From zero to a US$1M seed round in just months — but for Jacky Shin, the real mission is only getting started.

Percepta recently reached a major milestone, successfully closing US$1 million in seed funding led by Verity Ventures to advance its mission of empowering people with visual impairments through AI-powered wearable technology.

For many founders, fundraising represents success.

For Jacky Shin, it is only the beginning.

"Success will be when Percepta is genuinely improving the lives of people with disabilities at scale and in a sustainable way."

Today, Percepta develops AI-powered wearable solutions that help people with disabilities live more independently, confidently, and with greater dignity.

One of the key factors behind Percepta's successful fundraising was the connections Jacky built through HKUST's EMBA Bilingual Programme, where he met investors who recognised the potential of Percepta's vision and shared his belief that technology should create meaningful social impact.

But the story began long before Percepta.

Before becoming a PhD student at HKUST, Jacky had already founded Novasdyne, a robotics startup based in Dongguan's Songshan Lake, one of China's leading innovation hubs.

After hearing people repeatedly ask whether he was a student of renowned entrepreneur-educator Professor Li Zexiang, Jacky started asking himself:

"If I'm already building robots here, maybe I really should go to HKUST."

That thought ultimately changed the trajectory of his career.

Through a close friend, Jacky connected with Professor Carrie Ling and his future supervisor, Professor Song Shenghui. Their encouragement convinced him that pursuing a doctorate could complement rather than interrupt his entrepreneurial journey.

At HKUST's Division of Integrative Systems and Design (ISD) and through the Entrepreneurship Center (EC), Jacky gained access to mentors, investors, funding opportunities and a vibrant startup community.

Working closely with users, particularly people with disabilities, led him to ask a more important question:

Where can technology create the greatest impact?

The answer became Percepta.

As Jacky continues building Percepta while pursuing his PhD, he represents a new generation of founder-researchers — entrepreneurs who see innovation not only as a technological challenge, but also as a way to create lasting social impact.

Photo credits: Courtesy of Jacky Shin.