Metal, a Pakistani AI startup for fundraising, raises $4.5 million seed round
The company, founded by a former Airlift chief executive, says its software helps founders raise capital. a16z speedrun and Y Combinator led the round.
Metal, a Pakistan based AI startup, has raised $4.5 million in seed funding. The round was led by a16z speedrun and Y Combinator, Profit reported on 2 September 2026.
Other investors include Pioneer Fund, Rebel Fund, Gaingels, Indus Valley Capital, Team Ignite Ventures and Phaze Ventures, among others, according to the report.
Metal is building what it calls an AI native operating system for capital formation. In plain terms, it is software that founders use while they raise money, and the company wants to become the system they keep using throughout the process.
The founder and chief executive is Usman Gul, who previously ran Airlift Technologies, the Pakistani quick commerce startup. Profit said Gul announced the round in a LinkedIn post, where he also published his thinking on how private capital markets could change.
Growth claims
The company shared some figures about its progress. It launched publicly about 15 months before the announcement and has grown between 30 and 80 per cent each quarter for six quarters in a row, according to the report. It is also tracking towards multi million dollar annual revenue by the end of its 2026 financial year. These numbers come from the company and Profit did not say they had been independently checked.
The round matters for two reasons. Seed funding at this size is still uncommon for startups built in Pakistan, and backing from Y Combinator and a16z speedrun, two well known Silicon Valley programmes, puts a Pakistani founder in front of a wider group of investors.
Reported from Profit by Pakistan Today, which drew on Gul's LinkedIn announcement.
