Some stories begin with a mountain.
Others begin with a question: How far can we really go?
HPO.TECH is joining forces with the Mulligan Brothers, world-renowned for their powerful storytelling on human resilience (see their YouTube here). The mission is to tell a most challenging and extraordinary superhuman story: the ascent of Karolina Pakenaite, a DeafBlind climber who refuses to let the fading of her senses define the limits of her world.
Karolina’s first challenge lies ahead: conquering Himlung Himal (7126 m) in November-December 2025, a formidable peak in Nepal, the proving ground for her ultimate goal, climbing Mount Everest in April 2026.
For Karolina, the climb is a race against time to see the world’s beauty one last time before her vision fades completely. A journey of trust, courage, and connection between human and companion, both bound by a shared instinct to rise above limits.
Together with her loyal guide Labrador, Bosley, Karolina is preparing to reach Earth’s highest mountains, first the Himlung Himal summit in Nepal (Nov-Dec 2025), followed by the Everest summit (April 2026), known as the Roof of the World or Sagarmatha in Nepali, meaning “Goddess of the Sky.”
Karolina & Bosley next to the APEX hypobaric chamber.
Engineering the possible
Some stories are about summits; others are about what it takes to rise beyond them.
This collaboration between HPO.TECH and the Mulligan Brothers brings both together, uniting the spirit of endurance with the science that makes endurance possible.
For HPO.TECH, this project is a living expression of our mission: to engineer the possible. To design technology that helps people push through the invisible walls of limitation: physical, environmental, or imagined.
At its heart, the DeafBlind Project stands where medical technology meets human endurance, proving that with the right tools and the right will, even the highest summits can be within reach.
Sights set on Himlung Himal, Nepal (7126 m)
The proving ground for Everest
The Himlung Expedition is the preparation and the foundation on which Karolina’s Everest dream will be built. HPO.TECH’s sponsorship supports this critical stage with both funding and advanced technology designed to enhance Karolina’s performance, recovery, and resilience under extreme conditions.
Hypobaric training
- Each morning, Karolina trains inside the APEX Hypobaric Chamber at the Thrive Bath Wellness Center in the UK, led by David Gumbleton. Engineered by HPO.TECH, the APEX system can simulate altitudes of up to 8,000 meters (0.356 atm), allowing her body to adapt safely to the same thin air she will face on the mountain.
Hyperbaric recovery
- In the afternoon, she transitions to Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (2.0 ATA) at Thrive Bath Wellness Center in a hyperbaric chamber made by HPO.TECH. This dual pressure-conditioning protocol accelerates recovery, reduces inflammation, and optimizes her body’s adaptation to the stresses of altitude.
The story behind the summit
Karolina Pakenaite was born with moderate hearing loss. At 19, she was diagnosed with Usher Syndrome, a degenerative condition that leads to progressive loss of both hearing and vision. With her sight fading, she made a choice not to retreat, but to ascend.
“This journey is about more than reaching the summit,” says Karolina. “It’s about breaking barriers, challenging perceptions of blindness, and creating opportunities for others to experience the world in ways they never thought possible.”
According to the World Federation of the Deaf, there are more than 160 million DeafBlind people worldwide. Usher Syndrome and Retinitis Pigmentosa affect nearly two million individuals globally.
Through her journey, Karolina hopes to raise awareness and open the door to inclusion, accessibility, and representation in mountaineering and beyond. Her climb is proof that determination, adaptation, and technology can work together to redefine human potential.
The expedition will be documented by Charles Logan Clare, Director of Photography and Director, who is joining Karolina to Nepal to capture her first stage of the journey – conquering the Himlung Himal.
“Only those who risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go.”
For the Mulligan Brothers, those words define the spirit of this story, and for cinematographer Charles Logan Clare, they define the mission.
A former British Army sniper, Charles brings calm precision and creative control to some of the harshest filming environments on Earth. His award-winning work spans documentary, commercial, and high-altitude adventure filmmaking, and now, he joins Karolina in Nepal to document her first ascent of the Himlung Himal.
For Charles, the project is more than a film shoot; he is a member of the expedition, and the story behind it might change how the world sees resilience.
“Clare is not only known for visually stunning, high-calibre projects,” says Jordan Mulligan, “but is one of the few individuals physically capable of filming in these extreme, high-altitude conditions.”
The film project
Filmed by Charles Logan Clare and produced by the Mulligan Brothers, this documentary will capture the climb itself, also the inner ascent, the struggle, and the grace in pushing past human boundaries.
Filming begins during the Himlung Expedition (November 2025), marking the first act of a larger story that will culminate with the Everest Summit in 2026.
The final film will evolve into a multi-sensory cinematic experience, designed to immerse both sighted and DeafBlind audiences — a first-of-its-kind venture in adventure storytelling that merges accessibility with emotion, and science with soul.
No one climbs alone
In the Himalayas, every ascent is a collaboration, and no one knows that better than the Sherpas. Their names may not always be remembered, but their strength, knowledge, and courage are the foundation of every summit.
For Karolina, who communicates through touch and trust, her connection with the Sherpa team will be as vital as the climb itself. Together, they will develop tactile communication methods and mutual understanding, a symbol of how cooperation transcends language, vision, and sound.
Karolina also hopes to climb alongside a DeafBlind Nepalese companion, reinforcing her mission of shared empowerment and inclusion, showing that no one climbs alone.
Karolina’s training protocol
Over the past two years, Karolina Pakenaite has been steadily building toward her ultimate goal: the summit of Everest. Her journey has already taken her from Everest Base Camp (5,364 m) in 2023 to a series of endurance milestones including the BathHalf Marathon, London Marathon, and the UK 3 Peaks Challenge.
She has summited Mera Peak (6,476 m) in Nepal and Mount Kenya (4,985 m), completed a 50 km ultramarathon in Scotland, and honed her skills through winter mountaineering courses. Now, as she takes on Himlung Himal (7,126 m) in November 2025, she moves one step closer to her defining challenge — the Mount Everest ascent in April 2026.
Preparing for the world’s highest peak means preparing the body to survive and thrive where oxygen is scarce and the mind must endure. Karolina’s daily training brings together hypobaric (altitude) and hyperbaric (oxygen) conditioning, creating a balance between stress and recovery, deprivation and regeneration.
Morning: Altitude training (hypoxia tolerance)
Each morning, Karolina trains in the APEX Hypobaric Chamber, replicating altitudes up to 8,000 meters. Within this three-hour hypoxic window, her body learns to function efficiently with less oxygen, building resilience for the mountains ahead.
Afternoon: Hyperbaric chamber recovery (HBOT)
After a 4–5 hour interval, she enters the 2.0 ATA Hyperbaric Chamber. The pressurized oxygen environment accelerates recovery and tissue repair. Air breaks during therapy trigger a hypoxic response that further enhances her body’s ability to adapt.
Complementary training: Normobaric hypoxia & fitness
Beyond the chambers, Karolina trains for hypoxia while cycling under nitrogen-enriched conditions, a normobaric simulation of altitude that strengthens cardiovascular efficiency and breathing control.
A story of technology, endurance, and unbreakable will.
High on the mountain, where air turns to silence and sight turns to feeling, one truth remains: the human spirit was never meant to stay grounded. Through courage, technology, and trust, we’re watching the impossible become real.
This is where innovation meets endurance. This is where we engineer the possible. From the labs of HPO.TECH x The Mulligan Brothers, to the summits of the Himalayas, The DeafBlind Project stands as proof that when innovation meets courage, there are no limits left to conquer.
We engineer the possible. But it’s the human spirit that proves it.
