Ecosystem Stories: 917Ventures on Building and Scaling Ventures in the Philippines

The Filipino Startup Ecosystem Map by StellarPH shows the bigger picture, but behind every node are real people shaping how innovation actually happens.

This time, we sat down with Natasha Dawn Bautista, Head of Startup Programs & Ecosystem at 917Ventures, to talk about corporate venture building, scaling challenges, and what it really takes to turn ideas into operating companies in the Philippines.

Who is 917Ventures?

StellarPH: For readers who may not be familiar, how would you describe what 917Ventures does?

Natasha: We are Globe’s corporate venture builder. We ideate, launch, accelerate, and scale new businesses, either by building ventures from the ground up or partnering with startups and plugging them into the Group. The goal is to turn real opportunities into operating companies.

What venture building actually looks like

StellarPH: Venture building is often mentioned alongside accelerators and VCs. How is it different in practice?

Natasha: An accelerator takes existing startups and helps them grow faster. A VC writes checks and hopes for the best. We do something different. We are hands-on from the start. We build ventures from ideation, operate them, and scale them.

Historically, we have built companies like GCash and Brave Connective. More recently, through Velocity, we also partner with startups and help them access the Globe ecosystem. So we now operate on both sides, building and partnering depending on the opportunity.

Why build instead of just invest?

StellarPH: Why did Globe decide to build ventures instead of focusing only on investing or partnerships?

Natasha: Globe actually does both. Kickstart Ventures focuses on investing, while 917Ventures focuses on building. We get involved from ideation, shape the product, and drive the business forward ourselves.

With Velocity, we also added a way to bring startups into the Group as enterprise partners. So the model now is invest, build, and accelerate.

The reality of corporate innovation in the Philippines

We asked Natasha how corporate innovation is actually evolving in the Philippines.

StellarPH: From your perspective, what has improved locally, and what still needs work?

Natasha: What’s real is that more companies are allocating budget to innovation and more talent is willing to work on new ideas inside large organizations.

What’s still mostly talk is genuine risk tolerance. A lot of companies will experiment, but the moment something needs real commitment or starts affecting existing business lines, it tends to stall.

Where opportunities are emerging

StellarPH: Where do you see the most value being created in the next few years?

Natasha: There are clear opportunities in areas where demand is already there but the infrastructure is still catching up.

From what we’re seeing, spaces like the pet industry and developer infrastructure are interesting. Beyond that, fintech, healthcare, logistics, and enterprise solutions still have a lot of room to grow.

The common thread is pretty simple. You have large underserved markets, behavior that’s already shifting digitally, and not much incumbent lock-in. That’s where real value gets built.

Why some ventures scale and others do not

From her experience working closely with ventures, Natasha pointed out that success is rarely about the idea alone.

StellarPH: What separates ventures that actually gain traction from those that stay as ideas?

Natasha: Customer obsession is a big one. The best teams keep going back to real users, even when there’s pressure coming from different directions.

Second is execution. Teams need to be operators, not just ideators. They need to build, sell, and push through the messy parts of the journey.

Third is commercial instinct. The teams that succeed think about revenue early and understand how the business actually works.

And then there’s speed. The ventures that break through move fast, iterate on real feedback, and don’t wait for everything to be perfect. Speed is a choice.

The biggest gap in the ecosystem today

StellarPH: What do you think is still missing in the Philippine startup ecosystem?

Natasha: The biggest gap I see right now is the bridge from experimentation to scale.

We have strong founders and more early-stage activity, but startups still struggle to move into real revenue and enterprise adoption.

Getting into large corporations is not easy. Sales cycles are long, org structures are complex, and most startups don’t have the relationships or bandwidth to navigate that. That’s a big part of why we built Velocity, to help them get in the door and actually move toward real outcomes.

Growth-stage capital is also still a gap. Once companies are ready to scale, the local support isn’t always there.

Making collaboration actually work

We then asked Natasha what makes collaboration actually work between corporates and startups.

StellarPH: How can corporates, startups, and ecosystem builders work together in a way that leads to real outcomes?

Natasha: It starts with aligned incentives. If the corporate doesn’t have skin in the game and the startup isn’t set up to win commercially, nothing really moves forward.

You also need clear ownership and dedicated teams. Not people doing innovation on the side, but teams whose main focus is to make these partnerships work.

The collaborations that succeed are very specific. There’s a clear problem, a real decision-maker, and a defined timeline.

We need less generic events and more focused matchmaking. The right people, the right context, and a clear follow-through.

Looking ahead

StellarPH: What excites you most about the future of venture building in the Philippines?

Natasha: What excites me is the opportunity to build companies that are actually useful, commercially viable, and built for this market.

The talent is here. More people who have worked in tech are choosing to build locally, and with tools like AI, smaller teams can move faster than before.

For us, it’s not just about creating startups. It’s about building ventures that can scale and last.

Conversations like this are a reminder that the ecosystem is not just made up of startups or funding rounds. It is shaped by people, by partnerships, and by how well different players work together to move ideas forward.

At StellarPH, these are the connections we continue to build. Bringing founders, corporates, and ecosystem leaders into the same space, with a shared goal of turning innovation into real, scalable businesses.

And we are just getting started!

Check out our overview of the Philippine startup ecosystem here:
https://stellarph.io/ecosystem

It gives a clear snapshot of all the key players, programs, and organizations shaping the startup landscape in the Philippines.