funl Lahore – Talent for Tomorrow

funl Lahore brought together a powerhouse room of startup founders, ecosystem builders, and tech leaders to unpack one of the most pressing themes in today’s innovation landscape:
What does it take to build startup teams ready for an AI-powered, rapidly evolving future of work?

🎙️ Speaker Highlights:

• Sara Zri – Founder, Wasssl & Saad Siddiqui – Founder, Edversity
  In a dynamic fireside chat, they explored “Rooted Locally, Building for Tomorrow’s World,” highlighting how startups in MENAP can scale global impact by embracing their local context and building narrative-driven, tech-enabled ventures.

• Usman Asif (CEO, Devsinc) reminded us the startups that will win tomorrow will be the ones that rethink hiring, team design, and tooling for an AI-native world. With over 65% of companies already adopting AI in some form (McKinsey, 2024), the time to adapt is now.

• Nabeel Qadeer – Deputy Group CEO, BenchMatrix
  Nabeel delivered a compelling talk on “The Talent Equation: Mindset > Skillset,” focusing on leadership agility, cross-market innovation, and what it really takes to scale people and strategy in today’s tech ecosystem.

• Monis Rehman – Founder, Rozee.pk & Dukaan
  Closing the evening, Monis shared insights on AI’s disruption of recruitment, how the traditional hiring funnel is being reimagined, and the opportunity for entrepreneurs to build smarter workforce solutions.

💡 Key Insights

• 65% of global companies are already leveraging AI, with hiring practices quickly evolving to match (McKinsey, 2024).

• 75% of employers now prioritize adaptability and soft skills over degrees (LinkedIn Workplace Learning Report, 2024).

• Talent strategies are shifting from qualification-based to capability-based, driven by real-time market needs and digital transformation.

🤝 Community in Action

From candid founder lessons to post-session gupshup over chai, funl Lahore sparked real conversations around what it takes to build companies and teams that are future-ready, purpose-driven, and locally rooted.

Big thank you to our speakers, partners, and community for showing up with curiosity, conviction, and collaboration, specially Daftarkhwan for the incredible hospitality & support!