Ho Yinsen

"You got a family?" "Yes, and I will see them when I leave here. And you, Stark?" "No." "So you're a man who has everything, and nothing."

- Tony Stark and Ho Yinsen

Ho Yinsen was a fellow captive with Tony Stark's in Afghanistan. He removed much of the shrapnel from Stark's body, and helped keep him alive long enough to build a shield around his heart for the remaining shrapnel.

Meeting Stark
"Mr Stark, Ho Yinsen." "Ah, I finally met a man called 'Ho'."

- Ho Yinsen and Tony Stark

Yinsen was a Muslim man from the small village of Gulmira, Afghanistan. Eventually, he became a scientist, graduated from and worked in Europe.

Ho Yinsen met Tony Stark on New Year's Eve in 1999 at a party in Bern, Switzerland, after Stark delivered a lecture (while very drunk) on integrated circuits. Yinson tried to introduce Stark and Maya Hansen to Dr. Wu, but Stark drunkenly brushed him off. When Yinsen and Stark met again years later, Stark did not remember the encounter.

In Captivity
Ten years later, Yinsen was one of Tony Stark's fellow captives of the Ten Rings terrorist group in Afghanistan. Yinsen removed much of the shrapnel from Stark's body, and helped keep him alive long enough to build an electromagnet piece in his chest to keep the remaining shrapnel from entering his heart. Under captivity, Stark and Yinsen were ordered by the terrorists to build a Jericho missile similar to the one Stark demonstrated to the US military, or they would be killed. However, both men knew that they would be murdered either way and planned an escape.

He helped Stark keep the Iron Man Mark I suit he was making a secret from their captor, Raza, and assisted in its creation. When Tony asked about Yinsen's family, Yinsen merely noted, "I will see them when I leave this place." Yinsen also pointed out the damage wreaked upon the region by the terrorists, using Stark's own weapons, and asked if this is what he wished "the legacy of the great Tony Stark" to be. During the escape he was killed while attempting to hold off the guards long enough to give Stark time to charge the suit. With his dying breath, Yinsen told Stark "Don't waste your life."

Relationships

 * Tony Stark - Fellow Captive and Friend
 * Wu - Associate
 * Ten Rings - Enemies
 * Raza †
 * Abu Bakar
 * Omar †

​Trivia

 * In the comics, Yinsen is Chinese, while in the movie continuity he's Afghan.
 * Yinsen's relationship with Stark mirrors Captain America's with Abraham Erskine.