A decade ago, when the wheelchair market was already crowded with established players, a startup from the IIT Madras ecosystem set out to solve a problem few had addressed: every wheelchair user is different, yet most wheelchairs are not. Instead of building another one-size-fits-all product, NeoMotion Assistive Solutions developed highly customisable wheelchairs tailored to the needs of each user.
But building an innovative product was only half the challenge. Getting it into the hands of people who needed it—and enabling it to transform lives at scale—required an ecosystem that could connect innovation with capital, distribution and end users. That opportunity came in 2021, when NeoMotion joined Cohort 4 of AssisTech Foundation (ATF), India’s first assistive technology innovation ecosystem dedicated to supporting entrepreneurs developing solutions for persons with disabilities.
The partnership has helped NeoMotion evolve from a technology startup into a vehicle for social inclusion. One of its most remarkable collaborations has been with food delivery platform Zomato, creating livelihood opportunities for thousands of wheelchair users across the country.
“We helped NeoMotion partner with Zomato and today around 10,000 people with disabilities, including those with spinal cord injuries and stroke survivors, are earning livelihoods through delivery services,” says Prateek Madhav, founder of ATF and a former Accenture and Microsoft executive.
He recalls how many of these individuals had spent years confined to their homes, often perceived by their own families as financially dependent and unable to contribute. “Today, that same person wakes up every morning, logs into the delivery platform, works six to eight hours, earns an income and returns home with a renewed sense of dignity,” he says.
For Madhav, however, the transformation extends well beyond employment. “The biggest transformation is not just financial independence,” he says. “It is social acceptance. They become contributing members of their families and communities while participating in the country’s economy.”
Madhav’s own journey into assistive technology was not sparked by a single defining moment but by a series of experiences that gradually reshaped his worldview. While working in the corporate technology sector, he spent much of his free time volunteering in the disability space. A turning point came in 2012, when he helped organise the first T20 Cricket World Cup for the Blind in Bengaluru. Later, after leaving the corporate world to head a disability-focused non-profit, he witnessed the country’s digital transformation from a different perspective. As technology rapidly improved the lives of millions, he realised that people with disabilities were being left behind because most innovations were simply not designed with accessibility in mind.
NeoMotion’s customisable wheelchair | Special Arrangement
The experience convinced him that incremental efforts would never be enough. India needed a dedicated innovation ecosystem that could nurture entrepreneurs, connect them with investors and researchers, work with governments and NGOs and ensure assistive technologies reached the people who needed them most. That vision led to the founding of ATF in 2019.
Since then, the foundation has built a portfolio of more than 65 startups, supported the development of over 120 assistive technology products and contributed to more than 60 patents. Through programmes such as the cATalyst AT Startup Acceleration Programme, it mentors entrepreneurs, helps startups scale, and connects them with investors, CSR partners, researchers, government agencies and disability communities.
NeoMotion is just one example of the innovations emerging from this ecosystem. Others include Kibo (Knowledge in a Box), developed by Trestle Labs for people with visual impairments, and an interactive learning platform by BleeTech that is transforming access to education for children with hearing impairments.
“Kibo is like a smart reading device,” says Madhav. “You simply place any printed book or handwritten note under it, and it instantly reads the content aloud in real time.” Beyond reading text, it can translate content across multiple languages and convert documents into accessible audio and EPUB formats complete with chapters and bookmarks, making it especially valuable for higher education and professional work.
“Today, Kibo has impacted nearly 1,00,000 visually impaired people,” he says. “Civil servants, college students, and PhD scholars have successfully used the technology. I personally know someone who is completely blind and completed a PhD in just two and a half years using such assistive technologies.”
Yet, according to Madhav, developing breakthrough technology is only part of the solution. Ensuring that people can actually access these innovations remains an equally formidable challenge. To bridge this gap, ATF has built distribution networks involving government agencies and non-governmental organisations.
“Many people with disabilities have limited purchasing power,” says Madhav. “At the same time, there are many families who can afford assistive technology but simply don’t know these solutions exist. Improving awareness and accessibility remains one of our biggest priorities.”
A recipient of the 2025 National Award for Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities, Madhav believes artificial intelligence and robotics will drive the next wave of transformation in assistive technology. While much of the public conversation around AI revolves around automation and job displacement, he sees equally profound opportunities in health care and disability care.
“We should not see AI simply as a disruptive technology or as a replacement for humans,” he says. “Instead, it should be viewed as a co-worker and, more important, as a transformative tool that can significantly improve the quality of life for people with disabilities.”
