TrueLimb robotic arms look real and cost less than traditional prosthetics
Each arm from Unlimited Tomorrow is custom 3D-printed for a perfect match.
- Webby Award Honoree 2023 - Science & Education, Gold Telly 2022 - Science and Technology, Gold Telly 2022 - Science and Technology Series, Gold Telly 2021 - Documentary Series, Silver Telly 2021 - Directing
Easton LaChappelle was 14 years old when he designed and built his first robotic arm . Ten years later, he's now the CEO of his own company, looking to upend the prosthetics industry.
Unlimited Tomorrow sends candidates an iPad equipped with a 3D-scanner to image their limb.
Unlimited Tomorrow recently started taking orders for TrueLimb, its customized, 3D-printed robotic arm. TrueLimb candidates scan their limbs using a 3D-scanner at home with the help of a friend or family member. Traditionally, getting fit for a prosthetic requires working with a prosthetist, which can drive up the cost. A traditional device can cost up to $80,000. TrueLimb costs $8,000, largely because there's no middleman involved.
In my interview with LaChappelle, he told me he founded Unlimited Tomorrow a few years after entering his device in the Colorado State Science Fair, when he noticed a young girl taking an interest in his invention.
"She was looking at the details more than really any other kid. And it caught my eye and I realized that she was missing her right arm and wearing a prosthesis."
Just about one year later, then-President Barack Obama would ask for a handshake with one of LaChappelle's inventions at the White House Science Fair.
See more of my interview with LaChappelle, and more about how TrueLimbs work, in the video above.
Then-President Barack Obama mid-handshake with LaChappelle's robotic hand at the 2013 White House Science Fair.
Unlimited Tomorrow is focused on robotic arms right now, but it's exploring expanding into prosthetic legs and exoskeletons.