Nascent
Etymology
From Latin nascens, the present participle of nasci, "to be born," the same root behind "native," "nature," and "nation." The grammar matters: a present participle names an action in progress, so "nascent" literally means "being born." That is why it fits things still in the act of emerging.
adjective · /NAY-suhnt/
Just coming into existence and beginning to show promise or growth.
What it names
The word for something newly born and still forming — a nascent industry, a nascent talent — caught at the moment it starts to develop rather than after it has arrived.
Example
The startup was betting everything on a nascent market that most investors still refused to take seriously.
Related idea
Incipient points to the very first sign that something is starting; nascent implies it has already begun to grow and take shape.