Analyse Podcast

In episode 335, Stephanie Davis, Vice President of Google Southeast Asia, joined us in a discussion on the latest e-Conomy Southeast Asia (SEA) report and dissect the latest digital trends and discuss how the different industries are moving under the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Stephanie started on the key themes, takeaways and intended audience for the report and broke down the key verticals which have benefitted during the COVID-19 pandemic and which industries have faced the strongest headwinds, for example travel. Last but not least, Stephanie offered an optimistic outlook to what 2021 will look life given the uncertainty ahead. Here are the interesting show notes and links to the discussion: Stephanie Davis, Vice President, Google Southeast Asia (LinkedIn) What is your current role and responsibility in Google?  How did you start your career and end up in Singapore? In your career journey, what are the key learnings you can share with our audience here? e-Conomy Southeast Asia (SEA) 2020 by Google, Temasek and Bain & Company This is the 5th year of the e-Conomy report, and it is assembled by Google, Temasek (Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund and a key investor to many startup unicorns from China to Silicon Valley) and Bain & Co (one of the well-known consulting firms). To start the conversation, what are the key themes from the e-Conomy 2020 report this year? Who are the intended audience of the 2020 report? Southeast Asia has often been touted as the next geographical region after China and India. In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic has dominated the headlines of every nation in the world, and has acted as a catalyst to digital growth & transformation. How has COVID-19 pushed the population of Southeast Asia to come online or accelerated this process, and where is this new growth coming from? What are the three key verticals which have benefited from the COVID-19 pandemic?  Given that most of the world is still caught in a lockdown, you’re probably WFH as well, what is both the quantity and quality for digital engagement of users in the Southeast Asia region? Has the economic growth in Southeast Asia slowed down? Which countries within Southeast Asia have shown growth and which ones have slowed down? Can you talk about how ecommerce has thrived this year and what kind of headwinds do you see in the coming year?  As more people go digital in the years to come, we see that fintech, entertainment and gaming will continue to grow, where do you see the behaviour and activity of different stakeholders such as consumers, businesses, and regulators within this ecosystem? One of the sectors that is gravely affected this year is, of course, the travel industry. Where do you see the signs of recovery?  The Chinese word for crisis consists of 2 characters that mean danger and opportunity, and as Einstein has once said, “In the midst of every opportunity, lies great opportunity.” So what are the two verticals that have emerged this year?  Temasek is a co-publisher of the report, they’re Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund and a key investor of many startups from China to Silicon Valley, so how do you see the startup space evolving with regards to deal activity, diversification of portfolios by investors from private equity to venture capital?  What is the outlook for businesses in the year ahead? Should we be optimistic given that the pandemic has both accelerated digital transformation but also shut down many businesses at the same time? Closing Do you have any recommendations (for example, books, podcasts, videos or articles) which you can recommend to our audience? Stephanie's recommendations: Podcasts 1/ Mental Health, Disability and the Invisible 9%, 2/ How Authority and Decision Making differs across Cultures, 3/ Transgender Inclusion; Books: How to be an anti-racist by Ibram X. Kendi How do my audience find you?  Podcast Information: RSS Feed Apple Podcasts Himalaya Spotify Libsyn Google Play Overcast FM SoundCloud Luminary Twitter Facebook Video Facebook Page Linkedin Stitcher Castbox RadioPublic Acast PodBean ListenNotes TuneIn The show is hosted and produced by Carol Yin (@CarolYujiaYin) and originally created by Bernard Leong (@bernardleong, Linkedin). Sound credits for the intro music: Taro Iwashiro, "The Beginning" from Red Cliff Soundtrack. analyseasia · The Google e-Conomy Southeast Asia 2020 Report with Stephanie Davis

In episode 334, Matthew Brennan returned to discuss his new book "Attention Factory: The Story of Tik Tok & China's ByteDance". Matthew began with the inspiration and the key themes behind the first English book specifically focused on ByteDance, observing the rise of the company. He discuss the backstory of Zhang Yiming, founder of ByteDance and how he learned from his past experiences to build Toutiao first before embarking on Douyin that eventually led to Tik Tok. Last but not least, Matthew debunked the common misconceptions on Tik Tok and ByteDance, explained how their business models work and offered a glimpse to the challenges ahead for the company in the near future. Here are the interesting show notes and links to the discussion: Matthew Brennan, Co-founder of China Channel and author of “ (chinachannel.co, @mbrennanchina , Linkedin, Wechat:Yowdy-CQ) As the highest recurring guest on the podcast, it’s great to welcome you back. First question: what have you been up to since our last conversation? “Attention Factory - The Story of Tik Tok and China’s ByteDance” by Matthew Brennan What is the inspiration behind writing this book? What are the key themes for this book? Who are the major audiences that you want to target in this book? Tik Tok and ByteDance are often characterized by Western commentators and media as a threat to Facebook, Twitter and even to the US government itself. What are the key misconceptions about Tik Tok and ByteDance?  Probably this is the first book which dives in depth into the background of Zhang Yiming, the founder of Bytedance, and the surprise is that he used to work for China’s twitter clone, Fanfou (started by Wang Xing, now founder and CEO of Meituan-Dianping) and was shut down by the authorities. Can you elaborate more on his background and his stint as a CEO with another startup called 99Fang before coming to ByteDance? What has 99Fang taught Zhang Yiming in the process? After he resigned from 99Fang, he started ByteDance and it was not with Tik Tok that he started his foray. He did Toutiao, can you talk about the design concepts and what Toutiao taught the ByteDance team? One can think of the success of Tik Tok in three stages: Douyin in China, acquisition of Musical.ly and then expanding globally across the decade of 2010 to 2020. Let’s start with Douyin first, how did the app cross the chasm to drive users? Tencent has tried to challenge Douyin on the homeground with Weishi, what did they get wrong and why have they failed to challenge Tik Tok?  What are the key business models for Tik Tok and Douyin from ByteDance? How does the app bring revenues to the company? How are the apps localized or globalized to ensure a better user experience?  There are different ways to look at Tik Tok. One interesting insight was from Eugene Wei’s recent article “Tik Tok and the Sorting Hat”, where Tik Tok does not need the social graph but rather rely on the recommendation engine algorithm to push the interests of the user, which makes Tik Tok a more direct competitor to Youtube. What are your thoughts on how one should think of Tik Tok as a mobile app or social network or video network? Probably, we should talk about what happened to Tik Tok in the US this year. They have hired Kevin Mayer, former head of Disney+ and then Donald Trump threatened to shut them down, and first there was supposed to be an acquisition from Microsoft, but ended up with Oracle and Walmart clinching a partnership deal. Can you share your thoughts on what happened and where this is likely to go before & after the US elections? What are the key challenges you see for ByteDance in the coming year? Closing Do you have any recommendations that have recently inspired you? Where can our audience find you and your new book “Attention Factory”? Podcast Information: RSS Feed Apple Podcasts Himalaya Spotify Libsyn Google Play Overcast FM SoundCloud Luminary Twitter Facebook Video Facebook Page Linkedin Stitcher Castbox RadioPublic Acast PodBean ListenNotes TuneIn The show is hosted and produced by Carol Yin (@CarolYujiaYin) and originally created by Bernard Leong (@bernardleong, Linkedin). Sound credits for the intro music: Taro Iwashiro, "The Beginning" from Red Cliff Soundtrack. analyseasia · Attention Factory: The Story of Tik Tok & China’s ByteDance with Matthew Brennan

In Episode 333, Nadine Freischlad, writer from The Ken, joined us in a conversation on the influence of both US and Chinese tech giants in the third most important market in Asia Pacific: Indonesia, the secondary exits spanned by venture capitalists and founders in Southeast Asia and the story of Kopi Kenangan in Indonesia. We began the story with Nadine's journey from startups to The Ken, and why Indonesia is an interesting and hot market after India and China. We discuss the influence of tech giants from US and China in Indonesia and how Google has fired the first salvo with bringing their cloud platform in Jakarta. Following on, Nadine explained why venture capitalists in Southeast Asia are exiting in secondary markets. Last but not least, she discuss why Kopi Kenangan in Indonesia will not follow in the footsteps of Luckin Coffee. Here are the interesting show notes and links to the discussion: Nadine Freischlad, Writer, The Ken (@nfreischlad, LinkedIn, The Ken Profile, newsletter) How did you start your career?  What brought you to Asia and eventually to write for The Ken?  Why are you in Indonesia and why is Indonesia the most interesting market in Southeast Asia? Influence of US & China Tech Giants in Indonesia Reference: “Google’s Kormo, AI Hurdles & Indonesia’s job recruitment nightmare”, “Google fires first volley in Indonesia’s cloud wars” and “Facebook, Paypal’s payments play a super app-ortunity for Gojek” Can you describe how the US tech giants, for example, Google, Facebook and Paypal,  have built their influence in Indonesia?  Google has recently launched a job recruitment site called Kormo in Indonesia, can you explain why that came about and what Google wants to achieve out of Kormo? In terms of cloud infrastructure, Google is the first to enter the market before Amazon and Microsoft, does it hurt local hosting providers?  Facebook and Paypal have invested in Gojek (along with Google and Tencent), how does that supercharge Gojek’s ambitions to be a super app in their war against Grab? While the US tech giants have invested into Indonesia’s top unicorns, what are the Chinese tech giants doing in Indonesia? Given the recent pushback from India and US on Tik Tok, will the Indonesian government follow suit with the influence of chinese apps in Indonesia?  Secondary market for Southeast Asia startups Reference: Southeast Asia’s startups surf a secondary wave Given the number of exits from startups are few and far between in Southeast Asia, how are investors justifying their returns to the LPs (limited partners)? We do not see a lot of IPOs in Southeast Asia. Can you talk about how VCs managed to generate liquidity by secondary shares sales and elaborate how the secondary share sales work? Are there platforms where the secondary shares sales can be transacted between investors, employees and founders of the startup?  Are there sources of friction generated between founders of startups & their investors (VCs, PE firms) on the secondary sales shares given that it will disrupt the capitalization table (or cap table in short) of the company? Do you see secondary shares sales as an important mechanism for VCs and PE firms to generate liquidity? Is this similar to how Silicon Valley VCs and angel investors sold their shares to SoftBank two years back?   Kopi Kenangan in Indonesia Reference: “Kopi Kenangan wants to walk in Luckin’s path, not in its shoes” Can you briefly describe the company Kopi Kenangan in Indonesia?  Indonesia is a coffee country most well known for the javanese coffee beans, how is the coffee culture in Indonesia and how does it help Kopi Kenangan to reach its customers? How has Kopi Kenangan as a business scaled up in the recent year for example, their number of retail outlets and customer reach? Are they having any issues of massive burn? Can you explain the unit economics of Kopi Kenangan in Indonesia and contrast this with Luckin Coffee in China? (Refer to Part 2 of The Anonymous Report on Luckin Coffee’s flawed unit economics)  In your perspective, what makes Kopi Kenangan able to move away from the shadow of Luckin Coffee given the latter’s recent scandal? Closing Can you recommend your book, podcast and something which has recently inspired your life? How can my audience find you? Editor's Note: Our apologies as there were some issues during the recording on Nadine's end. Hence you will hear a little background noise towards near the end during the Kopi Kenangan part of the conversation. We will hope to improve our recording with our guests in the future Podcast Information: RSS Feed Apple Podcasts Himalaya Spotify Libsyn Google Play Overcast FM SoundCloud Luminary Twitter Facebook Video Facebook Page Linkedin Stitcher Castbox RadioPublic Acast PodBean ListenNotes TuneIn The show is hosted and produced by Carol Yin (@CarolYujiaYin) and originally created by Bernard Leong (@bernardleong, Linkedin). Sound credits for the intro music: Taro Iwashiro, "The Beginning" from Red Cliff Soundtrack. analyseasia · Tech Giants, Secondary Exits & Kopi Kenangan in Indonesia with Nadine Freischlad

In episode 332, continuing our last conversation with Benedict Evans, we discuss the major topics that are dominating the global technology landscape. First, Benedict dissect the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and explain how the forced experiments will shift the immediate future where we work and interact with each other. Moving forward, he discuss what lies beyond the smartphone, specifically touching on VR and AR and analyzed why other technologies such as AI and blockchain are lurking in the background. Finally, he offers his perspectives on our expectations on technology with the dawn of 5G. Here are the interesting show notes and links to the discussion: Benedict Evans (@benedictevans , LinkedIn, Personal Site, Essays, Newsletter), Venture Partner of Mosaic Ventures & Entrepreneur First & Independent Analyst COVID 19's Forced Experiments Reference: COVID and forced experiments, Presentations: Tech and the New Normal & Tech in 2020: Standing on the shoulders of giants and What comes after Zoom?.  The COVID 19 have accelerated digital transformation in the past three months more than the last 5 years for certain industries. What are the forced experiments which COVID-19 can help us to understand the evolution of technology, for example, Zoom for video conferencing and what it has and has not solved for us?  Beyond the Smartphone Reference: Should you care about the 5G? Where is the smartphone in the S-curve: the beginning, the middle or the late stage? If we slice and dice the other platforms in the horizon: IoT (or ambient computing), VR or AR, they don’t seem to show the scale that smartphones can extend in terms of their adjacencies. What are the signs that you will identify to show that the smartphone platform is in the decline? What do you think that the contribution of 5G is to the entire telecommunications industry?  Closing Do you have anything from book, article, movie or podcast to recommend to our audience that have inspired you recently? Benedict's recommendation: History of Germany economy in the 1930s-1940s. How can our audience find you? Podcast Information: RSS Feed Apple Podcasts Himalaya Spotify Libsyn Google Play Overcast FM SoundCloud Luminary Twitter Facebook Video Facebook Page Linkedin Stitcher Castbox RadioPublic Acast PodBean ListenNotes TuneIn The show is hosted and produced by Carol Yin (@CarolYujiaYin) and originally created by Bernard Leong (@bernardleong, Linkedin). Sound credits for the intro music: Taro Iwashiro, "The Beginning" from Red Cliff Soundtrack. analyseasia · Beyond the Smartphone & COVID-19's Forced Experiments with Benedict Evans

In episode 331, Benedict Evans, the independent analyst and venture partner from Mosaic Ventures & Entrepreneur First, joined us in the first of the two episodes to discuss the major topics that are dominating the global technology landscape. We began the conversation with his recent stint with Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) in Silicon Valley and the key takeaways during his stay there. Then we dived deep into  the key topics which dominate the global technology landscape: tech regulation of the major Internet giants, the app store conversation featuring Fornite vs Apple and the decoupling of the global supply chain with China and India. Here are the interesting show notes and links to the discussion: Benedict Evans (@benedictevans , LinkedIn, Personal Site, Essays, Newsletter), Venture Partner of Mosaic Ventures & Entrepreneur First & Independent Analyst When we had the first conversation with you, you were a partner in the renowned Silicon Valley venture capital firm, Andreessen Horowitz, the first question for us, what are the key takeaways thinking about technology from the lens of a venture capitalist in Silicon Valley? Since you have moved back to the United Kingdom, what have you been up to? Tech Regulation and App Stores Reference: Regulating Technology , Would breaking up big tech work? What would? and App Stores, Trust & Anti Trust Let’s start with the recent movement in the US by the Congress to call for the break up of the four major tech companies: Google, Facebook, Amazon and Apple and potentially restricting their M&A activity. We have the leaders of these four tech companies brought before the Congressional hearings.  From looking at the hearings, what does the regulators get right and wrong about big technology companies and insist that the only way is to ‘break them up’? Can we learn from history on how we should think about breaking up big technology companies? For example drawing on what they did to Standard Oil during the gilded age in the 1900s in the U.S.?  The decoupling of global supply chains Currently, China’s market is 3x times larger than the US. The Indian market is teaming up with US companies to move their supply chain out from China to India, for example, Apple. Will the Chinese and Indian Internet outsize the US market so that it is no longer the axis of innovation and technology growth in the next few decades? Do you think that the future of the Internet is going to be “balkanized”: China, India, Europe, US and the rest of the world?  Will the decoupling of supply chains between China and the US change the way the technology sector will evolve in the next few decades? Podcast Information: RSS Feed Apple Podcasts Himalaya Spotify Libsyn Google Play Overcast FM SoundCloud Luminary Twitter Facebook Video Facebook Page Linkedin Stitcher Castbox RadioPublic Acast PodBean ListenNotes TuneIn The show is hosted and produced by Carol Yin (@CarolYujiaYin) and originally created by Bernard Leong (@bernardleong, Linkedin). Sound credits for the intro music: Taro Iwashiro, "The Beginning" from Red Cliff Soundtrack. analyseasia · Technology Regulation, App Store & Global Decoupling with Benedict Evans

In episode 330, Gareth Nicholson, deputy technology editor on the technology desk from South China Morning Post (SCMP), joined us to discuss the China Internet Report 2020 and its impact to the rest of the world. We discuss the key major trends: the impact of COVID-19 on China tech and how it transform food delivery, the accelerated self-reliance of Chinese companies due to the US and China tensions, the year of 5G for mass adoption in the Chinese domestic market, live streaming and ecommerce, and finally, why the Chinese companies are now moving their US listings back to China. Last but not least, Gareth shared the key trends that he will watch out for in 2021. Here are the interesting show notes and links to the discussion: Gareth Nicholson, deputy Technology Editor on the Technology desk, South China Morning Post. Since our last conversation, what have you been up to? China Internet Report 2020 by South China Morning Post Now let’s talk about the report. It’s SCMP’s 3rd annual report, what are some of the key sections and themes that the China Internet report has always focused on? As we understand that SCMP has been delivering the China Internet Report every year since 2016, what are the key themes which the report have discussed every year till now? I love how the report starts off with ‘China in a glance’ which provides readers with a general background of the Chinese internet space. The graphic comparisons for the China vs US internet landscapes are helpful. For example, I didn’t know that China has about 3 times the number of internet users at 904M in comparison to US’s almost 300 million (298M). Can you provide us a snapshot on how the Chinese Internet is now compared with respect to the US? Who are now the key players within the Chinese tech ecosystem, as we notice that Baidu has dropped down to number 11?  Trend #1: Impact of COVID-19 to China Tech Sector What is the impact of COVID-19 on China’s tech sector?  How did the Ministry of Industry & Information Technology in China respond to COVID-19 pandemic? with plans along the 5 themes: building a strong infrastructure network, applying digital technology in all sectors, enhancing data security, strengthening tech innovation and optimizing broader industry development? Trend #2: China Accelerated Self-Reliance on Tech With the ongoing tension escalating between the US and China, how is China doing on the path of becoming technologically self-reliant? What are some of China’s major challenges? What is the impact of this move to self-reliance for Huawei and other Chinese companies? Where are the competencies that Chinese tech firms will need to develop to bridge the gap between them and the US? Trend #3: The year of mass adoption for 5G Is this the year for mass adoption for 5G? What will be the impact of 5G for Chinese tech in the next two to three years? Trend #4: Live Streaming's 3rd Phase in China What are the 3 phases of livestream in China and what’s after the 3rd phase? Trend #5: China companies listing back at home (Hong Kong and Shanghai) We are seeing a lot of Chinese companies looking to list in HK or Shanghai. Do you see this a part of the great trend due to the tensions between the US and China?  At the same time, we see accounting scandals for example, Luckin Coffee and TAL education and this leads to more scrutiny to Chinese companies, do you think that more and more chinese companies will delist from the US and move back to China? What topics are covered in the pro-report as compared from the free report? Closing How do our audience find you? Podcast Information: RSS Feed Apple Podcasts Himalaya Spotify Libsyn Google Play Overcast FM SoundCloud Luminary Twitter Facebook Video Facebook Page Linkedin Stitcher Castbox RadioPublic Acast PodBean ListenNotes TuneIn The show is hosted and produced by Carol Yin (@CarolYujiaYin) and originally created by Bernard Leong (@bernardleong, Linkedin). Sound credits for the intro music: Taro Iwashiro, "The Beginning" from Red Cliff Soundtrack. analyseasia · China Internet Report 2020 with Gareth Nicholson

In episode 329, Jon Russell, editor of The Ken Southeast Asia, joined us in a conversation to discuss the continuing epic rivalry between Gojek and Grab in the era of COVID-19 pandemic. Starting from the perspective of Gojek, we discuss the impact and changes made after the founder's departure and how they are re-organizing to tackle Grab's onslaught in Indonesia and expanding out to other parts of Southeast Asia from Indonesia. With new investments from US tech giants, Facebook and Paypal, we discuss how Gojek is shaping itself to be a worthy rival against Grab backed by SoftBank and Alibaba in Southeast Asia. Last but not least, Jon discuss why the media streaming giants of Southeast Asia, HOOQ & iFlix failed to take on Netflix and the key takeaways for unicorn start-ups in the era of COVID-19 pandemic. Here are the interesting show notes and links to the discussion: Jon Russell (@jonrussell, LinkedIn, Newsletter, Personal Site, The Ken Profile) Since we have last spoken, you have moved out of TechCrunch and now joined The Ken. Can you talk about The Ken and what is your new role there? Grab vs Gojek in 2020 Let’s start from Gojek, a lot of things have happened. Their founder and former CEO, Nadiem Makarim has left the company and become a Minister of Education & Culture under President Jokowi’s cabinet in Indonesia. What’s the impact on Gojek after his departure? (Ref: Up for Grab? Gojek after Nadiem Makarim) They have started the expansion to Southeast Asia last year but it has not grown very well. (Ref: Gojek’s stunted SE Asia expansion story), can you talk about their challenges in expanding out of Indonesia while dealing with Grab who is competing in their backyard? That being said, they have been doing well on the fundraising front: Gojek has been invested by Facebook and Paypal (Source: CNBC).  What are the implications to Gojek as Google, Paypal and Facebook are lining up against Grab? (Ref: Facebook, PayPal’s payments play a super app-ortunity for Gojek) The US tech giants are in Indonesia just as the Chinese tech giants, for example, Meituan-Dianping which is a super app entering the market. What can Gojek and Grab learn from Meituan-Dianping? (Ref: The Gojek-Grab SE Asia super app battle with a Meituan twist) What is the impact of COVID-19 on Grab and Gojek? Both Gojek and Grab have done layoffs in the past month. How do you look at the approaches from both companies? (Grab CEO’s memo, Gojek’s layoffs) SoftBank has been taking a hit from Wework and Oyo. What is the downstream impact to Grab based on the current troubles in the Vision Fund? Is the race to dominate Southeast Asia going down to whether Grab or Gojek wins Indonesia and not the other countries (Vietnam, Thailand, Philippines and Malaysia, Singapore)?  What will the key battleground for Grab and Gojek in the coming 2021?  Impact of COVID-19 to Southeast Asia  You have written a lot of media streaming companies similar to Netflix, for example HOOQ from Singapore and iFlix from Malaysia. The COVID-19 pandemic have led to HOOQ being shut down and iFlix being acquired from Tencent. What are the key learnings from HOOQ’s downfall and iFlix’s acquisition?  What are the key takeaways from the COVID pandemic for Southeast Asia? (Ref: 7 takeaways from Covid-time digital winners and losers in Southeast Asia) Closing Can you recommend a book or movie or podcast or anything which recently made an impact to your work and personal life? Jon's recommendation: Sarah Frier, "No Filter: The Inside Story of Instagram" How do my audience find you?  Podcast Information: RSS Feed Apple Podcasts Himalaya Spotify Libsyn Google Play Overcast FM SoundCloud Luminary Twitter Facebook Video Facebook Page Linkedin Stitcher Castbox RadioPublic Acast PodBean ListenNotes TuneIn The show is hosted and produced by Carol Yin (@CarolYujiaYin) and originally created by Bernard Leong (@bernardleong, Linkedin). Sound credits for the intro music: Taro Iwashiro, "The Beginning" from Red Cliff Soundtrack. analyseasia · Gojek vs Grab in Southeast Asia 2020 Edition with Jon Russell

In episode 328, Lim Xinyi, senior director for corporate development from Pinduoduo, joined us to discuss the social ecommerce company and its impact on agriculture. Starting from the conversation, Xinyi shared her background and how she came to discover and eventually join Pinduoduo. She discuss Pinduoduo's current mission and vision and how the company pioneered social ecommerce in China. Last but not least she shared Pinduoduo's contributions to the agriculture sector in China and how they are helping farmers to get their agricultural produce to the consumers during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Here are the interesting show notes and links to the discussion (with time-stamps included): Lim Xinyi (LinkedIn), Senior Director, Corporate Development at Pinduoduo (@PinduoduoInc, LinkedIn, Medium) How did you start your career? In your career journey, what are the interesting career lessons you can share with our audience. Pinduoduo’s Social E-Commerce Model and its impact in agriculture  Can you briefly introduce us to your company Pinduoduo in China and its mission and vision?  How do you explain Pinduoduo as a social e-commerce company to the audience out there?  Before Pinduoduo came into the scene in 2015, the ecommerce industry led by Alibaba and Jingdong (JD) generated a combined revenue of $433B gross merchandise value (GMV), and within 5 years, it skyrocketed from a startup to 57B company with buying base of 585M generating $144B of GMV (reference from Pinduoduo & the rise of Social E-Commerce by YCombinator) and by 2020, it’s the 2nd largest ecommerce platform in China behind Alibaba. Can you talk about how Pinduoduo pioneered the concept of social shopping in China? What are the features of social shopping that have been introduced by Pinduoduo? (For example, 1/ creating community via team purchase, 2/ Daily Check ins, 3/ Price Chop, 4/ Card program, 5/ mini games and 6/ personalized recommendations referenced in the YC article) What are the misconceptions from the Western world which Pinduoduo has been mis-understood as a company? How does Pinduoduo contribute to the agriculture sector in China? (See reference by Parmesh Shah from World Bank) Why is Pinduoduo well-suited to help farmers and digitize agriculture? What are the benefits for the farmers in China?  How does Duo Duo Farms help to alleviate poverty and create a sustainable future via the team purchase feature in Pinduoduo? Can you elaborate about the Duo Duo Farm project in Yunnan and what are the key learnings there? Given the current COVID-19 pandemic, what have been Pinduoduo’s response to the situation and what you have done to help the farmers to tide over this tough period? What are the key trends you see in the future of social commerce and does this extend beyond agriculture for Pinduoduo? Closing Can you recommend anything (a book, movie or article) which has inspired you recently? Xinyi's recommendations: understanding the Black Lives Matter movement in the United States. How do our audience find you? Podcast Information: RSS Feed Apple Podcasts Himalaya Spotify Libsyn Google Play Overcast FM SoundCloud Luminary Twitter Facebook Video Facebook Page Linkedin Stitcher Castbox RadioPublic Acast PodBean ListenNotes TuneIn The show is hosted and produced by Carol Yin (@CarolYujiaYin) and originally created by Bernard Leong (@bernardleong, Linkedin). Sound credits for the intro music: Taro Iwashiro, "The Beginning" from Red Cliff Soundtrack. analyseasia · Pinduoduo on Social Ecommerce & Agriculture with Xinyi Lim

In episode 327, Geoffrey Cain, author of "Samsung Rising" joins us in a two parts conversation on his journey across Asia as a journalist and author and discuss the backstory of his new book behind the Samsung Group and how it rise to be the most powerful Chaebol (large family-owned business conglomerate) in Korea. In the second part of the conversation, Geoffrey discuss Samsung's complicated relationship with Apple as both a supplier and competitor and how their arrogance and hierarchical culture led to the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 fiasco. He reveals why he did not include the story of Lee Boo-jin, the daughter of Lee Kun Hee who is often tapped as a potential successor to the Samsung Group and why it is unlikely that there will be a female leader to helm the Samsung Group. Last but not least, Geoffrey offered his perspectives on how Samsung is responsible for exporting culture out of Korea to the rest of the world, particularly the movie Parasite and his thoughts on whether there is a future for another Samsung-like Group emerging in another market out there.  Here are the interesting show notes and links to the discussion (with time-stamps included): Geoffrey Cain, author of “Samsung Rising”, and also regular commentator on The Wall Street Journal (WSJ), Time & The New Republic and former correspondent in The Economist (Website, @geoffrey_cain, LinkedIn) Samsung Rising (Random House, Amazon, Apple Books) [0:30] What are your perspectives on Samsung’s dual relationship with Apple, as a supplier of solid state drives and OLED screens for the iPhone while competing with their flagship phones, the Galaxy series phones? [0:34] Samsung Galaxy note 7 fiasco is well covered in the press. In your view in covering that story, what lessons have Samsung learned from that disaster that almost ended their smartphone dominance? [3:56] What are the fundamental flaws that are in Samsung that are not functioning in today's world? [8:06] The battles within the Lee family for the succession to Samsung's empire. [11:28] Comments on Lee Boo-jin, the sister of Jay Lee as a potential successor to the Samsung Group, and why it is not included in the book "Samsung Rising" Samsung's family connection with the Oscar best movie in 2020 "Parasite" [22:24] Do you think that the success that Samsung has attained after 80 years of work can be replicated in other countries today?  [27:40] Closing Do you have any recommendation of a book, movie, podcast or anything which have inspired you recently? [32:25] Geoffrey's recommendations: Joe Studwell "How Asia Works", James Fallows "China Airborne". Where do our audience find you? [33:45] Podcast Information: RSS Feed Apple Podcasts Himalaya Spotify Libsyn Google Play Overcast FM SoundCloud Luminary Twitter Facebook Video Facebook Page Linkedin Stitcher Castbox RadioPublic Acast PodBean ListenNotes TuneIn The show is hosted and produced by Carol Yin (@CarolYujiaYin) and originally created by Bernard Leong (@bernardleong, Linkedin). Sound credits for the intro music: Taro Iwashiro, "The Beginning" from Red Cliff Soundtrack. analyseasia · Samsung Rising Part Two with Geoffrey Cain

In episode 326, Geoffrey Cain, author of "Samsung Rising" joins us in a two parts conversation on his journey across Asia as a journalist and author and discuss the backstory of his new book behind the Samsung Group and how it rise to be the most powerful Chaebol (large family-owned business conglomerate) in Korea. In the first part of the conversation, Geoffrey discuss the inspiration and the main themes behind "Samsung Rising", and shares the origin story of Samsung and how they went from an agriculture business to a global technology giant today along with Apple and Huawei by a family owned enterprise spanning three generations. Here are the interesting show notes and links to the discussion (with time-stamps included): Geoffrey Cain, author of “Samsung Rising”, and also regular commentator on The Wall Street Journal (WSJ), Time & The New Republic and former correspondent in The Economist (Website, @geoffrey_cain, LinkedIn) [0:26] How did you start your career? [0:55] What have you learned from covering North & South Korea, China and Cambodia in your career journey? [8:35] In your career journey, what are the key lessons you can share with the younger audience? [10:55] Comments on how the history of Samsung aligns with the story of South Korea's rise as one of the top economies in Asia. Samsung Rising (Random House, Amazon, Apple Books) [15:45] What is the inspiration behind writing the book “Samsung Rising”? [16:20] Who are the intended audience of the book? [20:32] If you will to summarize the key takeaways of the book, what would they be so that you can spark their interest to learn more? [22:22] Can you talk about the origins of Samsung and what type of businesses that the family behind the company have grown from a small trading company  to modern technology giant today? [25:05] What does Chaebol means in South Korea? [33:05] The family behind Samsung have gone through three generations: the founder Lee Byung-chul (or B.C Lee in short), Lee Kun-hee and recently to Jay Lee. Can you talk about how each leader has been different and what their contributions to Samsung have been? [36:50] Can Jay Lee step up for Samsung as his father and grandfather have in the past? [49:04] Jay Lee's investments in Silicon Valley and how he is thinking about Samsung's future given that the environment is currently becoming more complex with US protectionism. [52:00] Podcast Information: RSS Feed Apple Podcasts Himalaya Spotify Libsyn Google Play Overcast FM SoundCloud Luminary Twitter Facebook Video Facebook Page Linkedin Stitcher Castbox RadioPublic Acast PodBean ListenNotes TuneIn The show is hosted and produced by Carol Yin (@CarolYujiaYin) and originally created by Bernard Leong (@bernardleong, Linkedin). Sound credits for the intro music: Taro Iwashiro, "The Beginning" from Red Cliff Soundtrack. analyseasia · Samsung Rising Part One with Geoffrey Cain