April 30, 2026

The culture of startup entrepreneurship has surged in popularity in recent decades, attracting significant venture capital and fostering innovation. Singapore is no exception, ranking eighth in the latest global startup ecosystem rankings and serving as home to over 4,500 startups. Amidst this landscape, the term ‘zombie startups’ refers to firms that neither grow into high-value companies nor fold but persevere through low-interest loans and government subsidies. Although dominant business discourses dismiss them as failures or misguided ventures, Associate Professor Emily Chua (NUS Sociology and Anthropology) offers a different perspective in ‘Zombie Startups: Time, Labour, and Value in Singapore’s Innovative Entrepreneurship “Ecosystem”’ (Ethnos, 2024).

Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork with Singaporean startup founders, Chua examines how zombie startups persist in their often speculative pursuit of success. She argues that this persistence is facilitated and even encouraged by the unique ‘timescape’ of the startup ecosystem, which is characterised by the interplay between the ‘time of investment’, a linear progression aimed at achieving greater profits and valuation, and the ‘time of speculation’, a nonlinear trajectory where a company’s fortunes can shift unexpectedly.

Chua emphasises how startup founders often tie their identities to their ventures, with cultural narratives celebrating persistence. Founders like Marcus from TaskMe — a local startup that connects hotels and restaurants with casual workers for shift staffing — exemplify this perseverance. Operating unprofitably for five years, Marcus embodies the belief that dedication and hard work can eventually lead to success, despite limited investments and repeated rejections from venture capitalists despite limited investments and repeated rejections from venture capitalists. Chua argues that these zombie startups are not resource drains, but rather play a positive role in the startup ecosystem. Their perseverance fosters a sense of possibility, encouraging other entrepreneurs to do the same and contributing to an environment where innovation and risk-taking thrive. The effort and optimism of zombie founders help sustain the sector’s vitality.

Chua therefore calls for a shift in how setbacks are perceived in entrepreneurship. Instead of viewing them as failures, they should be seen as valuable learning experiences that open the door to future opportunities, reflecting the inherent uncertainties of the entrepreneurial journey in a small city-state like Singapore. Singapore illustrates how, in spite of the cruel optimism embedded in global startup culture, it aligns with national interests as governments pursue new drivers of economic growth. Supporting zombie startups may therefore be a calculated strategy to foster long-term innovation and development.

Read the article here.