Ulkasemi and AIUB Join Hands for Nation’s Premier Chip Design Hackathon
Record 106 Teams Participate as Bangladesh’s Largest VLSI Competition ‘VLSIthon 3.0’ Kicks Off
- Record participation of 210 contestants across 106 teams from over 30 universities
- Introduces 'Place and Route (PnR)' domain for the first time to reflect industry demands
- Total prize pool of BDT 200,000 announced for the winning teams
7 August, Friday: The country's premier chip design competition, 'VLSIthon 3.0', commenced today with an inaugural ceremony held at 10:00 AM at the American International University-Bangladesh (AIUB) campus in Dhaka.
This year's edition set a milestone in the national VLSI ecosystem, drawing 210 participants across 106 registered teams from over 30 universities—marking the highest-ever participation for a VLSI event in Bangladesh. Aligning with global semiconductor sector requirements, the competition introduced the "Place and Route (PnR)" category for the first time.
The competition is organized by Bangladesh’s pioneer semiconductor company Ulkasemi, in collaboration with the Ulkasemi VLSI Training Institute (UVTI) and supported by AIUB. AIUB Vice-Chancellor Professor Dr. Saiful Islam inaugurated the event as the Chief Guest, alongside Special Guest Mohammed Enayetur Rahman, CEO and President of Ulkasemi. Other notable attendees included Ulkasemi Chairman Dr. Arifa Chowdhury Rahman, AIUB Pro-Vice-Chancellor Professor Dr. Md. Abdur Rahman, Associate Professor Dr. Shahriar Masud Rizvi, and PC Builders Bangladesh founder Ananyo Zaman.
Highlighting the event's vision, Ulkasemi CEO Mohammed Enayetur Rahman stated, "The record participation of 106 teams demonstrates that Bangladeshi youth are proactively preparing for the global semiconductor industry. With proper policy support and patronage, Bangladesh's semiconductor industry can evolve into a multi-billion-dollar sector by 2030, led by these young engineers."
Addressing the audience, AIUB Vice-Chancellor Professor Dr. Saiful Islam remarked, "It is inspiring to see such overwhelming interest from students. Such large-scale competitions are critical for nurturing skilled talent and preparing students for high-tech engineering careers within the country."
Following the inauguration, participants attended a daylong technical workshop on Electronic Design Automation (EDA) tools and theoretical fundamentals. The primary contest will take place on August 15, where top teams will solve industry-relevant cases. A total prize pool of BDT 200,000 has been set for the competition winners.
//DBTech/SJT/MSI//
