This has been a good week for the exoskeleton industry, with an article in Nature and another in Reuters that is very specific about how we’ve reached the point where China is making more robotic devices (and much more). I also finally got my grandmother to do a hands-on (or is it a leg-on) test of the newest Hypershell consumer exo. Special thanks to all of our Patreon supporters for keeping this effort going.

Visual Archive:

Text-Only Archive: Week 33: August 10 – 16, 2026

Grandma Tests the Hypershell Ultra S at Castle Rock Park | Hills, Fit & Limits – Exoskeleton Report – YouTube

Will you be wearing an exoskeleton in ten years? The tech that could change how we move

“Robotic supports were once designed for clinical use, but researchers are now developing cheaper, smaller devices aimed at everyone — from people with aging knees to 20-somethings seeking to climb mountains.” – Nature.com; 

The exoskeletons are coming (to a store near you) – Video on YouTube – Nature Video “As commercial devices improve, we are about to see the age of Exoskeletons” 

Made my first million with modular exoskeletons! – Ivan Smit – YouTube

ExR’s Perspective: A very honest and curious view of a gravity-distribution exoskeleton being converted to a modular, customer-pain-point-specific occupational exoskeleton.

I Tested 9 Exoskeletons… But would Only buy One. – Stanley “Dirt Monkey” Genadek – YouTube

ChronoScale has formally classified its legacy Ekso Bionics exoskeleton operation as a business held for sale and discontinued operations.

According to the company’s August 19 annual report, the board committed to divesting the unit on May 29 and publicly announced the decision on June 4, with a transaction expected during fiscal year 2027 as ChronoScale focuses on cloud computing. The filing confirms that another ownership change is ahead for one of the longest-running companies in the rehabilitation-exoskeleton industry, although the identity of a potential buyer and the future structure of the Ekso business remain unknown. – SEC.GOV

How US military funding propelled China’s robot dogs

“China’s Unitree Robotics – among the world’s biggest producers of humanoid and quadruped robots – based designs for its most successful robot dogs on innovations funded by the U.S. military, according to three top robotics researchers and a former U.S. defense technology official. The episode underscores broader problems with the United States’ ability to compete with China’s state-directed manufacturing sector in high-tech strategic industries, including those critical to national security. This report was produced by Jillian Kitchener.” – Reuters

Open-Source Ankle Exoskeleton – A backdrivable quasi-direct-drive ankle exoskeleton capable of delivering up to 15 N·m of bidirectional ankle torque. – Carnegie Mellon University– https://emcev.com/ankleexo

Jobs, events and more!