– HUROTICS plans to showcase its customizable wearable robot suits at CES 2025, offering solutions for rehabilitation, daily mobility, and even sports.
– The company’s H-Medi and H-Fit robotic suits will cater to users ranging from patients requiring rehabilitation to athletes seeking performance enhancement.
– H-Medi and H-Flex are specifically designed to assist in recovery and everyday mobility, while H-Fit targets sports performance improvement.
HUROTICS (CEO Giuk Lee), a spin-off from the Assistive & Rehabilitation Robotics Lab at Chung-Ang University, participated in the ‘Global Media Meetup’ from July 24 to 26 at MIK Base Camp in Seoul. The event, co-hosted by AVING News and U.S. tech media Geekspin, focuses on introducing Korean startups’ products and technologies to the global market. The event aims to increase business opportunities for CES 2025 participants through global media exposure.
Founded in 2022, HUROTICS specializes in wearable robotic suits for various applications, including rehabilitation, assistance, and sports. Its exosuit technology overcomes the limitations of traditional robotic exoskeletons, which tend to be bulky, uncomfortable, and expensive. HUROTICS offers lightweight, customizable exosuits tailored to individual users’ needs, providing solutions across medical, assistive, and athletic fields.
HUROTICS gained international attention at CES 2024, where its soft robotic suit, H-Flex, won the Innovation Award in the Robotics category. The overwhelming response from North American attendees highlighted the company’s potential in that market. In April, HUROTICS exported its first model, the passive H-Band for muscle recovery and joint motion rehabilitation, to the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) and Northwestern University. This demonstrated the product’s innovation and performance, leading to further partnerships with other institutions.
In Korea, HUROTICS has won the K-R&D Award for two consecutive years (2023-2024), obtained several intellectual property rights, and secured Seed funding and GMP certification for Class 1 medical devices. Recently, the company attracted KRW 3.5 billion (USD 2.5 million) in pre-Series A investment from venture capital firms such as AJU IB Investment and Wonik Investment Partners.
At CES 2025, HUROTICS plans to introduce its wearable exosuit solutions as a response to global aging issues. The company’s H-Medi and H-Flex products will offer users the flexibility to assist with mobility in various environments, whether for rehabilitation or daily activities.
During the Global Media Meetup, HUROTICS’ CEO Giuk Lee spoke about his academic background from Seoul National University and Harvard and how it contributed to founding the company with CTO Seungtae Yang, a Ph.D. expert in wearable robotics. Lee emphasized their expertise in biomimetic robotics and how HUROTICS’ technology mimics tendon structures to provide personalized assistance, ensuring users experience minimal discomfort or side effects.
The company has developed five types of wearable robotic technologies. Still, it focuses on two key global release models: the H-Medi rehabilitation robot and the H-Flex everyday mobility assist robot. The company places great importance on collaborating with rehabilitation therapists and medical professionals, who provide direct feedback after testing the technology.
CEO Lee stated, “Rehabilitation professionals have given feedback like, ‘Robots are still too heavy and expensive,’ and ‘Even new exoskeletons feel bulky and are not practical for patients.’ We took this feedback to heart and created H-Medi to weigh only 15 kg, with the H-Flex modules weighing just 0.6 kg each.”
HUROTICS is testing its technologies at several medical institutions in Korea. For example, in tests conducted with sarcopenia patients at Chung-Ang University Hospital, H-Medi significantly increased exercise duration and improved walking posture. The company also plans to apply the technology to early-stage Parkinson’s disease patients. While the product is ready, HUROTICS is working toward obtaining GMP and medical certifications by May 2024 before launching full sales.
The H-Flex model is also being developed to work seamlessly with everyday activities, providing custom support for specific body parts like arms or legs. HUROTICS is working to obtain medical certification for H-Flex and plans to release it alongside a companion app in mid-2025, allowing for flexible and personalized adjustments.
The Q&A session with Geekspin raised the question of who would benefit most from HUROTICS’ technology. CEO Lee responded, “Patients with weak hamstrings or muscle loss, such as those with sarcopenia, can benefit from partial support, while patients with more severe conditions, like Parkinson’s, may require full-body support. We are creating a user manual to ensure doctors and therapists can teach proper usage. Full clinical trials will begin in 2025, and we expect positive outcomes for patients with mobility challenges, including those recovering from strokes.”
HUROTICS is also making strides in the sports technology sector. In its research article on Science Robotics, the company’s H-Fit sports training robot improved wearers’ athletic performance. For example, users could reduce their 200-meter sprint time by 3 seconds and increase their golf swing distance by 7%. The suit also helps improve posture for running and other sports.
At CES 2025, HUROTICS plans to showcase both the H-Medi and H-Fit models, with H-Fit specifically targeting elite athletes. The company has already received interest from an Italian national track coach, who contacted HUROTICS after struggling to improve athlete performance. HUROTICS also demonstrated its technology at CES 2024 and conducted tests with Japan’s NHK to evaluate the potential performance gains.
CEO Lee concluded, “Following the commercialization of personalized wearable robots, we plan to enter the digital healthcare and sports technology sectors. Our long-term goal is to expand into these growing fields and continue innovating in wearable robotics.”
Founded in 2017, Geekspin is a New York-based tech media outlet. Helena Stone, an expert in IT products, has contributed to MSNBC, Wired, ABC News, Time Magazine, and other major publications. Stone regularly reports on global companies’ products and technologies at CES and other major events.
