ASCENT podcast is your in-depth look at the fastest-growing Asian businesses. We deliver exclusive, deep-dive research into the strategies, struggles, and secrets to success of Asia's top market leaders and tech companies. Whether you're an investor, founder, or just curious, this is your backstage pass to the business revolution happening in Asia and beyond.
Host [Host Name] interviews Dr. TAO Ye, founder of Bambu Lab, exploring the company's rapid rise in 3D printing through innovative engineering and market disruption.
28 Jun 2026TRANSCRIPT
miHoYo (Creator of Genshin Impact)
ASCENT host explores how "Tech Otakus Save the World" founders CAI Haoyu, LIU Wei, and LUO Yuhao built miHoYo into a gaming empire.
1 May 2026TRANSCRIPT
CATL
How did a kid from a small mountain village in Fujian end up building the company that powers one in every three electric vehicles on the planet? This episode explores the rise of CATL (aka the “TSMC of batteries”) and its founder, Robin Zeng.
It begins with CATL’s predecessor, ATL, and a risky $1 million bet on a flawed battery patent that nearly destroyed the company — until it unexpectedly led to a breakthrough deal supplying Apple iPods.
CATL was later spun out amid government policy shifts and EV subsidies, and scaled into the world’s largest battery maker in just six years. Its first major test came with BMW, where passing an 800-page technical audit proved it could meet strict automotive standards—unlocking global partnerships.
Today, CATL continues to push its limits, expanding into grid-scale energy storage, aviation batteries, and next-generation technologies like sodium-ion and solid-state systems to stay ahead in the global energy race.
👉 Subscribe & Follow: ASCENT Podcast on Substack (https://ascentpodcast.substack.com/)
📖 Episode Chapters
00:00:00 The Battery Giant You’ve Never Heard Of
00:02:30 Robin Zeng’s Origins and Early Career at TDK
00:06:26 Robin’s Mentorship Trio and the Birth of ATL
00:18:27 The $1 Million Gamble: Surviving the Bell Labs Patent Crisis
00:25:09 Path Back to the Old Employer TDK
00:35:18 Early Signs of EV’s Rise and the Scientist Who Saw the Future
00:42:42 Birth of CATL: A Spin-off Out of Necessity
00:54:57 The BMW Trial: Decoding the 800-Page German Blueprint
01:00:20 China’s Underdog Strategy: Start With Buses and LFP
01:07:11 CATL’s Breakout Era: Higher Standards, Industry Consolidation and Tesla Deal
01:22:22 The Battery King: Market Dominance and Leverage Over Automakers
01:35:27 Europe’s Failed Attempt at Creating Its Own CATL: Northvolt
01:41:50 Final Thoughts: Why We Think CATL Ascended
11 Mar 2026TRANSCRIPT
Nestlé, Starbucks, and Yunnan Coffee
ASCENT host traces 150 years of Chinese coffee history, revealing how Yunnan's beans fuel global giants and birth domestic brands, offering insights into industrial scale versus boutique ambition.
31 Jan 2026TRANSCRIPT
Manus AI
This episode examines the rapid ascent of Manus AI, from its launch to its acquisition by Meta, focusing on its innovative AI agent technology and the strategic decisions of co-founders Red XIAO, Peak JI, and Tao ZHANG.
31 Dec 2025TRANSCRIPT
Holiday Special
What a year it's been! To all our amazing listeners, thank you for joining us on this wild ride through 2025. Ever wonder who else is tuning into ASCENT with you? Or what company totally blew Linda & Pan away this year? We've got all that and more packed into our special holiday episode!
Building ASCENT has been an incredible journey, and your support has been the fuel. We couldn't have done it without you.
Now, we're gearing up for Season 2, and we want YOU to help us make it epic. Hit the link in our show notes to fill out the form to help us shape Season 2 of ASCENT!
Happy holidays, everyone! Let's get into the show.
🙋 Help shape Season 2 of ASCENT! 2-Minute Form Here (https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfkFPKhngw9_paBoyUf4JVded73_Xdud0o69xc4Sah-mDlTpg/viewform?usp=dialog)
👉 Subscribe & Follow: ASCENT Podcast on Substack (https://ascentpodcast.substack.com/)
📖 Episode Chapters
00:01:01 Seven Companies of 2025: Insta360, DeepSeek, Red Bull, Xiaomi EV, Pop Mart, Game Science, ANTA
00:04:51 Numbers Reveal! Where are Our Listeners - Top Cities & Top Countries
00:13:56 “Company of the Year” - Linda’s Pick & Pan’s Pick
00:24:48 “Things That Should’ve Been Included in the Episodes But Oops We Forgot” - Linda’s Pick & Pan’s Pick
5 Dec 2025TRANSCRIPT
ANTA (The Owner of Arc'teryx)
Host [Host Name] interviews Anta Sports owner Ding Shizhong about Anta's rise to become the third-largest sportswear brand through strategic acquisitions and pivots.
1 Nov 2025TRANSCRIPT
Game Science (Creator of Black Myth: Wukong)
Host interviews Game Science CEO Feng Ji and artist Yang Qi about their journey creating the global hit Black Myth: Wukong, revealing their creative philosophy and risks.
26 Sept 2025TRANSCRIPT
Pop Mart (Maker of Labubu)
Host [Host Name] interviews Pop Mart founder Wang Ning about the company's journey from a small shop to a global blind-box phenomenon.
15 Aug 2025TRANSCRIPT
Xiaomi EV
Host [Host Name] explores Xiaomi's surprising entry into the EV market, revealing how the tech giant rapidly innovates stunning electric vehicles.
9 Jul 2025
Red Bull
Host [Host Name] interviews [Guest Name] about Red Bull's surprising Asian origins and its innovative marketing strategy that built a global brand.
10 Jun 2025
DeepSeek (and before it's DeepSeek)
LIANG Wenfeng's transition from quant trading to founding DeepSeek reveals how his unique background allowed him to compete with LLM giants, innovating under constraints to shape China's AI landscape.
30 Apr 2025
Insta360
Welcome to Season 1 of the ASCENT podcast!
What if I told you a new titan is rising in the action camera arena—one poised to dethrone GoPro as the world’s fastest-growing brand?
What if this company isn’t just winning over users with sleek hardware, but dominating through relentless software innovation?
What if its founder—a once-rebellious software engineer—brought the company to a seismic IPO approval only 5 years after its establishment (well, it took another 5 years for that IPO to be approved, but still!)?
And what if that founder, JK Liu, is now among the youngest CEOs to lead a publicly listed tech disruptor?
Meet Insta360: the 360-camera leader commanding the largest market share (No.1 in 360 degree photography), now storming the sports/action scene with ambitions to redefine the industry. More than a camera company, Insta360 has forged an entirely new creative frontier. Its technology liberates creators: shoot first, frame later. Imagine capturing life’s chaos without fixating on angles—Insta360 lets you re-center the story in post-production, turning raw footage into cinematic gold.
Behind this revolution is JK Liu—a visionary software engineer.
He's a genius? Fusing world-class product design with viral storytelling and strategic partnerships. Insta360 evolves at warp speed, blending cutting-edge tech with an almost cult-like community.
The result? A brand not just following trends, but scripting the future of content creation.
Tune in to Insta360’s story!
00:00 Intro
02:50 The journey of JK Liu
05:57 Early ventures of JK
09:02 The birth of Insta360
11:58 Identifying opportunities in the market
14:54 Product development: from Nano to Insta360 One
18:06 The evolution of Insta360: key products and innovations
39:51 GoPro vs. Insta360: a tale of two strategies
44:03 The importance of focusing on the global market
49:49 Strategic partnerships is the key to Insta360's success
56:11 Innovative marketing and brand ambassadors
01:01:48 Navigating IPO challenges
01:05:05 Our reviews of the key success factors
Inside a recent episode
Bambu Lab (MakerWorld)
Published 21 Aug 2026 · Transcript excerpt
[…] And it was developed fully in 1986 by Carl Deckard and Joseph Beeman at UT Austin. And later on, that eventually became metal 3D printing. You can use various powders to consolidate that final printing product. And the military's interest specifically was to drive the logistics down. You're printing spare parts on demand near the battlefield instead of stockpiling and shipping them, which makes sense. And also remember, this goes back to the Cold War era. So that's why it was needed. And how it works is laser selectively fuses or centers. It's like heating, but not fully melts the fine powder. and it could be plastic, it could be metal, layer by layer inside of a heated powder bed. […]
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