"And we would love to at least squeeze half of that into just one workspace, and that workspace contains sketch, 2D, 3D, video, drawings et cetera. So the premise is also not that we are against any company, but because we orchestrate more than 60 plus frontier and custom-trained models." - Goh Yiping
"Because design has always been a communication opportunity or problem to solve. The more you can communicate what is in your mind the faster you get to a decision." - Goh Yiping
"But there were enough signals that the growth is actually very fast. Within 4-5 weeks of that public beta, we rapidly scaled to about 4K registered users. Then they're asking really good questions. And they also ask, "What does this mean for me now as an architect?"" - Goh Yiping
Goh Yiping, co-founder and CEO of Formas.ai, traces her path from startup founder and venture capitalist to McKinsey partner, then to an executive role at immersive entertainment company NEON, and explains how each stage taught her to scale and think at an institutional level. She then explains the family decision to found Formas.ai with her husband Carlos: an AI-native design workspace, billed as the “Figma of architecture,” that aims to cut seven weeks of rendering work to two days. She closes on risk, courage, and why she chose to drive AI rather than consume it.
Yiping Goh is the Co-Founder & CEO of FORMAS.AI, an AI Design and Agentic 3D Modelling Workspace for architecture, interior design, and the built environment. FORMAS.AI helps designers move from sketches, floor plans, references, notes, and spatial intent into visual design iterations, photorealistic renders, and connected design workflows with greater speed and control.
Under her leadership, FORMAS.AI was named the Global Winner of SuperAI Genesis 2026, strengthening its position as one of the emerging AI companies shaping the future of spatial design.
Yiping is an entrepreneur, operator, investor, and business builder with nearly two decades of experience across startups, venture capital, private equity, and corporate innovation in Asia. Prior to FORMAS.AI, she was a Partner at McKinsey & Company, where she worked across new business building, growth strategy, and private capital. She was also a Partner at Quest Ventures, one of Southeast Asia’s leading venture capital firms, backing and advising high-growth technology companies across the region.
Earlier in her career, Yiping co-founded and scaled ventures including All Deals Asia, and contributed to the growth of MatahariMall in Indonesia. She has been recognised as one of Singapore’s notable women in technology and entrepreneurship, named among Singapore’s 100 Women in Tech, awarded the NUS Outstanding Young Alumni Award, and featured in Harper’s Bazaar Singapore, Tatler Asia, and The Peak Singapore.
She also serves on the National University of Singapore Alumni Advisory Board and is an active voice on AI, venture building, and the transformation of design-led industries.
Yiping’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/yipinggoh/
FORMAS.AI: https://www.formas.ai/
00:00 Preview of the 5-to-10 tool problem for architects, the leap from a nine-year career, and the early user growth.
02:39 Why leave VC for McKinsey: In 2021, with capital at a peak, she sought a structured environment to learn how large organizations think at scale.
05:23 An outsider at McKinsey: Resistance as a non-career consultant, and what the firm taught her about top-down communication and 15-minute meetings.
11:37 Scaling at NEON: Change management at a growing company: SOPs, KPIs, and getting teams to adopt new ways of working.
13:24 Buy versus build: How her view of buying enterprise software versus building changed with AI coding tools, and why she favored low-cost trials.
17:10 The decision to found again: A year of discussion with her husband, the November 2025 launch, the user signals, and the response to her LinkedIn post.
26:57 The problem in architecture: Why 61% of architects want to leave the industry, and how fragmented, legacy tooling and long rendering hours contribute.
32:16 Beyond AI wrappers: How Formas differs from first-generation rendering apps, with data carried from sketch through to construction handover.
36:33 Working as a couple: How the Casa Julia side business and Carlos's AI design work led to co-founding Formas, and what they share in work ethic.
44:16 Risk, security and timing: Why no career path feels safe, how she measures security in years, and the case for driving AI rather than consuming it.
