Startup Island TAIWAN Podcast

28:53

EP4-6 | An Ex-Anthropic Dev on AI Control and Why...

Startup Island TAIWAN Podcast ·

2026/10/05

In this episode, we sit down with Ninad Jagdish, founder of Dwnrt Absrd and creator of SupaSim, an AI platform that models and simulates how organizations work. Ninad argues that while AI systems like ChatGPT can know a lot, that doesn’t necessarily mean they understand how a business or organization actually works.So what’s missing? Ninad believes AI needs explicit models that people can inspect, test, and challenge. We discuss what SupaSim can do differently from ChatGPT, spreadsheets, and

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26:56

EP4-5 | Taiwan is Brewing a Different Kind of Coffee

Startup Island TAIWAN Podcast ·

2026/09/28

In this episode, we sit down with Jenny Hsu, a former Web3 operator who went from managing P&Ls, restructuring teams, and scaling startups to spending nearly three years working on farms, coral reefs, and regenerative agriculture.That unexpected journey eventually brought her back to entrepreneurship — this time through coffee.Jenny is now building ventures around regenerative agriculture and coffee, including Omawild, which she describes as “a nature fund disguised as coffee.”We talk about why

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33:27

EP4-4 | From Luxembourg to Taiwan: Building in...

Startup Island TAIWAN Podcast ·

2026/09/21

In this episode, we sit down with Richard “Rick” Wiltgen, founder of RideFair, whose entrepreneurial journey has taken him across Europe and Asia before bringing him to southern Taiwan. After spending some 20 years in Asia and most recently running a company in Luxembourg, Rick could have chosen many places to build his next venture. Instead, he chose Taiwan, and specifically Kaohsiung. He shares what building in Luxembourg taught him, why Asia remains central to developing his business, and what he

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54:03

EP4-3 | Is Taiwan’s Startup Scene Going South? Inside...

Startup Island TAIWAN Podcast ·

2026/09/14

In this episode, we sit down with Arturs Vancans, founder of Second Space, to explore why he chose Kaohsiung to build his life and business, and what he is seeing as Southern Taiwan’s startup ecosystem evolves.When Arturs first arrived in Kaohsiung, the city was rarely seen as a destination for startup founders, particularly international entrepreneurs. But over the years, he has watched the ecosystem change, with more founders, startups, and ecosystem players looking beyond Taipei.Through Second

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40:07

EP4-2 |Tired of Losing the Taylor Swift Ticket...

Startup Island TAIWAN Podcast ·

2026/09/08

Tired of Losing the Taylor Swift Ticket Battle? This Canadian Founder Built a Startup in Taiwan to Fight ScalpersIn this episode, we sit down with LK Shelley, co-founder of ARMCo Lab and FanID, to explore how a frustrating concert-ticket experience led her to found a startup in Taiwan. After seeing firsthand the problems of ticket scalping, long entry queues, and the privacy concerns surrounding real-name ticketing, Shelley set out to create a different approach: a “one person, one face, one ticket”

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33:39

EP4-1 | From Scotland to Taiwan: Choosing the...

Startup Island TAIWAN Podcast ·

2026/08/31

From Scotland to Taiwan: Choosing the Co-Founder Who Can Make or Break Your StartupIn this episode, we sit down with Rebecca (Ching Wen) Huang, founder of Founduz, to explore her journey from Taiwan to Scotland and back, and one of the most important decisions a founder can make: who to build a company with. Drawing from her experience as an international founder, her background in Global Mental Health, and her work building Founduz, Rebecca shares what she has learned about founder compatibility,

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28:35

EP3-51 | Why Foreign Gen Z Founders are Looking at...

Startup Island TAIWAN Podcast ·

2026/08/24

Why Foreign Gen Z Founders are Looking at TaiwanWhat makes a Gen Z founder skip the traditional career path and instead build a deep-tech startup? In this episode, we sit down with Chai Chang Yao, co-founder of Buildables, a Singapore startup developing AI-powered engineering models that help manufacturers inspect products, optimize R&D, and coordinate machines, humanoids, and workers from a single command center.Chai shares why he started Buildables at such a young age, why Taiwan caught his

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36:35

EP3-50 | The Gold in Taiwan’s Gold Card

Startup Island TAIWAN Podcast ·

2026/08/17

The Gold in Taiwan’s Gold CardIn this episode, we sit down with Vivien Roggero, founder and CEO of Viorant, who shares his journey of building an AI startup in Taiwan through the Taiwan Employment Gold Card program. Drawing from his firsthand experience, Vivien explains why he chose Taiwan over other startup hubs, how the Gold Card became more than just a visa, and the lessons he learned while growing a company within Taiwan's innovation ecosystem. Whether you're considering relocating to Taiwan or

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28:32

EP3-49｜【VC Talks】AI Education, Gen Z, and the Future...

Startup Island TAIWAN Podcast ·

2026/08/10

AI Education, Gen Z, and the Future of Learning: Why This Generation Is Never BoredGuest: Michael Cheng — Founder & CEO, Kikichat, and Ex-Managing Director, Drum Tower VenturesIn this episode, we speak with Kikichat founder & CEO and former Drum Tower Ventures Managing Director Michael Cheng, who spent two decades witnessing the rise of China’s startup ecosystem. He compares China’s survival-driven execution with Silicon Valley’s mission-driven innovation—and explains why Taiwan must expand

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18:42

EP3-48 | Taiwan Meets Japan: How Founders Can Win in...

Startup Island TAIWAN Podcast ·

2026/08/03

Taiwan Meets Japan: How Founders Can Win in Each Other's MarketsJapan and Taiwan are neighbours with overlapping supply chains — yet founders crossing between them keep making the same avoidable mistakes.This episode features Kazumi Otani, a Japanese entrepreneur, investor, and Taiwan Gold Card holder who has invested in and supported startups across both ecosystems. She covers why founders should look beyond their home market, where each side goes wrong, and what actually works when expanding in

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25:54

EP3-47 | The Last Programming Language: Why Prompts...

Startup Island TAIWAN Podcast ·

2026/07/27

The Last Programming Language: Why Prompts Could Replace CodeGuest: Greg Tanaka — CEO & Founder, Prompt DrivenWriting code may no longer be the developer's primary job. Greg Tanaka argues that natural language is becoming the next — and perhaps final — programming language, drawing a parallel to semiconductor design's shift from hand-drawn schematics to Verilog: engineers didn't lose their craft, they moved up a level of abstraction. Tools like Claude Code, Cursor, and Codex are moving the

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31:38

EP3-46 | The Taiwan Advantage: The Connections Every...

Startup Island TAIWAN Podcast ·

2026/07/20

In this episode, we sit down with Cher Sion, Quan, Chairman and Advisor of 3D/CP-GENAI, to discuss why he chose Taiwan as the launchpad for AI-powered 3D-printed construction. Beyond the technology, Quan shares his vision for Taiwan's role in the future of construction, the opportunities he believes many international founders overlook, and the connections that helped him establish his business here. For global entrepreneurs considering Taiwan, this episode offers practical insights into building

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44:06

EP3-45 | 【AI News】From Copper to Chips：The...

Startup Island TAIWAN Podcast ·

2026/07/13

Did you know the chips in your iPhone might come from a desert full of cacti? In this episode, we explore Arizona's incredible transformation from a traditional economy based on copper, cattle, and cotton to the booming "Silicon Desert". We will uncover how the state managed its water resources over the past century, the electronic industry foundations laid by Motorola and Intel, and why Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) chose Phoenix for its massive $165 billion investment. Discover

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19:30

EP3-44 | 【AI News】VIVA TECH 2026：Biggest Tech Event...

Startup Island TAIWAN Podcast ·

2026/07/06

Step into the high-stakes intersection of heritage and hardware at Viva Tech 2026. This episode dissects how luxury titans like LVMH and L'Oréal are moving beyond mere "Proof of Concepts" (PoCs) into full-scale AI execution. We dive deep into the technical infrastructure of luxury, exploring LVMH's internal MaIA platform, Celine’s CelIA agent, and Louis Vuitton’s strategic use of Digital Twins to augment traditional leather craftsmanship.We also analyze the landmark L'Oréal-OpenAI alliance, the

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22:21

EP3-43 | 【AI News】The Memory Supercycle: A...

Startup Island TAIWAN Podcast ·

2026/06/29

Welcome to this episode! Today, we dive into the "hundred-year flood" currently hitting the global tech industry: the AI-driven memory supercycle. We explore the pivotal 36 hours in June 2026 when Micron reported record-breaking earnings and Apple took the unprecedented step of hiking prices across its entire hardware lineup without updating any specs. We’ll break down why the traditional memory cycle has failed, the "structural reset" turning RAM into a strategic asset, and the massive impact of

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19:21

EP3-42 | 【AI News】The IPO of SpaceX：The Largest IPO...

Startup Island TAIWAN Podcast ·

2026/06/15

The commercial space age just went public. SpaceX's $75 billion IPO isn't just a financial record — it's a signal that satellite infrastructure has moved from moonshot to mainstream, and that the companies positioned inside that supply chain are sitting on one of the decade's most durable growth stories. We break down how SpaceX got here: the failed launches, the near-bankruptcy, the engineering bets on reusability that the entire industry said couldn't work — and why it matters that they did.Then

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20:30

EP3-41 |【 VC Talks 】From the Runway to AI Imagery:...

Startup Island TAIWAN Podcast ·

2026/06/08

In this episode, we sit down with Yusan Lin, founder and CEO of Mirror Mirror AI, to explore how AI is rewriting fashion. She shares how Mirror Mirror AI helps real people license their likeness for AI-generated imagery, while building a more ethical and transparent model marketplace. We also discuss her journey from modeling to AI founder, her a16z Speedrun experience, and why fashion may be entering its next major tech shift.Real people licensing their likeness for AI fashion imageryAI lowering

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41:08

EP3-38 | 【AI News】Computex / GTC Taipei Open This...

Startup Island TAIWAN Podcast ·

2026/06/01

Welcome to SIT Podcast. Just a few hours ago, the eyes of the global tech world turned to the Taipei Music Center, where NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang delivered a GTC Taipei keynote that sent a jolt through the industry. As we speak, the doors of Computex 2026 have yet to officially open — but NVIDIA has already seized the moment, declaring the arrival of a "new era of PC."In this episode, we take a close look at three defining trends:1. NVIDIA moves into laptop silicon. After more than a decade away,

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24:01

EP3-39 | 【 VC Talks 】Beyond the Fab: What It Really...

Startup Island TAIWAN Podcast ·

2026/05/25

EP 3-39 | Beyond the Fab: What It Really Takes to Build a Semiconductor Ecosystem ft. Jillian Sun,TCIP Semiconductor Policy Researcher, xMEMS Labs節目主持人 Uly Su 邀請曾在台灣資本市場深耕九年、後赴史丹佛商學院深造，現於柏克萊大學研究美國 CHIPS Act 政策的 Jillian Sun，從供應鏈結構出發，帶聽眾系統性地理解這個產業的全貌：從上游的 IP 授權、EDA 設計工具、設備製造商，到中游的晶圓代工廠，再到下游封裝測試，每個環節都是高度專業化、難以複製的知識積累。節目中，Jillian 以新竹科學園區為例，說明台灣半導體產業成功的關鍵不只是資金，而是供應鏈在地理上的高度集中——騎摩托車一小時內就能走完上下游——以及跨公司、跨領域人才高強度協作解決問題的文化。對照美國推動半導體回流的現況，她指出建廠成本約為亞洲的五倍，加上人才、法規、材料取得等結構性挑戰，美國真正的優勢或許在於軟體與 AI 驅動的 EDA 新創，以及即將到來的

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16:44

EP3-38 | 【AI News】The AI Consulting War：OpenAI and...

Startup Island TAIWAN Podcast ·

2026/05/18

In May 2026, OpenAI and Anthropic launched a combined $5.5 billion assault on the $375 billion enterprise consulting market. OpenAI’s $4 billion "DeployCo" targets Fortune-scale giants by directly embedding engineers into client teams, while Anthropic’s $1.5 billion venture focuses on mid-sized companies. Both tech giants realize that great AI models aren't enough—the real competitive advantage and money lie in actual implementation. They are no longer just building models, but transforming into a

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