AUST Hosts Silicon River NEXT: Target Set for $10B Semiconductor Exports by 2030

Charting a transformative roadmap to elevate Bangladesh from a consumer of imported electronics into an international exporter of microelectronics, semiconductor architecture, and deep-tech intellectual property, the flagship summit ‘Silicon River NEXT 2026’ was held at Ahsanullah University of Science and Technology (AUST) in Dhaka. During the assembly, high-level technology architects laid out an ambitious strategic goal of driving national semiconductor exports to USD 10 billion by the year 2030.
The summit was co-organized by the Silicon River Bangladesh initiative and the Bangladesh Semiconductor Industry Association (BSIA) on Wednesday, 11 November 2026. Prof. Dr. Md. Ashraful Hoque, Vice-Chancellor of AUST, presided over the session, while Prof. Dr. Md. Meganur Rahman, Head of the Department of Electrical & Electronic Engineering (EEE), delivered the welcome address. Md. Anwar Hossain, Secretary of the Ministry of Science and Technology, graced the event as Chief Guest.

Delivering the plenary keynote titled 'Building an Innovation-Led Deep-Tech Nation', Chief Architect of Silicon River Bangladesh and Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Purdue University, USA, Dr. Muhammad Mustafa Hussain, underscored the country's latent technological capabilities. "Securing a 10-billion-dollar annual semiconductor export footprint by 2030 is entirely within Bangladesh's reach," he asserted. "Our human capital possesses world-class engineering genius that requires institutional alignment across academia, venture investors, and industrial houses. Through 60 university student branches, we are nurturing frontier researchers." He further revealed that ten pioneering deep-tech solutions developed by young Bangladeshi teams have been selected to be exhibited at the prestigious 'Bangladesh Innovates Pavilion' during CES 2027 in Las Vegas.

Addressing the congregation, Science and Technology Secretary Md. Anwar Hossain noted that semiconductors form the essential infrastructure for every frontier vertical—ranging from quantum processing and genomic sequencing to nanotechnology. "Our ministry is dedicated to bridging the divide between academic research and commercial monetization through dedicated Innovation Funds in partnership with Bangladesh Bank and the National Board of Revenue (NBR)," he affirmed. The Secretary pledged state backing to secure import tax waivers on essential cleanroom equipment while leveraging global 'brain circulation' with prominent expatriate scientists to lay the structural foundations for indigenous fab labs and manufacturing plants before 2035.

Speaking as special guest, BSIA President and Managing Director of Neural Semiconductor M. A. Jabbar recalled, "Back in 2017, when we pitched Bangladesh’s semiconductor potential in Silicon Valley, industry leaders dismissed it due to our nascent ecosystem. Today, global enterprises trust our engineering bench. Our youth are poised to establish a formidable global footprint in VLSI and embedded systems."

The summit marked the formal induction of the YES Collaborative Research Centers (YCRC) consortium, backed by US-based semiconductor toolmaker Yield Engineering Systems (YES). Under this initiative, collaborative research laboratories and digital twin platforms are being established across five universities, including Dhaka University, BRAC University, and Islamic University. The gathering featured video addresses from Dr. Zia Karim, Chief Technology Officer at YES, and Dr. Mahbub Rashed, Senior Fellow and Vice President at GlobalFoundries.

Technical industry interventions were delivered by K M Al Zubayer of Ulkasemi, Arnob Kormokar of PrimeSilicon Technology, and Rezwan representing ACI Semiconductor. AUST EEE Society Vice President Arafat Ratul, alongside Silicon River Student Branch President Rokibul Islam Rafi and General Secretary Abdullah Mia, detailed grassroots youth mobilization. The event concluded with the ceremonial recognition of 10 outgoing CREST Fellows from the 2026 cohort and the formal induction of 18 emerging fellows for the 2027 academic research cycle.