Zafar Chishti
LAHORE: A UK digital-technology founder has taken an AI powered carbon intelligence software venture from Worcester to an international startup stage in Lahore, presenting a vision for making emissions intelligence accessible to smaller businesses.
Muhammad Hamza Tariq, Founder and Director of ChainScope AI Ltd, represented the United Kingdom after being selected as a finalist in the SEE Pakistan World Startup Championship 2026. He presented EchoChain in the competition’s Final Evaluation Round and later showcased the venture alongside 45 international startups during the exhibition programme.The finalist selection marked an important leadership milestone for Tariq, who has built the venture around a problem that sits at the intersection of climate policy, industrial operations and supply-chain pressure. SMEs are increasingly expected to report credible emissions data, but many lack dedicated sustainability specialists and cannot justify the cost of conventional carbon-management consultancy.At the final evaluation, Tariq presented the problem, the technology, its target market, unit economics and the company’s development roadmap to a judging panel. EchoChain’s proposition is an integrated platform that calculates Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions, identifies hotspots and supplier risks, forecasts future emissions and recommends practical reduction actions. It also prepares draft reporting outputs and uses live electricity-grid context to support operational insight.The pitch required more than technical knowledge. Tariq had to communicate a complex climate and data problem in commercial terms, respond to questions and demonstrate why the digital product could be useful to SMEs, technically credible and capable of developing into a scalable SaaS business.His founder contribution spans product strategy, user-problem definition, feature design, commercial positioning, external validation and the communication of technical value to non-specialist audiences. That end to end leadership has enabled ChainScope AI to progress from a research-informed concept to a working product led technology venture.
“Founder leadership means taking responsibility for the vision and being prepared to have it tested,” Tariq said in a proposed statement for publication. “Representing the UK on an international platform was an honour, but it also required me to explain clearly why this problem matters, listen carefully to expert feedback and show how ChainScope AI can turn climate ambition into practical business action.”
Tariq’s leadership story is shaped by an interdisciplinary background. He trained as a chemical engineer at the University of the Punjab and later completed an MSc in Logistics and Supply Chain Management at the University of Worcester. He has combined those fields with research in machine learning, industrial decarbonisation, sustainable supply chains and green hydrogen, giving the company a foundation that connects engineering systems with commercial decision-making.ChainScope AI has developed a working version of EchoChain and is progressing through early industry validation, including a UK chemical-sector pilot. The company is also participating in the National Climate Tech Accelerator delivered through a joint programme involving Barclays Eagle Labs and Sustainable Ventures. Through that programme, it is developing EchoChain Plus, a future version intended to integrate IIoT-based operational data collection and near-real-time carbon intelligence.The venture’s progress has been accompanied by recognition for Tariq’s entrepreneurship and professional contribution. He is an IdeaRise Startup Challenge winner, recipient of a 2026 Global Recognition Award and a Business Awards UK 2026 Regional Award, and was nominated for Best Entrepreneur at the PBC Business Summit & Awards 2026.He has also presented research at international engineering and technology conferences and spoken to professional and academic audiences through engagements including the British Computer Society’s Hereford & Worcester Branch, ICET 2026, QAHE Global Connect and ICAIII 2026. He contributes as a volunteer AI facilitator with the Global Innovation Hub.The SEE Pakistan experience gave Tariq the opportunity to exchange ideas with founders, technology executives and industry professionals from several markets. The exhibition floor moved the conversation beyond a formal pitch, allowing him to demonstrate the product, hear questions from potential users and compare the climate challenge with problems being addressed by other international startups.
The achievement was selection as a finalist and participation in the Final Evaluation Round. That distinction is central to the story, Worcester company earned the opportunity to present its technology and commercial vision on an international competitive platform.
For ChainScope AI, the next challenge is execution, converting recognition and feedback into stronger validation, customer adoption and measurable environmental value. For its founder, representing the UK in Lahore was another step towards a larger ambition, building a globally relevant, product led digital technology company capable of supporting industrial decarbonization and the transition to Net Zero.
