As Bangladesh seeks to position itself as a hub for technology and innovation, events like the BASIS SoftExpo are crucial in bringing together industry players, policymakers, and investors to explore potential opportunities for collaboration and investment in the sector.
BASIS SoftExpo 2023, one of the largest IT events in Bangladesh, kicked off on February 23 with a wide range of activities and events that spanned four days. The event brought together IT enthusiasts, industry experts, government officials, and entrepreneurs to discuss and showcase the latest trends and developments in the IT industry.
The first day of the event started with the inauguration ceremony, followed by a series of seminars that covered various topics such as game publishing, the inclusion of women in the national IT sector, and policy dialogue on how the ICT sector can save foreign currencies and support new entrepreneurs in building investments and businesses in IT.
One of the highlights of the first day was the Freelancers Conference, which had three distinct sessions. The conference focused on global skill demand trends for freelancers, discovering new markets as well as expansion of innovations and strategies, as well as a discussion on how to build million-dollar freelancing agencies. Additionally, there was a roundtable on software testing and outsourcing and a seminar on the development targets to be achieved by 2023 under the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The Esports Championship 2023 was arguably the biggest attraction on the first day, attracting younger audiences and gaming enthusiasts. After a three-day long competition, Team Celestials became the champion of the first-ever women-only Esports Championship in Bangladesh, while Team Red Viperz won the CS:GO championship and Team Exceeli Esports became the winners in Valorant.
Speakers in a dialogue meeting concerned that without sufficient revenue in the growth stage, a startup will find it difficult to become profitable in the long run. This ever-popular argument of growth vs profitability in startups was the highlight of the Startup Conference session on Day 2 of BASIS SoftExpo 2023. Moderated by Shahriar Rahman, Editor, Toggle, The Daily Star, the lively debate session featured two teams, each representing growth and profitability and their respective importance in the development of startups. The growth team consisted of Sadia Hoque, Founder of ShareTrip, and Waseem Alim, CEO and Founder of Chaldal. The opposing team, defending profitability, was Fahim Mashroor, Founder of Bdjobs.com, and Biplob Ghosh Rahul, Founder & CEO of eCourier Ltd. The two teams talked about their respective factor - growth or profitability - what comes first in a startup and which factor deserves the most attention for any growing startup founder. Speakers said, Growth and profitability: two important factors for startups that vary based on the company stage of development. In the early stages, a startup will often prioritise growth over profitability to acquire new customers and advertise its product in a competitive market. As a startup gains traction and gains a foothold in the market, it will often choose to focus on profitability to cement itself as a top contender - investing more in marketing and product development. However, without sufficient revenue in the growth stage, a startup will find it difficult to become profitable in the long run. Consequently, without profits to drive business growth, even a fully-grown company will suffer and be doomed to fail. "Both locally and internationally, there have not been any startups that have been able to raise funds by not showing their existing growth," stated Sadia. "Investors will never define a startup based on profitability alone." According to her, it is important to see the extent of a startup vision in terms of growth - how much of the market and how many customers are being acquired.
Speakers in an event said that with over 1,200 active startups and $800 million in FDI increases over the last five years, the nation thrives in industries including fintech, logistics, and mobility. The startup ecosystem in Bangladesh has grown significantly, garnering FDI and developing into a powerhouse for innovation and entrepreneurship. Considering this, the Bangladesh Association of Software and Information Services (BASIS) recently organised the Startup Conference during its 4-day SoftExpo exhibition at the Big Tent, Bangabandhu Bangladesh-China Friendship Exhibition Center in Purbachal. During the inauguration of the Startup Conference, Sami Ahmed, Managing Director of Startup Bangladesh Limited, mentioned that they are looking at four technology areas to invest in: Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity, Semiconductors and Robotics. A brief presentation followed the inauguration declaration by Ivdad Ahmed Khan Mojlish, Co-Founder & Managing Director of Light castle partners. He spoke about the current situation of startups in Bangladesh and backed up the topics with facts and figures. He said that despite the global economic challenges, Bangladesh could be optimistic about its steady growth in the coming years. The discussion session on raising funds locally and globally. The showstopper of the Startup Conference came in the form of Ashneer Grover, Founder of BharatPe, as he had an intriguing fireside chat with Ayman Sadiq, Founder of 10 Minute School. The popular Shark Tank investor said it crucial to constantly innovate and be adaptable to stay ahead in the game. The Conference ended with a closing speech by Russell T. Ahmed, President of BASIS. He thanked everyone for their active participation and believed that the youth of the country will play a key role in establishing Smart Bangladesh by 2041.
ZTE Corporation,a global leading provider of information and communication technology solutions, has shared its insights with communication technology experts worldwide on the next-generation communication technology for developing smart Bangladesh vision at the “BASIS SOFT EXPO 2023”hosted by BASIS(Bangladesh Association of Software and Information Services) in Dhaka. This exhibition is organized under the title ‘BASIS SOFT EXPO2023’ and held from February 23 to February 26 at the Bangabandhu Bangladesh China Friendship Exhibition Centre. According to BASIS,300 exhibitors have participated in this exhibition, and more than one lakh visitors over the 4 days. During the event, Ma Liang,CTO of ZTE Bangladesh, delivered a speech on the ‘5G and loT Opportunities for BGD Telecom and software lndustry’ seminar of this event. Ma Liang will highlight the role of ZTE in the 12-year journey of Digital Bangladesh. At the same time, he highlighted various aspects of ZTE’s ability to provide the most advanced technology and the potential contribution of ZTE as a partner in building Smart Bangladesh. For 5G, technological innovation has continuously broken the ceiling, achieved more possibilities, and even prepared for unknown demands in the future We hope that the evolution of 5G will enable everyoneZTE and the whole society to meet their own development needs. ZTE will first ensure advanced 5G technology in the journey of Smart Bangladesh. At the same time, it will work with various educational institutions and government organizations for the purpose of creating suitable manpower in the field of data science and its other related areas such as artificial intelligence,loT, and machine learning. Through this,ZTE wants to play an active role in ensuring all kinds of smart services in Bangladesh including Smart Citizens, and Smart City.