Google has launched a fund dedicated to backing startups founded by women in the Asia-Pacific region, where women have long faced obstacles in getting ahead in business.
The fund, called Google for Startups Women Founders Fund, will provide $100,000 in equity-free cash to six female-founded startups this year. It will focus on startups in India, Japan and South Korea before expanding into other Asia-Pacific markets.
Running the Google for Startups Women Founders Fund will be Mike Kim, the Singapore-based Asia-Pacific head of Google for Startups, the tech giant’s startup support arm. “For founders, this is an opportunity for them to get much-needed cash,” Kim told Forbes Asia in an exclusive interview. “But what’s more important than the amount is that this fund puts founders on a global platform to get recognition from VCs around the world for additional funding.” He points to the more than 400 founders backed by Google for Startups’ other funds who went on to raise more than $400 million in follow-on venture funding.
The fund is part of the Google for Startups Founders Funds program, which was set up in 2020. “The Founders Fund series is really all about supporting underrepresented founders and how we can ensure to level the playing field for all founders,” says Kim, a seven-year Google veteran. “And in particular, in Asia, we’re focusing on women founders.” Its other funds include one that supports Black founders in Africa, Brazil, Europe and the U.S., and another for Latino founders in the U.S.
For now, the Google for Startups Women Founders Fund will focus on startups in the hot field of artificial intelligence. As AI technology rapidly accelerates, Kim says it’s important for underrepresented minorities and women to be part of the development process and not be left behind.
AI systems have been shown to unfairly penalize underrepresented groups, such as denying loans to creditworthy women, in a phenomenon known as algorithmic bias. “AI is built off of data and what we feed into these algorithms. If it’s an industry that is dominated by men and one particular mindset, the data is skewed,” Kim says. “This technology is incredibly exciting, but it’s also more relevant and timely than ever that this industry grows together with both men and women being represented.”
The new fund is the latest effort by Google to support women-led AI startups in Asia. Google for Startups has previously backed Seoul-based AI For Pet, which made the Forbes Asia 100 to Watch list last year. Founded just three years ago by Euna Hur, AI For Pet operates a smartphone app that can detect eye and skin diseases in cats and dogs by using the phone’s camera and AI algorithms.
Another example is Tokyo-based Latona, which provides AI-powered hardware and software that helps automate and digitize processes. Latona was cofounded by CEO Kyoko Otawa, who was one of seven female founders in Asia to be invited to join a mentorship program for women founders by Google for Startups in 2020, where founders received training on Google products, like its machine learning platform TensorFlow, mentorship from Googlers and industry experts, and networking opportunities.
Besides establishing relationships with promising startups, there is a business case for Google for Startups Women Founders Fund and its $100,000 in equity-free cash. By helping startups to grow, Kim hopes to grow the overall internet pie—and lead to more usage of Google’s products, like TensorFlow and Google Cloud.
“Our team’s mission is to build great regional startup ecosystems, and if that happens, yes, there will be more people who use Google products,” says Kim. “But also there’s a healthier economy for all, and in the end, that supports everyone.”
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