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Dr. Tyler Susko is Founder and Chief Technology Officer of Cadense, Inc., a company that creates groundbreaking adaptive solutions. He is also a Teaching Professor and Undergraduate Vice Chair in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of California, Santa Barbara. And he is Principal Engineer and Owner of Susko Engineering, LLC. Tyler received his bachelor’s degree in Integrated Business and Engineering and his master’s degree in mechanical engineering from Lehigh University. Afterwards, he worked as a design engineer for Ingersoll Rand for two years before returning to graduate school. He was awarded his PhD in mechanical engineering from MIT. After completing his PhD, Tyler joined the faculty at UC Santa Barbara and launched his engineering consulting company. He co-founded Cadense in 2021. Cadence has been recognized with an Innovation Award from the Pacific Coast Business Times, and it was named a finalist for Fast Company’s 2025 Innovation by Design Award. In our interview, Tyler shares more about his life and his career.
People Behind the Science Podcast Show Notes
Life Outside of Science (2:35)
As an entrepreneur and a father of three, Tyler keeps very busy. He and his family enjoy hanging out, rock climbing, skiing, and engaging in robotics club activities together. Tyler has learned to blend his work life with his family life, so his kids sometimes come with him to the office, and sometimes he brings his work home.
The Scientific Side (3:39)
At work, Tyler is dedicated to creating useful things that solve real-world problems for people. He and his team have designed an innovative shoe that can help people who have trouble with their foot clearing the ground when they are swinging their foot forward while walking (called “foot drop”). The shoe uses relatively simple, low-cost technology that provides a high-friction surface on the bottom when it’s bearing weight, but a low-friction surface on the bottom when someone swings their foot forward. With this approach, even if the bottom of the shoe catches on the ground while taking a step, the low-friction surface will allow someone to continue moving their foot forward.
A Dose of Motivation (4:22)
“Everything should be as simple as possible, but no simpler.”
What Got You Hooked on Science? (10:24)
Math came easily to Tyler when he was growing up, and he found it really fun and satisfying. His childhood passion for math, combined with an interest in building things out of Lego and K’nex, led Tyler to pursue engineering in college. He enjoyed his courses and solving problems, but getting involved with a program called Best Buddies was truly transformative. The program provided an opportunity for Tyler to engage with people who have disabilities, and it showed him firsthand how many people’s needs aren’t met by what is available in the world today. This motivated him to pursue work on robotics solutions to help with rehabilitation for people with brain and spinal cord injuries.
After finishing college and tacking on an extra year to do a master’s degree, Tyler went into industry. To satisfy his desire to continue teaching and doing math, Tyler began teaching physics in the evenings at a local state college. While he enjoyed product development, corporate life ultimately wasn’t the right fit for Tyler. He decided to pivot and enroll in a PhD program. Tyler had a rocky start as he got back in the academic groove and got up to speed on robotics and other coursework. Looking back, becoming an entrepreneur made sense. Tyler had an early fascination with startups, and he studied business alongside engineering as an undergraduate student. After one failed attempt and a second company that still hasn’t really taken off, Cadence is Tyler’s third startup. He was particularly excited about launching Cadense because it aligns really well with his unique interests and expertise.
The Low Points: Failures and Challenges (25:20)
Tyler faced a few major challenges in graduate school. He worked in industry for a few years before returning to school to get his PhD. In some ways, having this real-world design experience was beneficial. However, it also meant that he had taken a long break from calculus and other coursework, and it took some time for Tyler to get caught up again.
He also struggled with his PhD qualifying exam. In the program Tyler was in at MIT, the qualifying exam involved written and oral tests spanning three subjects. The written tests went well, but his first attempt at the oral exam was a disaster. Tyler froze. Standing in front of several accomplished professors trying to solve the problem they gave him, his mind just went completely blank. He failed, and he was devastated. After a tough conversation with his advisor, Tyler decided to take the opportunity to try the oral exam one last time. This time though, he didn’t over-prepare. He slept well the night before and stayed calm. Tyler told himself that he could do it, and he was right.
A Shining Success! (29:49)
Passing his PhD qualifying exam gave Tyler the biggest feeling of accomplishment and relief. After making it through the oral exam session with the professors, Tyler’s advisor brought him into the office again. The conversation went very differently this time. Tyler was surprised to hear that he got the second best score out of the 80 people who took the exam. He didn’t just pass, he excelled. This experience taught Tyler a really important lesson. He could handle difficult things. The qualifying exam experience gave him confidence that has continued to shape the rest of his life. Whenever Tyler faces a seemingly impossible challenge, he reminds himself that he can figure it out.
Book Recommendations (33:28)
Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike by Phil Knight, The Comfort Crisis: Embrace Discomfort To Reclaim Your Wild, Happy, Healthy Self by Michael Easter
Most Treasured Travel (35:06)
While Tyler is not a big fan of travel, he had an interesting opportunity to visit São Paulo, Brazil, in graduate school. Tyler’s PhD advisor Hermano Igo Krebs is a Brazilian native, and he organized a conference there on rehabilitation robotics. The conference was held at Igo’s undergraduate alma mater, and he gathered a large group of people together for a great conference. Tyler enjoyed presenting his research, and it was eye-opening to experience the different culture, language (Portuguese), and food.
Quirky Traditions and Funny Memories (37:35)
Working in the lab at MIT was a lot of fun because they built and tested a variety of cool robotic devices. Strapping on these devices felt a little bit like being Iron Man, and Tyler has some great photos of him in robotic gear. They also enjoyed getting the lab together for lab celebrations, and one involved breaking a lot of plates to celebrate a Greek lab member’s major life event. The only problem was that no one had planned in advance for the extensive cleanup required.
Advice For Us All (40:38)
Do the hardest things you possibly can while you are still young. If you’re faced with a choice between an easy path and a difficult path, taking the easy route isn’t always best. Learning how to overcome challenges will benefit you later. Also, follow your passion and do what you want to do in life.
Guest Bio
Tyler Susko is a medical device entrepreneur and researcher focused on fall prevention and mobility innovation in high-risk populations. His work centers on translating biomechanics and population health insights into practical, regulated solutions that reduce fall risk and improve confidence in movement—particularly for older adults and individuals with neurologic conditions. He is the founder of Cadense, an FDA-registered medical device company developing variable friction footwear designed to dynamically adapt to changing surfaces and gait instability. Cadense is building a condition-specific portfolio spanning clinical, senior living, and consumer markets, supported by prospective research and real-world fall outcomes data. Tyler is passionate about bridging clinical science, product development, and commercialization to create scalable solutions that meaningfully impact safety, independence, and quality of life.
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