What can you do when you’re forced to release control over your life? You take it back. That’s what Robin Koops did with his AP, or Artificial Pancreas.
His diabetes took away a large part of his life. All the little things that seemed to take all of his energy, was in fact diabetes. He didn’t know he had a serious illness, until all the signs started adding up. It’s a life-threatening condition that still kills people. That’s when Robin decided to take action. He combined insulin and glucagon, added an algorithm to do the math, and created the AP. This device removes the need for constant self-medication, and it removes constantly having the be in and out of hospitals. It offers freedom. At the age of just 30, Koops was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. His doctors informed him that life as he knew would change forever. Their advice was to just take it easy. But that’s not what Koops did.
Koops is an inventor and builder of machines, he worked on numerous projects for supermarket-chain Albert Heijn and big names in the meat and farming industry. His diagnosis was a big shock, it meant a complete new way of living. No longer could he just cook and eat what he wanted, he had to read all the ingredients, measure it all to ensure that his insulin levels stay stable. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at www.ted.com/tedx