Expert Panel

Jugnu brings 17+ years of equity and debt experience with a proven track record of investing in multiple emerging markets across South and Southeast Asia. Prior to joining ADB Ventures, Jugnu was Investment Director and Head of Asia with Bamboo Capital Partners and previously, she worked at IFC, World Bank Group. She has extensive experience working with early and growth stage businesses, with a focus on fintech and climate tech sectors.

Dmitry Govorov is the Global Head of Strategy and Singapore Country Lead for Aramco Ventures, a corporate venturing arm of Saudi Aramco, with US$7 billion assets under management, including $1.5B Sustainability Fund, which invests in global climate tech startups supporting Saudi Aramco’s decarbonization goals as well as the development of new lower-carbon fuels businesses. Additionally, Dmitry serves as a Board Director at REDEX, Singapore-based portfolio company developing innovative solutions in Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) market. Prior to joining Aramco Ventures in 2022, Dmitry spent 10 years in Saudi Aramco’s corporate strategy, portfolio investments, M&A, and sustainability teams. Prior to Aramco, Dmitry worked for 10 years in a number of finance and commercial roles with Shell and TNK-BP, based in Eastern Europe, the Netherlands and Brazil. Dmitry Govorov is a CFA Charterholder; he has a BA in International Relations and a MA in Economics, both from Moscow State Institute of International Relations, and an Executive MBA from INSEAD Business School.

Alexandra is a Partner at Artesian and leads Artesian's ClimateTech VC investment activities across Asia Pacific. Alexandra is also the Portfolio Manager for Artesian's $100M Female Leader's Fund which invests in companies with gender diversity across their founding team and executives. Alexandra has led investments from seed-stage through to Series B and currently serves as a Board Observer for companies such as modular solar company 5B. Alexandra is also the host of Artesian's ArteHouse podcast where she interviews founders and technical experts on new trends in innovation.

Sophia is Managing Director Asia & Middle East at bp ventures, leading the sourcing of venturing deals and portfolio management in India, China, Japan, elsewhere in AsPac, and the Middle East. She explores new opportunities that support bp’s scaling of advanced mobility, bioenergy, and other new energy vectors, power systems and other tech-led business models that help to accelerate the energy transition. Sophia joined bp ventures in 2020 from bp’s advanced mobility team, having designed the company’s global e-mobility strategy, helping bp to become a leading provider of integrated mobility solutions in the UK, Europe, China, the US and beyond. Her passion is the electrification of transport across India through investing in and advocating for the scale up of e-mobility startups there. Sophia holds an MBA from Warwick Business School, a BSc in Physiology from McGill University, and an LLB(Hons) from University College London. Before joining bp, she worked as an innovator and business builder in the global consumer goods and services industry and ran her own award-winning startup. She currently holds non-executive director roles at two startups, BluSmart and Magenta Mobility, and is shareholder rep for 5B, Hysata, Zingbus, Enjoyelec, and StoreDot. She is also a qualified lawyer and arbitrator. LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sophianadur/

Janina Motter is currently the Climate Tech Program Manager at Brinc. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Chemistry and a Master's degree in Materials Science & Engineering from Stanford as well as a joint MS/MBA degree from Harvard. Janina has extensive experience working in R&D, operations, and business development at several deep tech startups in Silicon Valley and Boston. She also has prior venture capital experience at SOSV and Clean Energy Ventures. Janina was involved with ecosystem-building initiatives during business school such as the sustainability track ("Eco") of the biotech incubator Nucleate and the Harvard Circular Economy Symposium.

Phil Anderson is a Business Innovation Advisor at the New Zealand Governments innovation agency, Callaghan Innovation. He focuses on supporting the commercialisation of Cleantech and High-value manufacturing businesses. He leads the Cleantech Mission partnership, which was launched to help kiwi businesses develop world-leading Cleantech. Prior to this, he was a shareholder and general manager at Cleanflow Systems, a tech startup which designed and manufactured multi-sensor inspection systems for the wastewater industry. Cleanflow Systems was acquired by US business Redzone Robotics in 2011.

Based in Singapore, Nicolas du Cray is a Partner at Cathay Innovation (www.cathayinnovation.com), in charge of the activities of the fund in Southeast Asia. Cathay Innovation is a multi-stage venture capital firm that goes beyond the traditional VC playbook by providing entrepreneurs the support of a global ecosystem. Cathay Innovation is affiliated with Cathay Capital, a global PE/VC investment platform with €5B under management and offices in Europe, China, North America, Southeast Asia, LatAm and Africa. Originally from France, Nicolas has a long experience in Asia, having lived in China for 18 years before moving to Singapore in Jan 2020. Before opening the Singapore office for Cathay Innovation, Nicolas was based in Shanghai and in charge of the China activities of the fund. Prior to joining Cathay Innovation in 2016, Nicolas was a Venture Partner at Iris Capital, a global venture capital investor sponsored by Orange and Publicis, in charge of the fund’s investments in China. Prior to that, Nicolas worked for Orange, as an Investment Director at Orange Capital in Beijing, and as a Senior Project Manager at Orange Labs Beijing. Nicolas holds an Executive MBA from INSEAD and Tsinghua University, a Master of Science in ICT Management from EMLYON Business School & Central Lyon, and a Master’s Degree in Engineering from Grenoble Institute of Technology.

Anthony manages Cleantech Group’s research team, delivering critical insights on new cleantech innovation and opportunities for engagement to Cleantech Group’s clients in the industrial, investment, and policy communities. He is based in the U.S. Anthony joined Cleantech Group in late 2019 after over 8 years of work in US-China cross-border expansion consulting and start-up venture funding roles, including 5 years living in Shanghai. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from University of Rhode Island, a Masters in Sustainability from the Harvard Extension School, and an MBA at the University of Michigan Ross School of Business.

Brendon is the Head of Research & Ecosystems at CLP. His team is responsible for engaging in global startup ecosystems and helping to build capabilities and knowledge on emerging trends and technologies of strategic importance to CLP’s business through research and pilot projects.

Based in our Singapore office, Julien Dillon is an Investment Director at Emerald Technology Ventures and acts as a Corporate Finance and M&A specialist, focusing on the investment process from due diligence to valuation to transaction structuring to exit. Before joining Emerald, Julien worked as an Associate at the Zurich-based investment and M&A advisory firm Wineus AG and – prior to that – as a Corporate Finance Analyst at Bank J. Safra Sarasin. For more than five years, he has been involved in M&A, corporate finance and business development projects and participated in the origination and execution of equity and debt transactions, valuation analyses, preparation of financial models, as well as in the due diligences of target companies. Julien also interned at the investment banking departments of Credit Suisse and Lazard, the active ownership hedge fund Cevian Capital, as well as the management consulting division of Accenture. Julien holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration and a master’s degree in accounting and finance from the University of St. Gallen. He is also a CFA charterholder and is fluent in French, English and German.

Gayathri Gopal is an experienced innovation consultant and entrepreneur with over a decade of expertise in driving corporate innovation. She has founded two companies—a fitness chain and a music tech startup in South Asia. As an innovation consultant and strategist, she has collaborated with leading industrial, FMCG, and healthcare brands such as Jacobs, Nestlé, and Roche. Prior to joining ENGIE, she served as a Director at Board of Innovation. Gaya holds a Master’s degree in Innovation and a Bachelor's degree in Business Management from Singapore Management University. At ENGIE Factory, she aims to develop a structured venture validation and scaling process while preserving the agility and creativity of a startup environment.

Julien is an Operating Partner in Asia for Eurazeo, a global investor in technology with offices in Singapore Shanghai, Seoul, Tokyo, Paris, London, Berlin, NY. Eurazeo is a listed European technology fund manager, with approximately €10 bn in venture and growth capital, and €35bn overall with additional activities in private debt and private equity. Julien deploys Smart City Fund II in Asia dedicated to new technologies and digital services for more sustainable cities: advanced mobility, new energy, supply chain, built environment, future industries. Smart City II launched in January 2021 and is supported by 25 corporate and institutional investors in Europe and Asia. Julien is an investor in fast-growing technology companies in Asia including WeRide.ai (Autonomous mobility, Nasdaq WRD); DST Car (EV logistics, CN), Grab (Shared Mobility), Alt Mobility (EV financing & lifecycle management) as well as companies in Europe and the US : Trust-In-Soft (cybersecurity,), Neurala (Edge AI ). He also supports the cross-border development and localization of Eurazeo portfolio companies to Asia. Prior to joining Eurazeo in 2011, Julien was based in China where he developed and acquired power projects for EDF Group. Julien holds degrees from La Sorbonne University, Beijing University, ESCP Europe Business School and the French School of Oriental Studies. He is a fluent Mandarin, English, French and Spanish speaker and has beginning his journey in Japanese. www.eurazeo.com

Varis is a Partner at ExpresSo – the Corporate Venture Capital arm of PTT. He manages portfolios and leads direct investments into high-profile startups in the new energy, sustainability, and decarbonization sectors. Prior to this, Varis spearheaded numerous initiatives at PTT, including the development of the New Energy business master plan that resulted in the formation of several new subsidiaries, as well as the PTT Smart Energy platform that utilizes AI/ML for optimal energy management solutions. Varis holds a Bachelor's degree in Industrial Engineering from Sirindhorn International Institute of Technology and an MBA from London Business School.

Takuro Kimura is a founder and CEO of G-Cubed Partners, based in Tokyo and New York, and is involved in impact investing in Asia and Africa. He promotes natural capital, biodiversity, and inclusive society. Before setting up G-Cubed, he spent over 30 years investing with impact in emerging markets from International Finance Corporation (IFC) and financial institutions in the private sector, involved in multi-billion investments in private equity, mezzanine, and project finance. He holds an LL.B. from Kyoto University and MBA from Ecole des Haute Etudes Commerciales de Paris (HEC).

Mr. Nattawat Nirdnoy serves as Cleantech and Digital Investment Manager at GC Ventures. He joined GC in 2020. He drives corporate venture capital investments from thesis development and origination, through deal evaluation and execution. Prior to GC, he served large corporate clients in consulting projects across Southeast Asia in areas of Innovation Management, Enterprise risk management, and Digital Transform with global consulting firms. He holds an M.S. in International Business from the University of Edinburgh and a B.Eng. (International Program) from SIIT, Thammasat University.

Adam is Partner at Giant Leap, Australia’s first venture capital fund 100% dedicated to investing in impact start ups, backing founders who are re-imagining industries and using business as a force for good. Adam is a serial Investor with expertise across consumer marketing, ecommerce and innovation. Outside of Giant Leap, Adam is a Director at Tripple, Future Super and Australian Communities Foundation.

With over 20 years of experience in venture capital investment, investment banking and equity research, Dr. Wang is currently the Managing Partner of GRC SinoGreen, a venture capital fund manager focused on green technology investments. His investment approach is to identify technology/value chain discontinuities and then cultivate startup teams with innovative solutions and sustainable business models to bridge the gap. Dr. Wang provides hands-on assistance to his portfolio companies in all aspects of operations including business strategy, partnership and joint venture, corporate governance, executive search, fundraising, and IPO or M&A. On behalf of the Fund, he is currently a board director of Aiator, Carbon Lighthouse, and RayPower, and a board observer of Gradiant, and Incus. Dr. Wang also served as a director on the board of CNano Technology (688116.SS), Rancher Lab (now SUSE), and LedEngin (now Osram), and a board observer of Cepton (NASDAQ: CPTN). He played a key role in the investments of Voltronic Power (6409.TT), S2C (now SMIT), PHABuilder, Centrillion, Sentieon, and Googol Technology. Previously, Dr. Wang was a Managing Director at WK Technology Fund. His investments during this time include Aruba Networks (now HP), Ruckus (now Arris Group), Brion Technologies (now ASML) and Beken Corp (603608.SS). Prior to becoming a venture capitalist, Dr. Wang was the Global Head of Semiconductor Research at ABN AMRO Bank. Earlier, he worked as a Yield Management Engineer at KLA-Tencor in San Jose, CA, USA. Dr. Wang holds a Ph.D. in Engineering-Economic Systems from Stanford University, a M.S. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Hawaii at Manoa, and a B.S. in Electrictrical Engineering from National Tsing Hua University.

Hoi Ying So is the Global Portfolio Manager of IFC’s Disruptive Technologies and Venture Capital team. In addition to co-leading the delivery of IFC’s investment program of early equity investments in the VC space, Hoi Ying is responsible for providing portfolio management leadership to IFC's global venture capital portfolio of direct investments and co-investments, with a strong focus on post-investment value creation and delivering IFC value-add, as well as driving successful exits. Previous to this role, Hoi Ying was with IFC’s Global Energy team from 2016-2019 as the sector lead for distributed power generation. She was responsible for developing sector knowledge and setting investment strategy that expands across mainstream investments, VC investing and upstream activities in this emerging sub-sector. Hoi Ying joined IFC’s venture capital team as an Investment Officer in 2011 where she focused on cleantech venture investments. Prior to that, Hoi Ying was with RNK Capital where she was part of the investment team focused on emissions trading and the carbon markets. She holds a Master of International Affairs from Columbia University.

Om Kaosa-ard is the Head of Venture Capital of Innopower. Prior to Innopower, Om spent 13 years with SCG, one of the largest conglomerates in Thailand, then he moved to explore the startup and venture capital industry in many roles from Head of Thailand Operations of a SEA esports startup to the Head of Business Development & Growth at a Thai Fintech Startup. Om also advised on a few fundraising activities for Thai startups prior to his role at Innopower. Om and Athip overlapped and worked together at IRPC to drive the New Business Innovation Department Even though a broad experience in many industries from Manufacturing, Real Estate, Energy, to Startups, Om mainly focus his work and expertise in corporate finance spectrum from Investment, Merge & Acquisition, Financial Budgeting, Cost Control and Business Development Projects for his entire career. Om received MBA from the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania in 2011 and Bachelor of Engineering 2nd class honor from Chiangmai University. He served many roles during his MBA and collage years such as the Co-President of the Southeast Asian Club at Wharton and the Vice President of the Student Association of Faculty of Engineering, Chiangmai University.

Yichen is responsible for strategic analysis and partnership development at New Energy Nexus China. Previously served as the Head of Climate Tech at New Energy Nexus China, focusing on building accelerators and managing corporate open innovation programs, supporting the growth of over 120 energy and climate-focused startups worldwide covering the industries including energy digitalization, renewable energy, hydrogen and energy storage. Published the report Accelerating China-EU Innovation Technology Incubation and Commercialization and translated Accelerate This!: A Super Not Boring Guide To Startup Accelerators And Clean Energy Entrepreneurship into Chinese. Yichen holds a Bachelor’s degree in Philosophy from Fudan University.

Dr Ashwath Sundaresan is an Associate Partner at Pacific Channel, NZ’s oldest deep-tech venture capital fund, and leads the “Future of Environment” and engineering portfolio. Ashwath is a director across multiple NZ cleantech startups that are solving problems in energy storage, waste minimisation and reducing emissions in the built environment. Ashwath has over 10 years’ experience working with deep-tech and technology businesses. Prior to Pacific Channel, Ashwath was involved in university technology transfer and technology consultant with Accenture and Google working with energy and healthcare clients across APAC. Ashwath is passionate about the role of technology and business model innovation and how these can drive changes in our environment.. He holds a PhD in mechanical engineering (University of Canterbury) and an MBA (INSEAD).

Shrikant is a Vice President Innovation with 32 years of multi-domain experience and demonstrated achievements in Innovation Management, Research & Technology Management, Business Transformation, Technical Services and New Product Development. An innovation specialist, Shrikant works at Reliance Innovation Leadership Centre (RIL-C), a specialised, high-performing team that leads innovation efforts across Hydrocarbon, Retail & Jio businesses of Reliance, with a focus on creating monetary value & building a culture of innovation.

Jing serves as External Ventures Manager for NOVA by Saint-Gobain, the external venturing arm of Saint-Gobain that identifies forward-thinking startups around the world whose philosophies align with Saint-Gobain’s purpose of Making the World a Better Home. In this role, Jing focuses across a range of technologies to identify opportunities and build strategic partnerships between startups and Saint-Gobain’s family of companies in the topics such as sustainable building, circular economy, industrial energy transition.

Yuko oversees Scrum Studio’s open innovation program focused on carbon neutrality, energy, and sustainability, as well as manages research projects and business development. Yuko began her career at Citigroup in the debt capital markets (DCM) and investment banking divisions. She then worked at Deloitte as a consultant, advising government agencies on renewables, power and energy. Following Deloitte, she worked as a credit analyst at Moody’s Investors Service, covering Japanese electric utilities, automobile companies, and trading companies. She joined Scrum Ventures in November 2021. Yuko received her B.S. in International Politics from Georgetown University and her M.A. in International Affairs from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA) in Energy Management and Policy.

Kaixin is General Manager at SEEDS Capital, the investment arm of Enterprise Singapore. SEEDS Capital seeks to catalyse smart monies into Singapore-based, early-stage technology startups through co-investments with institutional investors. Kaixin leads the team on investments, and partnerships with investors and ecosystem enablers across strategic domains such as Advanced Manufacturing, Health & Biomedical Sciences and Sustainability. SEEDS currently has a portfolio of over 100 deep tech startups and a strong network of over 40 co-investment partners.

Yoonmin is a partner at Sopoong Ventures, leading global investment. She is actively investing in climate tech, food & agriculture, and tech startups in Southeast Asia, especially Singapore and Vietnam.

Teng Lip is Head of ST Engineering Ventures (“STEV”) – the corporate venture capital and venture building unit of Singapore Technologies Engineering Ltd (SGX: S63) – a global technology, defence and engineering group with businesses across the aerospace, smart city, defence and public security segments. Teng Lip established STEV in 2017 and set up regional offices in San Francisco, London and Tel Aviv. STEV manages an AUM of US$ 150M comprising a portfolio of global start-ups in domains such as artificial intelligence, data analytics, cloud, autonomous technology, cyber security, communications, IoT, robotics and other emerging technologies.

Karthik Chandrasekar is Managing Partner and Co-Founder of Synapses, a VC Fund focused on STEM-led innovations for climate change mitigation and adaptation Prior to Synapses, Karthik ran Sangam, an early-stage climate fund co-created with support from Shell Foundation and USAID to find a new model to provide early-stage support for climate change pioneers. He spends a lot of his time with the portfolio & within the clean technology innovation eco-system in India & globally. He led investments in eight clean technology start-ups bringing game-changing technologies and business models to the market. He is also the founder & director of AIC-Sangam, India’s first cleantech Incubator set up in partnership with AIM, NITI Aayog, Government of India. Karthik has also led clean-tech investments in India for Acumen and started his India investment journey with TVS Capital Funds, where he worked with the MD of the fund to develop an investment thesis for providing basic services in water, energy, and agriculture for inclusive growth. Prior to TVS, Karthik has also worked in IB at Goldman Sachs and Merrill Lynch across New York and London. Karthik holds an MBA from Chicago Booth, MS in Public Policy & Mgmt. from Carnegie Mellon University and a BTech from IIT Bombay Karthik is a morning person, enjoys the outdoors, cooking, and copious amounts of coffee

Steve is the Senior Investment Associate at the Radical Fund, based out of Jakarta, Indonesia. Previously, he has had 5+ years of experience as an operator in the Southeast Asia tech unicorns in Commercial/Product Strategy roles. He received his MBA from the National University of Singapore and a Bachelor's Degree in International Studies from American University in Washington, DC

Priya has spent 17 years working across the finance, policy, and venture sectors in the US, UK, and Indian markets. She is an early investor in India’s climate tech venture ecosystem and a Director on Sustainability Mafia, one of India’s largest climate founder coalitions. She is actively involved as a mentor, advisor, and thought leader with several think tanks, university labs, accelerator programs, and foundations on climate tech innovation, a Board Member on the University of Cambridge’s Alumni Advisory Council, and an advisor to Brown University’s Young India Leadership Council and Women’s Launchpad program. Before Theia Ventures, she built the Indian Fund arm of Yunus Social Business (YSB), a global impact venture debt fund founded by Nobel Laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus, where she led investments into companies such as S4S Technologies (Earthshot Prize Winner 2023), Rangsutra, Virohan, SMV Green, Just Organik and Hasiru Dala. Prior to YSB, Priya spearheaded strategy, capital raising, and special projects at a clean-tech, venture-backed, growth-stage company, Simpa Networks. She began her career at Bloomberg LP in New York and later at Asia House in London. She has led independent consulting projects at impact start-ups and investment firms, such as Acumen and British International Investment. She holds an MBA from Cambridge Judge Business School and a BA in History from Brown University, where she is closely affiliated with alumni initiatives on gender diversity, international scholarships, and climate-focused entrepreneurship.

Melvyn is the Founder of Singapore-based, TRIREC, which is the leading investment firm that was incorporated in 2015 with the aim of making a meaningful impact on addressing climate change through a disciplined investment approach by supporting companies and projects that share our belief in a sustainable future. TRIREC’s investment mandate is focused on the decarbonization theme and invests in early stage start-ups globally. He was the Deputy Head of Wealth Management for Asia at Schroders where he was responsible for the management and strategic development of the business for the region since 2019 till his retirement in early 2021. Melvyn chaired the Asia Investment Committee where he led the efforts in the formulation of investment philosophies and risk frameworks for the wealth management business. He was also the Co-Chair of the Private Assets Investment Committee for Schroders Wealth Management globally, with responsibilities of evaluating private investment opportunities. Melvyn sat on the boards of Schroder & Co (Asia) Limited and Schroder & Co (Hong Kong) Limited. Melvyn was the Co-Founder and Chair of Investment Committee at Thirdrock Group, which was the leading Asian independent asset manager, between 2011 and 2019, before the firm was acquired by Schroders. He started his career with Goldman Sachs where he spent 3 years in Singapore managing multi-asset global discretionary portfolios, followed by 8 years in Hong Kong as a leading member of the equity derivatives team with experience across structuring, trading and marketing of derivatives and structured products. Melvyn currently sit on the board of Sunseap Group and also serves in the Audit and Risk Committee and the Remuneration Committee of the firm. He previously sat on the boards of a few renewables and environmental companies, and Fintech startups in the South East Asia region as he has also been active as an early-stage investor for more than a decade. He volunteered as a District Councillor since 2014 for 6 years under the Environment Functional Committee with the South West Community Development Council in Singapore. The committee initiates and executes on community projects that brings awareness and engagement of environmental issues to the grassroots. Between 2018 to 2020, Melvyn served as a Technical Advisor to the National Research Foundation of the Prime Minister’s Office in Singapore. In 2018, Melvyn was selected and has been a member of the Climate Reality Leadership Corp, which was founded by Vice President Al Gore, to spread awareness, shape public opinion, influence policy, and inspire our communities to act on climate change. Melvyn has a Bachelor of Business Administration from Ross School of Business, Michigan and is a member of the International Alumni Advisory Committee for the University of Michigan since 2019. He is married with two boys.

Fariz is the CEO & Managing Partner at Twin Towers Ventures (TTV), the investment arm for PETRONAS Ventures for the APAC and Middle East region. Prior to TTV, Fariz was the Head of Investments at PETRONAS Ventures, where he led the origination and investments for APAC in the areas of energy transition, mobility, circular economy and sustainability amongst others. Prior to joining PETRONAS, Fariz was Senior Vice President of Investments at Khazanah in Kuala Lumpur and London, covering investments in the private equity and venture capital space. Fariz graduated from The London School of Economics (LSE) with a BSc (Hons) Accounting & Finance and he is a Fellow Chartered Accountant with the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW).

Scaled an insect technology across Asia and managed funds for high net worth individuals in Hong Kong. Managing the fud, and also his farm, Jonathan brings worlds together to ensure the fund wins.

After joining JSR Corporation, he worked in the Corporate Planning Department, where he was involved in the creation of strategies, including medium-term management plans, as well as the startup of corporate venture capital (CVC) activities and the execution of investments. He served as General Manager of the Management Division at JSR Micro NV (a European subsidiary handling electronics materials), and also served as General Manager of the Strategy Division at Medical & Biological Laboratories Co., Ltd., where he was involved in PMI management and business development activities. He joined UMI in April 2017. He is responsible for overall investment activities and acts as CIO of UMI Fund III. He graduated from the Keio University Faculty of Economics, and completed a Graduate degree in International Management from the Aoyama Business School (ABS) at Aoyama Gakuin University.