US fund commits $10 million for startup investment initiative led by Pakistani tech leaders 

The handout photograph released by JR Dallas Tech Fund on June 6, 2025, shows Jehangir A. Raja, Managing Partner at JR Dallas Tech Fund (center), Mehwish Salman Ali, founder and CEO of Data Vault (left) and Malik Mudassir founder and CEO of AppsGenii Technologies, posing for a group photo. (JR Dallas Tech Fund)
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Updated 06 June 2025
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US fund commits $10 million for startup investment initiative led by Pakistani tech leaders 

  • Mehwish Salman Ali, Malik Mudassir to receive $10 million to invest in high-potential startups planning to scale US operations 
  • Target investment range is $250,000 to $1.5 million per startup, portfolio size will be 15-20 carefully selected companies over 2 years

ISLAMABAD: The JR Dallas Tech Fund on Friday announced a “groundbreaking” $10 million commitment to globally recognized technology leaders, Pakistan’s Mehwish Salman Ali and Malik Mudassir, to spearhead an exclusive US-focused startup investment initiative.

Under the agreement, Ali and Mudassir will receive $10 million in dedicated capital to identify, evaluate, and invest in high-potential startups planning to scale operations in the United States. The duo will serve as lead investment partners with full authority to deploy capital across artificial intelligence, cloud computing, digital health, and frontier technology ventures.

“We are entrusting $10 million to two of the most visionary technology leaders of our generation,” said Jehangir A. Raja, Managing Partner at JR Dallas Tech Fund. 

“Mehwish and Malik represent the perfect combination of technical expertise, entrepreneurial success, and strategic vision needed to identify the next generation of game-changing startups ready to conquer the American market.”

According to the statement by JR Dallas, economic impact projections of the funding include direct job creation, with portfolio companies expected to generate 300-500 high-skilled technology positions within 24 months.

The target investment range is $250,000 to $1.5 million per startup and focus areas are AI/Machine Learning, Cloud Infrastructure, Digital Health, Quantum Computing, Cybersecurity.

The portfolio size will be 15-20 carefully selected companies over 24 months.

The commitment will also strengthen Texas as a hub for international tech talent entering the US market and accelerate breakthrough technologies in AI, health care, and cloud infrastructure. Portfolio companies are also projected to contribute $50-100 million in US economic activity within three years.

Ali is the founder and CEO of Data Vault, Pakistan’s first solar-powered and quantum-encrypted AI data center, co-founder of Zahanat AI, the country’s first indigenous GPT model, and COO of AppsGenii Technologies. 

As a TEDx speaker and Forbes Technology Council member, Ali’s track record in AI innovation, cybersecurity, and operational excellence “makes her uniquely qualified to identify transformative technologies ready for US market expansion,” JR Dallas said. 

Mudassir is the founder & CEO of AppsGenii Technologies, operating across the US, UK, and Pakistan, and co-founder of multiple successful ventures including GharPar, BoxesGen, and Dental Connect. He is also a Central Executive Committee Member at P@SHA, Pakistan’s largest IT trade association. 


Pakistan police detain teen girl radicalized online in suspected suicide bombing plot

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Pakistan police detain teen girl radicalized online in suspected suicide bombing plot

  • The girl was targeted online by the Baloch Liberation Army, which was designated as a terrorist group by the US this year
  • In 2022, a female suicide bomber affiliated with the BLA killed three Chinese teachers near a university campus in Karachi

KARACHI: Police in Pakistan detained a teenage girl who was radicalized and recruited online by an outlawed separatist group to carry out a “major suicide attack,” authorities said Monday.

No criminal charges will be filed and she will be placed under state protection as “a victim rather than a suspect,” Sindh provincial Home Minister Ziaul Hassan said at a news conference.

The girl was detained during a routine police check on buses as she traveled to Karachi, the Sindh province capital, from southwestern Balochistan province to meet a handler, Hassan said.

The girl was targeted online by the Baloch Liberation Army, which was designated as a terrorist group by the United States earlier this year. The group convinced the girl that carrying out an attack would bring her honor and recognition within the Baloch community, similar to other women who have carried out suicide bombings against security forces, Hassan said.

“The girl appeared confused when police officers asked her routine questions,” said Hassan, who added that she was taken to a police facility and disclosed months of contact with militants through social media platforms including Facebook and Instagram.

The girl appeared with her mother at a news conference but her face was covered and her name and age were withheld. Police showed a video statement she made with details about her contacts with BLA and how she agreed to carry out a suicide attack.

Pakistan’s Information Minister Attaullah Tarar condemned BLA and other separatist groups for luring people toward violence and said detaining the girl prevented a potential large loss of life.

Baloch separatists have waged an insurgency since the early 2000s seeking greater autonomy and in some cases independence from Pakistan while demanding a larger share of natural resources.

Authorities said the group has attempted to increase its use of female attackers in recent years. A female suicide bomber affiliated with BLA killed three Chinese teachers in 2022 near a university campus in Karachi.