Tech
Robi and a2i launch Government Citizen Certification services payment through mobile balance
Aspire to Innovate (a2i) and Robi have collaborated to facilitate the payment for availing Government certification or Prottoyon & myGov services using mobile balance, which is popularly known as Direct Operator Billing (DOB) for the first time in Bangladesh.
With the addition of DOB, citizens registered in the Prottoyon (https://prottoyon.gov.bd) & myGov (https://www.mygov.bd) platform can easily complete their payment for the certificate service using their Robi mobile balance sitting at the comfort of their home. Due to the very simple nature of DOB based payment services, even the marginalized section of the population can avail this convenient method.
Earlier, using the Prottoyon portal, citizens of Bangladesh could apply for these certificates online to their Mayor or Councilor or Chairman and if they didn’t have access to digital payment mechanism, had to physically visit the Government offices to complete the payment.
The initiatives of a2i (Aspire to Innovate) programme of the Cabinet and ICT Divisions supported by UNDP have emerged as blessing for the people, especially those living in marginal area, in terms of making life easier and boosting people’s access to citizen services.
In the launching program, from a2i Project Director, Dr. Dewan Muhammad Humayun Kabir, Head of e-commerce Rezwanul Haque Jami, e-service team lead Mohammad Salahuddin & National Consultant Mohammad Moshiur Rahman and from Robi’s Chief Corporate and Regulatory Officer, Shahed Alam, Vice President, Public Affairs and Sustainability, Sharif Shah Jamal Raz, General Manager, VAS and New Business, Shafiq Shamsur Razzaq and relevant high officials from both organizations were present in the launching ceremony.
The Government of Bangladesh had launched the Prottoyon web portal to provide all types of certificate related services to the public. It was launched as part of Bangladesh Government’s Portal with the Prime Minister’s aim of providing Government services, integrating all Government websites and their information into a single web portal.
Robi’s Chief Corporate and Regulatory Officer, Shahed Alam said, “We are very happy to partner with a2i for launching the first ever DOB based public services like nationality certificate, birth certificate, marriage certificate etc. making it a significant impact in delivering Smart Bangladesh. I am sure this DOB system will bring revolution in future for availing all other applicable public services in making Smart Government.”
Commenting on the initiative, a2i’s Project Director (Joint Secretary), ICT Division, Dr. Dewan Muhammad Humayun Kabir said, “Our unified mobile payment system, ekPay connects all banks and MFS providers to enable P2G (person to government) payments for hundreds of public services including 23 utilities. Despite the meteoric rise of MFS and agent banking in the last decade, 18% of adult population, especially in rural Bangladesh, are still unbanked. To promote inclusivity in P2G payments, we are introducing DOB with mobile operators in the government ecosystem. This is a positive step towards ensuring financial inclusion in achieving our vision of a Smart Bangladesh 2041, with a direct impact by reducing time, cost and visits. We intend to onboard more government services to enhance citizen’s convenience.”
Tech
Apple to spend $30 billion on Broadcom chips as it boosts US sourcing
Apple , opens new tab plans to spend more than $30 billion under a multi-year chip supply deal with Broadcom, bolstering its U.S. sourcing as President Donald Trump’s administration pushes to expand domestic chip manufacturing.
Broadcom shares rose more than 4%, while Apple shares were down marginally.
Apple said on Wednesday the deal, which was struck earlier this week and runs through 2031, covers FBAR filters – or radio-frequency chips used for wireless connectivity in its devices – that it had been developing with Broadcom since at least 2023.
Broadcom will invest $1.5 billion to expand its Fort Collins, Colorado, factory under the deal, which Apple said would result in the production of at least 15 billion chips and support its work with the Trump administration to source more components domestically.
“The cutting-edge components built in Fort Collins are essential to delivering the incredible performance and connectivity our customers expect, and we’re proud to deepen our investments in U.S.-based suppliers that share our commitment to excellence and innovation,” Apple CEO Tim Cook said in a statement.
“We’re grateful to the president and his administration for supporting important projects like this.”
In August 2025, Apple raised its U.S. investment commitment to $600 billion over four years, adding $100 billion to a previously announced spending plan.
China
China plans to let top AI firms buy limited Nvidia H200 chips, the Information reports
China is planning to allow the country’s top AI companies to buy a limited number of Nvidia’s, opens new tab H200 chips, the Information reported on Wednesday, citing two people with direct knowledge of the matter.
Chinese officials have told Alibaba, opens new tab, ByteDance and DeepSeek in recent weeks that they may soon receive permission to buy some H200 chips, the report said.
Shares of Nvidia rose 1% after the report.
The chip giant did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment, nor did the U.S. commerce department, which oversees exports of advanced AI chips overseas.
China’s commerce ministry also did not immediately respond to a request for comment, while Alibaba, ByteDance and DeepSeek did not respond outside of regular business hours.
The U.S. government has allowed Nvidia to sell its advanced H200 chips to China, and licensed about 10 Chinese firms to buy the chips. However, Chinese officials, keen to nurture domestic suppliers, have withheld approval so far.
Reuters reported in March that Nvidia had won Beijing’s approval to sell the chips to China, citing sources, and around the same time, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang also told CNBC that the company had clearance from China.
Beijing is still determining the exact number of Nvidia chips to approve, and it could amount to fewer than 200,000 in total, the Information said, adding that was less than half of what the companies requested earlier this year.
Last month, Reuters exclusively reported that Nvidia told Chinese clients its new “Vera” central processors for AI data centres could be available as soon as August and that they can begin placing orders.
Nvidia’s market share in China has effectively fallen to zero, Huang said in October, hurt by U.S. export controls and Beijing’s push for self-reliance in key technologies.
The potential shift in China’s stance underscores the growing computing capacity crunch that the country’s tech companies are facing.
Tech
Australia’s under-16 social media ban fails first age check hurdle, study finds
A team of software testers found that Australian social media platforms did not request age proof for any of 50 accounts that declared themselves to be 16, a result that leaves the country’s world-first under-16 ban “ineffective” at the most basic screening stage, according to a study seen by Reuters.
Since December, platforms such as Instagram, Snapchat and YouTube have been required to bar people under 16 and take “reasonable steps” to verify age, with regulators recommending multiple layered checks. But the new research, conducted by those who advised the nationwide curb, shows that the initial vetting step, which estimates a user’s age from general online activity, is failing to flag young people for tougher verification.
The testers, who last year trialled age-assurance software on more than 1,000 Australians, opened 50 new accounts after the law took effect and set the age as 16. None of the platforms asked for additional proof, the researchers told Reuters. The findings highlight a flaw that has been largely overlooked while public debate has focused on photo-based age-estimation tools.
The ban’s rollout has been widely criticised after surveys indicated that most under-16s still access the platforms. The government last month doubled the maximum fine and warned of possible court action against tech giants, accusing them of setting the system up to fail. Platforms have countered that they are simply following the regulator’s guidance, which prioritises low-friction checks and prevents reliance on government ID alone due to privacy concerns.
Some advisers to the original trial said they had repeatedly warned that the testing process ignored real-world circumvention, including minors entering false birthdates. “We did want to talk about circumvention, but we kept on being told that that wasn’t part of the actual trial,” Colm Gannon of the International Centre for Missing & Exploited Children told Reuters. A youth digital rights academic involved in a longer-term study of the ban said more impressive results might emerge once platforms move to age-inference methods later in the year. The regulator maintains that the recommended layered approach, if implemented correctly, ensures no single point of failure.



