This year’s Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia list recognises seven Pakistanis for their contributions in various fields, ranging from technology to media.
Forbes describes them as “changemakers in 10 categories who are transforming their industries”.
Syed Ismail
Listed in the ‘consumer and enterprise technology’ category, Syed Ismail cofounded Karachi-based Saraaf in 2021 to “digitise commodity sourcing and bring more transparency to it”.
The company is set to launch a mobile app for “businesses sourcing materials such as onyx and cotton from Central and South Asia, with real-time pricing, shipment tracking, digitised contracts and live chats”, Forbes notes.
In 2024, Saraaf also secured a $5.3 million investment commitment from Shark Tank Pakistan.
Founders of Plouton AI
Muhammad Furqan Karim Kidwai and Sarfraz Shahid Hussain secured a spot in the ‘finance and venture capital’ category for having co-founded Singapore-based Plouton AI.
The venture was described as an “agentic automation platform that helps midmarket companies automate finance workflows”.
It “uses auditable browser-based agents to run finance workflows, such as invoicing, payroll processing and month-end reconciliation, within existing tools like Xero, QuickBooks and Excel”, saving companies from buying costly software.
According to Forbes, Kidwai “saw how finance teams in many emerging markets still rely on spreadsheets and emails”, prompting him to launch a fintech company.
The two Habib University graduates had previously also co-founded fintech startup YPay Financial Services, which offered an app for people to invest digitally in mutual funds.
Maheera Ghani
Maheera Ghani graduated from Cambridge University in 2025 with a PhD in materials science and is currently doing postdoctoral research at Cambridge on ultra-thin semiconductors.
Forbes highlighted that the WinSci Pakistan education project, led by Ghani, won the Nature Inspiring Women in Science award from the Estée Lauder Companies and Springer Nature for “her efforts to encourage women to pursue careers in science”.
Commenting on her featuring on the Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia list, Ghani said: “Researching next-generation semiconductors at Cambridge University, innovating deep-tech technologies and working at the intersection of science, innovation, and leading impact has been an amazing journey filled with immense joy.
“I am overwhelmed with gratitude and pride to represent my country on such a prestigious platform and this recognition means so much to me personally,” the scientist added.
Fahad Shahbaz
Fahad Shahbaz founded the Youth General Assembly in 2015, when just 18 years old, to “create a pathway for young Pakistanis into leadership and policymaking”, Forbes wrote.
The Youth General Assembly runs an annual 96-member assembly based on the UK parliament and mirroring the National Assembly, providing a platform for young participants to “debate public policy and produce recommendations”.
Forbes mentioned Shahbaz was a 2023 recipient of the Diana Award and a member of the Pakistan Chapter of the World Economic Forum’s Global Shapers Community.
He graduated with a Master of Laws degree from the University of Law in London.
Reacting to his inclusion, Shahbaz wrote on X, “This recognition is not mine alone. It belongs to the people who believed in me, supported me and stood beside me throughout this journey.”
He added that the “social impact category is built on service, responsibility and the belief that meaningful change begins with people”.
“Pakistan’s greatest chapter is still being written and it is being written by its youth,” Shahbaz remarked.
It should be mentioned that actress Hania Aamir and filmmaker Saman Kamraan landed spots on the prestigious Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia list in the entertainment category.
Read about their accomplishments here.
