At the Singapore FinTech Festival 2025, Globe President and CEO Carl Cruz highlighted how the company is transforming collaboration between enterprises and startups. In a fireside chat on The Founders Peak stage, moderated by Navin Suri, Managing Director for Financial Services, Asia-Pacific at Accenture, Cruz emphasized a shift away from transactional “vendor-client” relationships toward co-creative partnerships that solve real operational challenges while advancing shared purpose.
Startups at the heart of innovation
Globe actively seeks startups that can integrate into its ecosystem to tackle sectorwide challenges in telecommunications, fintech, health, and digital services. “Globe readily acknowledges opportunities to strengthen capabilities and then pivot when the need arises,” Cruz said, highlighting 917Ventures Velocity, which offers startups enterprise-scale testing environments, and Kickstart Ventures, which provides capital and strategic integration. These platforms show Globe’s commitment not just financially but structurally to the Philippines’ innovation pipeline.
Trust and accountability first
Partnerships with Globe require enterprise-grade responsibility, particularly around data governance. Cruz stressed that startups must demonstrate scalability, integration mindset, agility, and accountability. Those who ask intelligent questions and understand operational constraints are far more likely to succeed, especially when navigating legacy frameworks.
AI with real-world grounding
AI dominated the discussion. Globe, among Southeast Asia’s first companies to appoint a Chief AI Officer, Anton Bonifacio, is democratizing AI access across employees. Cruz cautioned startups against chasing AI hype without grasping enterprise realities, advising founders to “probe, listen, and co-diagnose problems rather than just pitch features.”
Avoiding common pitfalls
A recurring issue in partnerships, Cruz noted, is startups offering solutions without fully understanding enterprise pain points or legacy limitations. “Breakdowns often arise from insufficient listening, not bad intent,” he said. Startups with strategic curiosity, rather than blind confidence, are far better positioned to co-create, scale, and build proof-of-concepts with Globe.
Purpose beyond technology
Looking to 2030, Cruz anchored his philosophy in corporate purpose. “Technology will shift, markets will pivot, and sectors will cycle, but purpose, when deeply rooted, outlasts disruption.” For Globe, this means uplifting Filipinos through digital access, inclusion, education, and economic empowerment.
Cruz concluded that Globe seeks startup partners who help the company grow commercially while also serving as a responsible corporate citizen and contributor to national development.