Ahya: A climate software and AI platform for scaling climate action across MENA & Pakistan
In 2019, the MENA region represented 5% of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, a relatively lower contribution compared to other parts of the world. However, the region’s GHG emissions per capita are among the highest in the world. The private sector is stepping up to achieve net zero goals in the region, but the lack of access to accurate and consistent data on emissions continues to remain a challenge.
Ahya, a startup based in Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, is helping enterprises achieve net zero with accuracy, transparency, and environmental robustness. Its main offering, Ahya Operating System (AhyaOS), is an AI-powered carbon emissions platform designed to help companies accurately measure and manage their GHG emissions. The platform was developed for the Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan, and Pakistan (MENAP) region. It blends advanced AI with deep regional insights to provide a streamlined approach to carbon accounting. The startup addresses the gap of limited localized data by considering local compliance, cultural nuances, and regional standards in its solution. Each report produced by Ahya’s AI platform is comprehensively reviewed by its climate scientists, assuring the highest level of accuracy.
Ahya provides several other innovative products to foster climate responsibility, including a carbon offset digital marketplace called Tawazun. For emissions that cannot be reduced or avoided, Ahya offers businesses an extensive portfolio of verified carbon credits to offset emissions, which allows companies to provide critical climate financing to global projects. Its AhyaAI and AhyaAPI serve as pivotal ecosystem-enabling products. AhyaAI maintains an extensive database of the latest, verified, and localized emissions factors tailored to the region, and its algorithms automatically categorize various emission sources, and determine the optimal resource allocation aligned to business priorities.
Similarly, with AhyaAPI, businesses across a wide array of sectors, including banking, airlines, etc., can estimate the carbon footprint of any activity and access the latest emissions factor to guide their business decisions. Notably, the AhyaAPI is designed for both Arabic and English interfaces, being the first of its kind for climate action.
Navigating through the challenges of shifting business focus beyond corporate social responsibility and ESG to making climate change a core business pillar, Ahya has scaled its operations to the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan since its launch in 2023. Already working with 60 enterprise clients across the MENAP region, the startup aims to expand further in close collaboration with local partners, including sovereign funds.
Climate change mitigation in the region is going to require strong and actionable private sector commitments. Ahya is a home-grown climate-tech startup, and a testament to the potential of innovation and local entrepreneurship to scale climate action in the region. Its solution emphasizes the important role data and transparency play in enabling companies to better address emissions.
