Amid massive layoffs, stock market volatility, the ongoing “crypto winter”, other seismic shifts in the technology landscape, and widespread recessions, where should savvy investors place their bets?
I aimed to answer this with a gender and intersectional lens on, seeking insights from three women technology leaders from different corners of the globe and the tech world. They are: Katrina Chan, Executive Director of QBO Innovation Hub, the premier public-private startup enabler in the Philippines; Maria Odiamar Racho, Founding Managing Partner of FilKor Capital, a venture capital firm with a strong focus on empowering Asian American entrepreneurs, especially women; and Tess Hau, Founder and Managing Partner of Tess Ventures, a Silicon Valley venture capital firm empowering women founders and Southeast Asian companies in the fields of fintech, artificial intelligence, Web3 blockchain, construction tech, climate carbon removal, ESG software, healthtech, and deep tech.
“Stay ahead” of AI and Web3 curve
“If you do the circuit with futurists and conventions, Generative AI, Web3/Metaverse, Automation, and Future of Work as well as ‘living forever’, are sexy these days. Savvy investors, to some degree, need to be making these bets,” pointed out Katrina Chan of QBO Innovation Hub.
Tess Hau, whose Tess Ventures has invested heavily in artificial intelligence, gaming, metaverse, and DeFi, among others, shared similarly, “[I think] that 2023 is already shaping up to be an interesting year in the AI and Web3 space, so it’s important to stay ahead of this curve by investing in projects focused on scalability and usability improvements. A couple examples of worthwhile investments include those exploring new ways to scale blockchain technology as well as those working on developing more user-friendly dapp (decentralized application) interfaces. Generative AI is progressing at the speed of light and we have a platform and ecosystem to help educate individuals who want to learn this. We have the most talented female experts in Generative AI, especially in Natural Language Processing (NLP), who are ready to educate curious individuals on these topics.”
For Filipino-American Maria Odiamar Racho, meanwhile, it is worthwhile to look at the implications of artificial intelligence on the education sector. “With such accessible AI such as DeepMind and OpenAI, could that free up some human mental capacity and open up the need for different aspects of our brains to develop? How does education adapt to work with and incorporate AI?”
Invest in “real problem-solving” verticals
Besides education, both Racho and Chan believe in investing in other verticals that solve “real pain points” in the world.
“There are ideas around health, sustainability, agriculture, and education, that may seem obvious, but haven’t been executed and solve problems for everyday people, that need investment to scale up,” Chan opined. She added, “I also like companies that go super deep into a very niche market and can offer a differentiated and targeted solution.”
Racho, who had spent almost three decades in the insurance industry prior to becoming a venture capitalist, believes that the pandemic and the rising consciousness around mental health has opened up new opportunities in the HealthTech space. “With the rate of burnout, the pressures of a recession, and high uncertainty, the need for mental health care continues to grow. Also, since the pandemic, given how the way people get their health care has shifted so much, the need for adaptive solutions and technology will continue to emerge.”
She also sees continued potential in investing in marketplaces–in particular, “Connecting broad reach as well as local supply and demand, promoting re-use, and democratizing access to diverse customers and diverse sellers.”
Back women and minority-led businesses, and “see the bigger picture” of impact investments
Zooming in with a gender and diversity lens, are there underserved or underfunded sectors that they believe deserve greater support?
“Speaking from my own bias: women and underserved aspects of the Asian American community [are underfunded],” observed Racho. “I absolutely agree that Black and Latinx founders are grossly underfunded and the work there is critical.”
However, she cautions against generalizing the needs of racial minorities. As an example, she cited: “There are over 48 different ethnicities and the data that looks at Asian Americans as an over-served monolith is skewed by just a couple of those demographics that are doing exceptionally well. Refugee communities, first generation immigrants, Asian American women are lost in the data. As a result, these underserved aspects of Asian Americans are excluded from the diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) conversation.” To better understand their needs, there is a need for investors to go granular.
On the flip side, Chan has observed how going granular and hyperlocal has inadvertently hurt many women founders’ chances of getting venture funding.
“Building on my previous answer, I do believe there are a lot of underserved and underfunded ideas that tackle more pragmatic, ‘everyday’, issues,” she wrote via direct message. “At its face, many of these ideas don’t look like they would be scalable; that said, at the end of the day, I think these are actually big markets taken collectively.”
Chan was referring to specific problems that women leaders often see in their own communities, which may seem parochial and unscalable when taken only on its own.
She continued, “Part of the challenge for us investors is to imagine, and think ‘bigger’ about how something that is being executed well at a smaller scale, can be brought to global markets that may be facing similar issues.”
“I think women leaders are less confident (vs. male counterparts) about making big statements like, ‘I’m going to end world hunger and bring world peace through my idea’, but being aware of that, the onus is on us to see that potential even if it’s not stated in such a manner,” Chan pointed out.
Hau agrees that a “huge gender gap” exists in the tech world, “especially when it comes to AI and Web3 companies founded by women.”
Her take: “While there have been some remarkable success stories that have emerged recently showcasing empowered women tech entrepreneurs, more work needs to be done to give these women the recognition they deserve. Therefore, the space needs a more inclusive and welcoming network of females and diverse leaders and community members who foster and uplift each other.”
We’ve got our work cut out for us, but with the right investors and strategic partners, this could be a year of tremendous growth and impact for women-led and diverse companies.
About the Author
Niña Terol is a 20+-year innovation and leadership consultant who has built and launched startups in the Philippines, the United States, and the Middle East. She recently founded SparkImpact Ventures, an innovation, inclusion, and impact solutions firm, which has sparked foundHER, a leadership program for female founders, and Girl, Make Your Move, a podcast for women looking to get unstuck in different areas of their lives. She is also the Director for Impact & Growth at The Final Pitch, a hit business reality show airing on CNN Philippines.