Professor Dr. Shahed, Jahangirnagar University; Prof. Dr. Md. Abu Reza, Professor, Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, University of Rajshahi; Adv. Taslima, Supreme Court; Mr. Salauddin Yusuf, Director, BNO Lubricants; Dr. Md Abu Reza, Director IQAC Professor & Biotech frenetic Engg., University of Rajshahi; Dr. Rashedul Islam, Manager, lecturer Researchen, University of Rajshahi; Ataul Karim, Global Business CEO, University of Oxford; Faruk Hannan, CEO, VIRTUECARE BD, LABAID AI; Fayeul Hasan, TETON; MONZUR MORSHED, Founder, Shojay Tahi; Dr. Md. Hossain, Director, BCSIR; Prof. Dr. Mohammad Sharif Raihan, Professor, Dept. of Genetics and Plant Breedery, Gazipur Agricultural University; Prof. Dr. Maruf Ahmed, Professor, Dept of Food Processing and Preservation, Hajee Mohammad Danesh Science and Technology University; Dr. Ashoke Kumer Roy, Director, DPDT, Ministry of Industry; Samin Paul, DGM-QAank, Dhaka Ice Cream Ind. LTD RED; Sharfuddin Mohammad, Co-founder, Xeltra Energy. Ph.D(ongoing) CUET.; MD. khimul hassan, RA, Rajshahi University, Research assistent; Khaled Mahmud Sujon, RA, Rajshahi University; Saiduzzaman, Deputy Director, DPDT; Tajul Islam Amin Mohammad, Deputy Director, DPDT; MD. Mehedi Hasan, Deputy Director, DPDT; Mirza Golam Sarwar, Deputy Director, DPPT; MD Tasin Tyson, Founder, Kisti Limited; MD Shoflul Islam Bayzied, Founder, Bhara Khata limited; Asif Sultan Bhuiyan, Legal Associate, SELISE Bangladesh Limited; Barrister Afreeda Deena, Senior Manager-Legal, Emami Bangladesh Limited; Sidratul Muntala Alarm, Legal Consultant, Media Stan Ltd.; GM Faysal Taysir, CTO, Cypher Technologies; Prof. Ashik Mosaddit, Pro-Vice Chancellor, East West University; MD. Sabuddin YOU SUP, Director Assistant; MD. Belal Hossen, Director, DPDT Ministry of Industries; Prof. Dr. Md. Obaidur Rahman, Director, IRAC DUET, Dept. of CSE DUET; Hamidul Mishbay, Founder Managing Partner, Bangladesh IP Forum; Rokonuzzaman, Professor, NSU; Mustafa, Co Founder, Puku AI.

This session brought together government officials, university researchers, technology transfer office (TTO) leaders, and industry representatives to discuss Bangladesh's intellectual property (IP) ecosystem and how research can move more effectively from the lab to the market. Participants were encouraged to speak candidly about the policy gaps and obstacles they face, noting that identifying the problem is often the hardest part of fixing it.

The discussion centered on Bangladesh's innovation ecosystem - the interplay between industry, academia, and government and the government's role in shaping IP policy. Speakers examined the risks posed by upcoming Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) and Preferential Trade Agreements (PTAs) to local research and technology, the practical workings of university Technology Transfer Offices (TTOs), the gap between patenting and actual commercialization, and what is needed on both the supply side (research output) and demand side (industry willingness to license) to build a functioning IP market.

Speakers pointed to a wide range of structural problems: roughly 94% of patents are never commercialized, and Bangladesh has granted only 44 patents in the past few years despite research activity. Local industry was described as being in "sleeping mode," relying mainly on imported machinery and assembly/repair work rather than IP-driven innovation, which leaves little demand for licensing. University research was also criticized for often being "positional knowledge" with no direct market value, while university labs suffer from outdated calibration and lack industry-standard accreditation. Faculty members were said to be hesitant to file patents through their universities for fear of losing ownership or facing bureaucratic obstruction over revenue-sharing. On the policy side, concerns were raised that Bangladesh is moving quickly into complex trade agreements (with around 22 chapters each) without enough legal groundwork to protect local research and industry, especially as the country approaches LDC graduation.

Proposed solutions included moving away from the traditional linear model of innovation (research → patent → license → revenue) toward a product-evolution approach, where teams study global patent databases such as WIPO's to find gaps and evolving product niches worth targeting. Several speakers called for a National TISC (Technology and Innovation Support Center) Network across universities, a coordinated "Research to Revenue" pathway with dedicated commercialization desks, and a National Industry Problem Bank where companies could post real problems for universities to solve. Others recommended mandatory accreditation of university labs by the Bangladesh Accreditation Board, introduction of IP curriculam and a clear roadmap for building the capacity of the Department of Patents, Designs and Trademarks (DPDT) so it can perform advanced patent and design searches.

• International examples included Xerox, which built roughly 50,000 related patents to make the photocopier commercially viable, and Apple, which holds more than 100,000 patents; both were cited to show that sustained product evolution.
• A pharmaceutical example described an Mexican company paying a very large sum for a synthetic compound derived from a frog's skin secretion, developed into an anti-depression nasal spray, illustrating long-horizon IP investment.
• Locally, North South University's TTO was highlighted for using student interns to search the USPTO database and map how roughly 125 Capstone Design projects could evolve into patentable ideas.
• Jahangirnagar University's TTO pilot was also discussed as a case study in the real-world hesitancy faculty show toward institutional patenting.

Speakers recommended that the government revisit or delay rushed trade agreements until a legal study assesses risks to local research and technology and that industry associations compile a list of trade-agreement clauses that could threaten Bangladeshi innovation. On the institutional side, they urged clear and fair IP ownership and revenue-sharing policies (one university cited a 30% university / 70% inventor split) to reduce faculty fear of losing control over their inventions, along with linking government research grants directly to industry problems so that supply and demand for innovation grow together. They also called for a firm, time-bound roadmap (within six months) for strengthening DPDT's technical capacity.

• Key figures cited during the session: about 94% of patents are never commercialized; only 44 patents were granted in Bangladesh over the last few years.
• Bangladesh's trade agreements contain roughly 22 chapters each, and comparable agreements (e.g., EU–Indonesia) have taken up to 12 years to negotiate.
• Foreign patent filing can cost USD 10,000–15,000; of 691 innovation projects reviewed by the Ministry of Science and Technology, 96 were cancelled, leaving 592, from which 50 new projects were selected and 10 innovators were awarded 1 lakh Taka each.
• A total of 221 patent applications were filed across sectors in recent years.
• Bangladesh sources about 95% of its pharmaceuticals as off-patent drugs, which speakers said limits (but does not eliminate) the risk from post-LDC-graduation royalty increases.

The moderating team committed to compiling the policy issues raised including the IP policy framework and the challenge areas identified by the keynote speaker into a written brief for submission to the Ministry of Science and Technology. Many panelists agreed to prepare background analysis on which clauses in upcoming trade agreements could pose risks to local science, technology, and innovation. Speakers also pressed for a firm DPDT capacity-building roadmap within six months.

Several speakers emphasized that Bangladesh's demographic dividend - its large, young population - is its greatest innovation asset, more valuable than any single technology. There was also discussion of ongoing initiatives such as the UGC's "HEAT" project, which has funded TTO establishment at several universities (with 121 projects approved in its first round), and of the cultural shift needed so that university promotion criteria reward patents and IP outcomes, not just publications.