On July 31 LMKT – operated National Incubation Center, Karachi held the graduation ceremony for its first cohort of startups.
Executive Director National Information Technology Board (NITB) Mr. Shabahat Ali Shah was the chief guest of the ceremony, which was attended by tech entrepreneurs, business leaders, professionals and students. The 17 graduating startups spanned a variety of industries, including, education, agriculture, commerce, waste disposal and robotics.
Launched in 2018, NIC Karachi is an Ignite – MoITT funded incubator that is operated by LMKT in collaboration with NED University, HBL, PTCL, PPAF. The Center aims to incubate over 200 next-gen businesses in five years. NIC Karachi offers entrepreneurs and promising startups from Sindh a variety of programs, ranging from two-day boot camps to year-long acceleration programs, as well as access to mentor and investor networks, and technical resources.
“It’s heartening to witness such passion commitment and resolve at NIC Karachi,” said NITB Executive Director Shabahat Ali Shah. “We want to transform Pakistan into a Startup economy and that requires a cultural shift, which may be hard to achieve without the enthusiasm and drive of the youth.”
According to Yusuf Hussain, CEO Ignite,
“the building blocks are now in place for the National Incubation Centre program to throw up more successes like Pak Vitae and Bykea.”
“Pakistan has no shortage of talent,” said CEO LMKT Atif Rais Khan. “But ability alone is rarely enough to provide sustainable change, for true transformation we need to provide our youth with the necessary tools to harness their potential and convert their talent into skill and NIC Karachi does just that.”
“NIC Karachi’s inaugural graduation ceremony is not just an important milestone for the Center, it is a landmark moment for the Sindh’s startup ecosystem,” said Project Director NIC Karachi Shahjahan Chaudhary. “At NIC Karachi we aim to nurture the spirit of independent thinking in our youth and this is reflected in the diversity of the startups we have incubated here.”
The 17 Startups that graduated from NIC Karachi are:
- DOT Incorporation
- Bykea
- Aqua Agro
- Urdu Studio
- EDVON Robotics
- Ilmversity
- Learning Pitch
- Bioniks
- Foona Review
- PIXCILE
- Bogo
- Tameer Ghar
- AzCorp Entertainment
- Trashit
- Mechanic Ustaad
- Social Junction
- Mera Sabaq
The graduated startups were ecstatic on securing this success, they expressed that the engagement generated by the team NIC really helped them a lot and transformed them from a hatcheries into accelerating startups.
The Team NIC Karachi believes that it is the #GrowthMindset that has enabled National Incubation Center, Karachi and its startups to leave its mark on the Pakistan’s startup map. Congratulations to the graduating startups for being the flag bearers of innovation in this rising economy.
#NICRising!