Atlys Founder Mohak Nahta Transforms Visa Frustrations into $73 Million Travel-Tech Success Across India, the US, and Dubai
Dubai: Mohak Nahta, the 31-year-old founder and CEO of Atlys, has taken a significant step in scaling his digital visa platform, which processes over 700,000 visa applications annually, by opening a physical experience center in Dubai. This move is noteworthy as many tech companies typically focus on online growth. For Nahta, it represents a commitment to meeting customers in their preferred environments, whether through an app or in person.
Nahta emphasized that while the Atlys app facilitates a complete visa journey, the new center offers an additional avenue for customer engagement, particularly for those seeking expert advice before making travel decisions. He stated that the center enhances the overall experience, aligning with the company’s mission to meet travelers where they are.
The launch of the experience center marks a pivotal moment in Nahta’s journey, which spans three continents—from his childhood in India to his formative years in the US tech sector, culminating in Dubai, a hub for international connectivity.
Curiosity Before Entrepreneurship
Before raising approximately $73 million from investors such as Peak XV Partners, Andreessen Horowitz, Elevation Capital, and Susquehanna Asia Venture Capital, Nahta cultivated a habit of self-directed problem-solving. Growing up in India, he was encouraged to explore his interests freely, a factor he credits with fostering his independent learning abilities.
Nahta noted that his family did not impose strict paths on him, allowing his interests to evolve every few months. This freedom required him to learn how to navigate challenges independently. His curiosity and problem-solving mindset eventually led him to Carnegie Mellon University, where he studied Computer Science and thrived in a rigorous academic environment.
He remarked that the university’s focus on first principles thinking provided him with a solid technical foundation and connected him with peers who were already engaged in real-world projects.
A Personal Frustration Becomes a Business Idea
After completing his studies, Nahta joined Pinterest as a software engineer in Silicon Valley. While he gained valuable insights into product development, the idea for Atlys stemmed from a personal experience. While planning a multi-country trip, Nahta encountered the cumbersome process of multiple visa applications, contrasting sharply with the ease experienced by his American colleagues.
He recalled that despite the similar documentation required by various countries, the application process was repetitive and opaque. This inefficiency prompted him to envision a solution where travelers could upload their documents once and be prepared for multiple countries. Initially, he developed this solution as a side project for himself.
The project quickly gained traction, as friends and acquaintances began using it. The growing demand indicated a larger issue that many travelers faced. Recognizing a genuine market need, Nahta left Pinterest to focus on Atlys full-time.
Learning the Hard Way
Nahta’s path to establishing Atlys was not without setbacks. Prior to launching the company, he attempted to create a marketplace connecting travelers with products needing delivery overseas. Although this venture failed, it imparted crucial lessons that shaped his business approach.
He reflected on the experience, noting that he had concentrated on everything except the product itself. To refine his product instincts, he worked closely with experienced leaders at Pinterest, learning the importance of deeply understanding user needs. He emphasized that the success of products hinges on how well one comprehends the end user.
The Silicon Valley experience reinforced another principle that continues to guide Atlys: the necessity of dedicating time to develop essential skills and staying ahead of industry trends. These lessons became foundational to the company’s operational philosophy, which prioritizes customer understanding, rapid learning, and agility.
Building Trust One Traveler at a Time
Launching a startup in a highly regulated industry like visa processing posed unique challenges, particularly in establishing credibility. In its early days, Atlys focused on direct engagement with travelers rather than scaling rapidly. When changes in visa regulations led to widespread confusion, Nahta took an unconventional approach by engaging directly with travelers at San Francisco International Airport, wearing a T-shirt that read “Got Questions on Turkey e-Visa.”
Although this method was not scalable, it provided invaluable insights into travelers’ concerns. Today, Atlys addresses these issues through technology, concentrating on two core problems in visa processing: uncertainty and trust. Nahta explained that uncertainty is inherent to the visa process, and Atlys employs extensive data processing to predict timelines and success rates, aiming to alleviate the anxiety often associated with international travel planning.
Trust is cultivated through transparency. Nahta stated that in a new market, trust must be earned from the ground up. Atlys reinforces this trust by publicly sharing customer feedback, including critical reviews and the improvements made in response.
Why Dubai Matters
Following a $36 million Series C funding round, Atlys has intensified its focus on the UAE, now its largest market outside India. Nahta highlighted Dubai’s unique combination of ambition, diversity, and global reach as key factors for entrepreneurs. He noted that the city allows for rapid testing of ideas, with consumers open to adopting new solutions, enabling companies to build with a global audience in mind from the outset.
The multicultural environment of the UAE is particularly advantageous for a business centered on international mobility, as it attracts expatriates from various countries, resulting in a diverse clientele applying for visas to multiple destinations.
The new experience center aims to strengthen Atlys’s relationship with travelers, offering in-person guidance, document verification, and reassurance before they transition to the digital process. Nahta expressed optimism that the center would enhance trust, stating that the confidence travelers gain at their first interaction would carry through their entire experience with Atlys.
Still Thinking Like an Engineer
Despite leading a global company, Nahta maintains that his core mindset remains unchanged. He stated that becoming a founder did not alter his fundamental approach; he still thinks like an engineer. The systems he now analyzes extend beyond software to include customer service and operational efficiency.
Nahta explained that an engineer’s instinct is to investigate any broken system. At Atlys, customer service issues are treated similarly to technical failures, with a focus on identifying and resolving the underlying problems.
This engineering mindset is guiding Atlys’s next phase, as the company integrates artificial intelligence into various aspects of the travel journey, including document reviews and error detection before submission. Future plans may also encompass travel compliance, insurance, and claims management.
Nahta’s advice to aspiring founders remains straightforward: focus on solving a significant problem rather than seeking to become an entrepreneur. For him, the issue was the cumbersome visa process, which has evolved from a personal frustration into a global platform that recognizes the value of face-to-face interactions in the digital travel service landscape.
As reported by www.emirates247.com.
Explore the latest digital editions of FAME Delivered in the Magazine section.
Published on 2026-07-21 16:31:00 • By FAME Delivered News Desk