Announcement of Partners and Judges for TECH PLANTER Singapore 2025!

TECH PLANTER in Singapore, a deep-tech acceleration program organized by Leave a Nest, is excited to announce the esteemed judges for its 2025 Demo Day. The Demo Day will be held at Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) Multipurpose Hall, 57 Changi South Ave 1, Singapore. 485998 on 24th May 2025. During the Demo Day, there are 9 finalists, 6 lightning talk teams will be pitching and some other teams are doing poster presentations along with finalists and lightning talk teams.

Partners

With this occasion, Leave a Nest Singapore would like to thank all the partners for creating this project with us.

Judges

Mr. Shohei Michael Maekawa, Director, Leave a Nest Singapore Pte. Ltd.

Mr. Maekawa is Director of Leave a Nest Singapore and President of Leave a Nest UK. He was born in the USA and raised in Europe. He studied Zoology for his undergraduate degree and Evolutionary Anthropology for his postgraduate degree, both at University College London. With experience abroad and passion towards advancement of science and technology, he joined Leave a Nest in 2013. He became the Director of Leave a Nest Singapore Pte. Ltd. from May 1st 2019 with the vision to interconnect various industry partners for global development.

Mr. Jia Hong, Head of Ignite, Investment and Program Manager, Elev8.vc

Jia Hong is Elev8's Head of Ignite, the fund's dedicated resource to their pre-seed investments. Elev8 Ignite is Elev8's pre-seed investment function that helps Singapore based Deep Tech innovators take their first steps out of the labs and on the path to their first commercial milestones. We engage the vast experience of the broader Elev8 team and its deep access to industry expertise, to deliver an experience for founders that is tailored to the specific needs of each participating startup, only where and when they need help. Serving as investment and program manager, Jia Hong will be your go-to person on the Ignite journey.

Dr. Jeanne ONG, Director (Ecosystem and Internationalization), National Additive Manufacturing Innovation Cluster (NAMIC)

Jeanne is the Director of Ecosystem and Internationalization at the National Additive Manufacturing Innovation Cluster (NAMIC), Singapore. She leads efforts to strengthen Singapore's AM ecosystem through strategic partnerships, industry engagement, and global collaborations. With a PhD in Chemical Engineering and a background spanning deep tech venture building and investing, research translation, and sustainability-focused innovation, Jeanne brings a multidisciplinary perspective to early-stage technology evaluation. startups, and multinational corporations, and startups is passionate about empowering deep tech to scale impactfully and sustainably.

Mr. Jeremy Yap, Partnerships Director, NUS Enterprise

With over 10 years of business development in both the Asia Pacific, North America and Latin America, He is passionate about building businesses specifically in tech and startups. He was leading the expansion efforts of the National University of Singapore's growth into the Latin America and US space. Currently, he is working on strategic initiatives between NUS Enterprise and our global partners.

 

Mr. Qiao Liang, Deputy Director, Startup Ecosystem, Enterprise Singapore.

Qiao Liang holds a Bachelor's Degree in Electrical Engineering from the National University of Singapore, and began his career as an engineer at Micron Semiconductor Asia. He later transitioned into the public sector, joining the then SPRING Singapore, the current Enterprise Singapore. He contributed to initiatives supporting enterprise and ecosystem development in the Manufacturing, Logistics sector, and the Innovation domain. Specifically, he was involved in the development and execution of industry plans, working closely with partners to grow enterprises, uplift sectors, and innovation spur-driven growth.

Mr. Malcolm Chua, Head of Israel and China Offices for ST Engineering Ventures. 

Malcolm Chua is currently the Head of Israel and China Offices for ST Engineering Ventures. In this role, he is responsible for the technology scouting, investments and portfolio management in both geographies. Prior to this appointment, he has over 20 years of experience in deep tech, transformation, and innovation with MNCs and government agencies. Malcolm holds a Masters of Engineering (M.Eng)(1st Class) from Imperial College, London and is a CFA charter holder.

 

Ms. Celestine Khoo, Senior Director, Venture, Innovation & Entrepreneurship, Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD)

Celestine is a senior director at the Singapore University of Technology and Design where she leads the venture building, incubation and entrepreneurship initiatives. In addition to her vast public policy, investment and commercial experience, she was bitten by the startup bug after a stint in a start-up and is passionate about mentoring and supporting startups and deep tech spinoffs. She also leads SUTD's co-investments in affiliated spinoffs and startups.

 

Mr. Norio Asahara, Regional R&D Director, Ezaki Glico Co. Ltd.

Glico manufactures not only confectionery and ice cream, but also a wide range of food categories such as beverages, dairy products, processed foods and baby milk powder. Mr. ASAHARA is the director of research and development in Glico Asia Pacific. He is looking for new research partners as well as technical support, investment and opportunities for various collaborations such as buying of new ingredients. He is responsible for new business in Asia Pacific.

 

Ms. Mika Tsutsui, Catalyser, GLOCALINK Inc.

Mika graduated from the School of International Relations at Peking University and the School of Political Science and Economics at Waseda University. After working in the food business at Mitsubishi Corporation, she was in charge of product marketing for the Japanese market at Google Japan. She then moved to Pinterest Japan, where she was in charge of product marketing for the Asia Pacific region and was involved in GTM strategy formulation, product development, and partnership promotion. As a trilingual (Japanese, English, and Chinese), she is strong in cross-cultural collaboration and works with global teams to drive the business forward while incorporating diverse perspectives.

Mr. Kouhei Miyajima, Business development Division, East Japan Railway Company.

Kouhei Miyajima is involved in the TAKANAWA GATEWAY CITY project, one of the largest urban development projects in Tokyo, which opened in March 2025. With the aim of creating a global startup ecosystem in TAKANAWA GATEWAY CITY, he is in charge of the business creation facility “LiSH” and the venture capital “TAKANAWA Global Co-Benefit Fund.”

 

Mr. Henry Tao, Executive Director, UntroD Capital Asia Pte. Ltd.

In 2023, Henry joined UntroD Capital Asia, which manages the Real Tech Global Fund franchise. He was appointed as a director in 2025. In his current role, he leads direct investments connecting Southeast Asia, Japan, and global markets, while supporting portfolio growth. He's particularly interested in tech innovations that create meaningful impact in climate and sustainability. Before joining UntroD, he worked on early- and growth-stage investments in the industrial and agri-tech sectors. He began his career at Bayer AG in a global leadership program, holding responsibilities in Germany, the US, and Singapore.He obtained an MBA from Harvard Business School.

 

To see the Finalists and Lightning Talk speakers, please click link here

For more information about TECH PLANTER in Singapore 2024, please visit the program's website, here

Or reach out at info-asia “at” lne.st (Attention: Siva / Addi)