Panel discussion at the launch of Microsoft for Startups Founders Hub in Bangladesh. The discussants included (from left) Partner Technology Strategist at Microsoft Jannatul Fardous Popy (moderator), Project Director of IDEA Md Altaf Hossain, Founder of Intelligent Machines Limited Mohammad Oli Ahad and Co-founder and Lead at CommsEngine Hadi Bhuiyan.
DHAKA, Bangladesh, 12 August 2022 – Microsoft has launched Microsoft for Startups Founders Hub in Bangladesh, continuing its mission to fuel innovation among ambitious startups in Asia who are eager to make their mark on the global stage.
Microsoft for Startups Founder’s Hub is a new and truly borderless platform tailored to empower the ambitions of startup founders, offering them resources to help them turn their ideas into reality. With more than $300,000 worth of benefits available for startups, the Founders Hub platform caters to anyone with a dream, no funding required.
Startups will have access to technology tools, including secure cloud platforms such as Azure, as well as staples of a developer’s toolbox like Microsoft 365, GitHub Enterprise and Visual Studio Enterprise. In addition to technological support, Microsoft for Startups Founders Hub fulfils its mission of empowerment through personalized mentorship, available through hundreds of mentors, who can offer advice at every step of the startup journey. Founders will have guidance on how to achieve both their business and technical aspirations, showcasing the platform’s flexible approach to startup acceleration.
In addition to connecting founders with industry veterans, Microsoft for Startups Founders Hub will also provide access to Microsoft Learn and a variety of startup and unicorn programs to help new businesses build connections with customers and fast-track their growth.
Innovation from Bangladesh to the world stage
As the 37th largest economy in the world, Bangladesh has made its mark as a hub of innovation. It has a booming business sector and a tech-savvy population. Bangladeshi startups have raised $727 million in investments since 2013 in areas such as fintech, logistics and mobility, e-commerce and retail.
The country’s accelerated pace of startup investment, coupled with its tech-savvy digital entrepreneurs, has given Bangladesh a thriving startup ecosystem. Microsoft is committed to serve as a trusted partner, enabling local startups to bring their ideas into fruition on the global stage.
“Microsoft for Startups Founders Hub, a founder-first program designed to meet unique needs, is a timely addition to the Bangladeshi startup ecosystem, especially with its aim of broadening avenues of access to founders. With an environment and a community that facilitates rapid digitization and adaptation of new technology, local startups have the capacity to drive social transformation across all cross-sections of society,” said Yousup Faruqu, managing director for Microsoft Bangladesh. “We look forward to working together with homegrown startups to unlock innovation and help them reach international heights.”
Empowering Bangladesh’s startup ecosystem
Microsoft for Startups Founders Hub doesn’t require proof of funding or affiliation with a VC, accelerator or incubator. For this reason, it paves the way for enthusiastic founders in Bangladesh to enter the program on the strength of their ideas and aspirations alone. In keeping with Microsoft’s mission to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more, founders are given room to grow with Microsoft, regardless of their background, location, progress or passions.
Our goal of driving essential technology and knowledge support for Bangladesh’s 1.5 million-strong startup labor force is strongly aligned with Microsoft’s investment into local communities. The Microsoft for Startups Founders Hub facilitates connections with engineering experts from Microsoft as well as other startups at Microsoft Reactors across the globe. Enabling Bangladeshi startups to have access to Microsoft’s partner ecosystem to launch themselves through a global distribution channel makes this a unique opportunity for budding startups in the country.
Microsoft for Startups Founders Hub is part of a broader commitment to enabling the growth of startups in Bangladesh and empowering them to leverage Microsoft technologies to take on Asia and the world. Exemplifying its longstanding commitment to fostering Bangladesh’s startup ecosystem, Microsoft Asia and global startup platform She Loves Tech recently announced a multi-year partnership in Bangladesh to support women-led startups in the community through Microsoft technologies, a global network, and support from fellow female founders.
About Microsoft
Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT” @microsoft) enables digital transformation for the era of an intelligent cloud and an intelligent edge. Its mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more.
For more information, please contact:
| Microsoft SEA New Markets Thilanka Abeywardena [email protected] |
ForethoughtPR Sayem F Haider [email protected] |
