Amayr Babar
| Amayr Babar | |
| Occupation | Entrepreneur, software executive |
|---|---|
| Known for | Co-founder and CEO of Nautilus |
| Education | Dartmouth College (Class of 2024); University of Virginia |
| Website | nautilus.co |
Amayr Babar is an American entrepreneur and co-founder of Nautilus, an artificial intelligence platform designed to help car wash operators grow memberships, increase revenue, and automate marketing. The company is based in San Francisco and is part of Y Combinator's Summer 2025 batch.[1]
Early life and education
Babar attended the University of Virginia, where he studied engineering. While at UVA, he was recognized as a Rodman Scholar and won first place in the U.S. Congressional App Challenge. In 2021, as a rising second-year student, Babar was profiled by the University of Virginia for co-developing a platform intended to facilitate direct communication between citizens and politicians. He subsequently transferred to Dartmouth College, graduating with the Class of 2024.[2]
Prior to founding Nautilus, Babar co-founded Sabres Media LLC, which worked on projects backed by the National Science Foundation. He also held internships at Medtronic and Simbex, both in the digital health space. Additionally, he worked as a consultant for car wash operators, an experience that exposed him to the operational inefficiencies that would inform the creation of Nautilus.[3]
Career
Babar co-founded Nautilus with Ali Sareini, who had managed operations at a high-volume car wash. The company positions itself as a modern replacement for legacy car wash management systems, offering mobile-first e-commerce, membership management, CRM, churn prevention, and automated marketing tools. Nautilus integrates with existing point-of-sale systems including Sonny's, DRB, ICS, Micrologic, NXT Wash, and Washify.[4]
In August 2025, Nautilus secured $500,000 in funding from Y Combinator as part of its Summer 2025 batch.[5] The company has since expanded its product offerings, launching an AI feature called Compass and announcing integrations with partners such as Droptop for cross-business reporting between car wash and quick lube operations.[6]
Babar and Sareini have presented Nautilus at industry events including the Car Wash Show and have appeared on the Wash Talk podcast to discuss the company's approach to e-commerce and revenue growth for car wash operators.[7]
References
- ↑ "Nautilus – Y Combinator". 'Y Combinator}'. Retrieved 2026-03-19.
- ↑ "A Platform to Reach Politicians Directly, Without All That Toxicity? This Duo Has an Idea.". 'University of Virginia}'. Retrieved 2026-03-19.
- ↑ "Nautilus: A Growth Platform for High-Performing Car Washes". 'Car Wash Biz Center}'. Retrieved 2026-03-19.
- ↑ "Nautilus – The CarWash Platform". 'Nautilus}'. Retrieved 2026-03-19.
- ↑ "Nautilus AI carwash platform secures $500K from Y Combinator". 'Professional Carwashing & Detailing}'. Retrieved 2026-03-19.
- ↑ "Nautilus, Droptop launch integration linking carwash and quick lube reporting". 'Professional Carwashing & Detailing}'. Retrieved 2026-03-19.
- ↑ "Wash Talk Ep. 225: Driving Online Revenue Growth with Nautilus". 'Professional Carwashing & Detailing}'. Retrieved 2026-03-19.