Orbit Demo Day in Karachi ‘a powerful showcase of what Pakistan’s startup ecosystem can achieve’

Orbit Demo Day, held in Karachi last week, gave an opportunity to startups who made up the first cohort of a collaboration between Singapore-based Orbit Startups and National Incubation Center Karachi (NIC Karachi), to pitch their ventures to investors and industry leaders.

These included:

• Blinq, a platform digitalizing invoices with real-time reconciliation across gateways.

• Chaajao, an e-learning solution with live and recorded classes plus practice tools.

• Mergn, a SaaS platform for customer retention.

• Connectia, an all-in-one smart fuel card and fleet operations platform.

• TrashIt, a green solution converting organic waste into compost fertilizers.

• STEMverse, a gamified learning platform teaching robotics and AI through play.

• VM Nebula, an AI-powered virtual desktop with US-matched IPs to support Amazon and Walmart sellers.

• Apaale, a digital marketplace connecting shippers and truckers to reduce inefficiencies and risks.

As per a statement from NIC Karachi, ​Orbit Startups scales breakthrough startups from around the globe across emerging and frontier markets in the Middle East, Southeast and South Asia, Africa and the Americas.

William Bao Bean, Managing General Partner at Orbit Startups, said: “We believe that Pakistan technology startups represent a massive opportunity which is why we have backed 29 Pakistan startups over the last five years helping these founders drive an economic transformation.”

Following the startup pitches, a panel discussion was held on the theme ‘From Idea to Impact: Supporting Startup Growth in Pakistan’.

The session was moderated by Zeba Qureshi from OPEN London and explored strategies for scaling startups in Pakistan, the challenges of operating in emerging markets, and the vital role of collaborations in driving impact-focused growth.

Panelists included Ali Tabba, Director of YB Group; Kelly Pang, Senior Program Manager at Orbit Startups; Salman Allana, Founder & CEO of Rider; and Vladimira Briestenska, Founder of Neem.

Asim Ishaq Khan, Vice President of tech firm LMKT, said: “Orbit Demo Day in Karachi has been a powerful showcase of what Pakistan’s startup ecosystem can achieve.”

“Seeing startups from NIC Peshawar and NIC Karachi pitch side by side to investors and industry leaders highlights the depth of innovation emerging from across Pakistan. This event has not only expanded opportunities for our founders but also reaffirmed that our startups are ready to compete and scale on national and global stages.’

The day concluded with closing remarks by the Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication (MoITT), reaffirming government support for innovation and entrepreneurship in Pakistan.