Big or small, investors go all in on AI

Today we look at Temasek's big AI bet, a lean VC's AI edge, and OpenAI's new voice model that talks like us.

Read from your browser Daily Newsletter Welcome to Tech in Asia's daily newsletter, your essential dose of Asia's tech and startup buzz. Subscribe to this newsletter or send story tips to editors@techinasia.com. Ensure our articles appear in your Google searches: IN FOCUS Why Temasek is all in on AI Meet the VC firm outsourcing analysts' work to agents Witty repartee coming to a chatbot near you? Hello Betamax, Today's newsletter features a tale of two investment firms, one small and one large. What do they have in common? Aside from being Singaporean, the big commonality is AI and its increasingly large role in how they do business. Our first story from my colleague Melissa dives into the performance of state-backed behemoth Temasek over the last financial year. The investor's net portfolio value jumped 14.8% to US$401 billion, and while it invests in a wide variety of assets, it's clear that Temasek sees AI as key to repeating such solid results. The firm plans to potentially more than double its exposure to AI over the next five years in companies at a variety of market segments and maturity stages. Placing bets across the board is a luxury that a deep-pocketed investor has. Investors like VC firm 1MX AI, with a fund of US$15 million to deploy, don't have that same flexibility. All the same, AI is leaving its mark on how the firm invests but in perhaps a more day-to-day way. As Elyssa's story explores, 1MX AI has a lean team and uses an AI agent to source deals and vet potential investments. The company says this saves it from hiring more analysts, allowing it to do more with less. Different budgets, same bet. Peter Cowan, engagement editor TOP STORIES 1️⃣ Temasek to double down on AI as portfolio value hits $401b The firm made investments in both OpenAI and Anthropic last year as part of its push to have 6% of its overall portfolio involved in AI. However, the bulk of its AI exposure is to later-stage firms like Nvidia and Alphabet. While Southeast Asia's place in the AI sector might be hotly debated, Temasek said it doesn't choose its targets for AI investments based on geography. 2️⃣ Small fund, big ambitions for this AI-focused VC Alongside an AI agent, 1MX has a stacked group of founders to call upon as a competitive advantage. Its partners include a slew of operators across various industries, an edge it thinks will pay off. And while the AI agent handles some work, 1MX managing director Bruno da Silva stresses that its partners still run the show, as venture capital is, after all, a people business. SPOTLIGHT The end of ChatGPT's awkward pauses? If you've seen any of the viral videos of weird conversations with AI chatbots, you'll know how unnatural they sound. Stilted pauses, awkward turn-taking, that unmistakable sense you're talking to a machine waiting for its turn to speak. Those days could be over, as OpenAI's newly launched voice model, GPT-Live-1, can listen and speak at the same time. The goal is to make talking to ChatGPT feel less like issuing commands to a bot and more like an actual phone call. Which apparently means saying things like "uh huh" or "right" to show that it's listening. Plenty of humans have yet to master the ability to listen as well as speak, so it'll be interesting to see how effective this move is in the increasingly competitive voice AI market. TRENDING NEWS 1️⃣ China to allow Nvidia H200 sales to selected AI firms Companies including Alibaba, ByteDance, and DeepSeek will reportedly be able to buy limited numbers of Nvidia H200 chips. The US eased export restrictions on the chips in December 2025, but Beijing has been slow to allow the technology into the country. 2️⃣ Thailand approves $2b across AI, electronics The country's Board of Investment approved nine investment projects across AI, advanced electronics, aviation, clean energy, and food sectors 3️⃣ Meta to build $9b AI data center in Canada The 1-gigawatt campus will be Meta's 33rd data center and is part of the company's broader capital expenditure plan, targeting to invest up to US$145 billion this year. 4️⃣ HSBC survey: 76% of Singapore investors use AI The figure, derived from polling 609 mass-affluent and high-net-worth investors in Singapore, was above the global average of 72%. 5️⃣ Indian EV fleet startup Milo Drive raises $2.4m seed The company connects drivers, fleet operators, and ride-hailing companies through a single operating system and says it has powered more than 1 million rides. FINTECH BENCHMARK MEETS REGULATORY PUSH MAS' latest move raises the bar for Singapore fintech. With the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) launching the Future of Finance Institute to accelerate AI and tokenization, the city-state's digital finance ecosystem is shifting from experimentation to broader industry adoption. The new initiative is designed to connect financial institutions and tech providers by offering shared resources and expertise to support the adoption of emerging financial technologies. As the industry baseline moves toward infrastructure-grade execution, unverified product claims carry less weight. Fintech companies need clearer proof of operational traction, reliability, and market relevance, especially in a challenging macroeconomic landscape. Singapore's Top Fintech Companies 2027, jointly organized by Tech in Asia and Statista, gives fintech firms an independent validation benchmark to make their commercial milestones visible to enterprise clients, global investors, and key partners. If your company is building the next phase of fintech in Singapore, this is your opportunity to be considered. Apply now. PRESS PEEKS The following press releases were published as they were received, without any editing from the Tech in Asia team. You, too, can publish your own press release on our site by simply filling out this form. Our team will get back to you by the next business day. Kisti - Kisti Wants to Become Asia's Default "Pay Later" Button, Starting in Bangladesh: Kisti is preparing to launch zero-interest Buy Now, Pay Later in Bangladesh in 2026, with a vision to expand across Asia. EVENTS HAPPENING You can also check out our curated list of trending tech events and Tech in Asia's signature events. 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