Bit Santos is Assistant Vice President for Portfolio Operations at Kickstart Ventures, a Philippine CVC. Before Kickstart, he was CTO at OLX Philippines (now Carousell Philippines).

👋🏼 How would you explain your job to someone outside tech?

I lead the team at Kickstart that supports the businesses we've invested in by providing value-add beyond just the capital.

I spend most of my time making sure we always have a good idea of how all of our portfolio companies are doing, so that we also always have a good understanding of how we can best support them whether it be by providing guidance and expertise, supporting their go-to-market, connecting them to potential partners, or whatever it is within our capabilities.

🧐 What's something about you or your job that would surprise us?

As an ex-CTO, my background is in tech, and I'm probably one of the biggest introverts among the Kickstart team, but much of the work we do requires constantly working with people, be it with our portfolio companies, with other startups, with our colleagues and stakeholders in Globe and Ayala, or with fellow startup enablers and investors.

We've intentionally brought together a diverse set of individuals with a broad range of deep expertise in our team so that we can build on each other and maximize what we can offer to our startups.

🏆 What has been the biggest highlight of your career so far?

The entire experience so far of working with and supporting some of the leading tech startups in the Philippines and in the region has been a continuous highlight.

With many of them set to continue their rise and many more startups following them, it feels like there will be even more highlights to come.

🔍 What's a startup trend or space you're watching this year?‍

The recent emergence of the digital Filipino consumer and its implications on B2C tech-driven businesses are very interesting.

It's also closely connected to the growing market of SME businesses in need of digital solutions to remain competitive.

The other major trend is the rapidly increasing interest in sustainability and climate tech as more businesses and governments prioritize making sure we operate sustainably and in a planet-positive way.

💼 What advice would you give someone starting out in your industry?

Be curious, and try to make sure that you understand the problems that you're trying to solve and the systems that you're interacting with.

Be humble, and understand that even once you think you've understood something, until you actually see how the market reacts to what you've chosen to do, all you have are best guesses.

Lastly, be audacious. The business of startups and VC is the business of trying to do things that have never been done before, so let's make every attempt count.

🗣 What's one thing you can keep talking about for hours?

I could probably go on for hours talking about random science facts.

Especially if we get into space and physics. Even more if the conversation shifts into metaphysics.

🎥 What's your favorite movie/TV show?

Hard to choose just one, but Mythbusters, IT Crowd, and Community are definitely on my list of all-time favorites.

🍨 What's your go-to ice cream flavor?‍

Strawberry, please. Plus points for real strawberry chunks.