Mir Shahrukh Islam is the Managing Director and CEO of Bondstein Technologies Limited, a Dhaka-based technology company that has been doing fascinating work across telematics and connecting machines, factories, and complex industrial systems using technologies like AI, ML, IoT, AR, VR, custom software solutions, and design.
When Shahrukh first appeared in our pages in 2015, Bondstein was a fledgling telematics company, connecting cars and focusing on vehicle tracking systems. Fast forward to 2025, and we find an organization transformed. From a small team of 15, the company has grown into an 80-person operation with a 15x revenue growth, venturing far beyond its initial operation of telematics to connect machines, factories, and complex industrial systems.
In this fascinating conversation, Shahrukh reflects on Bondstein's transformative journey, detailing its evolution into a vertically integrated Industrial IoT and AI solutions provider, its unique approach to product design, the strategic decisions that have fueled its growth and expansion, and lessons from his journey building Bondstein.
Building a company is hard. That part we all know. But that hard comes in stages. Going from zero to one is one kind of hard—you are striving and struggling to ensure your survival. Once a company passes that stage, then comes a different kind of hard-scaling successfully. Most companies die in the process of going from zero to one. Some people put the number of failures of early-stage companies at over 95%. Out of the small minority that survives, most never find meaningful scale, living in a perpetual plateau.
Both of these journeys, bringing an idea into existence and transforming a small business into an organization that scales, are different and come with their own distinct challenges.
One of my takeaways from this interview with Shahrukh bhai is that transforming an organization from an early-stage company to a scalable organization takes a different order of thinking, and the conversation shows that journey with fascinating details and textures. To top if off, the conversation delves deep into the product evolution of Bondstein, its organizational growth, business model, and strategic evolution, challenges, and future plans—discussions that offer practical insights about how to navigate growing a business and scaling an organization.
This is a fascinating read in all its entirety. I hope you will enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed doing it. Happy building!
Ruhul Kader: Thank you for agreeing to this interview. We last spoke in 2015. Now we are in 2025, a long time. Could you start by giving us an overview of the changes from 2015 to 2025? I'd like to focus on three aspects: first, the product (how much it has changed, new products, and any developments); second, the organization (how big it is now and how it runs); and third, the business (revenue growth and any details you wish to share).
Mir Shahrukh Islam: Thank you for having me. It is very interesting to reflect back; it has been nearly a decade, and the change has been transformational.
Product-wise, we have moved far beyond connecting just cars. Back in 2015, we were primarily focused on telematics. Now, we connect machines, factories, and large, complex industrial systems.
The core of our work today is to generate actionable intelligence for our customers. We are also now working with Computer Vision-based AI applications that our customers use to generate pro-active insights. A key part of this is reducing their CAPEX by integrating their existing CCTV camera infrastructure with our proprietary AI models.
But that doesn't mean we left our origins behind. We’ve heavily innovated within our core VTS segment. We have partnered with internationally reputed automobile manufacturers like Eicher-Volvo and Bajaj to become their chosen telematics partner. To support this, we've upgraded our systems with a more scalable architecture and kept our innovation running to build Bangladesh's first Fleet Manager's AI Co-Pilot.
The impact is real: our solutions have genuinely made roads in Bangladesh safer and significantly reduced fleet operations costs for our customers.
A second major new direction is connectivity infrastructure. We have partnered with SpaceX to provide them with managed infrastructure for their connectivity services in Bangladesh, ensuring our clients have an absolutely reliable data pipeline.
On the business front, this dual strategy has fueled significant expansion. We have grown beyond the borders of Bangladesh.
Today, a major portion of our revenue comes from international clients operating in various end markets, which has been a key part of our growth.
First, ensure quality of the service that you provide. It is always tempting to cut corners. But cutting costs at the expense of reducing your quality is detrimental. It is the fastest way to break the trust you have with your customers. Second, and this is directly related, is that integrity and honesty build the path for long-term success. This applies to your team, your partners, and your customers. Your reputation is your most valuable asset.
Ruhul Kader: Fascinating product evolution: moving beyond VTS, innovating different use cases inside VTS, and exploring the entire connected industry of IoT. Tell us more about the product part. You have built many different features on top of the original VTS. Can you go a little deeper into how you design the features, how you manage manufacturing, distribution, and the partners/companies you work with now, including dealers and manufacturers?
Mir Shahrukh Islam: Product design is an art. For us, it always starts with talking to our customers. We need to deeply understand how they are actually capturing value from our system, not just how we think they are.
Based on those conversations, we develop multiple hypotheses. We then correlate the insights from different users to find out exactly what is required to solve their core problems. Sometimes, the answer is a simple UX tweak that removes friction. Other times, it requires a whole new feature release.
A core principle for us now is interoperability. We have tried to ensure that we become the preferred choice in our category by being the easiest to work with.
This means our systems can seamlessly pass on data to any centralized VMS (Vehicle Management System) or ERP system the customer is already using, whether it's SAP, IFS, or another platform.
This flexibility is key for our enterprise clients; they want our intelligence inside their existing workflows, not siloed in a separate application.
Ruhul Kader: It means I don't have to essentially go to your interface to check anything?
Mir Shahrukh Islam: Essentially, yes and no. You are absolutely right that you can get all the core data passed directly into your system. We focused on building that robust layer of APIs and a distributed system precisely for that flexibility.
If a customer just wants the raw data, like how many kilometers a vehicle is driving, they can use our APIs to plug that straight into their own software.
But for deeper performance analysis, you really need to explore our applications. An ERP is mostly focused on top-level visuals, whereas our solution is purpose-built to analyze fleet and vehicle performance. This flexibility—offering both high-level integration and a deep-dive platform—has helped us innovate and break the industry clutter.
We used this approach when exploring features for the logistics industry. They needed to know if drivers were deviating from pre-allocated routes. To address driver fatigue and accidents, we brought in Drive Mark.
We're also working on new features using video facial recognition to monitor if the authorized driver is operating the vehicle.
For credit sales, our software allows remote engine override in case of a default. We even introduced a portable tracker for rental vehicles.
This led us beyond just land vehicles; we now track water-going vessels like barges, monitoring their loading, unloading, and idle times.
Product design is an art. For us, it always starts with talking to our customers. We need to deeply understand how they are actually capturing value from our system, not just how we think they are.
Ruhul Kader: Talk about the kind of customers you now serve with VTS.
Mir Shahrukh Islam: We can distribute our customers in a couple of ways. There are enterprise customers, which are our biggest segment, and then there are retail customers.
On the retail side, users are mostly focused on their own vehicles. This breaks down into two groups: some use it for personal vehicles, primarily for supervising their drivers.
But we've seen a huge surge in small entrepreneurs who are buying vehicles—especially three-wheeler LPG or CNG-driven vehicles—and lending them out for rent. We see a very high demand for this in the South-East part of Bangladesh.
For these owners, our value proposition is crystal clear: they have a clear need to protect their vehicle from theft and accurately track the trips, and our solution provides that.
However, our biggest segment is enterprise. Here, we have manufacturing partners—OEMs—who are using our solutions as a default part of their new vehicles. They utilize the vehicle data to increase their after-sales revenue, reduce credit risks, and plan their spare parts inventory.
Then, of course, there are the companies that own a large number of vehicles, and they use our solution to manage their fleets properly, optimizing for cost, efficiency, and safety.
Ruhul Kader: How does your VTS pricing work for enterprise clients?
Mir Shahrukh Islam: Our pricing model is very straight-up. We’ve actually evolved this over time. We used to have multiple layers of pricing based on different features, but we found that a simpler, more predictable approach works better for our enterprise clients.
Now, we focus on annual or half-yearly subscription fees, with the required IoT hardware units bundled into the package.
We are actively moving away from a monthly subscription model and encouraging these longer stints. We've found that this directly improves our retention targets and aligns much better with our partners' budgeting cycles, creating a more stable, long-term relationship.
You can teach skills, but you can't teach that kind of drive.
Ruhul Kader: So you are a vertically integrated VTS solution provider—all the components needed for an end-to-end VTS solution are done in-house, including manufacturing?
Mir Shahrukh Islam: Yes, "ecosystem" is a great way to put it. We provide a full end-to-end solution using our own proprietary, in-house technology. This includes everything from the device that goes into the vehicle to the IoT cloud, the end mobile or web application, the alerts, and the final service fulfillment.
Becoming a full-suite organization was a very tough call for us. Most companies in this industry start by building the software and just depend on Chinese manufacturers for hardware. We actually started by designing the hardware.
Later, we focused heavily on building our software and our proprietary IoT cloud, which now processes around 300 million data points every day. Our software is robust, scalable, and offers over 50 different reports with more than 60 days of data backup.
The key is that while we have our own hardware, our software is device-agnostic, meaning we can plug it into Chinese or European hardware as well. This allows us to offer customers different hardware options based on their specific needs. And, as you said, we continuously look to build on top of that ecosystem.
Ruhul Kader: Moving to the organization part. How much has the company evolved? Give us an overview of the company.
Mir Shahrukh Islam: The evolution has been substantial. Back in 2015, we were a small, passionate team of about 15 people, all working closely together. Today, we have grown to a team of 80 colleagues.
This growth in people has been driven directly by our business growth. Over this period, our revenue has grown 15x. This is a direct result of the successful pivot to industrial IoT, our new infrastructure partnerships, and the expansion of our client base.
To support this scale, our structure has had to change dramatically. We now have colleagues in different parts of Bangladesh to manage our nationwide footprint, and importantly, we have global representations to service and expand our international business.
Ruhul Kader: Your operation has grown meaningfully complex over the years. It should also mean your organizational structure has changed as well. Can you tell us more about how the organization is structured?
Mir Shahrukh Islam: We manage this complexity by having a very clear and accountable structure. The organization is predominantly broken down into Strategic Business Units, or SBUs.
Each SBU is focused on a core area, like VTS or Industrial IoT, and operates almost like its own independent business. Crucially, each SBU has its own PNL owner, making them fully accountable for their profitability and growth. Each SBU also has its own dedicated operations team.
This SBU structure is supported by centralized general departments like HR, Finance, and Admin.
And, of course, at the heart of everything is our Technology Division. This is our engine for innovation. It's not just one monolithic department; it's distributed across four distinct teams. Each of these teams has its own specialized technology stack and a clear focus, which allows us to innovate rapidly and in parallel across all our different product lines.
We looked at what these corporations could offer strategically. Take Runner. They are the largest automobile manufacturer in Bangladesh. We saw that if we were going to truly scale up our VTS solutions, we needed a strong partner with a deep foothold in the automobile industry.
Ruhul Kader: How do you work with advisers?
Mir Shahrukh Islam: We are very strategic about this. We bring in domain experts for highly specific challenges or objectives.
These aren't permanent, lifetime roles. We engage them as advisers with very specific, short-term agendas—typically for a 6 to 12-month focused sprint. The goal is to solve a concrete problem or achieve a particular milestone.
For example, sometimes it's for an R&D requirement. If our technology division is building a new, complex AI model, we'll bring in an adviser who has already built and scaled a similar system at a global level.
Other times, it's to achieve operational excellence as we've scaled. This approach keeps us agile and ensures we get world-class, focused expertise precisely where and when we need it.
Ruhul Kader: One of the things people struggle with is building a good team. What is your experience with building a team that works and produces results?
Mir Shahrukh Islam: You're absolutely right. Building a team is no joke. The team is built of people, and they are your most valuable assets. Because of that, one wrong hiring decision can be incredibly destructive, especially to the company culture.
We are very careful now before onboarding anyone. We have a thorough background check process in place, not just for skills but for cultural alignment.
But the biggest lesson in building a team is about what to prioritize. We've learned to promote individuals who demonstrate a real willingness to grow and scale with the company. I've found that people with genuine "hunger" will eventually find a way to solve problems, often in the most creative way. You can teach skills, but you can't teach that kind of drive.
Ruhul Kader: You have built a successful business in a very complex and difficult market. What are some mistakes you would like other founders to avoid?
Mir Shahrukh Islam: That's an interesting question. You see, the business dynamics are changing so fast that what might look like a mistake today could be the seed of an opportunity tomorrow. But if I were to share some ground-level basics—the fundamentals that don't change—I would focus on two things.
First, it is to ensure quality in the service that you provide. It is always tempting to start cutting corners. But cutting costs at the expense of reducing your quality is detrimental. It is the fastest way to break the trust you have with your customers.
Second, and this is directly related, is that integrity and honesty build the path for long-term success. This applies to your team, your partners, and your customers. Your reputation is your most valuable asset.
Ruhul Kader: You have several products, and some of them are quite complex in how they work and the business models they operate on. Tell us more about your business development strategies and business model complexities, including distribution, and how you ensure customer retention.
Mir Shahrukh Islam: Our business development strategy is actually very simple, and it feeds directly into retention. The vast majority of our new customers come from referrals from our existing client pool.
This is a direct result of our core business philosophy: keep focused, be honest, and truly own the problem of your customer.
We are extremely creative when designing a solution, and most importantly, we keep them involved in the entire process. This means they aren't just our partners; they become solution builders alongside us. As a result, they truly own the solution, which dramatically improves adoption within their organization.
It’s true that because of this in-depth, 'concept-to-execution' approach, our costs are sometimes higher than the average market proposition. But our clients find that they end up bringing in their ROI much faster than expected because the solution is custom-built, it works, and their teams actually use it.
Ruhul Kader: Given that competitors, including Telcos, offer similar solutions in VTS, what makes Bondstein indispensable?
Mir Shahrukh Islam: We actually love competition. Competition makes the market mature. It educates customers about what's possible and raises the bar for everyone.
We have a very healthy relationship with the ecosystem. In fact, in many cases, we have partnered with our competitors. We do this when we find that complementing our value can ultimately help the end customer the most.
So, what makes Bondstein unique isn't about just being indispensable; it's our capacity to think beyond the regular and our commitment to collaborate with anyone—even a competitor—to deliver the best possible outcome.
Ruhul Kader: You said the global VTS market is $25 billion. How big is the Bangladesh market, and where do you think the market is going?
Mir Shahrukh Islam: Based on our analysis, the market in Bangladesh is roughly around a billion dollars.
The biggest shift we see is that the market is strongly moving toward Industrial IoT. This isn't just a trend; it's a necessity. Due to power scarcity and resource constraints, companies are being forced to focus more on optimization and getting more out of their existing resources. This is impossible without the kind of technological intervention and deep monitoring that IoT provides.
Ruhul Kader: What would be a few major inflection points in Bondstein's journey?
Mir Shahrukh Islam: Bondstein has seen many inflection points, but two, in particular, really stand out.
The first was our decision to invest in the Bangabandhu Hi-Tech Park to establish our own assembly unit. This was a massive boost for us, and the fact that we could make it from our own profits gave us tremendous confidence.
The second was when we partnered with Runner to expand our manufacturing partnership. This was a huge validation of our technology, coming from the largest automobile manufacturer in Bangladesh.
Till this day, we have been growing on our own merit, and these inflection points were key moments that confirmed our strategy.
Ruhul Kader: Building a business is challenging. How do you handle the daily ups and downs and challenges of being an entrepreneur?
Mir Shahrukh Islam: I always believe that you will have a good day and you will have a bad day. The key is that you cannot be too happy on your good day or too frustrated on your bad day. You have to maintain a steady line.
If you are psychologically reactive, your entire organization will suffer, focusing on short-term success rather than sustainable growth.
This philosophy extends to our business decisions. For example, we cautiously maintain our margins, even if it means we lose a deal. We know our value. It’s why a lot of customers who left Bondstein for a cheaper price have returned. They come back because of the value and the 24/7 service we provide.
Ruhul Kader: You raised money from large corporations, like Runner. You essentially didn't need to raise money. Why did you decide to raise funds, and how did the deal come together?
Mir Shahrukh Islam: You're right, we didn't necessarily need the money. Our vision was that we needed partners, not just investors, to open the door for us to reach the next level of growth.
We looked at what these corporations could offer strategically. Take Runner. They are the largest automobile manufacturer in Bangladesh. We saw that if we were going to truly scale up our VTS solutions, we needed a strong partner with a deep foothold in the automobile industry.
In all cases, before becoming investors, they had already been our clients for at least a year to a year and a half. They saw the value we delivered firsthand. Having these strong individuals and corporations on our board is a testament to our stability.
I always believe that you will have a good day and you will have a bad day. The key is that you cannot be too happy on your good day or too frustrated on your bad day. You have to maintain a steady line.
Ruhul Kader: What are the challenges for the company now, and what are the immediate short-term and long-term plans?
Mir Shahrukh Islam: Our biggest challenge right now is mostly at the regulatory level. The current policies in Bangladesh haven't kept up with emerging technology. There is no clear regulation for manufacturing IoT or AI devices, and the duty structure is complicated.
As for our short-term plan, we are focusing more on our blended AI solutions, especially in the computer vision segment. We see huge demand here, and our plan is to build out specific, high-value use cases for smart factories across different industries.
In the longer term, our plan is to expand internationally. We are actively working to cater to globally leading companies with our solutions. We have built a strong, proven platform, and our vision is to take this model and become a significant global player in the Industrial AI and connected infrastructure space.
Ruhul Kader: What book would you recommend to our readers?
Mir Shahrukh Islam: I would still recommend Rich Dad, Poor Dad. I think it is a truly important read for early-stage entrepreneurs to learn about money management, assets, and building sustainable wealth.
The biggest reflection is about what it means to be a "builder." If you are a builder, you will enjoy every bit of it while you are building it. The challenge is, once you have built it, you just need to move on and build the next thing.
Ruhul Kader: You started the company when you were still a student. Over the years, the company has grown from a small operation to a significant player in its vertical. How much have you changed and evolved as an entrepreneur and CEO over these years?
Mir Shahrukh Islam: (Laughs) Oh, it’s been a wild ride! The single biggest change is realizing just how much I don't know. Every day is a new challenge, and you have to love the game.
Compared to 2016, I’ve been forced to learn and adapt constantly. I’m a pure engineering guy at heart, but I had to step up and lead our entire finance team and valuation process during our investment.
I’ve been fortunate to get some great coaching along the way. The Stanford Graduate School of Business Seed Program, for instance, was incredibly helpful in giving me new frameworks and shaping my perspective on scaling a company. But my biggest lesson is humility. I still have so much to learn about true leadership. I'm still a student of the game, and honestly, I'm enjoying every minute of it.
Ruhul Kader: Biggest reflections and lessons from your journey as a founder on life, work, and building companies.
Mir Shahrukh Islam: My biggest reflection is about what it means to be a "builder." If you are a builder, you will enjoy every bit of it while you are building it. The challenge is, once you have built it, you just need to move on and build the next thing.
The other major lesson is about impact over just metrics. The human element must always be the first priority. We should be thinking about how our technology is making a worker's life safer or a driver's life easier. The profit for the owner is just a byproduct of that positive impact. If you don't focus on training and helping the workers who will be challenged by this new technology, your product will never be adopted in the first place.
Ruhul Kader: Three things you found really helpful in building Bondstein.
Mir Shahrukh Islam: You know, it's not really a list of three things. It’s more like a story with three main characters.
The first character is "Creativity." This is the hero who sees a complex problem and doesn't just see a problem, but sees a blank canvas.
But "Creativity" can be a bit of a daydreamer. It needs a partner. That’s where the second character, "Hunger," comes in. "Hunger" is the gritty, relentless one. It's the character that wakes up at 3 AM with the drive to actually build what "Creativity" imagined.
But even those two can't do it alone. They need a team, and that’s the third character: "The Right People." This isn't just a crowd; it's a hand-picked crew who are just as creative and just as hungry.
So, when I look back, that's the story of Bondstein. It's a tale of "Creativity" and "Hunger" finding "The Right People" to go on an adventure and build something that matters.
My biggest lesson is humility. I still have so much to learn about true leadership. I'm still a student of the game, and honestly, I'm enjoying every minute of it.
Ruhul Kader: I think this is a good place to end our conversation today. Thank you for being generous with your time and insights. This has been an educational conversation for me. Any parting thoughts?
Mir Shahrukh Islam: Thank you, Ruhul bhai. I think this was a great session. It really took me back to our early days and gave me a chance to revisit the many moments, achievements, and impacts we've had. Sometimes, as a founder, you're so focused on the next challenge that you forget to do that. It's been incredibly valuable. Thank you for having me.
