We may not get another chance like this.
Earlier this year, I wrote about “Bangladesh’s AI moment” -- a time of immense possibility but also real risk. Since then, the global momentum around AI has only accelerated. More countries are drafting national AI strategies, investing in home-grown innovation, and forging ethical frameworks. The question is no longer whether AI will shape the future but whose future it will shape and who will shape it.
As I cautioned then, the danger is that Bangladesh might again watch from the sidelines.
We are not alone in this pivotal moment. In a recent piece for The East African, technology thought leaders made a robust case that Africa has a real chance to lead the way in AI, not by replicating Silicon Valley but by solving problems that matter to its people. We have the same opportunity. The time to act is now, not cautiously, not incrementally, but with bold and clear intent.
I called for a National Innovation and AI Council in that earlier piece. It would be a permanent body that brings together voices from across sectors to guide Bangladesh’s AI journey. That call feels even more urgent now. We can’t afford to keep working in silos or chasing short-term wins that don’t add up to real progress. We need sustained leadership. It must unite government, academia, industry, and the diaspora. These are people with real-world experience who know how to build and deploy technology responsibly.
This council would shape long-term policy and define where we want to be in five or ten years. What kind of talent pipeline are we nurturing? How many local AI startups are we supporting? Which public services are being transformed through intelligent systems? And just as importantly: Are we measuring our progress, reporting transparently, and adjusting course when needed?
Alongside institutional reform, we must think deeply about education. We cannot reduce AI literacy to coding camps and prompt engineering tutorials. What we need is critical, interdisciplinary learning that brings AI awareness into fields like law, healthcare, journalism, and agriculture. This initiative will prepare professionals and citizens to understand how AI connects with justice, equity, language, and livelihoods. We want to go beyond simply producing more data scientists.
The public sector has enormous potential to benefit from AI, but only if it is guided with care. Bangladesh could take the lead in using AI for healthcare triage, agricultural support, urban planning, and more. For that to happen, we need local data infrastructure, clear ethical guidelines, and strong standards for transparency. Without public trust, these systems will not succeed, no matter how well designed.
We must also nurture the ecosystem that powers innovation. Today, many Bangladeshi AI startups face bottlenecks in access to funding, computer infrastructure, and credible testbeds. A National AI Innovation Fund could support early-stage development, while public-private collaborations could offer real-world pilots. No matter how talented our engineers are, they cannot compete if the playing field is uneven.
We must also stop being passive recipients of global norms. Bangladesh must actively engage in international AI policy and ethics forums, contribute research rooted in our realities, and ensure we have a voice at the table where standards are being set. If we’re not there, we will be shaped by rules we didn’t help write.
Crucially, this AI future must be inclusive. It must work for people in rural Netrokona as much as it does for professionals in Dhaka. That means investing in Bangla-language tools, regional dialect models, and systems that serve the visually impaired, farmers, and frontline workers. The AI we build must reflect who we are and who we want to include.
As I asked in that earlier piece, will we fall behind again? Or will we finally move with purpose, coordination, and courage?
This debate is not just about technology. It is about sovereignty, equity, and imagination.
We can still act. But the moment is slipping. If we hesitate, we will spend the next decade adapting to technologies built for others, by others. If we move now, guided by a strong AI policy and a forward-looking innovation council, we can create a future that is ours.
Dr Zunaid Kazi is a futurist and technologist at the forefront of AI for over 30 years. He founded and leads Knowtomation, an AI solutions company.
