Building useful robots starts with understanding the people who use them. For Charlie Kemp, cofounder and chief technology officer of Hello Robot, that means developing assistive robots that can help people with everyday tasks and support greater independence.

In this Robots Guide profile, Kemp shares his path from studying artificial intelligence at MIT to building Stretch, explains how working with people with disabilities has shaped his approach, and offers advice for aspiring roboticists. Read the full profile on IEEE’s Robots Guide.