20 Nepali tech ventures reach market readiness in US-Nepal initiative

KATHMANDU: Twenty Nepali AI and technology ventures presented market‑ready solutions at a showcase in Kathmandu on Friday. The event marked the conclusion of the US Embassy Nepal‑supported 'Seeding & Scaling Innovations' initiative, implemented by Aadyanta Advisory.

The six‑month programme, run in partnership with the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) Nepal and Aadhyanta Fund Management, aimed to bridge what organisers call the 'missing middle' between early traction and scale for Nepali startups by strengthening mentorship, market linkages and capital preparedness.

Organisers said the initiative combined a targeted three‑month pre‑accelerator with structured mentorship and industry engagement dialogues. Participating founders worked to strengthen product‑market fit, refine business models and develop investor‑ready strategies aligned with global standards. The programme connected startups with practitioners from US institutions, global technology firms and leading AmCham member companies in Nepal, including SecurityPal AI, Fusemachines and Adex‑TekBay.

Organisers pointed to rapid recent growth in Nepal’s technology sector as the context for the programme. IT service exports rose from about USD 515 million in 2022 to an estimated USD 1 billion by 2025, according to NAS‑IT, and a growing workforce is now engaged in global digital markets. Yet many ventures still face barriers to scaling, programme leaders said.

The 20 ventures span a range of sectors, organisers said, including AI‑powered enterprise tools, agriculture and food systems, health and education technology, logistics and digital services. Founders are applying artificial intelligence to address challenges from smallholder productivity to language access and service delivery.

“Nepal has enormous talent. Nepal’s tech ecosystem needs stronger pathways to connect that talent to markets, capital, and global networks,” said Mike Harker, Chief, Public Affairs Section at the US Embassy Nepal. “Initiatives like Seeding & Scaling Innovations help close that gap.”

“Nepal’s tech sector has reached a point where the question is no longer about talent, but about visibility, credibility, and connection to global markets,” said Kailash Bijayananda, Chairperson of AmCham Nepal and COO at Leapfrog. “Programs like this help translate individual company success into a stronger, more cohesive ecosystem story—one that global partners and investors can understand, trust, and engage with.”

“The constraint for many Nepali founders is not knowledge — it’s access to the right networks, market signals, and operating contexts,” said Stuti Basnyet, Managing Director, Aadyanta Advisory. “What this initiative did differently was structure that access—connecting founders to how real companies operate, how decisions get made, and how markets actually respond.”

As the programme concluded, participating companies left with validated strategies, improved investor readiness and deeper integration into innovation and industry networks. Organisers said the initiative also produced a replicable model for bridging early‑stage innovation and growth markets, an outcome they regard as critical to Nepal’s next phase of economic development.

The programme was supported by the US Embassy in Nepal and implemented by Aadyanta Advisory in partnership with AmCham Nepal and Aadhyanta Fund Management. The US Embassy said it supports such efforts as part of its work to strengthen bilateral economic ties and advance mutually beneficial growth. Aadyanta Advisory said it is a strategic advisory firm working at the intersection of private capital, sustainable development and systems change, while AmCham Nepal said it promotes US‑Nepal trade, investment and private sector partnerships.