4 min read
Karachi: Day 3 of the Pakistan Investor Summit 2025 – Summer Edition marked a pivotal moment for the country’s startup ecosystem, as over 25 emerging ventures took center stage at NIC Karachi to pitch their businesses to a packed room of local investors.
Hosted at NIC Karachi, one of Pakistan’s premier innovation platforms funded by Ignite under the Ministry of IT & Telecommunication, and operated by LMKT in partnership with Lucky Landmark (YB Group) and Orbit Startups, the day served as the official Demo Day of the summit, signaling real-time investor-founder matchmaking and a bold step toward scalable growth through fundraising opportunities.
NIC Karachi’s Demo Day offered early-stage startups a platform to showcase their traction, product vision, and market fit across a range of sectors, from FinTech and edtech to AI, SaaS, sustainability, and consumer tech. The high-energy pitching sessions were followed by strategic networking engagements and one-on-one feedback loops, with several investors scheduling immediate follow-up calls and office hours with founders whose pitches sparked interest and alignment.
A distinguished lineup of capital leaders and ecosystem enablers participated in the day’s proceedings. Notable attendees included Abdul Sattar Jumani (CEO, Lucky Landmark Pvt. Ltd.), Muhammad Ali Taufeeq (Gobi Partners), Kashaf Jamal (Fatima Gobi Ventures), Mustafa O. Pasha (Lakson Investments), Taqi Hyder (Accelerate Prosperity) and Muhammad Shoaib Akhter (Pak-Qatar Asset Management).
The day featured strong representation from key industry players and angel investors, adding depth and dimension to the summit’s Demo Day. Among them was Inam ur Rahman from Disrupt (formerly Gaditek), joined by a dynamic lineup of investors including Rizwan Ahmad (Viral Edge), Ebad Ali and Athar Ahmed (IMLAK), Muhammad Adnan (Finnovus), Basma Ahmed (Element Payments), Basit Iqbal (Fauji Fertilizer), Saad Niazi (Keenu), Bilal Ahmed (Numero Uno Advisors), Abdur Rehman Siddiqui (Allied Bank), Jehangir Lutfullah (Advisor to the Republic of Uzbekistan), Shahid Khan (SIERRA), and Noman A. Said (SI Global).
Investor Ashraf Kaleem from Magnus Ventures engaged in focused, high-value discussions with promising startups, including Atfaal, Biomic, Blinq, Chaajao, Haprow, and She6, offering targeted feedback and guidance.
Adding further momentum, a delegation from EUSOPHT, Mohammad Owais Akbar, Salman Hussain Ali, and Umar Maqsood, participated actively as investors, deepening engagement across verticals. The session was also bolstered by the presence and support of respected ecosystem enablers such as Yasir Saeed and Mohammed Lodhi (Aziz Tabba Foundation), Muhammad Saifullah (Wafi Energy Pakistan Limited), and Ambreen Asif Qureshi and Usama Shamsi (EO Accelerator), all contributing to a day marked by meaningful dialogue and promising connections.
Abdul Sattar Jumani, CEO of Lucky Landmark Pvt. Ltd., emphasized the importance of consistent engagement between founders and capital:
“YB Group believes in the long game. Today’s pitches proved that when you back founders with vision and grit, the returns can be transformational, for the economy and for society.”
Reflecting on the day’s momentum, Asim Ishaq Khan, Vice President of LMKT, noted,
“Demo Day at NIC Karachi isn’t just about pitches, it’s about possibilities. The energy today was a testament to how Pakistan’s founders are no longer just building startups; they’re building solutions for real markets and LMKT is proud to be powering this platform for scale.”
Syed Azfar Hussain, Project Director of NIC Karachi, closed the day with a message of encouragement and purpose:
“Every pitch today was a spark and our job is to help founders turn those sparks into fires. The level of preparation, storytelling, and investor interest we saw at Demo Day shows just how far our ecosystem has come. At NIC Karachi, we’ll continue to be the bridge where ambition meets opportunity.”
With direct investor interest expressed in several startups, Day 3 of the summit concluded with real outcomes in sight, founders securing meetings, exchanging decks, and preparing for due diligence. As NIC Karachi gears up for the final day of the summit, the energy and intent sparked on Demo Day reaffirm its growing role as the country’s launchpad for innovation and capital connection.
About NIC Karachi
NIC Karachi is Pakistan’s premier tech incubator and startup ecosystem enabler, operated by LMKT in partnership with Lucky Landmark (YB Group) and Orbit Startups, and funded by Ignite, under the Ministry of IT & Telecommunication. Since its inception, NIC Karachi has supported over 376 startups, created over 1 million jobs, and facilitated over PKR 12 billion in investment.
