NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 5, 2026--
Perfect Corp. (NYSE: PERF), the leading provider of AI and AR beauty and fashion technology solutions, today announced its partnership with Pegasus Tech Ventures and Startup World Cup for the Silicon Valley Hackathon, a competition inviting developers, startups, and innovators to build the next generation of immersive retail experiences using AI.
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260505489956/en/
The hackathon will run online through May 7, 2026, with winners announced live during the Startup World Cup Event at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, California on May 7, 2026.
As part of the challenge, Perfect Corp. will award $2,500 in cash prizes to two winners who build immersive web or mobile experiences using Perfect Corp.’s AI- and AR-powered API suite to solve real-world consumer needs in retail, beauty, fashion, and accessories shopping.
The Perfect Corp. Hackathon Challenge will award:
1st Place: $1,500 Cash Prize
2nd Place: $1,000 Cash Prize
Register for the Hackathon here: https://perfectcorphackathon.devpost.com/
Build the Future of Retail with Perfect Corp.’s AI API Suite
Participants are encouraged to explore creative and unexpected ways to leverage Perfect Corp.’s comprehensive API suite to create engaging shopping journeys and interactive consumer experiences.
Perfect Corp.’s API suite empowers participants to build with technologies including:
To support rapid prototyping and experimentation, Perfect Corp. is offering all participants 1,000 free API units to begin building immediately.
“We are thrilled to partner with Pegasus Startup World Cup again to empower the next wave of innovators building the future of retail,” said Alice Chang, Founder and CEO of Perfect Corp. “Modern consumers expect immersive, personalized, and intelligent shopping experiences. Through our API suite, we are democratizing access to AI and AR technology so developers and startups can quickly bring these experiences to life.”
How to Participate
Participants can register via the official hackathon page and claim 1,000 free API units:
Register for the Hackathon here: https://perfectcorphackathon.devpost.com/
About Perfect Corp.
Perfect Corp. (NYSE: PERF) is a global leader in AI and AR technology, redefining creativity across beauty, fashion, skincare, and digital content creation. Its YouCam suite of apps has been downloaded over 1.1 billion times globally, empowering users to create, edit, and express themselves through photo, video, and generative AI tools. The YouCam platform also includes a powerful web-based editor and a suite of developer APIs, providing creators, brands, and technology partners with seamless access to content creation capabilities across platforms.
For brands and professionals, Perfect Corp. offers an award-winning portfolio of enterprise technologies, including virtual try-on experiences for makeup, hair, jewelry, watches, and fashion accessories, as well as AI-powered skin and hair analysis.
With a brand portfolio that includes YouCam and Skincare Pro, and a network of over 800 global brand partners, Perfect Corp. is transforming the beauty experience through personalized, immersive, and intelligent innovation.
For more information, visit perfectcorp.com and follow @Perfect-Corp.
About Startup World Cup
Startup World Cup is the #1 startup pitch competition in the world, hosted by Pegasus Tech Ventures. With 100+ regional pitch competitions across 6 continents, Startup World Cup provides a global platform for startups to showcase their innovations and secure funding. Startups can apply to pitch at our upcoming regional events and have a unique opportunity to bring their ideas to Silicon Valley.
The winner of each regional pitch competition will earn an invitation to the Startup World Cup Grand Finale series of events in San Francisco, California. At the Grand Finale, the Regional Startup Winners will compete for a $1 MILLION investment prize and gain access to an unparalleled network of global investors, mentors, and industry partners.
For more information on the Startup World Cup, please visit https://www.startupworldcup.io.
Perfect Corp. Partners with Pegasus Startup World Cup for Silicon Valley Hackathon, Inviting Innovators to Build the Future of Retail using AI-Powered API Suite
BOSTON (AP) — Former Patriots receiver Stefon Diggs was found not guilty on Tuesday of assaulting his private chef in a pay dispute.
The four-time Pro Bowl wideout pleaded not guilty in February to a felony strangulation charge and a misdemeanor assault and battery charge stemming from the alleged dispute.
The case centered on a Dec. 2 encounter at Diggs’ home in Dedham, where Jamila Adams, a former live-in personal chef who is known as Mila, testified he slapped and choked her during an argument.
Diggs’ attorneys said the alleged assault never happened and questioned Adams’ credibility and whether the dispute was about money, relationship tensions — including a disagreement over a planned trip to Miami — or an alleged assault.
They pointed to financial demands she made and testimony from friends and employees who said she did not appear injured in the days after the encounter, while prosecutors argued the case rests on her account of what happened inside the home.
Defense attorney Andrew Kettlewell told jurors during closing arguments that prosecutors had not presented “a single shred of credible evidence” that an assault occurred.
Assistant District Attorney Drew Virtue urged jurors to weigh Adams’ testimony carefully and not to disregard it because she was not “a perfect witness.”
An attorney for Diggs, who was released by the Patriots in March, said he “categorically denies these allegations,” calling them unsubstantiated and motivated by a financial dispute.
Diggs signed a three-year, $69 million contract with New England last year and was a key target for quarterback Drake Maye during the Patriots’ AFC East title run. Before joining the Patriots, Diggs was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings in 2015 and played for the Buffalo Bills before a brief stint with the Houston Texans in 2024.
Diggs’ 1,000-yard season marked the seventh of his career. It helped complete a successful career revival after a season-ending knee injury derailed what turned out to be a one-year stay with the Houston Texans in 2024.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.
BOSTON (AP) — A jury is deliberating in the assault trial of former New England Patriots wide receiver Stefon Diggs, after both sides wrapped up witness testimony on the second day of the trial.
The case centers on a Dec. 2 encounter at Diggs’ home in Dedham, where Jamila Adams, a former live-in personal chef who is known as Mila, testified he slapped and choked her during an argument. Diggs has pleaded not guilty to a felony strangulation charge and a misdemeanor assault and battery charge, and his attorneys say the alleged assault never happened.
The case has also turned on questions about Adams’ credibility and whether the dispute was about money or an alleged assault. Defense attorneys pointed to financial demands she made and testimony from friends and employees who said she did not appear injured in the days after the encounter, while prosecutors argued the case rests on her account of what happened inside the home.
Defense attorney Andrew Kettlewell told jurors during closing arguments that prosecutors had not presented “a single shred of credible evidence” that an assault occurred.
“There was no assault, no strangulation, no incident at all on that day or any other day,” he said.
Assistant District Attorney Drew Virtue urged jurors to weigh Adams’ testimony carefully and not to disregard it because she was not “a perfect witness.”
“She was argumentative, avoidant, difficult. But does that mean you should throw away everything she said? No,” he said, adding that jurors should give her testimony “the attention, the scrutiny, the weight it deserves.”
Adams declined to answer questions Tuesday about financial demands made on her behalf during cross-examination, as defense attorneys pressed her over claims she was owed money and inconsistencies in what she said she was paid.
Earlier in the trial, Adams became emotional on the stand while describing an alleged encounter with Diggs on in which she said he entered her room following an argument over text.
Adams, who said she lived in the NFL star’s home and prepared all of his meals, testified that Diggs “smacked me with an open hand” before wrapping his arm around her neck and choking her, leaving her struggling to breathe. She described what she called a “complicated” relationship, saying it had previously been sexual but was not at the time of the alleged assault.
Adams said she met Diggs in 2022 on Instagram and that the two became friends — at times “friends with benefits,” as one of his attorneys described it — before she was later hired to live in his home and prepare his meals during the football season.
Defense attorneys pressed Adams about money she said she was owed after working as a live-in chef. She testified she was paid about $2,000 a week and believed she had not been fully compensated after being sent home. They pointed to a $19,000 demand and said the amount increased over time, with her attorney later seeking $5.5 million.
When asked about the $5.5 million claim, Adams said, “I can’t speak on that,” and at other points told jurors, “I don’t understand the question” and “I don’t know how to answer the question.”
At one point, Adams said Diggs had offered her $100,000 to recant her statement to the police, but that remark was struck from the record after the judge called the attorneys to a sidebar.
At times during her second day on the stand, Adams was instructed by the judge to answer questions directly and not include additional details beyond what was asked. Portions of her responses were struck from the record as nonresponsive, with jurors told to disregard them.
“This is not an opportunity for you to interject your own narrative and evade answering questions,” Judge Jeanmarie Carroll told her at one point, warning that continued nonresponsive answers could result in her testimony being stricken.
Kenneth Ellis, the Dedham police officer who took Adams’ initial report, testified that she arrived at the station visibly upset, telling jurors she “sat down on the bench and she was crying.” He said Adams initially asked to speak with a female officer before later agreeing to give a statement and identifying Diggs as the person involved.
Under cross-examination, Ellis said he did not observe visible injuries, collect photographs or speak with other witnesses, and that his investigation relied largely on Adams’ account and text messages she provided.
Defense attorneys also sought to challenge Adams’ account through testimony from people in Diggs’ orbit and evidence they said reflected her demeanor in the days after the alleged incident.
His chief of staff, massage therapist, a nurse who provided IV treatments and his hairstylist all testified that they saw her around the time of the attack and that she said nothing about being assaulted.
His hairstylist, Xia Charles, testified that she spent time with Adams in New York in the days after the alleged incident and did not notice any injuries. She said Adams appeared normal and that she did not see marks on her neck or elsewhere.
Defense attorneys also showed jurors cellphone videos of Adams socializing, including clips of her in a car listening to music and dancing, which they suggested showed her demeanor in the days following the incident.
Jeanelle Sales, Diggs’ chief of staff, who also goes by “Sunni,” testified she saw Adams at the home on the day she alleged she was assaulted and did not see visible marks, redness or swelling on her neck or face. She said Adams appeared to be in normal spirits.
“She was walking around looking for a piece of paper and a pen to write a card — I guess, write a note to him for his birthday gift,” Sales said.
Prosecutors pushed back on that testimony, suggesting the witnesses’ livelihoods were tied to Diggs and that they had a financial interest in the outcome of the case.
Former New England Patriots wide receiver Stefon Diggs listens to his defense attorney cross examine witness Jamila Adams during his trial at Norfolk County District Court, Tuesday, May 5, 2026, in Dedham, Mass. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa, Pool)
Former New England Patriots wide receiver Stefon Diggs appears in court during his trial at Norfolk County District Court, Tuesday, May 5, 2026, in Dedham, Mass. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa, Pool)
Witness Jamila Adams testifies during the trial of former New England Patriots wide receiver Stefon Diggs at Norfolk County District Court, Tuesday, May 5, 2026, in Dedham, Mass. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa, Pool)
Witness Jamila Adams, right, walks past former New England Patriots wide receiver Stefon Diggs during Diggs' trial at Norfolk County District Court, Tuesday, May 5, 2026, in Dedham, Mass. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa, Pool)
Former New England Patriots wide receiver Stefon Diggs listens to his defense attorney cross examine witness Jamila Adams during his trial at Norfolk County District Court, Tuesday, May 5, 2026, in Dedham, Mass. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa, Pool)
Witness Jamila Adams testifies during the trial of former New England Patriots wide receiver Stefon Diggs at Norfolk County District Court, Tuesday, May 5, 2026, in Dedham, Mass. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa, Pool)
Judge Jeanmarie Carroll questions potential jurors as the assault trial of Stefon Diggs begins in Dedham, Mass., Monday May 4, 2026. (Pat Greenhouse/The Boston Globe via AP, Pool)
Former New England Patriots wide receiver Stefon Diggs leaves Norfolk County District Court, Monday, May 4, 2026, in Dedham, Mass. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Stefon Diggs' former personal chef, Jamila Adams, is questioned by Assistant District Attorney Drew Virtue in Dedham District Court in Dedham, Mass., Monday May 4, 2026. (Pat Greenhouse/The Boston Globe via AP, Pool)
Stefon Diggs' former personal chef Jamila Adams is sworn in before giving testimony in Dedham District Court in Dedham, Mass., Monday May 4, 2026. (Pat Greenhouse/The Boston Globe via AP, Pool)
Former New England Patriots wide receiver Stefon Diggs returns to Norfolk County District Court, Monday, May 4, 2026, in Dedham, Mass. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
