Q&A with CEO, Dr. Max Lungarella

What's ddrobotec®'s vision?
To empower individuals to lead healthier lifestyles and contribute to a health-conscious society.

What's ddrobotec®'s mission?
To develop a comprehensive health intelligence platform that is accessible to everyone, allowing individuals to take control of their health and well-being.

What are ddrobotec®'s core values?
One of the foundational values of our company is that technology should be socially relevant. Hence our motto: “make the world a better place”.

What's ddrobotec®'s value proposition?
At ddrobotec®, we design, manufacture and market robotic devices for cognitive, sensorimotor and physical training. Our training devices are self-learning systems that adapt to the specific needs, fitness level and progress of each user. They provide real-time performance feedback on individual movements and the training session as a whole. Through a fully gamified user interface, our systems motivate and engage the user far more comprehensively than traditional training approaches.

What big problem is ddrobotec® addressing? What are the opportunities?
With the aging population and the rise of lifestyle-related diseases, there is an urgent need for effective health solutions that can prevent and manage acute and chronic conditions. Current solutions are inadequate, lacking engagement and precision, and failing to reduce costs. Our innovative muscle-centric cognitice approach aims to fill this gap in the market.

Where do you draw your inspiration from?
We draw inspiration from a few megatrends that transform people, society and affect our daily lives. Such megatrends are far-reaching, long-term changes in our global society, such as urbanization, connectivity, digitalization, personalization, health and prevention. The latter megatrend is a rather interesting one: people have become much more health-conscious and have high expectations of healthcare providers. As optimistic techno-realists, we envision a future in which with the help of intelligent machines independence and dignity can be maintained for the whole life.

Who is using the robotrainers?
Through a gamified user experience, our robotrainers make it possible for the first time to provide high intensity strength training that is simultaneously effective, fun and engaging. Whether the user is a recreational or a professional athlete, an MS patient, a journalist or a teenager, our robotic personal trainers encourage anyone into participating in personalized high-intensity training programs designed to improve cognition, build up muscles and increase strength.

If you're healthy, why use robots? Why exercise indoors? Isn't physical activity outdoors much better?
We hear that a lot. Yes, that's correct. Running, jumping, swimming, biking, skiing and hiking are all great outdoor physical activities. They revitalize, energize, decrease tension, reduce anger and combat depression. Unfortunately, not everybody is fortunate enough to live in biking distance from a forest or a mountain. Not surprisingly, physical inactivity accounts for millions of deaths per year worldwide. The accelerating urbanization, an aging population, and a more widespread lack of time only exacerbate this trend. Hence, the big challenge is to motivate people to stay physically active while managing time efficiently. This challenge is extremely hard. We're convinced that robots can help.

What is the role of exponential technology for the healthcare system?
Our robotics has the potential to supercharge healthcare delivery in the 21st century. First off, our robotrainers can operate semi-autonomously or in remote collaboration with a trainer or healthcare professional. In other words, robots have the potential to increase the trainer's range of action and efficiency, and can thus drastically lower the cost of care while preserving or increasing its quality. Moreover, robot-enabled tele-training allows healthcare providers to shift treatment away from expensive hospital locations and to expand access to care to underserved communities. Last but not least, during times of extreme strain on the healthcare system – such as during the COVID-19 pandemic – robots can significantly reduce the risk of infectious disease transmission to healthcare personnel by enabling the training and testing of people from a safe distance.