Ammar Ali Ayub

co-founder of Nearpeer

Compiled from 1 recorded interview. Every statement below is drawn from the passage cited beside it.

Ammar Ali Ayub is a co-founder of Nearpeer, a company he started in his final year at university. Born in Islamabad, he was admitted to LUMS and worked with the World Bank and the Higher Education Commission. Ayub has said Nearpeer has around 500,000 students across its verticals.

Early life and background

Ayub was born in Islamabad. His father is from Sindh and his mother is from KPK, and his parents married and settled in Islamabad. A computer came to his home in class 6, and the internet arrived around class 7. [1]

Education

Ayub went to Lahore for his education. He was moved between several schools. He attended a school in Rawalpindi for classes 2 and 3, and he was sent to Beaconhouse in class 3. He was offered only a conditional promotion because he had failed two or three subjects. [1]

Ayub was admitted to Cadet College Murree. He told his parents that his studies were not going well. He joined a college that his sister and brother were already attending, and he studied classes 8 to 10, then classes 11 and 12 and A-levels, at the same institution. [1]

He was president of an inter-school football competition in Islamabad. He came up with a party system, put forward his delegates for six seats and won all six. [1]

Ayub sat A-level exams in physics, maths, accounting, economics and Urdu, and says he had an A grade in his Urdu exam. He prepared for his SAT using Khan Academy lectures, and he says Khan Academy gave him control over his own learning. He was admitted to Brown University but did not receive a scholarship, so he could not attend. He was also admitted to LUMS. He studied literature, law, business, accounting and finance. [1]

Early work

Ayub interned at SOS Village during his freshman year. In his second and third years he worked with the World Bank, and he also worked with the Higher Education Commission. He has spoken of working on a water and sanitation programme. He says he received job offer letters from several organisations, including Huawei and the Punjab Skill Development Fund. [1]

Ayub and others worked with Google, making Google Business View. He and his team started work six to seven months before graduation in order to reach a revenue-making stage. In 2016 he said that he wanted to pursue entrepreneurship and start a startup. [1]

Nearpeer

Nearpeer is Ayub's company, which he started together with a co-founder. He started Nearpeer in his final year at university. According to Ayub, it began with chartered accountancy, ACCA, CSS and entry test classes. [1]

Ayub has said Nearpeer has around 500,000 students across its verticals, and that about 95% of its students study free of cost. He has said Nearpeer is the largest by revenue and by number of students, and that it is larger than the largest physical academy in Pakistan. He has said it raised funding of around $250,000 about a year before he spoke. According to Ayub, Nearpeer has more than 100 people, and its tech team is about 25. [1]

Ayub says the technology is designed so that a student joining the platform is assessed at the start. He has said only about 200 students attend a live session. [1]

Views

Ayub says human interaction and technology should go together. He says exam taking is more an art than a science, and that entry tests check how a child has been groomed since childhood. [1]

Ayub says Pakistan's defence and education budgets are about the same and that Pakistan's median age is 22. He says only about 5 crore of 11 crore children are enrolled and that about half of matric students fail. He says the number of children drops from about 2.5 crore to about 70 lakh by classes 6 to 8. He also says Indonesia's economy is now about $1.2 trillion, up from about $300 billion. [1]

Ayub says LUMS was very elitist up to 2008-09 and has become less so since. He says that he and others stayed back because they want to work for Pakistan. He advises looking at a company's Facebook, YouTube, company profile and current standing in the market. [1]

Personal life

Ayub's mother is a banker and works at MCB. His father was a government employee. His younger sister is five years younger than him, and there is a ten-year age difference between him and his brother. His sister graduated in law from LUMS. Ayub does not think he comes from a very elite background. [1]

Timeline

2016
Said he wanted to pursue entrepreneurship and start a startup[1]

Appearances

DateTitleWhere
2022-04-22 The ed-tech founder who started in a LUMS dorm room Thought Behind Things

Frequently asked questions

Who is Ammar Ali Ayub?

Ammar Ali Ayub is a co-founder of Nearpeer, a company he started in his final year at university. He was born in Islamabad and was admitted to LUMS.[1]

What does Ammar Ali Ayub do?

Ammar Ali Ayub is a co-founder of Nearpeer. He has said Nearpeer has around 500,000 students across its verticals, and that about 95% of its students study free of cost.[1]

Where is Ammar Ali Ayub from?

Ammar Ali Ayub was born in Islamabad. His father is from Sindh and his mother is from KPK, and his parents married and settled in Islamabad.[1]

Where did Ammar Ali Ayub study?

Ammar Ali Ayub went to Lahore for his education and was admitted to LUMS and to Cadet College Murree. He was also admitted to Brown University but did not receive a scholarship, so he could not attend.[1]

What company did Ammar Ali Ayub found?

Ammar Ali Ayub started Nearpeer together with a co-founder. He started it in his final year at university, and he says it began with chartered accountancy, ACCA, CSS and entry test classes.[1]

What is Ammar Ali Ayub known for?

Ammar Ali Ayub is known as a co-founder of Nearpeer. He has said Nearpeer is the largest by revenue and by number of students.[1]

What are Ammar Ali Ayub's views on education in Pakistan?

Ammar Ali Ayub says only about 5 crore of 11 crore children are enrolled and that about half of matric students fail. He also says human interaction and technology should go together.[1]

References

  1. The ed-tech founder who started in a LUMS dorm room . Thought Behind Things , 2022-04-22.
Show the source passages (66 statements)
  1. He was born in Islamabad. So, I was born in Islamabad. Uh, PIMS mein paidaish hui thi.
  2. His father is from Sindh and his mother is from KPK. My dad is from Sindh, my mom is from KPK.
  3. His parents married and settled in Islamabad. They got married and settled in Islamabad.
  4. He went to Lahore for his education. Toh uske education ke liye I went Lahore
  5. He was moved between several schools. kabhi jo hai woh kis school mein daalna, kabhi kis school mein daalna.
  6. He attended a school in Rawalpindi for classes 2 and 3. Saint Paul, uh, Rawalpindi mein ek school hai, phir wahan par class 2, 3 wahan pe padha.
  7. He was sent to Beaconhouse in class 3. Toh phir Beaconhouse mein bhej diya class 3 ke andar.
  8. He was offered only a conditional promotion because he had failed two or three subjects. conditional promote kar rahe the kyunki maine do teen subjects wahan par fail kar liye the.
  9. He was admitted to Cadet College Murree. maine Cadet College Murree ka admission diya, wahan par admission ho gaya
  10. He told his parents that his studies were not going well. jab maine parents ko yeh bataya, padhai achhi nahi hai
  11. He joined a college that his sister and brother were already attending. GSIS was the college jahan par meri behen aur bhai already padh rahe the
  12. He studied classes 8 to 10, then classes 11 and 12 and A-levels, at the same institution. Toh class 8, 9, 10 wahan se padhi, uske baad class 11, 12, A-levels bhi wahan se kiya
  13. He was president of an inter-school football competition in Islamabad. Islamabad ka inter-school football competition, uska president bana
  14. He came up with a party system. pehli baar I came up with the party system.
  15. He put forward his delegates for six seats and won all six. 6 seaton ke upar maine apne delegates khade kiye aur 6 ke 6 seaten jo hum log jeet gaye.
  16. He was admitted to LUMS. LUMS mein admission ho gaya.
  17. He was admitted to Brown University but did not receive a scholarship, so he could not attend. mera International Brown University ke andar admission ho gaya tha aur mera Glasgow aur yahan wahan ho gaya tha, scholarship nahi mili thi isliye main wahan ja nahi sakta tha.
  18. He studied literature, law, business, accounting and finance. humne literature bhi padha, humne law bhi padha, business bhi padha, accounting bhi padhi, finance bhi padha
  19. He interned at SOS Village during his freshman year. SOS village ke andar wo jo freshman year hota hai, usi mein ja kar internship kar li
  20. In his second and third years he worked with the World Bank. Second year, third year mein World Bank ke saath bhi kaam kar liya
  21. He also worked with the Higher Education Commission. Higher Education Commission ke saath bhi kaam kar liya
  22. He worked at the World Bank. I worked at the World Bank.
  23. He worked on a water and sanitation programme. I was working at the water and sanitation program.
  24. He prepared a rubric and gave it to them to follow. maine jo hai ek unko rubric bana kar diya ki yaar agar ye wala rubric agar follow karein
  25. That particular internship was World Bank funded. Now that particular internship was World Bank funded.
  26. Nearpeer is his company, which he started together with a co-founder. He is co-founder in Nearpeer, my company. Um aur hum dono ne mil ke start kiya tha.
  27. He started Nearpeer in his final year at university. Nearpeer ek aisi company thi jo maine by the way university ke final year mein start kar li thi
  28. He and others worked with Google, making Google Business View. woh Google ke saath hum kaam karte the Google Business View banate the
  29. He and his team started work six to seven months before graduation in order to reach a revenue-making stage. ke hum logon ne apni graduation se cheh saat mahine pehle cheezein start kar li thi taake hum log ek revenue making stage ke upar hote
  30. In 2016 he said that he wanted to pursue entrepreneurship and start a startup. toh main 2016 mein jab maine jaakar bola ke maine entrepreneurship karni hai, maine startup karna hai
  31. Ammar has said Nearpeer has around 500,000 students across its verticals. Alhamdulillah abhi tak 5 lakh ke around students hain hamare across different verticals matric FSc wagera wagera.
  32. Ammar has said Nearpeer is the largest by revenue and by number of students. we are largest in terms of revenues as well as number of students that we have
  33. Ammar has said Nearpeer raised funding of around $250,000 about a year before he spoke. So we raised a funding of around $250,000 around a year ago.
  34. Ammar has said about 95% of Nearpeer's students study free of cost. Nearpeer par almost 95% bache abhi bhi free of cost padhte hain.
  35. Ammar has said Nearpeer has more than 100 people. Around more than 100 people in the company.
  36. Ammar has said Nearpeer's tech team is about 25 people. So tech team is around 25 people.
  37. Ammar has said Nearpeer began with chartered accountancy, ACCA, CSS and entry test classes. The classes that we started from were chartered accountancy, ACCA, CSS, entry test.
  38. Ammar has said Nearpeer is larger than the largest physical academy in Pakistan. we are larger than the largest physical academy right now in Pakistan
  39. Ammar says the technology is designed so that a student joining the platform is assessed at the start. technology is designed in a way ke jab bacha platform par aaye to uski ek assessment ho start mein
  40. Ammar has said only about 200 students attend a live session. Lekin jab hum live session conduct karte hain toh sirf 200 bachche us live session mein aate hain
  41. Ammar says human interaction and technology should go together. Human interaction aur technology dono ko hand in hand sath sath jana bahut lazmi hai.
  42. Ammar says Pakistan's defence and education budgets are about the same. Pakistan ke andar defense aur education budget same hai.
  43. Ammar says Pakistan's median age is 22. Pakistan ki median age hai 22 saal.
  44. Ammar says only about 5 crore of 11 crore children are enrolled. 11 crore mein se sirf aur sirf 5 crore bache aapko kahin na kahin nazar aate hain jo enrolled hain
  45. Ammar says about half of matric students fail. Matric ke andar abhi bhi 50% bacha fail ho raha hai.
  46. Ammar says the number of children drops from about 2.5 crore to about 70 lakh by classes 6 to 8. Further class 6, 7, 8 se matlab yeh 2.5 crore se aapka number drop ho gaya hai takriban 70 lakh pe sirf
  47. Ammar says exam taking is more an art than a science. I think exam taking is a, is an art, more than it is a science.
  48. Ammar says entry tests check how a child has been groomed since childhood. Entry test ek wo exam hota hai jo check kar raha hota hai aapki bachpan se grooming aapki kaise hui hai
  49. He sat A-level exams in physics, maths, accounting, economics and Urdu. To mere jo the physics, maths, accounting, economics aur Urdu, to paanch subjects maine diye the
  50. He says he had an A grade in his Urdu exam. All of those students ended up getting a B or C in their Urdu exam while I had an A grade.
  51. He prepared for his SAT using Khan Academy lectures. Khan Academy ke lectures se padh padh ke maine apna SAT ka paper tayar kiya.
  52. Ammar says Khan Academy gave him control over his own learning. Khan Academy made me get the control of my own learning.
  53. A computer came to his home in class 6, and internet arrived around class 7. mere ghar pe computer aa gaya tha class 6 ke andar aur class 7 ke andar takreeban internet aa gaya tha
  54. Ammar says LUMS was very elitist up to 2008-09 and has become less so since. LUMS ke andar elitism mere khayal se 2008-9 tak ki agar baat ki jaye to definitely wahan par bahut zyada hoti thi lekin baad mein wahan par jo hai mere khayal se ye cheez thodi si kam hui hai
  55. His mother is a banker. ab my mom is a banker by the way
  56. His mother works at MCB. Toh she works at MCB aur wahan par
  57. His father was a government employee. my dad was um was a government employee, government servant
  58. His younger sister is five years younger than him, and there is a ten-year age difference between him and his brother. meri choti behen aur mere mein 5 saal ka farq hai aur bhai mein 10 saal ka farq hai
  59. His sister graduated in law from LUMS. My sister graduated from LUMS law mein
  60. He does not think he comes from a very elite background. I do not think I have a very elite kind of background
  61. Ammar says that he and others stayed back because they want to work for Pakistan. but we stayed back because humein Pakistan ke liye kaam karna hai
  62. Ammar says Indonesia's economy is now about $1.2 trillion, up from about $300 billion. Toh Indonesia aaj 300 billion se aaj woh 1.2 trillion dollar ki economy hai.
  63. Ammar advises looking at a company's Facebook, YouTube, company profile and current standing in the market. Unka Facebook dekho, unka YouTube dekho, unki company profile dekho, unki market ke andar current standing dekho.
  64. Ammar says that he and another person decided to hire a candidate before interviewing her. isko interview karne se pehle hi Shahrukh aur maine decide kar liya tha we need to hire her
  65. Ammar says she is now in a director-level position, as sales director. right now she is at a director level position Mashallah at sales director
  66. Ammar says he received job offer letters from several organisations, including Huawei and the Punjab Skill Development Fund. Dolmen's, RB, PSTF Punjab Skill Development Fund, Huawei in sab ke andar jo hai meri job letters, offer letters aa gaye the