Best Keith Yap Podcasts (2025)

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#55: Kyle Chan - Will China Make The US Irrelevant? 1:28:33

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6d ago1:28:33

1:28:33

Thank you for checking out The Front Row Podcast and my interview with Kyle Chan. Here's what the podcast sponsor, Revolut is offering: 💰Get S$50 cashback when you sign up to Revolut Business at www.revolut.com/rb/tfr/ before 30 Nov 2025 and top up your account. T&Cs and end date apply. (This is also the first sponsorship I have taken since the inc…

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#54- Kishore Mahbubani : New Hard Truths for 21st Century Geopolitics 1:04:47

11d ago1:04:47

1:04:47

💰 Get S$50 cashback when you sign up to Revolut Business at www.revolut.com/rb/tfr/ before 30 Nov 2025 and top up your account. T&Cs and end date apply. This is a recording of a conversation I had with Prof Kishore Mahbubani at an event I co-organized with Bloomberg Singapore and Thinksuite. I hope you will enjoy the conversation as much as we did.…

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#53- Marc Levinson : Is The Age of Globalization Over? 1:06:38

21d ago1:06:38

1:06:38

Marc Levinson is an American economist, historian, and author celebrated for his accessible writing on economic forces and globalization.He’s authored seven acclaimed books, notably:The Box: How the Shipping Container Made the World Smaller and the World Economy Bigger, a groundbreaking history of containerization that reshaped global trade. It was…

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#52- Tansen Sen : India and China in a Multipolar World: Can their Golden Age Return? 1:00:16

29d ago1:00:16

1:00:16

Professor Tansen Sen is a renowned historian of India–China relations and Asian interconnections. He is Professor of History at NYU Shanghai and Director of the Center for Global Asia. His research spans Sino-Indian interactions, Buddhism across Asia, and maritime networks that shaped the region’s history. He is the author of Buddhism, Diplomacy, a…

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#51- Cheong Yip Seng : Why Singapore Still Needs The Straits Times 59:37

1M ago59:37

59:37

Cheong Yip Seng is the former Editor-in-Chief of The Straits Times, Singapore’s flagship English daily, where he led the newsroom for over two decades. Joining the paper as a young journalist, he rose through the ranks to shape its editorial direction during some of Singapore’s most pivotal years. Under his leadership, The Straits Times navigated t…

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#50 - Stephen Witt : How NVIDIA Became The King of AI 1:03:24

1M ago1:03:24

1:03:24

Stephen Witt is a Los Angeles–based investigative journalist and author whose work appears regularly in The New Yorker. His latest book, The Thinking Machine (April 2025), chronicles the extraordinary rise of Nvidia and its CEO Jensen Huang—from immigrant dishwasher to leader of the world’s most valuable company. Stanford’s former computer science …

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#49- Professor Ooi Kee Beng : The Intellectual Legacy of Dr Goh Keng Swee, Singapore's Economic Architect 1:12:09

2M ago1:12:09

1:12:09

🎙️ Guest: Ooi Kee Beng | Political Historian & Executive Director, Penang Institute Ooi Kee Beng is a political historian, writer, and the executive director of Penang Institute. He has spent years studying the process of nation-building in Asia and is the author of In Lieu of Ideology: Dr Goh Keng Swee's Intellectual Biography. In this episode, we…

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#48- David Fishman: How China Is Achieving The Holy Grail Of Clean Energy 1:06:02

2M ago1:06:02

1:06:02

🎙️ Guest: David Fishman | Principal, The Lantau Group David Fishman is a Principal at The Lantau Group, a boutique strategy and economic consultancy focused on the Asia Pacific energy sector. He specializes in regulatory and economic intelligence for the Chinese power sector—including solar, wind, coal, nuclear, hydro, grid transmission, and power …

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#47- Chan Heng Chee : How Singapore Adapts In A Changing World 1:27:09

2M ago1:27:09

1:27:09

🎙️ Ambassador Chan Heng Chee is a prominent Singaporean academic, diplomat, and political scientist, known for her distinguished career in both academia and public service. She served as Singapore's Ambassador to the United States (1996–2012) and earlier as Permanent Representative to the United Nations (1989–1991), concurrently holding the roles o…

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#46- Jamus Lim : Can Singapore's Economy Reinvent Itself? 1:08:13

2M ago1:08:13

1:08:13

Jamus Lim is an Associate Professor of Economics at ESSEC Business School and a Member of Parliament in Singapore. With a PhD from the University of California, Santa Cruz, and experience at the World Bank and Abu Dhabi Investment Authority , his work spans international economics, political economy, and development. In this episode, we discuss how…

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#45- Professor Elizabeth Ingleson : How America and China Transformed Global Trade 1:06:41

3M ago1:06:41

1:06:41

Professor Elizabeth Ingleson is a historian of capitalism, US foreign relations, and US–China relations — a timely and critical intersection she explores in her acclaimed first book, Made in China: When US-China Interests Converged to Transform Global Trade, published by Harvard University Press in 2024.In the book, she unpacks a pivotal shift in t…

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#44- Joseph Liow : Why Southeast Asia Needs America 56:24

3M ago56:24

56:24

Professor Joseph Chinyong Liow is one of Singapore’s leading scholars on international affairs, known for his incisive analysis of Southeast Asian politics. He is serving as the Dean of the College of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences at Nanyang Technological University (NTU), where he now holds the prestigious Tan Kah Kee Chair in Comparative …

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#43- Cedric Chin: The Secrets Of Asian Business Empires 1:07:13

3M ago1:07:13

1:07:13

Cedric Chin is the CEO & Founder of Commoncog. Commoncog is a publication dedicated to accelerating business expertise.Commoncog asks two questions: a) what is business expertise? b) what do we know about accelerating it?In this conversation, Cedric and I dive into how Asian tycoons are made and the essential skills business operators must master i…

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#42- Karthik Nachiappan- The Rise of India As A Great Power 53:52

3M ago53:52

53:52

Karthik Nachiappan is a Research Fellow at the Institute of South Asian Studies (ISAS), National University of Singapore. His work focuses on India’s foreign and economic policy, particularly in trade, technology, and global governance. He is the author of Does India Negotiate? (Oxford University Press)In this episode, we talk about the policy inte…

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#41: Professor Euston Quah- How Practical Economics Made Singapore 1:02:07

4M ago1:02:07

1:02:07

Professor Euston Quah is a prominent Singaporean economist and the Albert Winsemius Chair Professor of Economics at Nanyang Technological University (NTU), where he also serves as Head of the Economics Division. Known for his work in cost-benefit analysis, environmental economics, and policy economics, he has advised various government agencies and…

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#40 - Grace Shao: Why China Is Winning In The New Age of AI 1:01:28

4M ago1:01:28

1:01:28

Grace Shao is a Financial/tech journalist turned analyst based in Hong Kong. On her Substack, she writes about AI and its relationship with energy, big tech, and society. She can be found at: https://substack.com/@gshao TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 Trailer & Intro 01:30 Understanding the Chinese Internet Ecosystem 06:06 The Evolution of Chinese Entrepreneurs …

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#39- Inderjit Singh : Can Singapore Keep Our Economic Miracle Alive? 1:05:47

4M ago1:05:47

1:05:47

Inderjit Singh is a former Member of Parliament in Singapore who served under the People's Action Party (PAP) from 1996 to 2015, representing the Ang Mo Kio GRC. A seasoned entrepreneur and technologist, he is known for his candid views on innovation, entrepreneurship, and policymaking. Inderjit played a key role in shaping Singapore’s start-up eco…

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#38- Manoj Pradhan: The Great Demographic Reversal 58:32

4M ago58:32

58:32

Manoj Pradhan founded the independent macroeconomic research firm Talking Heads Macroeconomics, based in London. The firm specialises in analysing global and emerging market macroeconomic trends and their implications for financial markets. He was previously managing director at Morgan Stanley, where he led the global economics team.In this episode…

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#37- Zhou Bo : Should The World Fear China? 54:50

4M ago54:50

54:50

Zhou Bo is a Senior Fellow at the Centre for International Security and Strategy at Tsinghua University.In his prior life, he was a Senior Colonel in the People's Liberation Army of China. In this episode, we discuss the role China seeks to play on the international stage amidst its intensifying rivalry with the USA. 00:00 Intro 01:20 - China's Mul…

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#36-Bilahari Kausikan : Hard Truths For The Coming Multipolar World 1:21:32

5M ago1:21:32

1:21:32

Bilahari Kausikan is a Singaporean academic and retired diplomat. He was the Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the former ambassador to the UN and Russia. Before his retirement, Bilahari was the Chairman of the Middle East Institute at the National University of Singapore. In this episode, he unpacks the dilemmas and challe…

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#35- John Carbrey : Why Hustle Culture Is Broken 1:00:43

5M ago1:00:43

1:00:43

John Carbrey is a Canadian entrepreneur and venture investor. In 2005, he founded Intrafinity, which built powerful web content management tools used by universities, hospitals, and Fortune 500 companies across North America. In 2008, he launched SharpSchool, a spinoff focused on communication and web platforms for K–12 school districts. It quickly…

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#34- Steven Okun: Trump's Endgame For Asia 1:04:47

5M ago1:04:47

1:04:47

Steven Okun, is the Founder and CEO of APAC Advisors. He is a recognized expert on U.S. foreign policy, global trade, sustainability, and corporate public affairs across the Asia-Pacific region. With over 25 years of experience spanning government and private sectors, he excels at turning complex policy changes into actionable business strategies. …

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#33- Vaughn Tan : Why Uncertainty Creates Innovation 1:00:49

5M ago1:00:49

1:00:49

Dr. Vaughn Tan is a strategy consultant, advisor, and researcher. He currently leads Southeast Asia executive education for University College London, where he was part of the founding strategy faculty in the School of Management. He is the author of The Uncertainty Mindset (Columbia Univ. Press, 2020), a book about using uncertainty as a strategic…

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#32-Allen Lau, Co-Founder of Wattpad: Lessons From Building A $600M Startup And Funding The Future of Innovation 1:10:59

6M ago1:10:59

1:10:59

Allen Lau is a self-described 'recovering' CEO, and 3x entrepreneur, an engineer by training, a rocket scientist at heart, and a venture capitalist by profession. He was the CEO and co-founder of Wattpad, the world's largest social storytelling company with 100 million monthly users. A few years ago, the AI-powered company was acquired by Naver for…

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#31-Magnus Grimeland (CEO and Founder of Antler): The Secrets To Building A Great Team in Southeast Asia 52:52

6M ago52:52

52:52

Magnus Grimeland is the founder and CEO of Antler. Before Antler, Magnus co-founded Zalora, taking the company from zero to Asia’s leading fashion e-commerce platform, and then helped scale Global Fashion Group across 26 markets. His former colleagues have gone on to found leading Southeast Asian startups such as Gojek and Stashaway. He is a Harvar…

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#30- Taimur Baig : The Case For Economic Optimism In An Uncertain World 37:13

6M ago37:13

37:13

Taimur Baig, PhD, heads global economics as well as macro strategy for interest rate, credit, and currency at DBS Group Research. He also advises the bank on risk management and investment strategy.Dr. Baig has published extensively for both specialists and a general audience, on areas including monetary policy, digital currency, financial technolo…

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#29- Wang Gungwu: Decoding China's Rise In The New World Order 1:10:45

7M ago1:10:45

1:10:45

Wang Gungwu is an internationally renowned historian famed for his scholarship on the history of the Chinese diaspora in Southeast Asia, as well as the history and civilisation of China and Southeast Asia. In his illustrious academic career, Wang has held eminent appointments in various universities and organisations around the world. He was a hist…

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#28- Ong Ye Kung: Governing Singapore in A Turbulent Time 50:01

7M ago50:01

50:01

Ong Ye Kung is the Minister for Health. He was elected Member of Parliament for Sembawang Group Representation Constituency (GRC) in September 2015, and was re-elected in July 2020 in Sembawang GRC.He had held the positions of Minister for Transport, Minister for Education, Second Minister for Defence and board member of the Monetary Authority of S…

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#27- Dr. Noeleen Heyzer (Former UN Under-Secretary General) - Championing Women's Rights In The UN 58:01

7M ago58:01

58:01

In today's episode, I speak with Dr. Noeleen Heyzer, a distinguished diplomat and international civil servant who served as Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations. Dr. Heyzer also led the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM), transforming it into a powerful advocate for women's rights and empowerment globally. This episode was …

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#26- The One Book From Lee Kuan Yew You Must Read (Solo Episode) 14:47

7M ago14:47

14:47

In my first ever solo audio episode, I thought to share with a book that I have read and re-read every year. I re-read Hard Truths to Keep Singapore Going during a recent holiday and thought I should share with you my thoughts on this book (and why you have to read this!) Let me know your thoughts!

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#25- Robert Wu, CEO of Big One Lab : How China Became A Technology Superpower 1:00:23

7M ago1:00:23

1:00:23

Robert Wu is a serial entrepreneur, investor, and thinker.He started working for BigOne Lab, China’s leading data & information service provider, first as an employee/partner, and later, with a buyout, became its CEO. You can find his China-focused Substack here at https://www.baiguan.news/?r=8th0v TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 Trailer and Intro 01:32 DeepSeek…

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#24- Professor John van Wyhe : How Charles Darwin Changed The World 1:09:53

8M ago1:09:53

1:09:53

Professor John van Wyhe is a historian of science at the National University of Singapore and the founder and Director of Darwin Online– probably the most comprehensive scholarly website on any historical person. His research has resolved long-standing mysteries and myths such as Darwin’s so-called delay, when Darwin received Wallace’s evolution es…

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#23- Professor Daniel Bell: Confucianism In The New Age of Chinese Politics 1:14:46

8M ago1:14:46

1:14:46

Professor Daniel A. Bell is Professor, Chair of Political Theory with the Faculty of Law at the University of Hong Kong. He served as Dean of the School of Political Science and Public Administration at Shandong University (Qingdao) from 2017 to 2022.He specialises in Comparative Political Theories, focusing on Confucianism and Legalism. His books …

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#22- Jack Sim : How Clean Toilets Can Save The World 56:45

8M ago56:45

56:45

Jack Sim is The Founder of the World Toilet Organization. Renowned as "Mr. Toilet," Jack Sim shattered the global stigma surrounding toilets and sanitation by propelling the issue into the international spotlight. After achieving financial independence, he retired from business to dedicate his life to social work. In 1998, he established the Restro…

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#21- Nir Eyal: Reinvent Your Life By Being Indistractable 1:14:14

8M ago1:14:14

1:14:14

Nir Eyal writes, consults, and teaches about the intersection of psychology, technology, and business. Nir previously taught as a Lecturer in Marketing at the Stanford Graduate School of Business and the Hasso Plattner Institute of Design at Stanford.Nir co-founded and sold two tech companies since 2003 and was dubbed by The M.I.T. Technology Revie…

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#20- Professor Chua Beng Huat: Is The Singapore Housing Miracle Over? 58:14

9M ago58:14

58:14

Professor Chua Beng Huat is a Singaporean Sociologist and is an Emeritus Professor at the National University of Singapore. He is also currently a Visiting Fellow at the Singapore Management University.He is the author of two books: 1) Public Subsidy, Private Accumulation: The Political Economy of Singapore's Public Housing (https://amzn.to/3Wf6uhz…

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#19- Tan Chade-Meng: Unlocking The Full Power of Meditation 52:31

9M ago52:31

52:31

Chade-Meng Tan (Meng) is an award-winning engineer, international bestselling author, movie producer and philanthropist. He is Co-founder of Buddhism.net, and Co-chair of One Billion Acts of Peace, which has been nominated by Archbishop Desmond Tutu and seven other Nobel Laureates for the Nobel Peace Prize. He co-founded the Search Inside Yourself …

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#18- Professor Brian Wong: Hong Kong's Role in The New China 1:08:54

9M ago1:08:54

1:08:54

Dr. Brian Wong is an Assistant Professor in Philosophy at the University of Hong Kong. His research examines the ethics and dynamics of authoritarian regimes and their foreign policies, historical and colonial injustices, and the intersection of geopolitics, political and moral philosophy, and technology. In this episode, we discuss Hong Kong's evo…

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#17- Ian Ball : The Power of Public Accounting 1:05:08

9M ago1:05:08

1:05:08

Ian Ball is an Adjunct Professor in the School of Accounting andCommercial Law at Victoria University of Wellington, and until 2021 was Chairof the Audit Committee for the financial statements of the New ZealandGovernment. He was Chief Executive Officer of the International Federation ofAccountants (IFAC) (2002-2013). Earlier, as Chairman of the IF…

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#16- Professor Danny Quah: Navigating Great Power Rivalry 1:02:39

10M ago1:02:39

1:02:39

Professor Danny Quah is Li Ka Shing Professor in Economics and Dean at the Lee Kuan Yew School Of Public Policy. His research interests lie in income inequality, economic growth, and international economic relations. His work takes an economic approach to world order - focusing on global power shift and the rise of the east, and alternative models …

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#15- Professor Keyu Jin : The New China Playbook: Myths, Realities, and the Road Ahead 54:14

10M ago54:14

54:14

Professor Keyu Jin is an Associate Professor of Economics at the London School of Economics.She specialises in international macroeconomics and the Chinese economy. Her research focuses on global trade imbalances, asset prices and China's economic growth model.She is the author of the best-selling book, The New China Playbook. In this episode, we e…

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#14- Shaun Rein : The Truth About China's Economy 50:30

10M ago50:30

50:30

Shaun Rein is the Founder and Managing Director of the China Market Research Group (CMR), the world's leading strategic market intelligence firm focused on China. He works with Boards, billionaires, Heads of States, CEOs and senior executives of Fortune 500 & leading Chinese companies, private equity firms, SMEs and long/ hedge funds to develop the…

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#13- Professor Tan Tai Yong - The Idea of Singapore : Smallness Unconstrained 1:02:09

10M ago1:02:09

1:02:09

Professor Tan Tai Yong is the President of the Singapore University of Social Sciences (SUSS). Before he joined SUSS, Professor Tan was President, Yale-NUS College.Professor Tan specialises in South and Southeast Asian History and has published extensively on the history of India and Singapore.Timestamps: 00:00- The Historical Context of Singapore'…

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#12- Former CEO of McDonald's China, Kenneth Chan - Lessons From Leading McDonald's In China 1:01:41

10M ago1:01:41

1:01:41

Kenneth Chan was McDonald’s Chief Executive Officer for China and Division President for the Greater China region between 2009 to 2015. He led an organization of 150,00 employees and oversaw the fastest period of expansion at that time (opening over 1,000 restaurants in the span of 5 years). More recently from 2016 to 2021, Kenneth served as an equ…

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#11- Kishore Mahbubani- War and Peace in The 21st Asian Century 42:39

11M ago42:39

42:39

Kishore Mahbubani is a Distinguished Fellow at the Asia Research Institute (ARI), National University of Singapore (NUS).Mr Mahbubani has been privileged to enjoy two distinct careers, in diplomacy (1971 to 2004) and in academia (2004 to 2019). He is a prolific writer who has spoken in many corners of the world.In diplomacy, he was with the Singapo…

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#10- Dag Detter - How Public Wealth Works 50:38

11M ago50:38

50:38

Dag Detter is the Managing Partner & Founder of Detter & Co. Dag specialises in public commercial assets and works as an advisor to local and national governments, investors and international financial institutions to help unlock public wealth. As the former President of Stattum, the Swedish government holding company, he was responsible for the co…

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#9- Tan Siok Sun- The Legacy of Goh Keng Swee, The Man Behind Singapore's Economic Miracle 1:04:12

12M ago1:04:12

1:04:12

Tan Siok Sun is the biographer of Dr. Goh Keng Swee, Singapore's founding Defence and Finance Minister. The biography she authored is entitled "Goh Keng Swee: A Portrait" Dr. Goh was a founding member of Singapore’s ruling political party, The People's Action Party, and was known as the architect of Singapore's economic miracle. Siok Sun is also th…

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#8- Jeremy Tan- The Future of Venture Capital in Singapore and Southeast Asia 55:49

12M ago55:49

55:49

Jeremy is a Co-Founder of Tin Men Capital, a Venture Capital firm that invests primarily in B2B technology startups focused on the Southeast Asia market. In this episode we discuss: - Why He Left Trafigura To Start His Own Fund - First Principles Thinking in Venture Investing within Southeast Asia - What VCs Looks For In Founders - The Future of St…

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#7- Dr. Dean Ho- Building The Future of Healthcare With AI in Singapore 54:39

1y ago54:39

54:39

Dr. Dean Ho is currently Provost’s Chair Professor and Head of the Department of Biomedical Engineering in the College of Design and Engineering, Director of The Institute for Digital Medicine (WisDM) at the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, and Director of The N.1 Institute for Health (N.1) at the National University of Singapore.In this interview,…

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#6- Irene Ng - The Legacy of Singapore's Founding Foreign Minister, S Rajaratnam 1:10:57

1y ago1:10:57

1:10:57

Irene Ng is the authorised biographer of S. Rajaratnam. She was formerly an award-winning senior political correspondent and a Member of Parliament in Singapore. In this episode, we discuss: - Why Lee Kuan Yew Needed S. Rajaratnam - What made Rajaratnam unique - His legacy and contribution to Singapore's Foreign Policy…