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.

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

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