In the developing world, healthcare is often a scarce commodity. That’s why innovative products such as those being produced by re:motion designs are so important. In this audio interview, Stanford Center for Social Innovation correspondent Ashkon Jafari talks with CEO Joel Sadler about the company’s initial product, the JaipurKnee, an artificial knee joint costing less than $20 that is dramatically changing the lives of amputees in developing countries. He describes how he became invovled in the field of medical devices, how his engineers have approached design and prototyping, and how the company has secured funding and created partnerships. He also offers advice for the aspiring engineering or design student.
Joel Sadler is the co-founder and CEO of re:motion designs. A former product designer at Apple, he is currently a fellow and lecturer at the Hasso Plattner Institute of Design at Stanford University. A Jamaican native, Sadler was inspired to work on low-cost medical devices after an MIT fellowship to design affordable wheelchairs in Mexico. He holds degrees in mechanical engineering from MIT and Stanford.