Three entrepreneurs among seven Pakistanis featured in Forbes Asia 30 Under 30 list for 2026

Pakistani entrepreneurs Syed Ismail, Muhammad Furqan Karim Kidwai and Sarfraz Shahid Hussain are among seven Pakistanis featured in the Forbes Asia 30 Under 30 list for 2026, with the country’s representation covering technology, finance, entertainment, science and social impact.

The US magazine’s list is in its 11th edition this year and recognises young people for work in their respective fields.

Syed Ismail was named in the consumer and enterprise technology category for his work on digitising commodity sourcing and improving transparency in trade. He co-founded Saraaf in 2021 to digitise commodity sourcing and make trade more transparent.

The Karachi-based company is launching a mobile app for businesses sourcing materials such as onyx and cotton from Central and South Asia, with real-time pricing, shipment tracking, digitized contracts and live chats. 

In 2024, Saraaf secured a $5.3 million investment commitment from Shark Tank Pakistan, a business pitch reality show. It's preparing to go public this year. 

Muhammad Furqan Karim Kidwai and Sarfraz Shahid Hussain were recognised in the finance and venture capital category as co-founders of Antler Singapore-backed Plouton AI, an agentic automation platform that helps midmarket companies automate finance workflows. 

Kidwai, who previously founded a fintech company in Pakistan, saw how finance teams in many emerging markets still rely on spreadsheets and emails. 

Plouton's platform 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 so companies don't have to buy costly enterprise software.

The list also featured actor Hania Aamir and filmmaker Saman Kamraan in the entertainment category.

Hania Aamir was recognised for her work as an actor and for her digital presence after reaching 20 million followers on Instagram, making her Pakistan’s most-followed woman on the platform.

Saman Kamraan was named for her work as a filmmaker. Her short film, “The Bed She Made”, was the only Pakistani entry at the Busan International Short Film Festival this year.

Scientist Dr Maheera Ghani was included in the healthcare and science category.

Her WinSci Pakistan education project won the Nature Inspiring Women in Science Award from the Estée Lauder Companies and Springer Nature for encouraging women to pursue careers in science.

Youth leader Fahad Shahbaz was named in the social impact category for his work on youth participation in leadership and policymaking.

He founded the Youth General Assembly in 2015 at the age of 18 to create structured pathways for young Pakistanis to engage in governance and policy discourse.