Redesigning Hospital Logistics and Security
Behind the Build
Timeline: 4 years (mid 2022 to mid 2025)
Role: CTO, Head of Design
Scope: Modular Robot Platform (Autonomous Base + Swappable Modules)
Web & Mobile Dashboard - AI Integration, Real-World Testing & Deployment - Full Design-to-Launch Lifecycle
Team: Cross-functional squad of robotics engineers, AI researchers, software developers, industrial and UX designers (Michal Kostyal, Baran Sahan, Akshay Kahate, Lokesh Yadav, Shekhar Nandanwar, Santosh Govindaraj along with contributions from other valuable team members)
Problem: Hospitals are overloaded with repetitive, time-sensitive delivery tasks that reduce staff efficiency, introduce hygiene risks, and slow down response times — especially in post-COVID healthcare systems.
Impact: Deployed in one of the UK’s largest hospital chains (NHS) - Field-tested across UK and India - Showcased at G20 Innovation Summit - Nominated as one of the Top 40 Global Innovations - Earned formal recommendation from the Prime Minister’s Office, India
MY ROLE
- I led the entire design journey, from concept to launch for the autonomous delivery robot and SwiftOne dashboard.
- Conducted early-stage research and on-ground discussions with hospitals to identify operational pain points
- Built and led a cross-functional design team spanning industrial design, UI/UX, and systems thinking
- Directed both the robot’s physical design and the SwiftOne interface for real-time task management
- Collaborated with engineering teams — mechanical, software, and electronics — to align form and function
- Developed and iterated prototypes through hospital testing and user feedback
- Integrated AI for autonomous navigation, task optimisation, and anomaly detection
- Coordinated with vendors and suppliers to build a production-ready model
- Led the product launch and showcased it at the G20 Innovation Summit
- Presented the solution exclusively to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, gaining early market traction and global interest
Identified Problems
Ageing Population causing Labour Shortages - Median age in Europe is 45 and growing (eg in UK 200K+ shortage of nurses)
Inconsistent Service: manual error, infection cause absence of multiple staff
Inconsistent Service: manual error, infection cause absence of multiple staff
“The robotic automation relieved our staff from monotonous tasks while improving service quality”
Nick S. MD NHS London
SwiftOne Prototype
A fully functional hardware prototype developed and deployed for real-world testing in active hospital environments. Designed for seamless integration into healthcare workflows, SwiftOne features autonomous navigation, vision-based mapping, and dynamic obstacle avoidance for safe, efficient movement across wards.
Equipped with secure, modular delivery compartments, the system ensures reliable transport of medication, meals, and reports with minimal human contact. Integrated sensors enable real-time anomaly detection, emergency handling, and fail-safe alerts, making it robust for mission-critical use in high-pressure settings.
Product Launch at G20 (Version 1)
Swift Robotics was officially launched at the 2023 G20 Innovation Summit, selected as one of the Top 40 global innovators shaping the future of deep-tech and healthcare. The autonomous delivery robot system was personally recognized by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and showcased as a benchmark for India’s innovation on the global stage.
Designed for real-world deployment, Swift’s solutions are now gaining traction across NHS hospitals in the UK, as well as in India, the Middle East, and Europe — reinforcing its mission to transform hospital operations through intelligent automation and design-led systems thinking.
What This Project Taught Me
Designing for Complexity Demands Clarity
Building for hospitals meant designing around chaos, from urgent delivery scenarios to non-technical users. Clarity in UI, interactions, and physical form was essential.
Field Testing Beats Theory
Every assumption gets humbled in the real world. Testing in live hospital environments revealed nuances no lab simulation could replicate.
Cross-Disciplinary Collaboration Is Non-Negotiable
Robotics isn’t built in silos. Success came from aligning hardware, software, AI, and design often in the same room, mid-debug.
Design Is as Much About Trust as Function
In healthcare, reliability and trust are UX features. Every beep, alert, and movement had to feel intentional, safe, and dependable.
Design is powerful
Design is a powerful enabler of equity and it can bridge digital, social, and economic gaps when approached through a systems lens.
