Hishab Technologies Limited, a startup focusing on telephony-driven conversational engines powered by generative AI has received an investment of BDT 2 crore from Startup Bangladesh Limited.

Seaqua, a Bangladeshi blue-tech startup, has raised USD six-figure foreign direct investment (FDI) from investors from the Middle East. Founded in 2022, Seaqua is a startup that aims to digitise Bangladesh's fisheries and aquaculture industry.

In 2023, the country's startup sector, known for its agility and forward-thinking approach, has seen remarkable growth and diversification. Here are the biggest startup headlines from 2023:

Startup Bangladesh Limited, the government-backed venture capital firm, has recently invested BDT 1 crore in Alice Labs, an AI-based sales and support platform for online businesses.

OpenAI, the company behind the popular chatbot ChatGPT, is planning on raising a new round of funding worth at least $100 billion, as per a recent report by Bloomberg News. 

Internet Society Bangladesh Chapter has elected a new executive committee for the term 2024-25. Mohammad Nadir Bin Ali, Registrar of Daffodil International University, was elected as President; and Md. Baraktul Alam, Head of Operations of Dour Broadband, was elected as General Secretary.

Seven Bangladeshi startups have been named in Holon IQ's 2023 list of top 100 edtech startups in South Asia: 10 Minute School, Apar's, Shikho, and Sohopathi for the 'tutoring and test prep' category; Science Bee and CodersTrust for the 'STEAM' category; and Edutechs in the 'Management Systems' category.

Wind.app, a fintech startup founded by Hussain Elius, former CEO and co-founder of the Bangladeshi ride-sharing platform Pathao, has recently received USD 3.8 million in pre-seed funding. 

Druto Fintech Limited, a Bangladeshi fintech startup, has recently secured USD 1,25,000 in a pre-seed funding round. The investment comes from both local and foreign backers such as Ridwan Hafiz, CEO of GoZayaan, and Razy Shah, co-founder of Singapore's 2Stallions Digital Marketing Agency, as well as other investors. 

Orange Corners, an initiative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands, has recently hosted its first-ever Investors Meet, jointly organised by the Embassy of the Netherlands in Bangladesh and SAJIDA Foundation.

Enterprise Infosec Consultants (EIC), a Bangladeshi cybersecurity service provider, has been selected to participate in the Stanford Seed Transformation Program. According to a press release, the program is recognised for its curriculum and insights sourced from the Stanford Graduate School of Business.

ShareTrip, an online travel agency in Bangladesh, has launched a new financial service called ST Pay (ShareTrip Pay). A new round of investment in ShareTrip from Startup Bangladesh was also announced alongside the new feature.

Interactive Cares, a Dhaka-based ed-tech startup, has $100,000 in funding from a seed round in the 9th cohort of Accelerating Asia's accelerator program.

Startup Bangladesh Limited, a government-backed venture capital firm, is set to inject Tk 100 crore into 46 selected startups, aiming to strengthen the country's startup ecosystem. Since its establishment in 2020, the company has actively approved investments totaling Tk 73.50 crore across 28 companies, dispersing Tk 64 crore. These investments span critical sectors such as healthtech, agritech, edtech, logistics, fintech, e-commerce, and renewable energy.

The internationally acclaimed business reality show, Shark Tank, has officially opened the doors to its Bangladeshi adaptation, inviting enterprising individuals from across the nation to participate in its first season.

Dark Kak, a Bangladeshi tech startup that works with Augmented Reality (AR) with the Internet of Things (IoT), has won an award for their upcoming project ‘Smart Jewellery’. The award, titled ‘Catalyzing Women’s Entrepreneurship Award’, was presented by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission of Asia and the Pacific (UN ESCAP) at the She Loves Tech 2023 conference held at the Fairmont Hotel in Singapore. Dark Kak was entitled to a 15,000 USD cash prize from UN ESCAP and She Loves Tech.

The local startup scene is experiencing notable downward shifts in funding trends, even as the global startup ecosystem indicates slight growth. On a global scale, startup investments have risen marginally by 7%, totalling a formidable USD 73 billion in the third quarter of this year. But funding in Bangladesh plummeted to a mere USD 4.0 million in Q3 2023, a drastic 77% decline in comparison to the same period last year. This trend was revealed in the recently released Bangladesh Startup Investment Report for Q3 2023 by LightCastle Partners.

Arogga, a local medicine delivery startup, has recently raised US$5.5 million seed in a funding round led by The Venture Collective, a US-based venture capital firm, with participation from other international investors. As per an official press release, the startup secured $4 million in new capital, building on the $1.5 million raised in the previous year.

The globally acclaimed business show, 'Shark Tank', which has aired in over 40 countries, is set to have a localised version in Bangladesh. Sony Pictures Entertainment and Bongo has inked a deal to introduce the popular reality show in the country with Robi on board as the 'Title Sponsor', supported by Startup Bangladesh as the 'Powered by' collaborator.

Pathao, the popular on-demand digital platform, has been chosen as one of the top 40 global technology firms that are outperforming their Western counterparts. The list was prepared by Rest of World, a New York-based tech-focused news publication founded by Sophie Schmidt, the daughter of former Google CEO Eric Schmidt.