Startup Bangladesh Limited (SBL), the government-backed venture capital arm of the ICT Division, has announced a strategic investment in Shikho, an EdTech startup, in a move aimed at accelerating the adoption of AI-driven learning tools across Bangladesh on May 7.

Shikho, a Bangladesh-based edtech company, has recently introduced a beta version of Shikho AI, an artificial intelligence tool aimed at addressing educational gaps for Bangla-speaking students.

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.

Shahir Chowdhury has been selected as one of the Bloomberg's Class of 2023 New Economy Catalysts

Shikho has raised US $6.5 million to date, the most by any edtech startup in the country.

With so many events taking place throughout 2022, we can hope that the coming year will provide more opportunities for the local startups to flourish further in the grand scheme of things.

With promising startups, founded by some of the brightest minds of the generation, Bangladesh has been on a rocket ship to gain its own recognition on international startup platforms. With its state-of-the-art technology and foresight, the Bangladeshi edtech startup has found its place on the “Forbes Asia 100 to watch 2022” list.