San Luis Obispo is one of the least affordable places to buy a home, with only 19 percent of families being able to afford a median-priced home. As it is officially ranked the fourth least affordable county in the United States, housing affordability stems from a variety of factors; lengthy permitting processes are often cited as slowing new construction. 

Three California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly) students saw this bottleneck as an opportunity. Computer engineering senior Soe Ko Ko Lin, software engineering alumna Muska Said Hasan Mustafa and computer engineering alumnus Wilson Yu founded Permi, an AI-based platform designed to help architects cut down the time it takes to submit building plans.

“One of the things that people in construction all complained about was how difficult the permitting process is, how long it takes and how it’s a waste of resources,” Said Hasan Mustafa said. “We realized that it’s a pretty big issue.” 

To address this common frustration, the team developed Permi, which allows architects to upload site plans and compare them against relevant building codes before sending an application. By identifying potential code violations early, the platform aims to reduce resubmissions and increase first-round approvals.

“Architects often submit codes to the city first to allow them to check it, and then fix the mistakes that the city provides them with,” Lin said. “We’re trying to make sure that there aren’t multiple rounds of resubmission.” 

What began as a senior class project quickly evolved into a startup with greater potential. The team entered the Cal Poly Center for Innovation & Entrepreneurship’s (CIE) Innovation Quest (iQ) competition to test both their idea and business model. While they reached the finals of iQ, they did not place in the top three. However, Lin said the experience prepared them for a much bigger opportunity: acceptance into the CIE’s Summer Accelerator program. 

“It really forced us to think on the business side of things. If we didn’t go through iQ, we wouldn’t have a lot of the answers to the questions we were asked in the Accelerator interview,” Lin said. 

​The Summer Accelerator program is a 10-week intensive program that provides Cal Poly students and recent graduates with resources to turn their innovative ideas into full-fledged start-ups. Participants receive $10,000 in seed funding, mentorship, entrepreneurial workshops and a dedicated workspace in the HotHouse, the CIE’s downtown San Luis Obispo office. 

“The Accelerator felt like the proper next step because we had quite a few interests from the government side when we’re doing customer development,” Lin said. “We thought ‘let’s try this out and see where it goes.’”

Permi co-founders, Muska Said Hasan Mustafa (left), Soe Ko Ko Lin (right) and Wilson Yu (not pictured). Photo by Stephen Heraldo for Cal Poly CIE. 

Early consumer interviews have produced promising feedback, with architects expressing interest in beta testing the platform once it becomes available. For the team, the positive feedback has been both validating and motivating as development continues.

“It shows us that what we’re working on is something that actually interests people, and could be useful for them,” Said Hasan Mustafa said. “Being able to see the start of that positive impact makes you feel really good as a founder.”

Before working with the CIE, the three founders had little experience with common business practices. Through the Accelerator’s mentorship, workshops and collaborative environment, they’ve developed both business skills and relationships with fellow founders. 

“Having the mentors around, the advice that we hear and the workshops has been super helpful in thinking about how this can become a legitimate business,” Lin said.

Beyond developing the business, Said Hasan Mustafa said the CIE has helped her grow professionally by improving her networking skills and showing her the value of building meaningful connections. 

“A common phrase that we hear in the business world is ‘your net worth is your network’. The better that you know how to network and who your network can connect you with, will take you a long way into being able to be successful in whatever field you’re pursuing.” Said Hasan Mustafa said.  

Ahead of Demo Day, the Permi team aims to gather performance metrics on their software to show their platform’s effectiveness with architects. Long-term, they aim to grow their user base and overall aid the housing crisis. 

“To see that we were even able to help make an affordable housing process come back a little bit faster, which allowed maybe even one family to like get affordable housing. I would say that’s a mission success in my eyes,” Lin said.