Our History

STARX was launched in the Spring of 2015 by students at the University of Michigan's College of Engineering with the vision of designing and building a powered exoskeleton that could augment the strength of a healthy adult. Our high-level plan is to design a load-bearing leg exoskeleton, then design a strength-augmenting upper-body exoskeleton. We would then integrate the two into a full suit. We are currently a team of approximately 25 students from a multitude of disciplines.

From left to right: Kevin Rabideau, Niraj Patel, Anne Gu

Since then, our team only continued to grow and become more ambitious. We have made several exoskeletons, trained up plenty of modern engineers, and created connections around the world. Our team has lasted through the COVID-19 pandemic and has become a core piece of the college exoskeleton community.

Now, about 10 years after the founding of the team, we have expanded to approximately 60-70 students. We continue the mission of our predecessors and build up our team to new heights. Our overall goal has always been to break boundaries, create competent engineers and leaders, and build a better tomorrow.