This CEO Turned A Childhood Memory Into A $50M Startup – 'She Was My Age, Missing a Leg, Using a Tree Branch as a Crutch'

When Aadeel Akhtar met a young girl in Pakistan during a childhood visit, he couldn't have imagined the moment would shape his life's mission. She was age 7, just like him, living in poverty, missing her leg and using a tree branch as a crutch. 

Decades later, that encounter inspired Akhtar to create the Ability Hand—a bionic prosthetic changing lives—and recently landed him a $1 million investment deal on Shark Tank.

Don't Miss:

• The global games market is projected to generate $272B by the end of the year — for $0.55/share, this VC-backed startup with a 7M+ userbase gives investors easy access to this asset market.
• It’s no wonder Jeff Bezos holds over $70 million in art — this alternative asset has outpaced the S&P 500 since 1995, delivering an average annual return of 11.4%. Here’s how everyday investors are getting started.

The Ability Hand isn't your ordinary prosthetic. Manufactured by Psyonic, the San Diego startup Akhtar founded in 2015, the device is muscle-controlled, water-resistant and USB-C rechargeable. 

Here's the kicker: it can even charge a phone. "It's a superhuman ability," Akhtar said during his pitch on the Feb. 23 episode, immediately grabbing the judges' attention.

The innovation behind the Ability Hand has already caught the eye of heavyweights like Meta and NASA, who've used it in robotics to replicate human-like movement. Still, Psyonic faces challenges. 

Each hand costs $15,000 to produce, limiting the startup's ability to scale. During his Shark Tank pitch, Akhtar sought $1 million for a 2% equity stake, valuing the company at $50 million. 

See Also: Inspired by Uber and Airbnb – Deloitte's fastest-growing software company is transforming 7 billion smartphones into income-generating assets – with $1,000 you can invest at just $0.26/share!

Despite impressive credentials—lifetime sales of $2 million and $1 million in revenue for 2022—Akhtar faced pushback from some sharks. Mark Cuban was puzzled by the crowdfunding Psyonic had run on StartEngine, which raised $3.1 million, as cited on its website.

"If this technology is as groundbreaking as you say, why haven't venture capital firms jumped on board?" Cuban asked, expressing doubt before bowing out.

Robert Herjavec echoed Cuban's concerns, leaving Akhtar with only three sharks in the tank. But Kevin O'Leary, Lori Greiner and Daymond John were intrigued enough to dig deeper. O'Leary, known for his no-nonsense approach, reviewed Psyonic's financials and profits—just $100,000 in 2022—and countered Akhtar's offer with his own: $1 million for 10% equity.

Trending: If there was a new fund backed by Jeff Bezos offering a 7-9% target yield with monthly dividends would you invest in it?

Akhtar, fiercely protective of his company's valuation, balked at giving away such a large stake. The standoff prompted a collaboration among O'Leary, Greiner and John, who crafted a revised deal: $1 million for 6% equity, split evenly among the three, through a combination of common and advisory shares. This allowed Akhtar to maintain the $50 million valuation he had set.

"I think we've got a deal," Akhtar said with a smile, shaking hands to close the investment. O'Leary praised the presentation as "absolutely fantastic." For Akhtar, the journey from witnessing hardship in Pakistan to developing cutting-edge prosthetics has come full circle. 

As the global bionic prosthetics market surges, expected to surpass about $2.99 billion by 2030 as per BioSpace, Psyonic's Ability Hand is leading innovation. It proves that compassion-fueled technology can change lives—and capture hearts. 

Read Next:

• ‘Scrolling To UBI' — Deloitte's #1 fastest-growing software company allows users to earn money on their phones. You can invest TODAY for just $0.26/share with a $1000 minimum.
• This Jeff Bezos-backed startup will allow you to become a landlord in just 10 minutes, with minimum investments as low as $100 for properties like the Byer House from Stranger Things.