Maria Santos
Startup Ecosystem Analyst
From Manila, Maria tracks venture capital flows, startup funding rounds, and the stories of up-and-coming entrepreneurs in the Philippines and beyond.
Articles by Maria Santos

An overview of trend-tracking tools that help businesses in Southeast Asia monitor market shifts, technology developments, and policy changes, with implications for regional competitiveness.

Explore the tools and strategies that help businesses monitor digital economy trends across Southeast Asia, from AI to fintech and smart cities.

A closer look at the global deep tech market trajectory and what it means for Southeast Asia's innovation ecosystem, industrial transformation, and regional competitiveness.

An exploration of the top food technology trends driving digital transformation across ASEAN, from traceability and e-commerce to plant-based proteins and automation.

Cambodia's ESG Challenge aims to cultivate a skilled workforce in sustainable finance, positioning the country for regional competition in ASEAN's evolving green economy.

Learn about the best tools for monitoring your industry, competitors and emerging market trends, including Feedly, Stratfor, Facebook, and Slack.

The Global Startup Ecosystem Index is more than a ranking—it reveals the

Emerging markets are not just copycats of Silicon Valley; they are forging

Emerging markets are rapidly transforming from outsourcing destinations to

In 2024, global venture funding hit $314 billion, with AI capturing over

The 2025 Startup Genome report reveals a bifurcating global startup landscape:

Southeast Asia’s startup ecosystem has expanded rapidly since 2015, driven

Southeast Asia (ASEAN) has emerged as the world's fifth-largest economy,

Raw PDF binary data that cannot be processed is a perfect metaphor for the

Southeast Asian startups raised $2 billion in H1 2025, a 7% year-over-year

Southeast Asia is rapidly emerging as a global startup hub, driven by a

Southeast Asia’s startup ecosystem in 2024 faced a paradox: while food inflation

In Q1 2026, Southeast Asian startups raised $2.81 billion across just 98

Asia's startup landscape in 2026 is undergoing a fundamental shift from a

Southeast Asia’s startup ecosystem is undergoing a profound structural reset.

Consumer e-commerce in ASEAN is losing steam—funding dropped 63% in Q1 2024,

While global headlines focus on funding rounds and unicorn valuations in

Southeast Asia’s startup ecosystem posted a deceptive calm in 2025. While

While headlines focus on unicorn valuations and funding rounds, the ASEAN

In 2026, Southeast Asia''s startup ecosystem has shed its obsession with

In 2025, Southeast Asia’s tech startup ecosystem has evolved from a growth-at-all-costs

Southeast Asian startups raised $2 billion in H1 2025, a 7% year-over-year

What happens when you are tasked with building an article from a cleaned
AI workloads now require exponentially more chips than traditional computing,

Razorpay’s decision to confidentially file for an IPO in India, following

In 2025, France officially logged 41 cases of so-called ''crypto wrench

Sarvam AI, an Indian startup, is reportedly closing a $350 million funding

Based on a Goldman Sachs projection that Wall Street will see no Israeli

TNG Digital and KK Mart are pioneering the use of e-wallets for salary payments

Japan's startup funding has hit record highs, but the real story isn't just

TSMC's announcement to mass-produce 1.4nm chips by 2028 is not just a technological

Singapore’s recent warning to banks about AI-driven cyber risks is not just

This article explores the systemic risks that emerge when fact lists are

Huawei has secured a computing power platform contract with China Mobile

Philippine fintech startup Salmon has secured $100 million in growth capital—a

The product manager role is being fundamentally redefined by artificial

While most coverage of Vietnam’s electric vehicle tax cut extension focuses

Databricks has appointed a former SAP executive to lead its Asia Pacific

When an information architect receives a blank fact list due to a ''political

iQiyi, the Baidu-backed streaming giant, has redesigned its app and website

While Grab’s $20+ billion valuation dominates headlines, a deeper look at

This article explores the hidden technical and economic logic behind automated

ByteDance’s overseas revenue has surged, yet its profits are being eroded

AirTrunk''s acquisition of Lumina CloudInfra marks a strategic pivot for

Mercedes-Benz is launching Nvidia-powered driving technology in South Korea,

This article explores the market patterns and economic logic behind content

Hanoi has committed to electrifying its entire bus fleet by 2030—a bold target

When a database returns an ''ERROR_POLITICAL_CONTENT_DETECTED'' flag, it

This article goes beyond a simple ranking of the most active investors in

Hong Kong''s oldest gas utility, Towngas, is partnering with Tencent to

Dropbox's expansion of its ChatGPT integration is more than a productivity

Singapore's push for an international AI testing standard, led by the AI

Indian investment platform Groww''s meteoric 87% revenue rise and strategic

A new report published in April 2026 provides a crucial mapping of China's
Regional investors are still funding Indonesian fintech, but terms are now anchored to merchant retention, credit quality, and clearer monetization pathways.
