What if we could supercharge photosynthesis and boost crop yields using science born right here in Malaysia? That’s exactly what Qarbotech is doing. In this episode of Enterprise Explores, we speak with the startup’s three co-founders, Dr Suraya Abdul Rashid, Amirul Merican, and Chor Chee Hoe, about their groundbreaking technology, their global recognition, and the surprising struggle to gain local support.



They discuss the science behind QarboGrow, the challenges of scaling up, and what needs to shift in Malaysia’s investment mindset for deeptech to thrive.

What if we could supercharge photosynthesis and boost crop yields using science born right here in Malaysia? That’s exactly what Qarbotech is doing. In this episode of Enterprise Explores, we speak with the startup’s three co-founders, Dr Suraya Abdul Rashid, Amirul Merican, and Chor Chee Hoe, about their groundbreaking technology, their global recognition, and the surprising struggle to gain local support.They discuss the science behind QarboGrow, the challenges of scaling up, and what needs to shift in Malaysia’s investment mindset for deeptech to thrive.

The flagship entrepreneurship show on BFM, featuring personal business stories from early stage start-ups, all the way to billionaire octogenarians in Malaysia and abroad. Notable guests include Martin Cooper (father of the mobile phone), Julian Assange (founder of WikiLeaks), Ralph Henry Baer (father of video games), Tony Buzan (Mindmap Guru), Isaac Tigrett (Hard Rock Cafe founder), Robert Kiyosaki (Financial Guru), Nick Vujicic (motivational speaker) and more. Tap into this valuable resource of shared experiences for the SME industry, which also touches on news, issues and trends affecting the business community and beyond.

Open For Business

Discover fresh concepts, tackle obstacles, and unleash growth - Open For Business is the dynamic show where BFM engages with entrepreneurs, business leaders, and industry trailblazers, igniting inspiration, sparking success, and exploring new business models.

Photosynthesis, but Make it Innovation: Qarbotech’s Agritech Leap

Gurcharanvir Singh built his company because he had a dream about washing shoes.



Three years later, Guchi Cuci is a highly profitable, 5-figure home-based shoe cleaning service that has doubled its revenue every single year since inception. Operating entirely without commercial rent, Gurcharanvir leverages on organic TikTok virality to acquire customers, specifically targeting the "lazy or busy" demographic. Even more impressively, he manages this growing operation alongside a full-time career as an architect, a part-time job at a gym, and training for KL Fashion Week.



Gurcharanvir joins us to dissect the exact metrics behind his micro-business. We also look at the unit economics of pricing a service at the cost of a meal, the challenge of calculating Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) through social media algorithms, and the capital expenditure required to transition from cleaning sneakers to detailing cars.

Gurcharanvir Singh built his company because he had a dream about washing shoes.Three years later, Guchi Cuci is a highly profitable, 5-figure home-based shoe cleaning service that has doubled its revenue every single year since inception. Operating entirely without commercial rent, Gurcharanvir leverages on organic TikTok virality to acquire customers, specifically targeting the "lazy or busy" demographic. Even more impressively, he manages this growing operation alongside a full-time career as an architect, a part-time job at a gym, and training for KL Fashion Week.Gurcharanvir joins us to dissect the exact metrics behind his micro-business. We also look at the unit economics of pricing a service at the cost of a meal, the challenge of calculating Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) through social media algorithms, and the capital expenditure required to transition from cleaning sneakers to detailing cars.

I Dreamt of Washing Shoes (And It Made Me 5 Figures)

For years, the Malaysian property market has been dominated by a legacy "discovery-only" portal model. Real estate agents are forced to pay RM3,000 to RM8,000 in upfront annual subscriptions just to list properties, with zero performance guarantees. The result? Agents receive high volumes of raw traffic, but only 2% to 3% actually convert into real appointments.



Enter MyRumahBaru (MRB). Co-founded by Melvin Soh, Ching Yaw Hao, and Anthony Chin, MRB is an AI-powered property platform designed to destroy the traditional subscription model. Instead of charging for listings, MRB provides unlimited free listings and utilises an AI chatbot to converse with, pre-qualify, and financially vet buyers (including Debt Service Ratio calculations). Agents and developers are only charged a flat RM200 fee when a verified buyer actually shows up for an appointment. This model has successfully driven buyer show-up rates to over 90%.



Melvin joins us to dissect the hard metrics behind MRB's growth, the unit economics of a pay-per-performance marketplace, and why incumbent portals are structurally trapped from copying their technology.

For years, the Malaysian property market has been dominated by a legacy "discovery-only" portal model. Real estate agents are forced to pay RM3,000 to RM8,000 in upfront annual subscriptions just to list properties, with zero performance guarantees. The result? Agents receive high volumes of raw traffic, but only 2% to 3% actually convert into real appointments.Enter MyRumahBaru (MRB). Co-founded by Melvin Soh, Ching Yaw Hao, and Anthony Chin, MRB is an AI-powered property platform designed to destroy the traditional subscription model. Instead of charging for listings, MRB provides unlimited free listings and utilises an AI chatbot to converse with, pre-qualify, and financially vet buyers (including Debt Service Ratio calculations). Agents and developers are only charged a flat RM200 fee when a verified buyer actually shows up for an appointment. This model has successfully driven buyer show-up rates to over 90%.Melvin joins us to dissect the hard metrics behind MRB's growth, the unit economics of a pay-per-performance marketplace, and why incumbent portals are structurally trapped from copying their technology.

The PropTech Rebellion: How MyRumahBaru is Changing Real Estate

Fukuro Malaysia was founded in 2019 to fill the "missing middle" in the kitchenware market. Co-founders Daryl Lai and Kevin Lau recognised that local brands were trapped in a race to the bottom on price and quality, while international brands dominated the expensive, premium tier. Applying an FMCG approach to kitchen essentials, they bootstrapped Fukuro into a highly profitable brand generating RM14 million in annual revenue, with a presence in over 1,300 offline retail stores across Malaysia.



Daryl joins us in the studio to dissect the hard metrics behind Fukuro’s growth. We also discuss treating physical shelf space as a customer acquisition channel, the strategy for protecting unit margins against multinational competitors, and the roadmap to hitting RM50 million in annual revenue organically.

Fukuro Malaysia was founded in 2019 to fill the "missing middle" in the kitchenware market. Co-founders Daryl Lai and Kevin Lau recognised that local brands were trapped in a race to the bottom on price and quality, while international brands dominated the expensive, premium tier. Applying an FMCG approach to kitchen essentials, they bootstrapped Fukuro into a highly profitable brand generating RM14 million in annual revenue, with a presence in over 1,300 offline retail stores across Malaysia.Daryl joins us in the studio to dissect the hard metrics behind Fukuro’s growth. We also discuss treating physical shelf space as a customer acquisition channel, the strategy for protecting unit margins against multinational competitors, and the roadmap to hitting RM50 million in annual revenue organically.

Photosynthesis, but Make it Innovation: Qarbotech’s Agritech Leap

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