Shah Rafayat Chowdhury, co-founder of the social venture organisation Footsteps, has been selected as one of the 38 young leaders to join the Asia 21 Next Generation Fellows for 2024.

Two Bangladeshi startups - Tiger New Energy, a company offering battery-swapping technology for electric vehicles (EV), and iFarmer, an agritech platform - has recently made it to the Forbes Asia's 100 to Watch list for 2024.

Shahir Chowdhury, the founder and CEO of the Bangladeshi edtech startup Shikho, recently stated in a Facebook post that his company had been blacklisted from receiving government funding. According to Chowdhury, Shikho was close to securing an investment, which included BDT 5 crore from Startup Bangladesh Limited (SBL) as part of a larger USD 1.5 million funding round. However, SBL abruptly withdrew its support just before the agreement was to be signed, citing political reasons.

The startup landscape in Bangladesh is undergoing rapid transformation, spurred by significant inflows of international investments and the innovative prowess of local entrepreneurs. This growth is evident across various sectors, with mobile financial services and tech-based startups leading the charge.

The commencement of 'Bangladesh Startup Summit 2024' was officially announced today at a press conference held at the Bangladesh Computer Council Auditorium in Dhaka. Scheduled for July 27-28, this year’s summit is themed 'Smart Bangladesh: Endless Possibilities'. 

With a recent market valuation of over $1 trillion, the Taiwanese semiconductor manufacturer TSMC has cemented itself as the most valuable company in Asia. This achievement takes place after a strong second-quarter revenue from the company, thanks to the ongoing boom of AI chips.

Microsoft has decided to leave its board observer seat at OpenAI, a position that has attracted regulatory scrutiny in both the United States and Europe. The company stated that this move was prompted by significant improvements in OpenAI's governance over the past eight months, rendering the observer seat unnecessary.

TSMC, the Taiwan-based multinational semiconductor company, briefly reached a valuation of $1 trillion recently. At the time of writing, the company's market capitalisation stands at $967.87 billion, but experts believe the number will rise again soon due to the ongoing boom in AI chips' market demands. Meanwhile, here are five things you should know about this Taiwanese chip manufacturer.

Tiger New Energy, a Bangladesh based startup established in 2021, has secured an additional USD 1 million in funding from ADB Ventures following Tiger's USD 2.5 million seed round led by Wavemaker Partners last year, propelling the rollout of its battery swapping technology across Bangladesh. Md. Ismail Hossain, Manager, Brand & Marketing of Tiger New Energy confirmed the funding to The Daily Star.

GrayMatter Robotics, co-founded by BUET graduate Ariyan Kabir, has raised USD 45 million in Series B funding led by Wellington Management, a Boston-based investment firm.

Shark Tank Bangladesh aired a special cricket-themed episode over the weekend, showcasing four sports-related businesses. The episode also had the Minister of State for Posts, Telecommunications and Information Technology, Zunaid Ahmed Palak as a guest shark.

iFarmer, a Bangladesh-based agri-tech startup, has been selected for Visa's Accelerator Program in Asia Pacific for 2024. According to a press release, the other selected startups were from Hong Kong SAR, Singapore, the United States, and Vietnam.

Bangladesh has ascended 6 places to rank 83rd in the recently published 'Global Startup Ecosystem Index 2024' report by StartupBlink, a global startup map and research centre. In the report, Dhaka also climbed 71 spots to secure the 140th position among top 1,000 listed cities. Dhaka was also ranked 7th in South Asia for the Agtech industry.

Elevate, a fintech startup based in London and Dubai, has secured an investment of $5 million aimed at expanding its presence in South Asian markets, including Bangladesh. The startup offers a simplified method for receiving USD payments from international employers and platforms such as Upwork, Fiverr, Paypal, Deel, and Toptal.

ShareTrip is partnering with the Malaysian Health Tourism Council (MHTC) to offer Bangladeshi patients medical tourism services in Malaysia. According to a press release, this partnership aims to provide patients with healthcare facilities, specialised treatments, and wellness programs at affordable rates.

AamarPay, an online payment gateway company in Bangladesh, has introduced a new fintech super app. The announcement was made at an event held at the BASIS Auditorium in BDBL Bhawan, Kawran Bazar, Dhaka, on Saturday.

Elon Musk's AI startup, xAI, has recently raised $6 billion in Series B funding, culminating in a total post-money valuation of $24 billion, according to the company. 

Security is one of the major aspects in our life that we think about on a daily basis. In today's environment, cyber risks are just as significant as physical ones. The demand for cybersecurity, a word used to describe defence against threats related to the internet, has grown dramatically as society becomes increasingly digitally oriented.

SBK funds Bangladeshi tech startups only; their minimum ticket size is USD $ 1 million per startup. 

Bangladeshi edtech startup Interactive Cares has been awarded a $100,000 grant from Open Campus Accelerator, an international accelerator program focused on edtech companies.