Artificial intelligence (AI) is the new obsession among venture capitalists worldwide, and Southeast Asia is no exception. Investors across the region are actively seeking companies that leverage AI to transform industries — from manufacturing to finance.
But here’s the key question: is this AI wave just hype, or is it a genuine paradigm shift?
Four seasoned investors, including Mark Shmulevich, Managing Partner at Aloniq Ventures; Binh Tran, General Partner at Ascend Vietnam Ventures (AVV); Erik Jonsson, Partner at Antler; and Quynh Vo, Managing Director at DMZ Vietnam, shared their views in a recent panel discussion at an event titled “The Future of Artificial Intelligence: Chapter 3 organised by venture catalyst JDI in Ho Chi Minh City last week.
Their insights reveal a region in the early stages of an AI revolution, with real opportunities but also significant challenges.
The hype question
For Binh Tran, dismissing AI as “hype” misses the point. “AI is the most fundamental invention since the Internet,” he said. “The value it creates is unprecedented — companies are monetising within months and generating hundreds of millions in revenue because the demand is real.”
Still, he admitted that hype exists when startups claim to be unique while building on the same underlying models. “That’s where it gets harder to underwrite true differentiation,” he noted.
Antler’s Erik Jonsson added: “I don’t think AI is hyped enough.” “When we launched Antler in Vietnam during Covid, we saw waves of medtech and blockchain startups. But AI is on another level — it’s the most fundamental shift in our lifetime.”
Shmulevich agreed that AI’s economic impact is already visible. “Revenues are scaling faster than anyone expected, and the numbers might even underestimate what’s coming,” he said.
Quynh Vo, meanwhile, highlighted a local perspective: “Vietnam had AI startups years ago, but adoption has accelerated because corporates now see tangible use cases. More than 90% of the companies I work with are exploring AI integration.”
A key frontier emerging in Southeast Asia is the sovereign push into deep tech, with AI at the centre of efforts to build national capability and strategic advantage, according to The State of Deep Tech in SE Asia 2025 report by DealStreetAsia DATA VANTAGE.
Across the region, governments are beginning to integrate AI into cyber defence, maritime surveillance, and autonomous systems, signalling a shift in demand away from purely consumer markets, the report states.
Advantage Vietnam
Southeast Asia is not yet producing AI giants at the scale of the US or China, but Vietnam shows promise, the experts noted.
“Vietnam isn’t present at the infrastructure or foundational model layer yet,” Shmulevich observed. “But at the application level, we’re seeing much stronger teams compared to last year.”
Tran underlined the importance of applied AI. “Training large models costs millions — that’s something only sovereign wealth funds or tech giants can afford. But applied AI is where Vietnam has a huge opportunity,” he said.
He pointed to the country’s release of its first pre-trained transformer model in late 2023, a project led by researchers with global experience. “That shows Vietnam can play a role in the global AI race.”
Jonsson noted Vietnam’s growing international appeal. “In our latest Antler residency, 80% of founders were international — some came from as far as Brazil to Vietnam. That tells you the country is becoming a hub,” he said.
Vietnam’s corporates are eager to adapt but still tend to work in silos. “Many companies want to build their own AI solutions in isolation. But to be competitive globally, you need collaboration across industries and borders,” Vo said.
The real value
The investors agreed that the real opportunity lies with “AI-native” companies — those that wouldn’t exist without AI at their core.
“Soon, the question won’t be whether a company uses AI,” Shmulevich said. “It will be about which industries are being reshaped most profoundly. Businesses that don’t embrace AI face huge risks.”
Tran echoed this sentiment. “VCs don’t just back incremental tools. We want founders who imagine futures that aren’t obvious yet,” he said.
“The best companies will create new behaviours and markets — not just bolt AI onto existing systems.”
Jonsson’s test for startups is straightforward: “If the company wouldn’t make sense without AI, then it’s AI-native. That’s where the long-term value lies.”
Vo added a note of caution. “When an early-stage startup claims to be building its own AI from scratch, that’s a red flag. The key is solving a real problem with AI, not chasing the label.”
Strategy shift
Has the AI boom changed how VCs invest? To some extent, yes.
“It’s now much easier to build a compelling product than five years ago,” said Shmulevich. “What matters more is whether teams can sell and distribute better than others.”
Tran highlighted the challenge of identifying true difficulty. “VCs want to back teams solving really hard problems. But when AI makes everything look easy, you need to be careful about where the real barriers are,” he said. He also cautioned that large language model (LLM) giants have an “unfair advantage,” making some markets off-limits for startups.
Jonsson said Antler has begun fast-tracking AI startups but still relies on human judgment. “Could AI help us evaluate deals? Absolutely. But at the end of the day, it can’t yet capture the conviction we need in founder decisions,” he said.
Vo pointed out that funding AI startups at the pre-seed level remains challenging. “Our typical ticket of $100,000–350,000 is barely enough for an AI team to hire talent,” she said. “That’s why we focus on helping our portfolio adapt existing businesses to AI, rather than chasing moonshots.”
Sectoral opportunities
The investors highlighted several sectors where AI could make an outsized impact in Southeast Asia.
“In manufacturing, many processes are still done on paper,” said Shmulevich. “Digitalisation followed by AI adoption can multiply efficiency and margins.”
Jonsson sees potential in logistics and supply chains. “I grew up around blue-collar industries, and I see huge potential for AI in supply chain and industrial processes,” he said.
Vo emphasised fintech and agriculture. “Seventy per cent of Southeast Asia’s adult population is unbanked or underbanked. AI-driven financial services could be transformative. And given Vietnam’s agricultural base, AI in agritech is another big opportunity,” she said.
Beyond money
The role of VCs extends beyond writing cheques.
“Early-stage founders face constant survival challenges,” said Tran. “Our role is to provide trust, context, and sometimes just a sounding board. Every team’s journey is different, but respect and honesty are non-negotiable.”
Jonsson emphasised global ambition. “In the Nordics, founders know their home markets are too small, so they think global from day one. In Vietnam, 100 million people can give a false sense of scale. Founders here need to think regional or global much faster,” he said.
Vo highlighted the importance of collaboration and networks. “Vietnam’s AI community is still too fragmented. We need to connect startups with global talent and data across industries,” she said.
Shmulevich added that speed and clarity are critical founder traits. “The best founders move fast, respond fast, and don’t get lost in building for the sake of building. Too often we see great products with no go-to-market plan — and that kills deals.”
Southeast Asia’s AI wave is real, but its trajectory will depend on how founders and investors balance enthusiasm with substance. The region has advantages in young engineering talent, fast-growing markets, and increasingly curious corporates. But global giants still dominate at the infrastructure level, and local startups must find ways to differentiate in applied AI.
As Tran summed it up: “The opportunity is unprecedented, but the bar for what counts as a truly great AI company is higher than ever.”
