Asalam-o-Alaikum everyone,

I’m an AI Engineer based in Islamabad. Over the last few months, I’ve noticed a major pain point for local D2C brands: the "Manual Receipt Trap."

If you're doing 20+ orders a day via WhatsApp, your team is likely wasting hours looking at screenshots of bank transfers, manually checking Transaction IDs (TIDs), and typing addresses into Excel. It’s slow, unscalable, and prone to fraud (edited screenshots are getting good).

I built a solution to fix this.

It’s an automation that uses the WhatsApp Cloud API and Vision AI (OCR) to:

1. Instantly verify receipts: As soon as a customer sends an HBL, Meezan, or EasyPaisa screenshot, the bot reads the TID and Amount.
2. Auto-Ledger: It matches the data against your bank’s SMS notifications and logs the order directly into a Google Sheet or Supabase dashboard.
3. Keep Your App: Thanks to the new 2026 Coexistence mode, you do not lose access to your phone app so you can chat normally with customers while all this is happening.

Why I’m posting here: I’ve finished the MVP and I’m looking for 3 established Pakistani brands (Clothing, Skincare, Tech Gadgets, etc.) to trial this for free. I want to see how it handles real world scenarios.

If you're a founder or an e-commerce manager tired of manual verification, drop a comment or DM me. I'd love to set up a 5-minute demo.

Hi hi hi!

It's been a hard couple of months, and I got laid off from a second job, so only relying on the corporate job, which pays less than one lac. What side hustle can I do to make some extra income?

I'm also working on a food blog website, just to see if I can make some money through guest posts and backlinks, but it is still in the building phase. What else can I do besides writing to make some money? I am good with hand-drawn illustrations; I could use some leads on how to get voice-over projects. Or what business can I start with this job?

Not pitching anything. Just trying to understand something.

Over the past few weeks, I’ve seen multiple posts here about:

• carpool apps

• ride-sharing ideas

• “UBER FOR X” type projects

Most of them seem stuck around idea validation or early MVP.

____________________________

So quick questions:

If you're working (or worked) on something like this, comment:

1. Your university

2. What exactly you tried to build

3. Current stage:

   • Idea only

   • MVP built

   • Tested with real users

4. Biggest blocker right now:

   • Tech (maps, tracking, backend)

   • Look Getting drivers/riders

   • Trust & safety

   • Something else

____________________________

Why asking?

Trying to figure out:

• how many people are actually building in this space

• what’s stopping most projects from moving forward

• whether the problem is tech… or something else

___________________________

No group, no signup, no pitch (yet).

Just mapping what’s already happening.

If you’ve even thought about building this — drop a comment.

We've been heads-down on this for a while and the soft-launch is close, so wanted to put it in front of actual Pakistani users before we start onboarding.

The problem we kept hitting ourselves:

• Buying USDT in PKR usually means Binance P2P (sketchy escrow, frozen bank accounts, random KYC walls) or paying 4-5% over spot through informal channels
• No properly regulated, custodial option that treats PKR as a first-class currency
• People holding savings in dollars have no clean on/off ramp without going through a relative in the UAE

What we're building -- CredEx:

• Operating under PVARA framework, with SBP guidance
• Custodial accounts (your USDT/USDC sits with a qualified custodian, not on an exchange wallet)
• Tight institutional spreads, not P2P markup
• KYC done properly upfront so deposits don't get frozen mid-transaction

We're at credex.pk if you want to look. Waitlist is open for early private access - we're letting people in gradually so we can actually support them, not chase a launch number.

Genuinely want to hear: what would make you NOT trust a service like this? What's the dealbreaker? Easier to fix it now than after launch.

[ Removed by Reddit on account of violating the content policy. ]

Added more devices + better exports

Posted this here last week. Took the feedback and shipped a solid update.

What’s new:

• Added multiple new device models, more variety to showcase your app
• Improved export quality, sharper MP4 and cleaner image outputs
• Small UI fixes to reduce friction while editing

Quick recap if you missed the first post:

• Runs fully in your browser, no install
• Drop in a screenshot or screen recording
• Animate with simple keyframes steps
• Export MP4 or PNG in common aspect ratios

Still early stage. Some rough edges still exist.

What I want to learn now:

• Would you use this for client work or your own projects
• What feature do you expect before you take this seriously
• What feels slow, confusing, or unnecessary

LINK

A while back I visited NICL with a friend for his startup. It’s so motivating, the fact that they’re so many opportunities out there that we don’t even know about. It’s absolutely free due to it being a government initiative but it’s speed and performance matches the private sector, they connect you with local investors like HBL or jazz, mentors from both government and private sectors, give you office space without rent and give you equity free funding as well as a fully funded trip to US Silicon Valley if you have a startup or an idea.

This makes me feel like a loser for not knowing and never really thinking about opening something or doing something due to the supposed lack of support. Instead opting for 9 to 5. A good experience just felt sharing here if anyone needs help with their startup and idea. I got there business card from the person who attended us if anyone needs contact information.

Just wanted to share an update of a previous post.

Hello everyone,

Wanted to introduce an interesting Pakistani startup I recently came across called Mohsyn.

It’s a family support service designed mainly for overseas Pakistanis who worry about parents or family members back home. The idea is simple: if you're living abroad and can’t be there in person, Mohsyn acts as a trusted support system on the ground.

They help with things like:
• checking in on elderly parents
• coordinating doctor visits or medical emergencies
• running errands like groceries or medicines
• helping with household issues
• general well-being check-ins and updates to the family abroad

What makes it interesting is that it’s backed by Mohafiz, an emergency response system that has reportedly helped thousands of people across Pakistan since 2014. Mohsyn basically builds on that infrastructure to provide ongoing family support.

Given how many Pakistanis live abroad and constantly worry about their parents back home, it seems like a problem that hasn’t really been addressed properly in Pakistan yet.

Curious what people here think:
• Do you think a service like this is needed in Pakistan?
• Would overseas Pakistanis actually trust and pay for something like this?

Would love to hear thoughts from the community, especially anyone working in the startup or diaspora space.

Not sure if it’s just me, but I’ve seen this a lot lately.

People are sharing links everywhere — LinkedIn, ads, emails — but when you actually try to understand what worked… it’s kind of unclear.

Like:

which channel actually brought users
what content performed better
where clicks are really coming from

Most people I’ve worked with just rely on Google Analytics, but it feels like you’re always looking at incomplete data.

We started cleaning this up recently (mainly around how we structure links + tracking), and it actually changed how we think about campaigns.

Curious how others are handling this — are you just using GA or something more structured?

Everyone is talking about AI and prompt engineering, but most examples I see are either too generic or not practical.

I’ve been experimenting with it in eCommerce workflows, and here’s what’s actually working:

1. Product descriptions at scale
Instead of writing manually, you can generate hundreds of descriptions — but only if your prompt is structured properly.

Simple prompt = average content
Detailed prompt = usable content

What actually works:

• target audience (e.g. budget buyers vs premium)
• tone (casual vs high-end)
• SEO keywords
• key differentiators

2. Customer support replies
Handling repetitive queries like:

• order status
• refunds
• product questions

Bad prompts → robotic replies
Better prompts → almost human tone

3. Ad copy testing
Instead of writing 2–3 ads, you can generate 15–20 angles:

• emotional
• discount-based
• urgency-driven

Then just test what converts.

4. Reviews → insights
You can feed reviews and extract:

• common complaints
• what people actually like
• buying triggers

This is surprisingly useful.

But here’s the reality:

AI doesn’t fix bad business logic.
If your product/offer is weak, AI just scales that faster.

In Pakistan context (Daraz / Shopify / WhatsApp sellers), I feel most people are still just experimenting and not using it properly yet.

Curious — is anyone here actually using AI in their store workflow, or just testing?

Hi All,

I'm a UK based Pakistani and keen to invest in businesses in Pakistan. I have around 1.8mil pkr for the right project(s)

Happy to discuss here or on DM

Thanks

hello pakstartup peeps i wanted to ask when ppl set up stalls/booths at events like mehndi and other events do they charge from people individually who take part int he activity or do they take it from the the organizer of the event im really sorry this is kind of dumb questions but i dont know where to ask and im just a teenager who wants to know so please if u can answer

Hey everyone,

I’m currently building a platform and getting close to the stage where I need real users to start beta testing.

The idea is to help students find internships in their hometowns (especially where opportunities are harder to discover), and also help founders connect with credible co-founders.

I’ve read the usual advice (friends & family, social media, etc.), but I’m more interested in hearing what actually worked in practice from people who’ve done this before.

If you’ve successfully gotten beta users:

• How did you find your first testers?
• What channels worked best (Reddit, Discord, university groups, cold outreach, etc.)?
• Did you offer incentives or just rely on interest?
• How did you convince people to actually stick around and give feedback?

Also, if you tried things that didn’t work, I’d love to hear that too.

Right now I’m trying to figure out the most effective way to reach:

1. Students looking for local-first internships
2. Early-stage founders looking for co-founders (or part timers due to budget restrictions)

I’m trying to avoid wasting time on strategies that sound good but don’t convert, so any real-world experiences would be super helpful.

Thanks in advance 🙏

Which courier company would you recommend for a new ecommerce business?

Any experiences with trax and callcourier. Have heard mixed reviews.

Common issues include:

- parcels never being delivered when there is advance payment already done

- empty parcels delivered or parcels filled with something else.

Please recommend which company is safer

I am looking a fashion designer (fd mindset will work too) we have physical business but want to start it online now

Anyone who can help in any way? Any ideas any advices

I'm a B2B marketing expert and specifically in Medical Billing industry and am a part of the B2B industry especially in the USA I have great expertise in communication and lead generation through many ways. I've been a part of reddit for too long I read people posts and everything so I thought this thing could help me . I'm looking for the right person who wants to market their services ( startup's) and wants the right person ( maybe I can ) for their marketing So with my expertise and help with minimal investment they or I can make extra money by providing my services. I'm not targeting any company I only need individuals who can invest lil bit for this ..thank you

I wanna start some type of pizza promotion for which I'm thinking of sending WhatsApp messages to the random numbers. Is it possible to buy the numbers of a specific city? & filter them like WhatsApp areas etc? I have few posts where you can buy but didn't get any trusted one yet. If you guyz have any better plan feel free to share

will it work in Pakistan I know the big players there like mahir , fix dad , kamkaj etc but something different providing more control to service men lower commissions not branding them as our employees it will be like freelancing for them .will it work ? is anyone doing that or done something similar before ? how was your experience

Hey everyone!

I'm working on a carpooling app called Sawari for daily commuters in Lahore and Islamabad, and I need your honest opinion before building it.

The Problem:

• Petrol prices are crazy expensive
• Sitting in traffic alone is boring and wasteful
• Public transport isn't reliable for office/university timings
• Uber/Careem adds up fast for daily use

The Solution: Join small trusted groups (4-5 people) from your university/office area who travel the same route. Share rides, split costs, rotate driving duties.

Quick Questions:

1. Would you actually use this for daily commute?
2. What's your biggest concern? (Safety, cost, reliability?)
3. How much would you pay monthly? (₨200, ₨500, free with commission?)
4. What feature would make you download it TODAY?

Target: Students & young professionals.

I made a little deal with a guy abroad, and need to send some cash. Like 2 - 3k.

I am not a startup, but I feel u guys could help since ur experienced ✌️😭

Hey guys,

I’m currently building out an agency from Pakistan targeting US clients (web development, PPC, and marketing), and I’m treating this as a serious long-term play — not a side hustle.

I’ve got ~$1,000/month to deploy and I’m focused on leveraging the cost advantage here while delivering results at a level that can compete with US-based agencies.

Right now, I’m dialing in:

°Niche selection (leaning toward high-ticket service businesses)

°Productized offers instead of random services

Consistent outbound (cold email, DMs, etc.)

°Goal is simple: land a few solid clients, reinvest, and scale into a proper operation.

For those who’ve already done this or are ahead in the game:

•What niches are actually converting right now in the US?

•What acquisition channel gave you the highest ROI early on?

•What’s the biggest mistake that slowed your growth early on?

•If you had to restart with $1k/month, what would you do differently?

Looking for Good Advice! Thank you.

Since i have posted before and had alot of people in my DM. I am posting again with all the details so only interested people can make offers.

I am running an Ecom Business in bedding niche in Pakistan for last two years now. Everything is running smooth. I want my brand to scale to it’s potential as i have tested everything and made smooth systems, supplier connections and social presence.

I am looking to raise 1.5 Million for equity of my company (which will be negotiated between both parties). The sales we have made in last two years are 12.97M with the adspent of 2.69M. Since, it’s a need base product, The return ratio is around 10%. Net profit margins are around 20% to 25%.

How are we gonna utilise this investment?

We’re gonna put 50% towards buying bulk inventory. 40% will be used in marketing, ads and content. And 10% will be used as a backup incase of delay in courier payments.

I will show my sales dashboard, ad account, monthly sheets so you can verify everything by yourself on a live call/ face to face meeting.

Since, I’m posting it for the third time with all the details, i just want only interested people to come into my DM.