Engineer Konrad Zielinski, who lost his voice to cancer, has developed a revolutionary non-invasive bionic device called Whitney that allows people without a larynx to recover their capacity for emotional expression, laughter, and singing, comparing the innovation to prescription glasses that restore voice to those who lost it.
- Personal struggle with cancer turns into inspiring innovation
- Moving beyond robotic devices toward human emotional voice
- The Whitney device and the regulatory path for medical approval
- A billion-dollar market and stardom at TechCrunch Disrupt
- Frequently asked questions
Personal struggle with cancer turns into inspiring innovation
Polish engineer Konrad Zielinski completely lost his natural voice years ago due to cancer while studying at the University of Warsaw. For decades, patients going through his exact medical circumstances relied on handheld electronic larynx devices that produced entirely mechanical, monotonous, and dry sounds, or resorted to surgical artificial voice prostheses that required ongoing maintenance and medical intervention to avoid serious health complications.
This harsh experience drove Zielinski to dedicate his doctoral graduate studies to research on bionic systems designed for patients who have undergone a laryngectomy, setting a noble goal to invent a non-invasive medical device that requires no complex surgeries, allowing those who lost their larynges to speak with sincere emotional tones, laugh, scream, and even sing on stage.
Moving beyond robotic devices toward human emotional voice
In 2023, Zielinski founded the startup Uhura Bionics, which was recently selected as one of the top 200 startups to compete in the Battlefield competition at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026. The company offers two wearable devices: a basic model and an advanced, highly sophisticated model named Whitney, after the late global singer Whitney Houston.
Zielinski expresses his hope that people who have lost their vocal cords will use the Whitney device just as visually impaired people use prescription glasses to compensate for vision, telling TechCrunch with a voice carrying clear, vibrant tones though tinged with a slight electronic echo: “I am extremely proud of what I have made because we succeeded in adding the emotional and affective layer to the voice,” explaining that their next step includes adding female vocal tones and customizing vocal prints to ensure the uniqueness of each patient’s voice.
The Whitney device and the regulatory path for medical approval
The company currently offers its products as healthcare devices priced at $500 for the basic model and $1,500 for the advanced Whitney device, and management is actively working on completing procedures for its classification as a Class I medical device by health authorities in Europe and the United States.
This official regulatory approval would widely open the door for purchasing cost coverage through government and private health insurance programs, alleviating financial burdens on patients and accelerating the innovation’s reach to those in need worldwide.
A billion-dollar market and stardom at TechCrunch Disrupt
Zielinski estimates the financial size of the market for devices targeting laryngectomy patients at approximately $2 billion globally, with the potential for this value to double if Uhura Bionics expands to serve patients suffering from speech disorders, vocal paralysis, and other accidents. The company faces competition from major medical device firms like Atos Medical and startups like Laronics.
Despite the competition, Zielinski is confident in his innovation’s ability to revolutionize patients’ lives as he prepares to deliver a live operational demonstration of singing directly on stage with the help of the Whitney device during TechCrunch Disrupt and San Francisco Tech Week this coming October, in an inspiring message of hope for everyone who has lost their voice.
This pioneering health innovation underscores the profound humanitarian role that advanced biotechnology and bionic systems can play in reintegrating patients and enabling them to practice their daily lives and communicate with their families and communities with their full energy and sincere emotions.
Frequently asked questions
Question: What is the main innovation offered by Uhura Bionics?
Answer: It developed a non-invasive wearable bionic device that allows laryngectomy patients to regain speaking with human emotions and tones and to sing.
Question: Why did the inventor name the advanced model of the device Whitney?
Answer: He named it Whitney in honor of global singer Whitney Houston to emphasize the device’s ability to produce marvelous singing vocal tones.
Question: What is the regulatory step the company seeks to achieve to reduce cost?
Answer: It seeks to classify the device as an approved Class I medical tool in Europe and America to cover its costs via health insurance.
