Devon Zuegel, founder and CEO of the Esmeralda Institute, joins us on the latest episode of The Coral Capital Podcast.
After building online communities, scaling open-source programs at GitHub, and hosting Notion’s Pioneers series, Devon Zuegel is now bringing her expertise offline to create a family focused village north of San Francisco.
In this episode, she shares the challenges of shaping a people centered village, from navigating complex land use regulations to balancing environmental realities.
Topics explored:
- How San Francisco’s housing shortages inspired Devon to create Esmeralda
- Why California’s CEQA further fueled Devon’s passion for urban planning
- Designing multi-generational, walkable communities with a balance of density and nature
- The concept of “traveling neighborhoods” and fostering connection through shared experiences
- The hardware and software of building a physical community
- Integrating seniors, families, and diverse age groups into a cohesive community
- Creating lasting culture and connection through deliberate programming and shared experiences
If you're working on something ambitious, we’d love to hear from you at Coral Capital!
Get in touch with us here: bit.ly/contactcoral
Connect with Devon:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/devonzuegel/
Connect with Tiffany:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tiffanykayo/
Connect with Alexandra Silverman:
X: https://x.com/AlexandraFayeS
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/afsilverman/
00:00 Intro
00:46 Meet Devin
08:19 Placemaking and Traveling Neighborhoods
16:51 Building Esmeralda
31:12 Supporting Families in Northern California
33:23 Incorporating the Elderly in Community Planning
38:17 Learning from Other Towns and Cities
47:09 Building a New Town
Koichi Narasaki, former Chief Digital Officer of SOMPO and the architect behind Palantir Japan, joins us on the latest episode of The Coral Capital Podcast.
From his early days at Mitsubishi Corporation investing in Silicon Valley startups during the dotcom boom, to leading one of Japan’s most successful joint ventures with Palantir, Narasaki has been at the intersection of global tech and Japanese enterprise for decades.
He shares stories from passing on PayPal in 1998, to convincing SOMPO’s leadership to invest $500M into Palantir, and lessons on how foreign companies can succeed in Japan.
Topics explored:
• Why Mitsubishi’s early CVC efforts in Silicon Valley clashed with Tokyo HQ
• Meeting Peter Thiel, Elon Musk, and Marc Benioff in the 1990s
• The cultural gap between fast-moving Silicon Valley and conservative Japan
• Why he left Mitsubishi after nearly 20 years to join startups on the other side of the table
• How he became SOMPO’s first Chief Digital Officer and redefined “DX” in insurance
• The story of Palantir’s failed solo Japan entry, and how the SOMPO JV turned it around
• What convinced SOMPO’s CEO to greenlight a 50/50 joint venture with Palantir
• How “dogfooding” Foundry inside SOMPO unlocked trust with Japanese clients
• The legendary $500M Palantir investment during the pandemic, and the debates behind it
• What global B2B software founders need to know before entering Japan
• His perspective on culture, trust, and speed inside a 135-year-old Japanese giant
Connect with Narasaki:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/koichi-narasaki-5969b/
Connect with James:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamesriney
Connect with Tiffany:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tiffanykayo/
If you're working on something ambitious, we’d love to hear from you at Coral Capital!
Get in touch with us here: https://bit.ly/contactcoral
(00:00) Trailer(01:00) Intro(05:16) Leaving Mitsubishi & the dot-com crash
(14:34) Early startup journey (Allyno → Access)
(17:02) Becoming Chief Digital Officer at SOMPO
(20:20) Discovering Palantir & messy data realities
(26:18) The meeting with Alex Karp that changed everything
(35:00) Why the SOMPO–Palantir JV happened
(43:56) Growing in Japan: revenue, culture, challenges
(55:42) Advice for foreign SaaS entering Japan
Ayao Komatsu, the team principal of Haas F1, joins us on the latest episode of The Coral Capital Podcast.
As the first Japanese team principal (leading a non-Japanese F1 team), Komatsu offers a unique perspective on leadership in Formula 1.
Ayao shares insights on Haas F1's new technical partnership with Toyota and the challenges of competing with limited resources as the team looks ahead to the 2026 rule changes.
Topics explored:
• How Ayao navigated an unconventional route into Formula One
• Lessons from growing up in a politically and culturally unique household
• What it’s like managing a lean, global team across continents
• The mindset shifts required to lead in high-performance environments
• How Haas F1 is approaching its partnership with Toyota
• Insights into the upcoming 2026 regulation overhaul—and why it matters
• Why communication and culture are now top priorities at Haas
• What Japanese teams can learn from international motorsport organizations
• Ayao’s take on long-term strategy vs. short-term pressure in F1
• How he defines success beyond the podium
Connect with Ayao:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ayao-komatsu-828a8587/
Connect with Tiffany:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tiffanykayo/
If you're working on something ambitious, we’d love to hear from you at Coral Capital!
Get in touch with us here: https://bit.ly/contactcoral
00:00 Trailer
00:54 Introduction
01:17 Fascinating upbringing
05:58 Unique parenting style
11:09 “…Until I met F1”
13:59 Being Japanese in the industry
20:25 Different environments
25:51 The technical partnership
32:07 Life as an engineer
39:33 Improving team capability
43:26 Starting from scratch
47:53 Engineering at the heart of management
51:39 Alignment gaps
58:23 What’s new in Formula One
1:01:09 The ideal goal
1:03:53 Reasonably determined
1:08:12 Outro
At Coral Capital’s Tokyo HQ, artist–entrepreneur VERBAL (m-flo rapper and producer, AMBUSH® Co-Founder, and SŌMATŌ sake founder) sits down with James Riney and Tiffany Kayo to unpack how Japan’s next cultural wave is being built at the intersection of streetwear, music, and frontier tech.
They explore why a Tokyo mindset still captivates tastemakers from Pharrell to Prada, and what has to change for Japan’s creators to capture Silicon-Valley-level scale.
The conversation dives into:
• Streetwear’s original “soft-power” playbook — how Nigo, Pharrell, and a Harajuku network turned Japanese design into hip-hop currency and seeded brands like AMBUSH®.
• Two SKUs and a Paris runway — why VERBAL and Yoon Ahn sold a majority stake in AMBUSH®, what they learned inside New Guards Group / Farfetch, and why they just bought it all back.
• Craft sake, misunderstood luxury — the cold-chain, labeling, and pricing gaps keeping nihon-shu under-valued abroad, and how SŌMATŌ plans to rebrand the category for Michelin tables.
• AI, Web3, and VTubers — a realist’s take on Suno-generated melodies, token-gated superfans, and the virtual-idol economy Japan is quietly leading.
• Lessons from K-Pop’s public-private machine — what Japan can borrow (and what it shouldn’t) to export its own IP at scale.
If you're working on something ambitious, we’d love to hear from you at Coral Capital!
Get in touch with us here: bit.ly/contactcoral
Connect with VERBAL:
X: https://x.com/VERBAL_AMBUSH
Connect with James:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamesriney
Connect with Tiffany:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tiffanykayo/
In this episode of The Coral Capital Podcast former Financial Times editor and author of Gambling Man, joins Tiffany Kayo and James Riney for a conversation about one of Japan’s most enigmatic figures: Masayoshi Son.
Barber shares what it was like sitting across from Masa, why his story is more than a business saga, and how SoftBank’s founder became a symbol of Japan’s global ambitions and contradictions.
We get into:
• The early years: Pachinko, pseudonyms, and SoftBank before Silicon Valley
• Behind-the-scenes stories of his deal with Donald Trump
• The $500B Stargate Project with Sam Altman and Larry Ellison of OpenAI
• Personal stories from Lionel’s interviews with Masa, his family, and the unlikely figures who shaped his journey—including Steve Jobs
Lionel’s book: https://www.amazon.co.jp/-/en/Gambling-Man-Wild-Japan’s-Masayoshi/dp/0241582725
The Japanese edition of the book will be launched soon.
If you're working on something ambitious, we’d love to hear from you at Coral Capital!
Get in touch with us here: bit.ly/contactcoral
Connect with Lionel:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lionel-barber-473826135/
X: https://x.com/lionelbarber
Connect with James:
X: https://x.com/james_riney
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamesriney
Connect with Tiffany:
X: https://x.com/tiffanykayo
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tiffanykayo/
On this episode of The Coral Capital Podcast, we were joined by the Chief Evangelist of Canva for a candid conversation about grit, growth, and the unfiltered story behind his remarkable career.
Also in the conversation:
Plus: Guy opens up about fainting on hospital rounds, quitting law school after two weeks, and how a ride in a Porsche 911 lit a fire under him to work hard and aim higher.
If you're working on something ambitious, we’d love to hear from you at Coral Capital!
Connect with Guy:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/guykawasaki/
X: https://x.com/GuyKawasaki
Connect with Tiffany:
X: https://x.com/tiffanykayo
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tiffanykayo/
Get in touch with us here: bit.ly/contactcoral
00:00 Trailer
00:58 Introduction
01:41 Hawaii
02:40 Childhood and upbringing
06:49 Ohana, aloha and motivation
10:41 Working at Apple
15:01 Bringing the good news
19:28 The ecosystem VC
21:26 Evangelism in marketing
27:13 Growth, grit, grace
36:38 Artificial intelligence
42:19 Cutting through the noise
44:09 Book updates
46:23 What is your ikigai?
47:42 Outro
Mentioned in this episode: Kalihi Elementary School, Apple, Standford Medical Center, University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), World War 2, Porsche 1911, OpenAI ChatGPT, Canva, Adobe Photoshop, Guy Kawasaki’s Remarkable People, Jane Goodall, Neil deGrasse Tyson, Stephen Wolfram, Mark Manson, Signal, Anthropic Claude, Perplexity, Apple Intelligence, TikTok
On this episode of The Coral Capital Podcast, Founding Partner James Riney and Investor Tiffany Kayo were joined by Phil Wickham, co-founder of Sozo Ventures—a globally-minded VC firm that’s backed breakout U.S. companies expanding into Japan, including the likes of Coinbase, Square & Palantir.
Philip shares rare, behind-the-scenes insights from decades spent bridging Silicon Valley and Tokyo, explaining why Japan is suddenly hot again for global startups—and how to navigate its famously complex corporate and cultural terrain.
Topics explored:
If you're working on something ambitious, we’d love to hear from you at Coral Capital!
00:00 Trailer
00:48 Introduction
03:06 Selling Japan to Startups
06:21 The Challenges of Entering Japan
09:01 First Steps for Expanding into Japan
13:02 Case Studies: Coinbase & NEED
16:06 Palantir’s Unique Approach to Japan
20:03 The Role of Corporates in Startup Growth
23:42 Targeting the Right Partners in Japan
28:06 Joint Ventures vs Independent Expansion
39:12 Keeping Options Open in Japan
51:05 Japan’s Global Competitive Edge
Connect with Phil: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pwickham/
Connect with James:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamesriney
Connect with Tiffany:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tiffanykayo/
Learn more about Coral Capital
This episode was produced & distributed with the help of our friends at Atomik Growth.
At Coral Capital’s Tokyo HQ, economist and writer Noah Smith joins James Riney, Founding Partner and CEO of Coral Capital, to explore how Japan is uniquely positioned for a global resurgence.
They discuss how the country can convert its global fascination into a strategic advantage, and why Japan is increasingly on the radar of institutional capital and high-net-worth investors.
The conversation dives into:
• The rise of the “weeb” economy” (think anime, fashion, subculture, and Japan’s growing soft power on the global stage)
• Why Japan is primed for greenfield FDI in AI, semiconductors, and deep tech
• How Tokyo is rivaling Austin and Paris as a global tech & startup hub
• Japan’s untapped operational MOAT for builders and investors
If you're working on something ambitious, we’d love to hear from you at Coral Capital!
Chapters:
00:00 Trailer
00:52 "Weebs" and Japanese tourism
05:48 Rule by law and economic factors
14:22 GDP and exports
17:19 Cultural mindshare and diasporas
24:51 Enterprise value creation
30:29 Small businesses
34:46 Financial policy
39:35 Immigration, fluency, zero-tolerance
47:54 Exports need improvement
49:35 Untapped demand
50:00 Plaza Accord
54:50 Book plug and outro
Mentioned in this episode: Battle Royale, Ruth Benedict, Sakana AI, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited (TSMC), Apple iPhone, Taro Kono, Mijoté San Francisco, The Boeing Company, Christopher Poole a.k.a. moot, Jack Ma, Silicon Valley, Dell Inc., Donald Trump, WeChat (Weixin)
Connect with Noah: https://x.com/Noahpinion
Noah’s Substack: https://www.noahpinion.blog/
Connect with James:
Learn more about Coral Capital
This episode was produced & distributed with the help of our friends at Atomik Growth.
Welcome to another episode of The Coral Capital Podcast, a show where we bring on guests from tech, business, politics, and culture to talk about all things Japan.
In this episode, economist and long-time Japan optimist Jesper Koll breaks down how Japan is faring amid rising global protectionism, demographic shifts, and geopolitical uncertainty. A resident of Japan since 1986, Jesper has spent decades at the forefront of Japan analysis and investment, having served as chief strategist and head of research for JP Morgan and Merrill Lynch. He currently advises Monex Group, sits on the Japan Catalyst Fund’s investment committee, and serves on multiple high-level advisory boards, including Governor Yuriko Koike’s.
Jesper warns that a Trump 2.0 presidency could trigger a double whammy for Japan: a weaker dollar slashing Japanese corporate profits and an aggressive U.S. tariff regime pushing China to dump exports into Southeast Asia—hurting Japan’s industrial giants in the process. But he's still bullish on Japan.
Why? Jesper sees Japan as “capitalism that works”—a system quietly modernizing under the radar. From record M&A and MBO activity to a younger generation of CEOs open to change, Japan is entering a new phase of productivity and openness. He highlights the ongoing shift to performance-based pay, increased immigration, and growing startup dynamism as key signs of this transformation.
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For founders building Japan's next legendary companies, reach out to us here: https://coralcap.co/contact-startups/
If you're interested in joining a Coral startup, join our talent network here: https://coralcap.co/coral-careers/
Welcome to another episode of The Coral Capital Podcast, a show where we bring on guests from tech, business, politics, and culture to talk about all things Japan.
In this episode, we’re joined by Claire Hughes Johnson, Corporate Officer and Advisor at Stripe, and the company’s former Chief Operating Officer. From 2014 to 2021, Claire played a pivotal role in scaling Stripe’s operations, growing the team from under 200 to over 7,000 employees while leading a wide range of functions including sales, marketing, customer support, HR, and risk. Prior to joining Stripe, Claire spent 10 years at Google, where she led several business teams, including Consumer Operations, AdWords Online Sales & Operations, Google Offers, and served as VP of Google’s self-driving car project.
Claire is also the author of Scaling People: Tactics for Management and Company Building, a Wall Street Journal bestseller that has quickly become a must-read for startup founders and operators. The book is now available in Japanese, and we cover key topics from it, including:
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For founders building Japan's next legendary companies, reach out to us here: https://coralcap.co/contact-startups/
If you're interested in joining a Coral startup, join our talent network here: https://coralcap.co/coral-careers/
Welcome to another episode of The Coral Capital Podcast, a show where we bring on guests from tech, business, politics, and culture to talk about all things Japan.
In this episode, we’re joined by Gen Isayama, General Partner & CEO of WiL—a venture capital firm that’s redefining how innovation happens in Japan. Unlike traditional VCs, WiL doesn’t just invest—they educate, incubate, and leverage the power of their corporate-based LP network to accelerate the growth of their companies as they expand globally, with a particular focus on Japan.
Before launching WiL in 2013, Gen spent a decade investing at DCM. But when he looked at Japan, he saw a broken system—where startups struggled to scale, corporates hesitated to embrace change, and innovation lagged behind. Instead of copying the Silicon Valley model, he built something new: a VC firm designed to unlock Japan’s vast corporate resources—capital, talent, and technology—by pushing enterprises toward entrepreneurship.
WiL has since backed startups in Japan like Mercari, Raksul, and Retty, as well as Wise, Asana, and Canva in the US, with a team operating across Tokyo and Silicon Valley.
Below are highlights from this episode:
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For founder's building Japan's next legendary companies, reach out to us here: https://coralcap.co/contact-startups/
If you're interested in joining a Coral startup join our talent network here: https://coralcap.co/coral-careers/
Welcome to another episode of The Coral Capital Podcast, a show where we bring on guests from tech, business, politics, and culture to talk about all things Japan.
VTubing, or virtual YouTubing, is a form of digital content creation where anime-style avatars—powered by motion capture and voice acting—engage audiences through livestreams, gaming, and interactive entertainment. This industry has rapidly evolved from niche internet culture into a multi-billion-dollar market, blurring the lines between content creation, technology, and intellectual property (IP).
In this episode, we are joined by Sasuke Shimomura, Chief Strategy Officer of Brave group, one of Japan’s leading VTuber production companies. Brave group is a global digital IP company which mainly consists of 3 business segments: IP Production which mainly focuses on VTuber production, IP Platform and IP Solution which focus on distribution and enhancing the monetization of digital IP.
After graduating from Waseda University, Sasuke started his career in the Equity Research Division at Goldman Sachs Japan. He then played a key role in corporate planning, creator strategy, and M&A at UUUM Co., Ltd., Japan’s largest influencer management company. He was also CFO of SoVa Inc., where he oversaw fundraising efforts from the company’s founding. Sasuke later joined Eight Roads Ventures Japan, focusing on investments in Entertainment and Media, while also conducting M&A exits for several portfolio companies. In June 2024, he joined Brave group as CSO.
In today’s episode we break down everything about the VTuber industry
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For founder's building Japan's next legendary companies, reach out to us here: https://coralcap.co/contact-startups/
If you're interested in joining a Coral startup join our talent network here: https://coralcap.co/coral-careers/
Welcome to another episode of The Coral Capital Podcast, a show where we bring on guests from tech, business, politics, and culture to talk about all things Japan.
Today’s guest is Andrew Schoen, Partner at NEA (New Enterprise Associates) . Established in 1977, NEA has served as a partner to the founders and teams behind some of the most transformational innovations in healthcare and technology over the past five decades including Cloudflare, Databricks, Coursera, Perplexity, Plaid, and Robinhood. The firm manages over $25B in AUM and invests across the early to post IPO stages.
Andrew joined NEA in 2014 and invests in founders innovating in AI/ML, fintech, frontier tech, infrastructure software, technically differentiated SaaS and security. Prior to NEA, he was a member of Blackstone’s M&A Group. Prior to Blackstone, he founded Flicstart. Andrew serves on the Cornell University Council, the Advisory Council for Entrepreneurship at Cornell, and is President Emeritus of the Cornell Venture Capital Club. He earned his master’s degree as a Schwarzman Scholar and his bachelor’s degree in economics and science of earth systems in engineering at Cornell.
We’ve highlighted some insights from the conversation below:
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For founder's building Japan's next legendary companies, reach out to us here: https://coralcap.co/contact-startups/
If you're interested in joining a Coral startup join our talent network here: https://coralcap.co/coral-careers/
Welcome to another episode of The Coral Capital Podcast, a show where we bring on guests from tech, business, politics, and culture to talk about all things Japan.
In this episode we are joined by Brian Yun, Co-founder and CEO of Woodstock, a Coral portfolio company building a social trading app with the mission to empower the next generation to create a better financial future. Brian has a phenomenal career leading up to Woodstock. While in college, he began working as a hardware design engineer at AMD. After graduation, he took on roles in equities trading at Barclays, Merrill Lynch, and Morgan Stanley. He later led the sales finance and strategy at Twitter (now X) for Japan and Korea, then transitioned to Coinbase to drive their Japan expansion.
A graduate of the University of Waterloo in Computer Engineering and an MBA honors graduate from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, Brian combines deep expertise in technology and finance. We’re excited to share his insights on entrepreneurship, Woodstock’s journey, and the future of investing.
Below are some of the highlights from the episode:
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For founder's building Japan's next legendary companies, reach out to us here: https://coralcap.co/contact-startups/
If you're interested in joining a Coral startup join our talent network here: https://coralcap.co/coral-careers/
Welcome to another episode of The Coral Capital Podcast, a show about startups, technology, and venture capital with a focus on Japan and Asia broadly.
Our guest today is Shinichi Takamiya, Managing Partner at Globis Capital Partners. Takamiya-san was ranked first in Forbes Japan’s Midas List in 2018, seventh in 2015, and tenth in 2020. He joined Globis Capital Partners after managing consulting projects at Arthur D. Little. His venture capital track record includes iStyle, Aucfan, Kayac, Pixta, Mercari, and Lancers; M&A Shimauma Print System, nanapi, and Coubic etc. He holds a BA in economics from the University of Tokyo, and an MBA from Harvard Business School.
Here are some takeaways from today’s episode:
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For founder's building Japan's next legendary companies, reach out to us here: https://coralcap.co/contact-startups/
Welcome to another episode of The Coral Capital Podcast, a show about startups, technology, and venture capital with a focus on Japan and Asia broadly.
Today, we're joined by Richard Katz, NYC correspondent for the Weekly Toyo Keizai and the author of several books, including his latest, “The Contest for Japan’s Economic Future: Entrepreneurs vs. Corporate Giants”. In this episode, we'll take a step back to dive into the historical and macroeconomic context of Japan and examine the role of startups in this environment. We'll cover a range of topics including:
Richard's book, "The Contest for Japan’s Economic Future: Entrepreneurs vs. Corporate Giants," is available for purchase here, and his Substack, Japan Economy Watch, can be subscribed to here.
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For founder's building Japan's next legendary companies, reach out to us here: https://coralcap.co/contact-startups/
Welcome to another episode of The Coral Capital Podcast, where we delve into the world of startups, technology, and venture capital with a focus on Japan and the broader Asia region.
Our guest today is Jonathan Shih, Managing Partner at Keyrock Capital Management, a Hong Kong-based investment management firm specializing in emerging growth companies in the Asia-Pacific region. Keyrock is an active investor in Japan, with portfolio companies such as LayerX, Zeroboard, Nealle, and Timee, alongside public investments in companies like MoneyForward. Jonathan brings a wealth of experience in finance, having started his career at Lehman Brothers before moving on to roles at TVG Capital Partners, McKinsey, Ward Ferry, and Tybourne Capital.
In this episode, we discuss:
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For founders building Japan's next legendary companies, reach out to us here:
https://coralcap.co/contact-startups/
Coral Capital is also hiring on the investment team! Details can be found here:
Welcome to another episode of The Coral Capital Podcast, a show about startups, technology, and venture capital with a focus on Japan and Asia broadly.
In this episode, we chat with Jumpei Yoshida, CFO at Kaminashi - one of Japan’s most closely watched startups. Kaminashi provides a one-stop, cloud-based solution to manage workflows for “deskless workers” in industries like manufacturing, food services, and retail. Despite 60% of Japan’s workforce being frontline employees, many still rely on outdated processes and lag behind in tech adoption.
Japan is known for its operational excellence, particularly the Kaizen philosophy, with Toyota’s production lines often cited as an example. However, many frontline workers still operate with pen and paper—imagine clipboards with messy handwriting and employees spending valuable time finding a manager just for sign-offs. These industries have missed out on advancements in tech and AI, but that also means the market is still ripe for change.
In this episode, we explore:
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For founders building Japan's next legendary companies, reach out to us here:
https://coralcap.co/contact-startups/
Coral Capital is also hiring on the investment team! Details can be found here:
Welcome to another episode of The Coral Capital Podcast, a show about startups, technology, and venture capital with a focus on Japan and Asia.
In this episode, we chat with Mark Suster, a Partner at Upfront Ventures. Upfront is one of LA’s most prominent venture capital firms, renowned for backing companies like Ring, GOAT, Overture, and even Starbucks back in the day. Mark was previously the founder & CEO of two successful enterprise software companies, the most recent of which was sold to Salesforce.com. Prior to being a founder, Mark was a software developer at Accenture where he lived and worked in Europe, Japan and the U.S.
In this episode we discuss:
Welcome to another episode of The Coral Capital Podcast, a show about startups, technology, and venture capital with a focus on Japan and Asia.
This episode is a fireside chat with Ming Maa, the Group President of Grab. Initially established as a taxi-hailing app in Malaysia back in 2012, Grab has evolved into the leading super app in Southeast Asia and the region's first decacorn. It empowers the region's economy through a diverse range of services, including transportation, delivery, and finance. As President, Ming is responsible for corporate development activities, such as strategic partnerships and investment opportunities at Grab. Ming has over 12 years of experience in private equity investment at Softbank Group, Ancora Capital Management, and Goldman Sachs. During his tenure at Softbank, based in Tokyo, he oversaw investments in the ridesharing and e-commerce sectors, including Softbank’s Series D and Series F investments into Grab.
In this episode, we discuss: