Startup Dhaka Incubator has officially set sail with its first session being held on the 4th of April 2019. The intensive 3-month long program has commenced with the first batch of 11 early-stage startups. Supported by Shohoz, Facebook, Amazon Web Services, Edge Research and Consulting, and the University of Liberal Arts, the program will be providing the teams with a scholarship of BDT 20,000 from Shohoz, while the remaining cost of BDT 30,000 will be incurred by the teams. The teams are additionally getting office space and grants option from Startup Bangladesh, FbStart package from Facebook, AWS credit from Amazon, investment counseling from fund managers of IDLC VC fund, investment linkage and exclusive fundraising mentorship from Edge Research & Consulting, and the chance to be featured in Tiger Cage, the country’s first Startup Funding reality show.

The star teams of the program are Travel Bangladesh, Mindo, Adroit Solar Limited, Akash, Minimal Furniture, BD Parlors, Dorji-e, Gulistan Online, PickEdu, Adama Robotics, and CGPA Matters. Akash wants to work with rural agriculture by providing micro-insurance to farmers, vulnerable to natural calamities. CGPA matters is a platform for students to connect over academia, industry relevant dialogues and blogs, that provides them with resources to compliment the education system in making impactful academic and professional decisions. Mindo is a first-of-its kind medical platform that promotes mental awareness, catering to those who need psychological counseling. Their moto is “moner kotha”. Minimal Furniture is an online shop for customised furniture production. They’ve been operational for almost two years now and are working to go international. Travel Bangladesh is one of the top travel information sites in Bangladesh that also provides content, video-making, digital marketing, IT, PR and corporate consultancy services to travel companies. BD Parlors is a one-stop shop for all kinds of salon and parlor services, catering convenience to customers at all socioeconomic strata. PickEdu is a peer-to-peer education platform that connects students to their nearest tutors on demand. They’re currently focusing on university students who struggle because of coming from divergent educational backgrounds. Gulistan Online is a marketplace for wholesale goods. Procuring wholesale goods is a great hassle at this moment. The business is also highly centralised within a few major cities and locations. Gulistan Online wants to change this and make wholesale products accessible to everyone. You can find, compare and contact the best wholesalers to get the best possible deals. Dorji-e is a digitised tailoring system, where consumers can choose sizes, specifications and tailors from an aggregated app and avoid the hassle of physically going to the tailor. The best part is that it’s all automated and digitised. Even the dress patterns are in-built within the app so that there is no scope for confusion. Adama Robotics produces easy-to-use robotics kits, applications and courses for young learners to give them creativity, problem-solving and STEM technical skills to better equip them for the future. Adroit Solar Limited aims to install and commission industrial solar systems on roof-tops, which will reduce the electricity bill of the industry to zero.