This article first appeared in Digital Edge, The Edge Malaysia Weekly on November 25, 2024 - December 1, 2024

After years of navigating the fast-paced world of investment banking, Petrina Goh found herself struggling to strike a balance between numerous work trips and the demands of motherhood. The arrival of her first child marked a turning point. By the time her second child was born, she had first-hand experience of the challenges that mothers often face — especially when they have a demanding career.

Determined to make life easier for other mothers facing such struggles, Goh decided it was time to effect a change. In 2016, alongside her husband who took on the role of chief technology officer, she co-founded Nuren Group.

As its CEO, Goh is on a mission to build a tech company dedicated to empowering women and mothers. Today, Nuren Group operates in Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand, creating digital solutions to help women thrive in both their personal and professional lives.

In August, Nuren Group reached a major milestone in its journey, listing on the National Stock Exchange of Australia.

What began as an e-commerce marketplace has now grown into a one-stop hub for parents, providing a wide range of resources, from curated content and parenting advice to tailored products and services. Its portfolio includes platforms like Motherhood.com.my, Kelabmama.com, Ibuencer.com and the newly launched Motherhood Super app.

While the company’s focus is on supporting mothers, its mission extends to empowering all women.

According to Goh, this commitment is reflected within the group itself: The majority of its workforce comprises women, and the company culture is deeply rooted in fostering female empowerment at every level. This isn’t just about running a business, it’s about creating a community where women can thrive as employees and as users.

“We also want to create opportunities for women in tech, opportunities for stay-at-home mothers, creators and also business development to make sure [women’s] voices are being heard in society.”

Goh says the parenting tech industry is recession-proof. She sees an increasing demand for digital solutions that cater to a modern mother’s needs, and companies coming up with technology to meet that need.To stay aligned with this new wave, Goh says Nuren Group is coming out with an AI parent chatbot for its Motherhood Super app, which is in its second stage of development. The company is expecting to launch the app with full features when it passes the third stage next year.

“The AI-driven chat feature is designed to provide real-time information and support, as well as personalised recommendations. We want to be able to enhance mothers’ user experience on the app by helping them answer queries, suggest products and even provide parenting tips,” Goh explains.

The chatbot is supported by Nuren Group’s hospital partners, whose medical experts verify all its content. The data fed into the chatbot will be from closed-loop data that the company has accumulated from medical professionals and stay-at-home mothers for over eight years.

“Parents can expect an almost instant response even at 2am or 3am to help support their questions or worries about their child’s medical needs. For example, if their child vomits in the middle of the night, they can ask certain questions [to the chatbot].

“Of course, we still do recommend and have a disclaimer that they would need to see a proper doctor, but a parenting chatbot would help to a certain extent,” she says.

To test the reliability of the AI chatbot, Goh shares that focus groups with mothers are being held to observe the response and feedback, and to understand the scope of its intuitive features.

Nuren Group hired a separate team of engineers for the AI chatbot because of its highly technical nature. 

Goh says the company has invested about RM5 million in the new team for the chatbot, financed with grants from Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation and also funds from its recent IPO.

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