How to build a bionic hand | Aadeel Akhtar

How to build a bionic hand | Aadeel Akhtar

From Design This Day by Teague

October 13, 2025 · 25 min · Episode 10

About this episode

Devin Liddell interviews Aadeel Akhtar about the innovative work of Psyonic in developing advanced bionic limbs and the future of human-robot interaction.

Devin speaks with Aadeel Akhtar, CEO and co-founder of Psyonic, a company designing advanced bionic limbs for both humans and robots. What started in academia has grown into a startup pushing the boundaries of human-machine synergy – including applications as ambitious as outer space. Devin and Aadeel talk about how PSYONIC’s work with EMG technology and direct nerve integration is reshaping what prosthetics can do, why Aadeel will always build for humans and robots, and – why future AI androids will be plenty smart, just not in a C-3PO kind of way. 1:52 Aadeel’s journey to bionic hand innovation 2:36 Serendipity in Ecuador 6:39 From academia to startup: founding PSYONIC 9:00 EMG technology 10:57 Direct nerve integration 12:32 Human - robot synergy 14:09 Bionic hands in space 18:26 Lightening round Links Devin Liddell on LinkedIn Aadeel Akhtar on LinkedIn Teague About the Host: Futurist Devin Liddell Devin Liddell is the Principal Futurist at Teague. With over two decades of experience in innovation and design strategy, Devin has worked with industry giants like Boeing, Intel, and Nike, helping organizations anticipate changes across both near- and far-term horizons to create…

People in this episode

Host: Devin Liddell

Guest: Aadeel Akhtar

Topics covered

  • bionic limbs
  • human-machine synergy
  • prosthetics technology
  • EMG technology
  • nerve integration
  • space applications

Keywords

  • bionic hand
  • Psyonic
  • EMG technology
  • prosthetics
  • human-robot synergy
  • nerve integration
  • outer space

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Psyonic, Teague

Places: Ecuador

More episodes of Design This Day

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Design This Day podcast page.