Austen Chu

Austen Chu is a Hong Kong-born entrepreneur, watch collector, and influencer. He is the founder and CEO of Wristcheck, a luxury watch marketplace based in Hong Kong and New York. Chu is also known for his Instagram account , where he shares insights into watch collecting and industry trends. Notable investors in Wristcheck include rapper Jay-Z and footballer Kylian Mbappé.

Career

Chu began his watch collecting journey at a young age and launched the Instagram account in 2016, which quickly gained attention in the global watch community. He bought his first Audemars Piguet Royal Oak at age 18.
In 2020, Chu co-founded Wristcheck with Sean Wong, aiming to bring transparency and accessibility to the secondary watch market. The platform has grown into a prominent watch marketplace with locations in Hong Kong and New York. In 2024, rapper Jay-Z and French footballer Kylian Mbappé were revealed as early investors.
Chu also collaborated with Audemars Piguet in 2020 to design the Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar China Edition, a limited edition of 88 pieces created exclusively for the Chinese market.
In 2023, Chu was included in Forbes Asia's 30 Under 30 list in the Retail & E-commerce category. Wristcheck raised $13.6 million across multiple rounds with backers including the Alibaba Entrepreneurs Fund, Gobi Partners GBA, and K3 Ventures.