Sadia Bashir (Punjabi and Urdu: سعدیہ بشیر) is a Pakistani computer scientist, game developer, and entrepreneur.[1][2] She is the founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of PixelArt Games Academy, Pakistan's first game development academy.[3][4]
Biography
Early life and education
Sadia Bashir was born into a family where women's education was not prioritised.[5] Determined to study at an English-medium school, she self-funded her education through tutoring and stitching clothes.[6][7] After enrolling, she struggled to adjust due to her family's socio-economic background and sought refuge in the school library, where she independently explored graphic design, computer science, and gaming.[8] Her interest in gaming began during childhood while playing video games with her brother's friends.[9]
Bashir began her career as a programmer before transitioning to game development. With financial backing from a mentor, she and a colleague established a small basement studio to create games.[16][17] Over seven years in the gaming industry,[18][19] she grew disillusioned by the lack of innovation and minimal female representation in Pakistan's sector, prompting her to launch initiatives to address these gaps.[20][21] She organised meetups, conferences, and university workshops to connect local developers with global experts like Ken Levine (founder of Ghost Story Games, creative director of BioShock), Rami Ismail (co-founder of Vlambeer), Brie Code (founder of Tru Luv Media), and Jonathon Chey (co-founder of Irrational Games), who now serve on PixelArt Games Academy's advisory board.[22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29]
In 2016, Bashir founded PixelArt Games Academy, Pakistan's first institution dedicated to game development training, research, and industry collaboration.[30][31] The academy mandates at least 33% female participation in its programs[32][33] and offers scholarships exclusively for women to bridge the gender gap in Pakistan's tech sector.[34][35]
Achievements
Sadia Bashir received the "Women Can Do" Award from the US Embassy at the 2016 Women Entrepreneurs Summit, recognising her contributions as a Pakistani woman entrepreneur.[36][37] In 2017, she was part of the winning team at the Global Entrepreneurship Summit[38][39] and became the first Pakistani speaker at the Game Developers Conference (GDC) in San Francisco.[40][41] She was later appointed to the Prime Minister's Youth Council, an initiative launched by then-Prime MinisterImran Khan to engage young leaders in policymaking.[42][43]
In 2018, Bashir was listed in Forbes30 under 30 Asia under the Enterprise Technology category for her impact on Pakistan's gaming industry.[44][45][46][47][48] The same year, Facebook Gaming honoured her as a Global Gaming Citizen at The Game Awards in Los Angeles, highlighting her efforts to promote diversity in gaming.[49][50][51] She remains the first Pakistani to present at the Game Developer's Conference, a milestone in the country's tech sector.[52]
