In his first year of pursuing a Ph.D., Masaki achieved first runner-up in a hackathon, inspiring him to launch his startup, "vuPad." Together with his co-founder, they developed a mobile app that enables users to visualize real-scale furniture in 3D in real-time, assisting consumers in testing the fit of items before purchasing. vuPad has received multiple accolades, including the Knapp Competition, Rice Competition, ITA Competition, and Microsoft Hackathon.

Masaki completed his Ph.D. with a thesis titled "Deep Learning of Neuromuscular and Sensorimotor Control with Biomimetic Perception for Realistic Biomechanical Human Animation" and has continued to explore the startup world. His current interests include Biomechanics, Virtual Humans, Deep Learning, Neuroscience, Computer Vision, Machine Learning, and the intersections of AI with Fashion and Fitness.