Thai start-up ecosystem is enjoying a growth momentun 

A huge leap in the estimated total funding in Thailand from US$33 million in 2015 to $86 million in 2016 shows how much effort Thailand is making in building up its start-up community. Moreover, it reveals how foreign investors are paying more attention to our country in comparison with a few years ago when investors would fly right over to Singapore, Malaysia, or Indonesia. One of the biggest deals, made earlier this year, was Tencent's $19-million investment in Ookbee.
The trend of start-up industries also reflects how we're growing from year to year. From e-commerce to Fintech to AgriTech, new emerging markets are filled with new faces ready to disrupt the industry. One very interesting tech in the spotlight this year is FoodTech, with three investments made in 2016 (Wongnai, Eatigo, and Ginja) and two made so far in the first quarter of 2017 (Freshket and Cookly, both dtac Accelerate alumni).
One of the key indicators for trending industries each year is the applications of teams for our dtac Accelerate programme. The number of EdTech, AgriTech, and HealthTech entries has doubled over last year. That is great news for Thailand. These are the areas we can all benefit in. 
EdTech can be seen as focusing more on languages, a barrier that limits Thai people's advancement into the world market. We have two EdTech start-ups joining us this year related to languages - Globish, an online English-learning platform, and Senseino, a Japanese, Chinese, and Korean language platform taught through books and unique videos. 
AgriTech is an industry that should have been apparent for Thai people to focus on, especially in a country where the majority of people comprise the farming community and the gross domestic product of the country partly depends on exporting farm goods. We have seen many start-ups trying to help these farmers with Internet of Things, financial support, educational support, and much more. We also have an AgriTech/FinTech team joining us this year, Ricult, a start-up using machine learning and satellite imagery to create alternative credit score for Thai farmers to access cheaper loans and improve farm yield.
One very interesting development this year was the increasing focus on Artificial Intelligence and Virtual Reality. These two technologies weren't incorporated into many start-ups last year. This is a sign of growth in not only the investments but the technology leap in Thailand as well.
The future is promising for the start-up ecosystem in Thailand, and I am extremely excited to be a part of building it up. Let's see what this year brings.

Sompoat is director of dtac Accelerate, a division of DTAC