In Abu Dhabi’s tech hub, two AI-powered startups are demonstrating that their most significant competitive advantage isn’t from an accelerator or a venture fund, but from family. Brothers Thouheed and Thamjeeth Abdul Gaffoor are behind Basetwo AI, a platform helping manufacturers streamline production, while husband-and-wife team Meenah Tariq and Omar Parvez Khan founded Metric to bring financial clarity to small businesses.
Quick Facts
- Two Abu Dhabi AI startups founded by family teams.
- Basetwo AI optimizes manufacturing with physics-based digital twins.
- Metric offers AI-powered financial analysis for SMEs.
The Unfair Advantage: Trust and Speed
For both founding teams, family relationships provide a built-in foundation that typical co-founders spend years developing. This inherent trust accelerates decision-making and strengthens resilience.
“Trust is extremely important in co-founders building something for the long run,” explained Thouheed Abdul Gaffoor, CEO of Basetwo AI. “And this is built into family relationships.”
The founders of Metric echo this sentiment, believing their marriage allows them to navigate challenges more effectively. “[We have] a co-founder relationship based on deep understanding and trust, constant support and access – think late night brainstorming sessions and strategy meetings on vacation,” said Meenah Tariq, Metric’s CEO.
Basetwo AI: Digital Twins for the Factory Floor
The Abdul Gaffoor brothers have engineered a platform that moves beyond conventional industrial AI. Instead of just analyzing historical data, Basetwo constructs physics-based “digital twins” of manufacturing processes, modeling the underlying chemistry and biology.
“Our platform models the underlying chemistry and biology of the manufacturing process itself,” Thouheed told Aletihad. This is critical for industries like pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, and specialty chemicals, where a single failed batch can derail a product launch.
Co-founder and COO Thamjeeth Abdul Gaffoor noted that many engineers still use spreadsheets and guesswork, despite having access to vast amounts of data. Basetwo’s digital twins allow engineers to run virtual production scenarios, predict performance, and find optimal conditions before committing resources on the factory floor.
The company reports that its technology has already helped one of the world’s top 20 cosmetics manufacturers reduce experimentation by over 50% when scaling a new skincare product. Across its client base, Basetwo claims cycle-time reductions of 30-40% and efficiency gains around 20%.
Metric: An AI Co-Pilot for SME Finance
Metric is focused on a different problem: empowering small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with actionable financial intelligence. The platform uses AI to convert complex accounting data into clear business insights.
“We saw firsthand how business owners were held hostage by their fear of numbers,” said Meenah. “Decisions are made daily based on gut feel and anecdotal evidence instead of real data, because traditional accounting is not built for SME owners.”
Metric’s AI translates the technical language of financial statements into practical advice that business owners can use for daily operations. “AI enables us to translate financial language that financial statements and ledgers speak, to business language that a small business owner understands,” co-founder Omar Parvez Khan explained.
The platform includes Max, an AI financial assistant for emerging market businesses, and offers multiple ways to input data, from manual entry to automated syncing with accounting systems.
Abu Dhabi as a Launchpad
Operating from the UAE capital has been instrumental for both startups. For Basetwo, the country’s “Operation 300bn” industrial strategy is creating a surge in digitally-ready manufacturing facilities, which are prime customers for its platform.
“The UAE’s Operation 300bn strategy is driving rapid expansion in pharmaceuticals, specialty chemicals, and personal care manufacturing, all sectors where Basetwo is already proven,” said Thouheed.
For Metric, being headquartered in Abu Dhabi and part of the Hub71 ecosystem was a strategic advantage. “Investors saw our move from Pakistan to the UAE as a de-risking move for their capital. We were able to raise our seed round from the UAE, with participation from funds across the GCC and angels globally,” Meenah shared.
About Basetwo AI
Founded by brothers Thouheed and Thamjeeth Abdul Gaffoor, Basetwo AI is an Abu Dhabi-based startup that provides a platform for manufacturers to create physics-based digital twins of their production processes. The technology helps industries like pharmaceuticals and cosmetics to optimize scale-up, reduce experimentation, and improve efficiency.
About Metric
Founded by husband-and-wife team Meenah Tariq and Omar Parvez Khan, Metric is an Abu Dhabi-based fintech startup that uses AI to provide financial intelligence for small and medium-sized enterprises. Its platform translates complex financial data into actionable business insights, helping owners make better, data-driven decisions.
Source: Aletihad
