With a CV of experience sitting at the intersection of textiles and technology, Steve Leftly’s career has seen him work as an analytical chemist and a scientist developing tech commercialised by the likes of Nike, Adidas, North Face, and NASA.
Embracing his entrepreneurial spirit, Steve co-founded wearable rehabilitation technology company Myovolt. Part of the growing tech and innovation sector in New Zealand, Myovolt was initially pioneered as vibration rehabilitation for muscles and joints and is now being investigated for use in the treatment of conditions like stroke, MS, and Parkinson’s. Steve’s goal is to see this technology helping millions of people every day.
Could you talk to us a bit about where the inspiration came to start Myovolt? What does the product do?
Myovolt is a wearable rehabilitation technology that uses clinical grade vibration to perform musculoskeletal treatments on the body. Its like having an on-demand physiotherapist that you can wear around with you. We pioneered using wearables for vibration rehabilitation of muscles and joints and it's now being investigated for treatment of other neurological conditions such as stroke, parkinsons, and MS.
We have been working in the field of wearable technology and wearable textile electronics development for many years now so it was only natural that we moved into the medical space where wearable devices can make the biggest impact to people's lives.
Earlier early on in my career as scientist I was involved in developing pressure sensors made wholly from textiles and these were commercialised by some of the the biggest Global apparel brands such as Nike, Adidas, North Face, NASA. These garment technologies were adopted as control interfaces to electronics from Apple, Sony and Samsung but in 2010 these technologies started to be used for human performance, not just control interfaces.
While working with Adidas we started developing wearable muscle performance garments for GB, AUS, US Olympic athletes for the 2012 games. It was from then we decided to point all of our innovation direction towards wearable technology that can enhance the human body or help the human body rehabilitate from medical conditions. Myovolt was a result of this pivot into the wearable rehab space.
A lot of your career has been at the intersection of textile and technology – what has kept your interest in this field?
After I graduated from University I worked as an analytical chemist in a textile research organisation. It was there that I developed several chemical technologies to make fabrics with enhanced properties in colour stability or processing efficiency. I quickly became interested in materials innovation research and lead a team developing new chemistry finishes for fibres and textile treatments.
At this time we started working on developing electronic and conductive finishes for textiles and created some leading innovation in this area so moved our lab to the UK to commercialise these technologies.
Working in an emerging field of Smart Fabrics we were breaking new ground with partnerships at research centres like Philips and Nokia. One of the first technologies we created was a fabric pressure sensor named SOFTswitch which made TIME magazine's best inventions of 2002 and was launched by Steve Jobs at his 2003 Apple conference keynote.
What has your experience of operating a company out of NZ been like? Has it been an asset to you?
New Zealand is a great place to start and set it up a technology company. We've got a really growing number of New Zealand Tech and Innovation companies that are leading the way across a lot of fields so New Zealand is not seen as a technology back water at all, It's seen as more like Finland or even Switzerland of the South Pacific.
There is plenty of talent here in New Zealand and it's reasonably easy to access all our export markets. For example our main market is in the US and it's really easy to get over there and do business. New Zealand companies are well-respected and welcomed in by americans.
And obviously NZ is the greatest place to be lifestyle-wise, which doesn't hurt either.
Where would you love to see the company over the next 5-10 years?
We are developing treatment products for mainstream at home remote usage in the US healthcare market so our mission is to see our technology helping millions of people on a daily basis. In the next 5 years we aim to be a major NZ medical technology exporter and innovation engine in wearable therpaeutics.
You studied your BSc in plant and microbial sciences – was there a career you had in mind when you chose that?
At UC I studied a wide range of sciences including chemistry, marine biology, genetics, microbiology and was leaning towards a career in biological science or research. I didn't really have focused plan on where I would end up but just chose papers that really interested me at the time. That broad selection really assisted me when I transitioned from a chemistry lab role to a natural fibre and materials research scientist.
I am the definition of a science generalist and really enjoyed my board subject base. Later when I was employed I had to top up on extra computer science and research management papers to help fill the gaps.
Are there memories or experiences that stand out when reflecting on your time at UC?
I really loved my time at UC and enjoyed being able to study all the subjects that really interested me along with some lifelong friends. Some of my fondest memories are lying out studying on the beautiful lawns around the campus in summer. I also played in a band at the time and had the privilege to play on the stage built over the river at one of UC's famous Student Union end of year Steins in front of 5000 exuberant UC students.
