about me

I help teams launch cutting-edge technologies in robotics and automation. I'm passionate about impact-driven businesses and finding tech solutions to grand global challenges. My core experience is in leading highly cross-functional teams across hardware and software, while driving product vision and strategy.

I received my PhD in Biomechanical Engineering from UC Berkeley (2013), and my BS in Mechanical Engineering from University of Toronto (2007).

Some of my proudest accomplishments include:

  • Co-founding an advanced robotics company to develop a solution to the enormous problem of lumber construction and demolition waste
  • Leading a group of students to build an open-sourced humanoid robot at Circuit Launch
  • Winning the 2017 University of Toronto Early Career Award
  • Shipping hundreds of thousands of units and getting 4.6 star reviews on Amazon
  • Leading the launch of 6 consumer IOT products at Dash
  • Building an amazing cross-functional team of 10+ hardware, software and product developers at Dash
  • Successfully shipping two Kickstarter campaigns
  • Publishing 14 peer reviews articles before completing my PhD at Berkeley

I'm always excited to talk about entrepreneurship, robotics, space, climate, and building fun stuff, so please reach out!

I also keep a running list of personal projects on my notion page, here.

Projects

A quick snapshot of my favorite personal and professional projects.

  • All Categories
  • Hardware
  • Software
  • Personal

Nail Picking Robot

Urban Machine Inc

Farm Pathogen Detector

Root Applied Science

Urban Machine Benchtop Demo

Urban Machine Inc

Dash Beta Origami Robot

Dash Robotics

Greens Transplant Robot

GTI

Greenhouse Inspection Robot

Cosmosnets

Greenhouse Inspection Robot

Cosmosnets

Jurassic Park Running Raptor

Dash Robotics

Reachy Humanoid Robot

Circuit Launch

ROS Pixelbot Project

Side Project

One-day-Build Robot Arm Class

Circuit Launch

Automated living wall

Personal

Weeding Robot

Kore Robotics

Kamigami Robots

Dash Robotics

LIDAR SLAM robot

Dash Robotics

Footbot

UC Berkeley

Magnetic Microarray

Berkeley

Strava Activites App

Side Project

Wood Fired Pizza Oven

Side Project

Lumbar Exoskeleton

Berkeley

Microconnectors

Berkeley

Robot Microfoot

Berkeley

Self-Cleaning Microfibers

Berkeley

Where I've worked

CTO & Co-Founder @ Urban Machine, Inc.

September 2021 - Ongoing
  • Leading technology developments at Urban Machine to build a sustainable system for waste wood recycling
  • Built team of hardware and software engineers from the ground up to tackle complex automation challenges that span disciplines of perception, manipulation, modular system design and rapid prototyping
  • Developed and proved core technology across 3 prototype systems within the first year of operations

Startup Robotics Consultant @ Circuit Launch, Inc.

October 2019 - August 2021
  • Helped 6+ startups navigate early technical and product validation via lean startup methodologies and rapid concept prototyping
  • Automated greenhouse operations for customer: led development of an autonomous mobile robot platform for data collection in greenhouses, including product requirement definition, use cases, HW/SW design, as well as prototype demonstrations
  • Addressed labor shortages for soy farmers: created product requirements and business model for soy weeding robot, prototyped early HW validation experiments, informed by customer interviews and field visits

Co-Founder & Chief Product Officer @ Dash Robotics, Inc.

Jan 2014 - Sep 2019
  • Started and led the company alongside my co-founder, Nick Kohut
  • Led company-wide product strategy including customer development, engineering R&D, concept prototyping and manufacturing to launch Built a highly cross-functional team to 10 employees specializing in mechatronics, robotics, app development & product design
  • Launched 6 robotic consumer devices to mass retail with a data driven product strategy based on user-centered design
  • Signed several national distribution deals in partnership with major toy companies such as Mattel, achieving nation-wide distribution
  • Shipped 100k+ units, achieving 4.6 rating on Amazon and several national toy awards

Graduate Researcher @ University of California, Berkeley

Mar 2017 - Sep 2017
  • Created micro/nano fabrication techniques for novel bio-inspired materials based on gecko adhesion
  • Created robotic 'footbot', an automated high-precision testing platform, opening new avenues of investigation and collaboration
  • Designed several applications including solar panel cleaning and mobile climbing robots, resulting in 2 patent applications
  • Published 9 journal articles and 5 conference papers in prestigious journals such as Nature, Journal of The Royal Society Interface, IROS and Journal of Experimental Biology

Manufacturing Engineer @ GE Water Process & Technologies

August 2005 - August 2006
  • Designed and tested manufacturing systems contributing to the launch of a novel ultra-membrane municipal water filtration system
  • Implimented program which resulted in 20% line waste reduction