Go global or go home: Singapore startups eye growth beyond SEA

Investors favour those that demonstrate a clear and disciplined path to profitability.

The year 2025 will see Singapore startups move from trying to dominate the Southeast Asian region to gaining global ground in search of capital, customers, and talent, venture capital analysts said.

“The ecosystem will see a surge in ventures targeting global markets, especially in sectors like artificial intelligence (AI), green tech, and digital healthcare, while still leveraging Singapore’s strategic position as a gateway to Southeast Asia,” Jussi Salovaara, co-founder and managing partner at venture capitalist Antler, told Singapore Business Review.

“Startups will increasingly develop technologies that not only address regional needs but also hold export potential to other emerging and developed markets,” he added.

The global move is reflected in startups expanding their search for capital, customers and talent internationally, particularly in deep tech and biotech, where they are creating globally competitive products, said Vishal Harnal, managing partner at 500 Global.

Harnal said Aliena, Atomionics, Hydroleap, Krosslinker, SepPure, Transcelestial, and Volt14 are among Singaporean startups pushing deeptech and biotech innovation to a global scale.

“As entrepreneurs and capital become increasingly mobile, we anticipate this trend to be more pronounced in 2025,” Harnal told Singapore Business Review in an online reply to questions.

Melisa Irene, a partner at East Ventures, said having products that solve regional or global problems is important in emerging or niche markets.

This is why many startups are “doubling down on refining their core product offerings,” said Peggy Wu, founder and managing director at Milkfish.

“We see startups taking a dual approach — some are focusing on perfecting their core offerings, while others are expanding in response to real user pain points,” she told Singapore Business Review in an emailed reply to questions.

Startups are also doing this as investors increasingly favour those that “demonstrate a clear and disciplined path to profitability,” Wu said.

Investors are prioritising sustainability over hyper-growth, favoring business-to-business startups with strong fundamentals over high-burn models, said Amit Chu, a partner at Verda Ventures.

‘Thoughtful innovation’

Nicholas Cocks, a partner at Velocity Ventures, said startups have been “shifting focus from aggressive expansion to a more sustainable growth strategy.”

Salovaara expects Singapore startups to “transition from rapid growth to thoughtful innovation” this year.

“From scaling AI solutions that respect privacy and data sovereignty to fostering climate-conscious technologies, startups will align more closely with global environmental, social, and governance (ESG) trends,” he added.

With the carbon market projected to reach $13.4m (US$10b) by 2030, more investors are becoming more interested in ESG-aligned ventures, Salovaara said.

“Sustainability and climate tech will emerge as a high-growth sector, with startups focusing on industrial decarbonisation, renewable energy optimisation, and sustainable agriculture,” he added.

Within the ESG space, cleantech is growing rapidly in Singapore, said JF Gauthier, founder and CEO at Startup Genome.

Green tech deals in Singapore more than doubled in volume in 2023, covering investments in renewable energy, waste management, and other sustainability solutions, Startup Genome said in its Global Startup Ecosystem Report 2024. Notable funding rounds include Green Li-ion’s $20.5m pre-Series B.

Healthcare innovation is also taking centre stage in Singapore, said Gauthier, citing the city-state’s ageing population and policies as main growth drivers.

In 2024, Singapore led Southeast Asia in funding healthtech and life sciences, raising $123.5m (US$92.4m) across 14 funding rounds. Health and fitness platform HealthifyMe was the top funded Singapore healthtech last year, raising $26.7m (US$20m) in a Series C round.

In 2025, Salovaara expects healthcare innovation to witness “unprecedented momentum” not only in Singapore but also across Southeast Asia.

“Startups leveraging AI to improve efficiency, such as predictive analytics for patient outcomes and federated learning systems for electronic health records, will address critical gaps in Southeast Asia’s fragmented healthcare landscape,” he said,

Within healthtech, healthcare diagnostics would be a key area, said Herston Powers, founding managing partner at 1982 Ventures.

“Deep tech and AI are two areas where Singapore will continue to grow,” said Gauthier, adding that funding for AI in big data in Singapore more than doubled from 2020 to 2024.

‘Real value, not just hype’

Salovaara said 2024 was a year of AI-powered technologies, noting that Singapore’s strong regulatory framework combined with strategic investments in AI-ready data centers and digital infrastructure provided “fertile ground” for startups to thrive.

Powers said Singapore’s Smart Nation initiative, strong digital infrastructure, and government support for AI adoption across industries would drive innovation in the AI space, with key areas being fintech, supply chain optimisation, and smart city solutions.

Within the travel and hospitality sector, solutions like AI-driven concierge services and green travel initiatives would gain traction, Cocks said.

“In 2025, all eyes will remain on AI, and it will have the greatest impact on life sciences,” said Ron Levin, managing partner at Alumni Ventures.

Wu, however, noted that while AI would remain dominant, investors are becoming more discerning about it. OpenAI would lead to a more mature market and create jobs, but startups need to prove they are solving real problems, not just riding the AI wave, he added.

“From a communications perspective, AI startups need to articulate their differentiation clearly — what’s actually proprietary versus what’s built on existing models,” Wu said. “How does it impact the bottom line? Those that communicate real value, not just hype, will stand out.”

Meanwhile, Power expects a “breakout year” for Singapore fintech.

“Singapore-based enterprise tech and fintech startups are expanding across the globe and attracting foreign investors,” he said. “We expect the next major tech IPOs (initial public offerings) from the region will be in the fintech space.”

Last year, fintech was the top sector in Singapore funding-wise, having raised $1.3b (US$1b), according to Tracxn data.

Salovaara expects significant fintech expansion across Southeast Asia this year, driven by mobile-first financial inclusion, embedded services, and advanced cross-border payments.

“In a region where 40% of the population remains underbanked, alternative credit scoring powered by AI and real-time digital banking solutions will unlock new opportunities,” he said.

“Forward-thinking regulatory frameworks, such as digital banking licenses and application programming interface harmonisation across Southeast Asia, are expected to further accelerate innovation and investment,” he added.

While fintech would remain relevant, being able to navigate a more disciplined investment landscape would determine which startups secure funding, Cocks said.