Robert Tan is the co-founder of Cosmart, a tech company that aims to help people plan their household needs better, helping them save time, money, and mental space.

They raised a $5M seed round from leading global and regional investors like Lightspeed, East Ventures and Vertex in 2022.

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

I am building membership-driven commerce to offer good quality consumer goods at the lowest market price to help users save time and money on recurring expenses.

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

1) Spending 6-8 hours per week playing/training badminton (still got a long way to go, haha)

2) I find it very energizing whenever I manage to wake up at around 3 or 4 AM and start my work earlier than usual. That feeling when you see the sunrise while finishing some work — it's worth all the effort.

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

For me, it definitely revolves around co-founding my current startup, Cosmart. It is incredibly rewarding to see ideas that we had, hustling with the rest of the team to make this work and getting a huge amount of trust from our investors.

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

One trend I am closely watching this year is the rise of conversational AI and its applications in various industries.

I believe conversational AI technology like ChatGPT has the potential to revolutionize the way businesses interact with their customers, from customer service to sales and marketing.

(Yes, the answer to this specific question is generated by ChatGPT, haha.)

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

Practice conscious self-awareness — especially when you need to refresh and reset your mind.

Someone told me that being a founder is like signing up for a long-term rollercoaster ride. Yes, sometimes it's exciting (the high is higher)

But most of the time, it is undoubtedly challenging (the lows are definitely lower) — it's very crucial for us to be able to manage ourselves fully first.

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

The meaning and purpose of life.

🎥 What's your favorite movie/TV show?

GoT – and yes, I still cannot get over S8.

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

Can't say no to Blueberry and Raspberry ice cream!