GlobalCorporateVenturing

The venture arm of Thai energy company PTTEP is evolving its investment strategy to focus more on what happens after the initial funding round for a startup. Xplor Ventures, the startup investment arm of Thailand-based energy company PTTEP, is entering a new phase of operations. The $100m fund, set up in early 2023, is moving past its early establishment stage, with four startup investments made so far and plans for backing a fifth and sixth.

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As AI and an emphasis on the circular economy rewrite the rulebook for the development of advanced materials, Teknor Apex is looking to a new investment arm to help tap into startup innovation. When faced with rubber shortages during the second World War, Teknor Apex, originally a family-owned tire and rubber company, was inspired to develop a range of new materials, setting it on a path to become a global leader in plastics material science solutions.

At Intel Capital, Washburn focused on early-stage investments in cloud-native infrastructure, developer tools, AI/machine learning and data platforms. Nick Washburn has left his position as senior managing director at Intel Capital, US chipmaker Intel’s corporate VC arm, to take on a senior operating role in an undisclosed startup. At Intel Capital, Washburn focused on early-stage investments in cloud-native infrastructure, developer tools, AI/machine learning and data platforms.

Faran Nouri has recently worked at the forefront of US national semiconductor investment policy at Natcast and America's Frontier Fund. Faran Nouri been appointed global head of Applied Ventures, the corporate VC arm of US semiconductor company Applied Materials, rejoining a company where she spent time as an engineer and technology leader more than a decade earlier in her career.

Corporate investment isn't just about making a return from backing some interesting startups. It is about doing that but turning it into an engine for industrial transformation. There is a slightly awkward question lurking behind a lot of the conversations about corporate venture at the moment: What exactly are we expecting CVC to do?

She takes over from previous head Vishal Kumar Gupta who left the CVC unit in October 2025. Yolanda Wong has taken over the leadership of ServiceNow Ventures, the corporate VC arm enterprise software provider ServiceNow, taking over from Vishal Kumar Gupta who left the unit in October 2025. Wong joined ServiceNow in 2023 as managing director, ecosystem ventures.

The fund will target new gaming IP with global potential, next-generation live-service games and developers using AI to create new gaming experiences. South Korea and Japan-based video game developer Nexon is launching an investment programme worth up to ₩250bn ($179m) in partnership with the Korean government and VC firm Kona Venture Partners to invest in gaming intellectual property and help emerging developers expand internationally.

The new RMB-denominated fund will combine investment capital and industry expertise and target the intersection of AI and life sciences as well as applications beyond healthcare such as agriculture and energy. Hong Kong-based asset management firm Value Partners Group, AI drug discovery Insilico Medicine and construction services provider Pudong Development Group are joining together to create a renminbi-denominated fund to invest in AI-enabled medical technologies.

Corporate venture building is most effective when it is integrated with other venture functions like investments and partnerships. Corporate venture building has been through a fashion cycle. Many large companies set up internal “startup factories” with grand promises, only to find that few of the ventures scaled and even fewer generated strategic impact.