This week Matt and Rich take another look at the weirder side of science and technology. Elon Musk’s Neuralink evokes The Force, enabling a quadriplegic man to play computer chess through thought alone, illustrating the technology’s potential for enhancing human interaction in digital environments.

Illusory patten recognition could hold the key to why some people are more receptable to conspiracy theories. An overdeveloped evolutionary response that causes some people to connect dots where none exist, making it easier for them to welcome false narratives. In keeping with the psychological tone of much of the episode, new findings are starting to challenge our understanding of female psychopathy and correcting historical male biases in the research.

No weird science episode is complete without a worm and this week’s is an ancient, nightmare-inducing and thankfully extinct worm species. A cryovolcanic comet brings devilish allure, while new research expands our understanding of PMO, a neurological condition that distorts visual perception and makes faces appear demonic.

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2024 - We are almost at the end of the first quarter of the year! Now is a suitable time to reevaluate how small and medium-sized businesses are “feeling” about the economy.

Malaysian SMEs enter 2024 with a mix of optimism and caution. A recent report by Employment Hero found that an impressive 79% of SMEs are confident about their own growth prospects, despite concerns about rising costs and inflation. This sentiment reflects a sense of resilience after challenging years, with many businesses looking forward to new opportunities.

To gain a deeper understanding of these trends, this episode of Enterprise Explores delves into the findings of the 2024 SME Sentiments Report by Employment Hero with Kevin Fitzgerald, the Managing Director for Asia at Employment Hero.

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2024 - We are almost at the end of the first quarter of the year! Now is a suitable time to reevaluate how small and medium-sized businesses are “feeling” about the economy.

Malaysian SMEs enter 2024 with a mix of optimism and caution. A recent report by Employment Hero found that an impressive 79% of SMEs are confident about their own growth prospects, despite concerns about rising costs and inflation. This sentiment reflects a sense of resilience after challenging years, with many businesses looking forward to new opportunities.

To gain a deeper understanding of these trends, this episode of Enterprise Explores delves into the findings of the 2024 SME Sentiments Report by Employment Hero with Kevin Fitzgerald, the Managing Director for Asia at Employment Hero.

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The agriculture sector in Malaysia stands as an important pillar of the nation's economy, contributing significantly to its GDP and employment of a large workforce as well. With a rich diversity of crops ranging from palm oil and rubber to tropical fruits and vegetables, the industry is vital for domestic consumption and also for export.

However, the sector faces multifaceted challenges, including traditional supply chain inefficiencies, the urgent need for sustainable practices amidst climate change, and the necessity to embrace technological advancements to stay competitive globally.

In this evolving landscape, Haroct Technologies (HAROCT) enters the market with an aim to transform the fresh produce value chain by leveraging technology to create a more efficient, transparent, and sustainable ecosystem. It offers a digital marketplace that facilitates direct transactions between farmers and B2B buyers, bypassing traditional middlemen to ensure fairer prices and more secure dealings.

In this episode, we speak with Dylan Lee, the Founder and CEO of Haroct Technologies, on how the company’s approach can help to improve the economic welfare of small-scale farmers, as well as addressing broader issues such as food security and the environmental impact of farming practices.

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Rich and Matt delve into the intricacies of the human brain, exploring how our brains manage energy, creativity, and memory. While fresh brains are undoubtedly faster and sharper, youth doesn’t always guarantee first place: older brains may be better when it comes to cognitive performance.

As they sift through the fast-firing neurons of neuro-plasticity, they come across the unexpected origins of mental fatigue, while Matt peeks inside Rich’s head to try and unpick the origins of creativity and original thinking.

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On this episode of Resource Center, we speak with Dr. Prashun Kumar Choudhury from MindBeez Consulting to discuss the multifaceted landscape of career guidance in Malaysia.

We delve into the evolution of career guidance in the nation, particularly against the backdrop of Malaysia's transition towards more technology, finance, and healthcare-driven industries.

In the face of a rapidly changing job market, we also discuss the challenges students face in charting their educational and career paths, and the roles that holistic education and career guidance play in fostering lifelong career development, and addressing common misconceptions surrounding career guidance.

Last but not least, our discussion also covers the initiatives in Malaysia aimed at providing individuals from diverse and marginalised backgrounds with access to quality education and career guidance, as well as future trends in this field, especially with the advent of AI and technical innovations.

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Malaysia is rapidly emerging as a key digital hub in the ASEAN region, with its thriving data centre ecosystem, thanks to its strategic geographic location, political stability, and government initiatives aimed at boosting the digital economy. Ranked 22nd globally and 2nd in ASEAN by the Arcadis Data Centre Location Index 2021, Malaysia attracts global cloud service providers like AWS, Microsoft, and Google.

Another tech giant that’s been attracted to Malaysia and in expanding its footprint in Southeast Asia, is Equinix, a global player in data centre, digital infrastructure and colocation services.

In this episode, we speak to Cheam Tat Inn, the Managing Director of Equinix Malaysia, on the company’s foray into the country, how it aligns with our national agenda, and key trends that will be shaping the future of digital services in the region.

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Today, we will delve into the world of corporate innovation programs, specifically hackathons and how they can help businesses with their product innovation, talent acquisition, and acquiring market insights with Inbaraj Suppiah, Founder of JomHack Malaysia. JomHack Malaysia organizes hackathons and other corporate innovation programs nationwide.

From fostering product innovation to nurturing talent and acquiring market insights, we start by breaking down the essence of hackathons and corporate innovation programs, dissecting what makes a program successful, the various advantages that hackathons offer businesses, and identifying common pitfalls to avoid.

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Raising funding can be very powerful for startups as they grow, but if structured badly, this can end up being a ‘poison pill’ and kill your startups ability to grow by limiting how large a startup can possibly get. In short, making your startup “uninvestable"

Kevin Brockland, Founder & Managing Partner of Indelible Ventures, helps breakdown why founders need to be careful about how equity they give up when raising funds, how to rectify this and optimize your investor base (and investment terms), and other common mistakes founders make when raising funds.

Kevin also explains the typical equity amounts that are given up during the different stages of the fundraising journey and how much is too much at different points, how SAFEs (Simple Agreement for Future Equity) can impact your ability to raise funds in the future, the consequences of excessive dilution for founders (including losing control of your company), and advice for first-time founders.

Image Credit: Shutterstock

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It’s tax season, so today in Resource Centre instead of focusing on the needs of businesses you run, manage, or work in, we’re focusing on you and breaking down the common mistakes that C-Suites, managers, and high-paid employees make when it comes to personal income taxes, the risk of audits, and how to optimise your tax bill.

Helping us with this is Poovarni Rajagopal, Partner at Invatex Consulting.

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