How do VCs pick that one billion-dollar startup… before the world sees it?

I sat down with Kee Lock, a veteran venture capitalist who’s spent decades backing founders, navigating failures, and building companies from zero to exit. We unpack his real playbook—from sourcing deals and spotting great founders to surviving the brutal 0→1 and 10→100M growth journey in venture capital.

He shares how pattern recognition is built, why most investors get market size wrong, and the subtle red flags that instantly kill a startup pitch.

If you’re curious about startup investing, venture capital strategy, fundraising, and what actually makes a founder worth betting on—this one’s packed with insights you won’t hear elsewhere.

IN THIS EPISODE

00:30 | How VCs find winning startups (and how you get noticed)

01:30 | The exact checklist before investing in any startup

02:05 | 4 ways top VCs discover breakout founders

06:50 | Early mistakes that cost investors millions

07:58 | How VCs build “gut instinct” for great startups

08:45 | The 3 filters every VC uses before investing

09:52 | Why judging founders is harder than you think

15:20 | Red flags that instantly kill a startup pitch

16:54 | How to judge if your market is actually big

22:47 | How VCs actually help startups grow (beyond money)

33:32 | When and how VCs decide to exit

42:47 | Why VC training is like flying a fighter jet

Kee Lock CHUA

Mr Chua Kee Lock is the Group President / CEO of Vertex Holdings (“VH”), a Singapore-headquartered venture capital investment holding company. VH is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Temasek.

Vertex Group is a global venture capital network comprising 5 early-stage technology-focused funds (Vertex Ventures China, Vertex Ventures Israel, Vertex Ventures US, Vertex Ventures SEA & India, Vertex Ventures Japan), an early-stage healthcare-focused fund (Vertex Ventures HC) and a growth-stage fund (Vertex Growth). Each of these funds is managed by independent and separate General Partnerships and investment teams, with VH providing anchor funding alongside significant 3rd party capital commitments. Vertex Group manages USD 6.8B in assets. Mr Chua is currently Managing Partner of Vertex Ventures SEA & India, as well as Chairman of Vertex Growth Fund.

Rahul Thayyalamkandy

Director of Comms & Community, Vertex Ventures SEA & India

Rahul Thayyalamkandy joined the SEA/India team as the Director of Communication & Community in 2024 and is based in Singapore.

Before joining Vertex, Rahul served as a Product Manager at BLOCK71, an incubator and joint venture of NUS Enterprise and Singtel Innov8, where he developed scalable services for portfolio startups and designed mentorship programs. He also gained experience as a Summer Associate at Cocoon Capital, working with the Managing Partner on investment deals.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/rahulthayyalamkandy/

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Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia & India is a pioneer in investing in tech start-ups in this region and has helped to build a number of unicorns. In this podcast, we seek to share and uncover the Hard Truth - raw, unfiltered insights and venture capital knowledge from across Southeast Asia and India. Tune in to learn from leading founders, innovators, venture capitalists, and industry experts in the region and gain industry insights from those in the know.

If you like what you hear, please follow or subscribe to the show so you don’t miss out on any of our upcoming discussions.

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Follow us to get notified whenever new episodes are shared.

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For more information, please visit: https://www.vertexventures.sg

#hardtruthsbyvertexventures #vertexventures #entrepreneurship #startups #venturecapital #vc #podcast #businessleaders

Why would someone quit chasing “big startup ideas” to redesign something as ordinary as a ceiling fan?

In this episode, I sit down with Gazal, co-founder of Nuuk, to trace her journey from a personal problem at home to building a design-led consumer electronics startup in India.

We talk about how COVID changed the way Indians live indoors, why Indian consumers are shifting from cheap to meaningful products, and how Nuuk builds home appliances designed specifically for Indian homes.

Gazal shares the thinking behind product-first brands, women-led design, and what it really takes to scale a modern Indian consumer brand without cutting corners.

If you care about startup journeys, consumer brands in India, or product design that actually solves real problems, this episode will pull you in.

If you want it more playful, more founder-centric, or even punchier for YouTube, say the word and I’ll tune it!

IN THIS EPISODE
(00:00) Why Nuuk Isn’t “Just Another Appliance Brand”
(01:28) The Personal Problem That Started Nuuk
(04:40) How Indian Consumers Are Changing (And Why It Matters to You)
(06:21) Who’s Actually Buying Nuuk — The Answer Will Surprise You
(12:11) How Nuuk Turns Daily Frustrations into Product Ideas
(16:09) Designing Appliances That Actually Work in Indian Homes
(23:28) The Hidden Health Risk Lurking in Indian Mattresses
(29:28) Why Building in India Is Harder Than It Looks
(30:46) What “Safe Kitchens” Really Mean (And Why You Should Care)
(34:49) How Nuuk Builds Trust After the Sale
(41:54) Nuuk’s 10-Year Vision — And What’s Coming Next

Gazal Kalra | Co-Founder | Nuuk
Gazal Kalra is the Co-Founder of Nuuk, a new-age D2C brand for home appliances, shaping the Indian home with purposeful innovation and design-first thinking. At Nuuk, she brings a product-led approach rooted in human-centered design and operational excellence with a vision to create high-performance appliances that reflect modern lifestyles. Gazal is deeply committed to building consumer brands that solve real-world problems alongside raising the bar for thoughtful design, long-term utility, and a future-ready approach to sustainability.

Before Nuuk, Gazal co-founded Rivigo, the logistics-tech unicorn that disrupted India’s long-haul trucking sector by introducing relay trucking and tech-enabled efficiency at scale - cementing her reputation as a bold problem-solver with an eye for scalable impact. Her career also spans influential roles at McKinsey & Company and the World Bank in Washington DC, giving her a unique cross-sectoral perspective on systems, policy, and innovation.

Rahul Thayyalamkandy
Director of Comms & Community, Vertex Ventures SEA & India

Rahul Thayyalamkandy joined the SEA/India team as the Director of Communication & Community in 2024 and is based in Singapore.

Before joining Vertex, Rahul served as a Product Manager at BLOCK71, an incubator and joint venture of NUS Enterprise and Singtel Innov8, where he developed scalable services for portfolio startups and designed mentorship programs. He also gained experience as a Summer Associate at Cocoon Capital, working with the Managing Partner on investment deals.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/rahulthayyalamkandy/

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Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia & India is a pioneer in investing in tech start-ups in this region and has helped to build a number of unicorns. In this podcast, we seek to share and uncover the Hard Truth - raw, unfiltered insights and venture capital knowledge from across Southeast Asia and India. Tune in to learn from leading founders, innovators, venture capitalists, and industry experts in the region and gain industry insights from those in the know.

If you like what you hear, please follow or subscribe to the show so you don’t miss out on any of our upcoming discussions.

—

Follow us to get notified whenever new episodes are shared.

—

For more information, please visit: https://www.vertexventures.sg

What if the biggest energy revolution in India isn’t happening in cities… but inside tiny flour mills in forgotten villages?

In this conversation, I sit down with Sandeep Chopra, co-founder & CEO of Metafin, to unpack how solar financing for rural MSMEs is reshaping livelihoods, powering micro-enterprises, and quietly shifting India’s clean-energy future. We dive into why solar energy in India is exploding across the Global South, how decentralised power beats unreliable grids, and what it takes to underwrite credit for first-time borrowers in remote villages.

From surviving COVID to unlocking financial inclusion, this episode will change the way you think about rural India, clean energy, and solar financing for MSMEs. Don’t miss the story behind one of India’s fastest-scaling impact-driven energy models!

IN THIS EPISODE
(00:00) Why the next big energy boom won’t start in cities
(04:41) The moment a finance guy quit London to chase purpose
(09:31) How one unexpected detour unlocked a billion-dollar rural opportunity
(15:04) The strange secret behind predicting who will actually repay
(18:59) The grid problem no one talks about… and the hack rural India figured out
(20:17) How one village becomes a “network effect” goldmine
(21:00) What the government quietly gets right (and wrong) about solar adoption
(23:25) The hidden barriers that stop rural India from scaling - and how to break them
(28:03) The one product rural MSMEs desperately need but don’t get
(29:34) A myth about rural India that shocked me completely
(32:11) The future of selling power like UPI payments - hype or real?
(34:15) The uncomfortable truth about grid stability nobody wants to admit
(38:08) The impact numbers that even shocked us
(40:22) A single upgrade that transformed one family’s entire future

Sandeep Chopra | CEO | Metafin
A senior executive with extensive experience in renewable industry (solar), growing start-up organizations, making them sustainable and delivering change.

Specialties: Strategy, Renewables, Finance, Delivering Change to make organizations sustainable, managing large operations, Negotiation Skills, Strategy

Rahul Thayyalamkandy
Director of Comms & Community, Vertex Ventures SEA & India

Rahul Thayyalamkandy joined the SEA/India team as the Director of Communication & Community in 2024 and is based in Singapore.

Before joining Vertex, Rahul served as a Product Manager at BLOCK71, an incubator and joint venture of NUS Enterprise and Singtel Innov8, where he developed scalable services for portfolio startups and designed mentorship programs. He also gained experience as a Summer Associate at Cocoon Capital, working with the Managing Partner on investment deals.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/rahulthayyalamkandy/

—-

Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia & India is a pioneer in investing in tech start-ups in this region and has helped to build a number of unicorns. In this podcast, we seek to share and uncover the Hard Truth - raw, unfiltered insights and venture capital knowledge from across Southeast Asia and India. Tune in to learn from leading founders, innovators, venture capitalists, and industry experts in the region and gain industry insights from those in the know.

If you like what you hear, please follow or subscribe to the show so you don’t miss out on any of our upcoming discussions.

—

Follow us to get notified whenever new episodes are shared.

—

For more information, please visit: https://www.vertexventures.sg