Melvin Poh
{{Short description|Malaysian entrepreneur, barrister and investor}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2021}}{{Infobox person
| honorific_suffix = {{postnominals|country=GBR|FRSA}}
| name = Melvin Poh
| image = MelPoh Wiki.png
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1991|07|01}}
| birth_place = Malaysia
| nationality =
| occupation = Entrepreneur, investor, barrister, public intellectual
| years_active =
| known_for = Publishing, access to knowledge movement, public intellectual
| honours =
}}
Melvin Poh FRSA is a Malaysian entrepreneur, barrister, investor and public intellectual. He is known for his work in crowdsourcing knowledge in Asia{{Cite web|title=Melvin Poh|url=https://www.forbes.com/profile/melvin-poh/|access-date=23 July 2021|website=Forbes|language=en}}{{Cite web |date=5 April 2021 |title=Melvin Poh transforms the Asian Entrepreneur into Empirics Asia and here's how he is doing it |url=https://www.prestigeonline.com/my/people-events/people/melvin-poh-transforms-the-asian-entrepreneur-into-empirics-asia-and-heres-how-he-is-doing-it/ |access-date=23 July 2021 |website=Prestige Online – Malaysia |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |title=各领域表现优异 4人获留英杰出校友奖 - 国内 - 全国综合 |url=https://www.sinchew.com.my/20220318/%e5%90%84%e9%a2%86%e5%9f%9f%e8%a1%a8%e7%8e%b0%e4%bc%98%e5%bc%82-4%e4%ba%ba%e8%8e%b7%e7%95%99%e8%8b%b1%e6%9d%b0%e5%87%ba%e6%a0%a1%e5%8f%8b%e5%a5%96/ |access-date=2022-03-20 |website=星洲网 Sin Chew Daily Malaysia Latest News and Headlines |language=en}} and his efforts to facilitate greater accessibility to knowledge in the region.{{Cite web |last=Ignatius |first=Cynthia |date=2022-03-18 |title=The British Council Has Recognised Four Malaysians For Their Achievements At The UK Alumni Awards - BusinessToday |url=https://www.businesstoday.com.my/2022/03/18/the-british-council-has-recognised-four-malaysians-for-their-achievements-at-the-uk-alumni-awards/ |access-date=2022-03-20 |website=www.businesstoday.com.my/ |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |date=2022-01-26 |title=This AI was so good at its content-based job, its M'sian creator gave it its own podcast |url=https://vulcanpost.com/776364/empirics-asia-ai-podcast-malaysia/ |access-date=2022-03-09 |website=Vulcan Post |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |date=2024-12-05 |title=英国文化协会 助大马学子圆留英梦 - 国内 - 全国综合 - 市场情报 |url=https://www.sinchew.com.my/?p=6128435 |access-date=2024-12-10 |website=星洲网 Sin Chew Daily Malaysia Latest News and Headlines |language=zh-CN}} Poh is also known to be a public proponent of the access to knowledge movement in Southeast Asia and has been advocating for the democratization of knowledge in public media as well as in his work.{{Cite web |last=cue |date=2023-03-04 |title=Me & My Money: Just because everyone values an investment doesn't make it valuable {{!}} The Straits Times |url=https://www.straitstimes.com/business/me-my-money-just-because-everyone-values-an-investment-doesn-t-make-it-valuable |access-date=2023-03-05 |website=www.straitstimes.com |language=en}}{{Cite web |title=Malaysians Bag Prestigious British Council Awards - 2022 NST |url=https://www.nst.com.my/news/nation/2022/03/781199/four-malaysians-among-recipients-british-council-study-uk-alumni-awards}}{{Cite web |title=Sin Chew Daily |url=https://www.pressreader.com/malaysia/sin-chew-daily-metro-edition-day/20220319/page/13 |access-date=2022-03-27 |via=PressReader}}
Early life and education
Poh was born in Malaysia but had emigrated and spent most of his years living in New Zealand, Australia, United States and United Kingdom.{{Cite web|last=Khoo|first=Natalie|date=14 May 2019|title=How Melvin Poh is crowdsourcing business insights with The Asian Entrepreneur|url=https://firstclasse.com.my/melvin-poh-the-asian-entrepreneur/|access-date=23 July 2021|website=FirstClasse|language=en-US}} He attended Hale School.{{Cite web|date=16 April 2013|title=Melvin Poh – founder of Volition Ventures|url=https://ideashoist.com.au/melvin-poh-founder-of-volition-ventures/|access-date=23 July 2021|website=Ideas Hoist|language=en-US}} He later pursued studies at Harvard University,{{Cite web |title=Melvin Poh {{!}} Harvard University - Academia.edu |url=https://harvard.academia.edu/MelvinPoh |access-date=2024-01-15 |website=harvard.academia.edu}} Imperial College London{{Cite web |date=2023-03-31 |title=Imperial Business {{!}} 2023 by Imperial College London - Issuu |url=https://issuu.com/imperialcollegelondon/docs/ib_schoolmagazine23_interactive_aw |access-date=2024-01-15 |website=issuu.com |language=en}}{{Cite web |last=Vibes |first=The |date=18 March 2022 |title=4 Malaysians awarded by British Council for success at UK Alumni Awards |url=https://www.thevibes.com/articles/lifestyles/56560/4-malaysians-awarded-by-british-council-for-success-at-uk-alumni-awards |website=The Vibes}}{{Cite web |date=2019-05-13 |title=Alumni profile: Melvin Poh widening access to business knowledge in Asia {{!}} Imperial College Business School |url=https://www.imperial.ac.uk/business-school/blogs/alumni/alumni-profile-melvin-poh-widening-access-business-knowledge-asia/ |access-date=2024-01-15 |website=www.imperial.ac.uk |language=en}} and University of Cambridge.{{Cite web |last=Council |first=British |date=July 2023 |title=CEO Insights Series Malaysia |url=https://www.britishcouncil.my/ceo-insights-series-malaysia-event-july-2023 |website=British Council}}{{Cite web|title=Melvin Poh {{!}} Harvard University - Academia.edu|url=https://harvard.academia.edu/MelvinPoh|access-date=24 July 2021|website=harvard.academia.edu}}{{Cite web|title=Melvin POH {{!}} University of Cambridge, Cambridge {{!}} Cam {{!}} Cambridge Judge Business School|url=https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Melvin-Poh|access-date=24 July 2021|website=ResearchGate|language=en}} Poh subsequently became a barrister in the United Kingdom and was admitted as a member of The Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn.
Career
= The Asian Entrepreneur =
In 2013, Poh founded The Asian Entrepreneur with another student at Harvard.{{Cite web|last=Jayatilaka|first=Tania|date=13 July 2021|title=Melvin Poh: What The World's First A.I-Run Podcast Means For Malaysia's Future|url=https://www.tatlerasia.com/power-purpose/technology/melvin-poh-the-asian-entrepreneur-artificial-intelligence-empirics-podcast|access-date=23 July 2021|website=Tatler Malaysia|language=en-MY}}{{Cite web|date=22 April 2020|title=缺乏市场知识导致失败，他用他的失败让其他人获得成功！|url=https://discoveryceo.com/archives/27257|access-date=25 July 2021|website=老板的故事|language=zh-CN}} The Asian Entrepreneur began in the United States as a print publication documenting business knowledge in Asia.{{Cite web|last=Dayangku|first=Sade|date=18 July 2019|title=Bad Info Killed His First Business, So His Second Shares Insider Info On The Asian Market|url=https://vulcanpost.com/669370/melvin-poh-the-asian-entrepreneur-advice/|access-date=23 July 2021|website=Vulcan Post|language=en-US}}{{Cite web|last=Shea|first=John|date=22 March 2014|title=Interview with Melvin Poh, founder of the Asian Entrepreneur Media Group|url=https://www.voicesofmarketing.com/written-interviews/melvin-poh-founder-asian-entrepreneur/|access-date=23 July 2021|website=Voices Of Marketing|language=en-US}} The print publication was later developed by Poh into a digital crowdpublishing platform that allowed users to participate in the production of content and the editorial process through an open collaboration model.{{Cite web|title=Open For Business: The Asian Entrepreneur, Revisited|url=https://www.bfm.my/podcast/enterprise/open-for-business/ent-ofb-the-asian-entrepreneur-revisited-melvin-poh|access-date=23 July 2021|website=BFM 89.9|language=en}}{{Cite web|title=Open For Business: The Asian Entrepreneur|url=https://www.bfm.my/podcast/enterprise/open-for-business/open-for-business-the-asian-entrepreneur-melvin-poh|access-date=23 July 2021|website=BFM 89.9|language=en}} The Asian Entrepreneur then became an open access platform for accessing, exchanging and publishing business knowledge across Asia.{{Cite web|title=The Asian Entrepreneur Rebrands After $8m Fund Raise|url=https://finance.yahoo.com/news/asian-entrepreneur-rebrands-8m-fund-191000246.html|access-date=23 July 2021|website=finance.yahoo.com|language=en-US}}{{Cite web|title=The Asian Entrepreneur raises $8 million; rebrands to 'Empirics Asia'|url=https://beamstart.com/content/128931/the-asian-entrepreneur-empirics|access-date=23 July 2021|website=BEAMSTART|language=en}}{{Cite web|date=14 May 2019|title=Top 20 best funded startups in Malaysia|url=https://aseanup.com/top-startups-malaysia/|access-date=23 July 2021|website=ASEAN UP|language=en-US}}{{Cite web|last=Bernama|date=2 April 2019|title=11 Malaysian entrepreneurs make the Forbes 30 under 30 Asia 2019|work=New Straits Times|url=https://www.nst.com.my/business/2019/04/475299/11-malaysian-entrepreneurs-make-forbes-30-under-30-asia-2019|access-date=23 July 2021|language=en}} The organization had worked with Southeast Asian governments on various startup initiatives for open access knowledge and education.{{Cite web|title=Melvin Poh|url=https://www.necc.com.my/melvinpoh|access-date=23 July 2021|publisher=New Entrepreneur Championship Conference|language=en}}{{Cite web|title=Security Commissions Malaysia|url=https://mfpc.org.my/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/BFF2019.pdf}}{{Cite web|title=Melvin Poh – Founder, The Asian Entrepreneur|url=https://www.cyberjayastartupsummit.com/speakers/speaker-melvin-poh.php|access-date=23 July 2021|website=Cyberjaya Startup Summit 2019}}{{dead link| date=July 2021}} In 2021 after raising funds, The Asian Entrepreneur was further expanded and officially rebranded to Empirics Asia.
= Empirics Asia =
In January 2021, Poh and his team raised US$8 million for The Asian Entrepreneur to expand its publishing scope further and renamed the company Empirics Asia.{{Cite web|last=Lee|first=Faye|date=4 June 2021|title=23 M'sian startups who earned investor confidence and got funded during the pandemic|url=https://vulcanpost.com/747879/malaysia-startups-funding-covid-19-pandemic/|access-date=23 July 2021|website=Vulcan Post|language=en-US}}{{Cite web|date=14 May 2019|title=Top 20 best funded startups in Malaysia|url=https://aseanup.com/top-startups-malaysia/|access-date=24 July 2021|website=ASEAN UP|language=en-US}}{{Cite web|title=Empirics Asia Company Profile: Valuation & Investors {{!}} PitchBook|url=https://pitchbook.com/profiles/company/458679-79|access-date=25 July 2021|website=pitchbook.com|language=en}} Empirics Asia was launched as an open access knowledge platform modeled on empiricism that incorporated social journalism, open publishing and crowdsourcing from Asia to publish direct insights on social scientific fields.{{Cite web |title=People Against The Grain |url=https://www.pressreader.com/article/281578063442908 |access-date=24 July 2021 |via=PressReader}} Through the expanded publishing coverage, Empirics Asia worked with authors and experts to crowdsource knowledge and publish topics ranging from technology, psychology, philosophy, sociology, business, literature, economics, science and arts.{{Cite web|title=World's Leading Newsstand {{!}} Online Magazines {{!}} Digital Magazine for iPad, Android, Windows 8 and Web|url=https://reader.magzter.com/reader/i47mzwk6qf8jitrb93lhu76165015833100/761650#page/30|access-date=6 October 2021|website=reader.magzter.com}} Without operating a conventional paywall, content sponsorship and advertising, the platform aims to contribute to the democratization of knowledge.{{Cite web|last=Xiung|first=Chong Jinn|title=Melvin Poh of Empirics Asia Makes Knowledge Accessible To Everyone|url=https://www.tatlerasia.com/power-purpose/technology/melvin-poh-of-empirics-asia-makes-knowledge-accessible-to-everyone|access-date=14 October 2021|website=Tatler Asia|language=en}} The organization also established a publishing and distribution operation for sourcing original titles and books from authors in Asia.{{Cite web|last=T|first=Generation|date=8 September 2021|title=Melvin Poh|url=https://generationt.asia/people/melvin-poh|access-date=8 September 2021|website=Generation T|language=en}} The organization launched Empirics Podcast, an open access knowledge podcast produced and hosted by a machine learning artificial intelligence that was developed to study knowledge trends.{{Cite web|date=13 July 2021|title=Catch these new podcasts, virtual tours and concerts right from your home|url=https://www.lifestyleasia.com/kl/culture/events/catch-these-new-podcasts-virtual-tours-and-concerts-right-from-your-home/|access-date=23 July 2021|website=Lifestyle Asia Kuala Lumpur|language=en-US}}{{Cite web|title=Tech Talk: A.I. Robot|url=https://www.bfm.my/podcast/enterprise/tech-talk/ent-tt-ai-robot|access-date=23 July 2021|website=BFM 89.9|language=en}}{{Cite web|title=Empirics Asia on Apple Podcasts|url=https://podcasts.apple.com/my/podcast/empirics-asia/id1574073090|access-date=24 July 2021|website=Apple Podcasts|language=en-GB}} As of September 2021, the organization has crowdsourced and published 1 million open access knowledge content in the social sciences from its network of writers and volunteers. In 2023, Empirics Asia released Librius, an artificial intelligence developed by the company to increase book knowledge by making learning from books more accessible to the public.{{Cite web |title=Empirics Asia Officially Launches "Librius" AI That Teaches Book Knowledge |url=https://finance.yahoo.com/news/empirics-asia-officially-launches-librius-103600707.html |access-date=2023-05-15 |website=Yahoo Finance |language=en-US}}
= Public Advocacy =
Poh publicly shares his insights and reflections on philosophy and the value of intellectual discourse through his platforms. He has actively advocated in official public forums. Poh was invited to speak about the importance of collective knowledge at The Harvard Project for Asian and International Relations Conference organised by Harvard University in 2018.{{Citation|title=Harvard Conference 2018 Keynote Speaker – Melvin Poh|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qpx-B6ySFmQ|language=en|access-date=10 August 2021}}{{Cite web|title=HPAIR {{!}} The Harvard Project for Asian and International Relations|url=https://hpair.org/|access-date=10 August 2021|website=HPAIR|language=en-US}} He spoke at TEDxSUTD in Singapore on knowledge creation through digital media and advocated for democratization of media.{{Citation|last=Poh|first=Melvin|title=Exploring knowledge creation through Digital Media|url=https://www.ted.com/talks/melvin_poh_exploring_knowledge_creation_through_digital_media|language=en|access-date=10 August 2021}} Poh delivered a speech on the evolution of entrepreneurship at TEDxUMSKK{{Citation|title=Evolution of Entrepreneurship {{!}} Melvin Poh {{!}} TEDxUMSKK|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2xZRkdPnE1E|language=en|access-date=10 August 2021}} and was also a keynote speaker at TEDxHeriotWatt sharing views on sustainable economic developments.{{Citation|title=Is Richer & Bigger really Better? {{!}} Melvin Poh {{!}} TEDxHeriotWattUMalaysia|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EP_2Z1gNRE8|language=en|access-date=10 August 2021}} The Securities Commission Malaysia has admitted Poh on the panel of its Business Foresight Forum at the Securities Industry Development Corporation where he has advocated for the need of open access media.{{Cite web|title=Business Foresight Forum (BFF) 2019: New Business Directions 2025 – Catalysts for Change|url=https://www.sidc.com.my/programme/businessforesightforumbff/|access-date=10 August 2021|website=SIDC – Delivering Professional Excellence|language=en-US}} In 2021, Poh shared views on the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on entrepreneurship at the Enterprise Asia Center Of Entrepreneurship.{{Cite web|date=19 February 2020|title=Enterprise Asia Center for Entrepreneurship {{!}} Enterprise Asia|url=https://www.enterpriseasia.org/programmes/eacfe/|access-date=10 August 2021|language=en-US}} He delivered a keynote on human existentialism in the digital age at TEDxAIMST and advocated for the importance of wider knowledge.{{Cite web|title=TEDxAIMSTUniversity {{!}} TED|url=https://www.ted.com/tedx/events/43902|access-date=1 September 2021|website=www.ted.com}} During the British Council's 75th Year Anniversary Conference in 2023, Poh delivered a keynote on the knowledge gap facing young people in the Malaysia.{{Cite web |last=Ignatius |first=Cynthia |date=2023-01-13 |title=British Council Celebrates 75th Anniversary In Malaysia With New Opportunities For UK alumni - BusinessToday |url=https://www.businesstoday.com.my/2023/01/13/british-council-celebrates-75th-anniversary-in-malaysia-with-new-opportunities-for-uk-alumni/ |access-date=2023-05-15 |website=www.businesstoday.com.my/ |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |title=Alumni UK Symposium and Careers Fair 2023 - Event Highlights |url=https://www.britishcouncil.my/alumni-uk-symposium-and-careers-fair-2023}} In 2024, Poh was invited by Malaysia's Ministry Of International Trade And Investment to share his views on empowering youth entrepreneurs at the ASEAN Business Forum hosted in Malaysia.{{Cite web |title=ASEAN-Malaysia Business Forum 2024 – Majlis Belia Malaysia |url=https://belia.org.my/asean-malaysia-business-forum-2024/ |access-date=2024-12-10 |language=en-US}}
= Investments =
Poh has been an active private equity investor. He co-founded an investment company that specialised in sourcing private equity for collegiate entrepreneurs and startup companies from Australia, United Kingdom and United States. In 2018, Poh became the second largest shareholder of De Clout, a SGX publicly listed company in Singapore by acquiring a 11.8% personal stake in the company.{{Cite web|title=Bloomberg – Melvin Poh DeClout|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/profile/person/20658623|access-date=24 July 2021|website=www.bloomberg.com}}{{Cite web|title=Business Times Singapore|url=https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/melvin-poh-now-declouts-2nd-largest-shareholder|access-date=24 July 2021|website=www.businesstimes.com.sg}} He later joined other investors in the development of several real estate in Singapore and co-founded a property development firm specializing in Singaporean real estate development.{{Cite web|title=Melvin Poh {{!}} GCB Development|url=https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/belmont-rd-gcb-fetches-s338m-or-s2243-psf|access-date=16 August 2021|website=www.businesstimes.com.sg}}{{Cite web|title=Sales of detached houses over last four months double in volume compared to a year ago|url=https://www.edgeprop.sg/property-news/sales-detached-houses-over-last-four-months-double-volume-compared-year-ago}} In 2021, it was revealed that Poh had an invested stake in a textile manufacturing plant based in Malaysia that specialized in interior building materials.{{Citation|title=与楼有关EP17 上集 - 到底墙纸有多少种类？ 墙纸的材质你知多少？|url=https://www.facebook.com/unityproperty.sb/videos/542297540070958/|language=en|access-date=2021-11-30}} Poh was reported to have made acquisitions of several significant cultural works in China in 2024.{{Cite web |title=ICON Singapore-January/February 2024 Magazine - Get your Digital Subscription. |url=https://www.magzter.com/share/mag/2509/1551202 |access-date=2024-03-05 |website=Magzter |language=en}} He is a co-founder of a Singaporean investment firm that engages in private equity investments in Southeast Asia.
Recognition
In 2019, Poh was among the 30 entrepreneurs admitted on the Forbes 30 Under 30 list, for fostering education through crowdsourcing knowledge in Asia. He was listed on Prestige 40 Under 40 for contributing to open access knowledge in the region{{Cite web|title=Prestige 40 Under 40 2019|url=https://www.pressreader.com/malaysia/prestige-malaysia/20191201/283729841165295|access-date=24 July 2021|via=PressReader}} through digital crowdpublishing and was named among 30 honourees of industry leaders on Tatler's Generation.T Leaders Of Tomorrow for creating an open access knowledge hub in Asia and making contributions to regional education.{{Cite web|last=T|first=Generation|date=8 September 2021|title=Meet The Malaysia Honourees On The Gen.T List 2021|url=https://generationt.asia/leaders/meet-the-malaysia-honourees-on-the-gent-list-2021|access-date=8 September 2021|website=Generation T|language=en}} In 2022, Poh was one of the 4 Malaysians whose work was recognized by British High Commission and HE Charles Hay;{{Cite web |date=2022-03-18 |title=4 rakyat Malaysia terima pengiktirafan British Council |url=https://dagangnews.com/4-rakyat-malaysia-terima-pengiktirafan-british-council-13916 |access-date=2022-03-27 |website=Dagang News |language=en}} he subsequently was the recipient of the Business & Innovation Award from the British Council for his work in improving accessibility to knowledge in Asia.{{Cite web |title=4 Rakyat Malaysia Terima Pengiktirafan British Council |url=https://www.astroawani.com/berita-malaysia/4-rakyat-malaysia-terima-pengiktirafan-british-council-352414 |access-date=2022-03-20 |website=www.astroawani.com}}{{Cite web |title=British Council Awards 2021 - 2022 |url=https://www.britishcouncil.my/study-uk/alumni-awards-2021-22}}{{Cite web |last=AZLAN |first=RYNNAAS |date=2022-03-18 |title=Four Malaysians bag prestigious Study UK Alumni Awards |url=https://www.sinardaily.my/article/172548/malaysia/national/four-malaysians-bag-prestigious-study-uk-alumni-awards |access-date=2022-03-20 |website=Sinar Daily |language=en}} In 2023, Poh was officially made Fellow Of The Royal Society Of Arts (FRSA) of the United Kingdom in recognition for his work.{{Cite web |title=Find a Fellow - RSA |url=https://www.thersa.org/fellowship/find-a-fellow/profile/181382 |access-date=2023-08-31 |website=www.thersa.org}}