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Should Indonesia’s Startup Cheerleaders Be Held Accountable for the Fallout?
The reckoning in Indonesia’s startup scene should not end with a few bad names while the hype machine moves on untouched.
 • Leigh McKiernon
When State Money Loses In Venture Capital, Is It A Crime?
Indonesia’s SOE venture capital controversy raises a bigger issue: venture investing expects failure, but state money demands accountability.
 • Leigh McKiernon
Gibran, Nadiem, and Indonesia’s Uneven Court of Public Opinion
What explains the different public reactions to Gibran’s eFishery scandal and Nadiem’s Chromebook case? The answer may lie in class, networks, and myth.
 • Leigh McKiernon
What KoinWorks Says About Indonesia’s Startup Ecosystem
The KoinWorks case highlights the dangers of weak governance, poor hiring, venture capital hype, and unchecked growth in Indonesia’s fintech ecosystem.
 • Leigh McKiernon
The eFishery Scandal Explained: Fraud, Fallout, and the 9-Year Sentence
The eFishery scandal ended with a conviction, but major questions remain about accountability, investor knowledge and Indonesia’s startup culture.
 • Leigh McKiernon
Why Do Startups Love Wasting Weeks Interviewing the Wrong People?
The best startup hiring teams do not chase endless applicants. They define roles clearly, source precisely, and move fast on strong candidates
 • Leigh McKiernon
Indonesia’s Startup Boom, Bust, and the Cost of Weaponized Nationalism
Indonesia’s startup crash wasn’t accidental. It was fueled by nationalism, weak governance, and wealth extraction disguised as patriotism.
 • Leigh McKiernon
The Southeast Asian VC Money Drought (That Isn’t Actually a Drought)
Startups blame capital scarcity. The data says otherwise. Here's why VCs in SEA are sitting on money, and who they’re choosing to fund instead.
 • Leigh McKiernon
Why Everyone Has a Struggle Story Now (Even If They Didn’t Struggle)
Why are wealthy people fabricating “from the bottom” stories? We look at how privilege cosplays as struggle to earn sympathy and status.
 • Leigh McKiernon
Was 'Brewster’s Millions' Actually A VC-Backed Strategy Memo for SE Asia Startups?
Southeast Asia’s startup ecosystem raised massive VC funds, and somehow spent it faster than Brewster ever could. Here’s how it all fell apart.
 • Leigh McKiernon
ARR You Kidding Me? How Startups Are Redefining ‘Creative Accounting’(and Reality)
Startups are inflating ARR with fake metrics, fantasy math, and zero accountability. Here’s how it works and why no one’s stopping it.
 • Leigh McKiernon
“Oops, We Printed the Truth”: The Lightspeed Dopamine Slide and VC Reality
Lightspeed VC’s slide on $3 “dopamine hits” caused outrage. But was it immoral, or just capitalism being honest about how it really works?
 • Leigh McKiernon
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