Startup Signals

What 10,000+ businesses across Asia are actually spending on — and what it signals for the economy.

• 17x
  Claude's spend growth in a single year ‍
• 42%
  Rise in AI tool adoption year-on-year ‍
• 1 in 5
  Singapore startups now paying staff ad-hoc

6 signals

The era of the single AI tool is over. Claude is closing in on ChatGPT, and  AI stacking is on the race as the platform race tightens. 

AI's boom has a knock-on effect. Software subscriptions rose 18%. 

Winners and upsets in the startup software stack. Cloud takes nearly half the SaaS budget. 

The workforce is bifurcating. Senior pay holds while the base softens.

Travel takes off. Startups are flying budget across the region and premium on long-haul routes.

The office returns, flexibly. Coworking doubled while fixed leases contracted. 

"Startups move faster, experiment more freely, and feel economic pressure sooner. Watch where they go today — that's where everyone else is heading tomorrow." — Andrea Baronchelli, CEO & Co-Founder, Aspire

_{Disclaimer: Intended for informational purposes only. Findings reflect activity within this dataset and may not be representative of the broader market.}