is that high interest rates have triggered a global venture capital slowdown. This impact has rippled across the U.S., the EU, China, and the rest of the world. Southeast Asia’s slowdown over the past few years isn’t a local issue—it’s part of a broader global trend, primarily driven by the U.S. central bank and the U.S. economy. We’ve seen this reflected across various asset classes. For instance, recent stock market rallies in Southeast Asia were fueled by expectations that U.S. interest rates may drop. I won’t dive into macroeconomics now, but the point is that investors see opportunities tied to currency shifts and other factors. The key takeaway: venture capital today still depends heavily on U.S. capital from LPs.” - Jeremy Au, Host of BRAVE Southeast Asia Tech Podcast" - Jeremy Au
"VCs constantly have to ask: how do I maximize my win rate and correct pick rate, while minimizing bad move selections? This requires careful consideration of heuristics and biases, which manifest in various contexts—socioeconomic class, education, prior wins, professional experience, gender, and majority versus minority dynamics. These factors influence decision-making from multiple angles. As a result, VCs must conduct thorough assessments, often following a sequential process to evaluate opportunities effectively.” - Jeremy Au, Host of BRAVE Southeast Asia Tech Podcast" - Jeremy Au
"If you're a founder, your focus should be on building a great business—rallying the right resources, creating a solid company, and generating revenue. That’s the foundation for success. As a VC, if I only invested in deals where everything was obvious—great team, great traction, great pitch—then what’s my job? An AI could do it, right? I’d just follow deals like Sequoia’s DNA deal and try to get in. But you can’t beat Sequoia on brand, differentiation, or financial firepower. The only way I can compete is by identifying under-the-radar, high-potential founders before they become obvious to everyone else.” - Jeremy Au, Host of BRAVE Southeast Asia Tech Podcast" - Jeremy Au
In this episode, Jeremy Au speaks on the startup unicorn GDP per capita time machine and VC as Olympic coaches.
Keywords: Startup Unicorn, GDP Per Capita Time Machine, VC as Olympic Coaches, Singapore, Southeast Asia, VC, Thought Leadership
