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Made For Us

Tosin Sulaiman

Made For Us is a Signal Award-winning podcast for anyone who’s curious about how to design for inclusivity. An Apple Podcasts Editors' Choice, Made For Us entered Apple's top 10 Design chart, reaching #2 in Canada and #3 in the U.S.

Join us each week for conversations with founders, designers, product inclusion leaders and other creative minds who are challenging the status quo of how everyday products are designed. Each episode will bring you insights from people who've spent years thinking, perhaps even obsessing, about how to develop products or build companies that are inclusive from the start.

AWARDS

2025 International Women's Podcast Awards:

Runner-up: Moment of Absolute Honesty
Finalist: Moment of Behind-the-Scenes Briliance

2024 Signal Awards:

Bronze winner: Most Inspirational Podcast

2024 International Women's Podcast Awards:

Finalist: Moment of Insight from a Role Model & Moment of Visionary Leadership

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  • 26 episodes
  • weekly
  • Avg 29 min
  • English

Episodes 26

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  • Dec 13, 2025 · 1 min

    What's in a name? A new mini-series from Made For Us

    Across the world, millions of people's names are treated as errors by our devices. In the UK alone, 41% of baby names are flagged as "incorrect." In a new mini-series, we'll meet the people pushing tech companies to do better and explore what autocorrect reveals about how - and for whom - technology gets built. Subscribe now so you don't miss new episodes. --- Connect with Made for Us Show notes and transcripts: https://made-for-us.captivate.fm/ Newsletter: https://madeforuspodcast.beehiiv.com/ Social media: LinkedIn and Instagram

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  • S2 · E15
    Jun 19, 2025 · 38 min

    The power of compassionate design, with Marcus Engel

    If some of the conversations you've heard in this season of Made For Us have felt like a glimpse into the future, then you're not alone. Our final guest of season 2, Marcus Engel, feels like he's already living in the future, thanks to AI, apps like Be My Eyes and other assistive devices. Marcus is a speaker, author and compassion consultant. He's also an advisor to Haptic, whose founder, Kevin Yoo, was our guest last week. Haptic is the company behind one of the world's first touch-based navigation apps and it was a meeting with Marcus that inspired Kevin to start the company. Today, we'll hear Marcus' story, how surviving massive trauma led him to become a compassion consultant and how he thinks haptic technology could impact mobility for people who are blind or low vision. You’ll learn: Haptic technology's potential to guide people living with sight loss Marcus’s four-part definition of compassion and how it’s different to empathy Which products Marcus considers to be ‘compassionate' Enjoyed the episode? Text it to a friend. Loved the episode? Tell the world with a 5-star review. You might also like: Navigation you can feel: the startup making the world accessible through touch How to design a fairer healthcare system --- About Marcus Engel Marcus Engel is an adjunct professor at the University of Notre Dame teaching compassion science to pre-meds. He's also a survivor of massive trauma, a keynote speaker, author and hospital/system consultant. He's written two books that have been adopted by scores of nursing and health profession programs across the country. Learn more about Marcus Engel: www.MarcusEngel.com Compassion & Courage podcast Compassion is Action training video Books by Marcus Engel Follow Marcus on LinkedIn --- Connect with Made for Us Show notes and transcripts: https://made-for-us.captivate.fm/ Social media: LinkedIn and Instagram Newsletter: https://madeforuspodcast.beehiiv.com/

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  • S2 · E14
    Jun 12, 2025 · 37 min

    Navigation through touch: the haptic tech startup mapping an accessible future | Kevin Yoo

    What if navigating the world didn't rely on sight at all? In this episode, Kevin Yoo, the CEO and founder of Haptic, joins us to tell the story of one of the world’s first haptic navigation apps. Kevin shares how he was motivated by his friend’s experience of becoming blind, how haptic technology is shaping a more accessible future and the challenges that come with rethinking how we move through the world. This episode dives into: - Why the sense of touch has been underutilized in tech and how Haptic is trying to change that - What guiding a blind runner at the New York City Marathon revealed about the potential of haptic technology for blind and low vision runners - Kevin’s experience of putting himself in the shoes of a blind person for a few weeks and the lessons that came from it ⭐️Enjoyed the episode? Leave us a 5-star rating on Apple Podcasts and help more listeners discover the show! You might also like: Be My Eyes: the app powering a global volunteer movement for accessibility | Hans Jørgen Wiberg 'I don't need fixing - the world does.' Lucy Edwards on redefining disability --- About Kevin Yoo Kevin is the CEO and Founder of Haptic, a technology company creating a universal language of touch. Haptic is developing products and experiences that communicate information through vibrations. Kevin’s mission is to redefine the way we intake information through technology, especially for people with disabilities. Haptic's flagship product, HapticNav, made history by guiding the first blind runner in the NYC Marathon without sighted or audio assistance. Learn more about Haptic: https://haptic.works/ Download HapticNav on IOS and Android Follow Haptic on Instagram and LinkedIn Follow Kevin Yoo on Instagram --- Connect with Made for Us Show notes and transcripts: https://made-for-us.captivate.fm/ Social media: LinkedIn and Instagram Newsletter: https://madeforuspodcast.beehiiv.com/

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  • S2 · E13
    Jun 5, 2025 · 40 min

    How to design a fairer healthcare system, with Layal Liverpool and Tessa Davis

    When science journalist Layal Liverpool was finally diagnosed with eczema as a teenager, it came as a shock. Not because of the condition itself, but because only one doctor had recognized it on her skin tone. Pediatrician Tessa Davis had a similar wake-up call: she noticed that a Google search for common skin conditions only returned images of white patients. So she started collecting images of conditions on diverse skin tones, and launched a movement in the process. In this episode, Layal Liverpool, author of Systemic: How Racism is Making Us Ill, and Tessa Davis, a consultant at the Royal London Hospital, shed light on how racial inequities show up in diagnosis, treatment and outcomes — and how more inclusive care can lead to better health for all. We discuss: How racial health inequities harm not just marginalised communities, but all of us The alarming disparities in maternal health in the UK and US that can’t be explained by income alone The lack of diversity in medical textbooks and efforts to diversify the medical curriculum If you found this episode as eye-opening as we did, share it with a friend and leave us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify to spread the word! --- About Layal Liverpool: Layal Liverpool is a science journalist and author of SYSTEMIC: How Racism is Making Us Ill,’ a book exploring the health harms of racism. She was a reporter for Nature and New Scientist and worked as a biomedical researcher at University College London and the University of Oxford. She holds a PhD in virology and immunology from the University of Oxford. Learn more about Layal Liverpool: https://layalliverpool.com/ Follow Layal Liverpool on Instagram About Tessa Davis: Tessa is a Paediatric Emergency Medicine Consultant at the Royal London Hospital, and an Honorary Clinical Reader at Queen Mary University of London. She is also an interview coach helping doctors in the UK prep for their NHS Consultant Interviews. Learn more about Skin Deep: www.DFTBSkinDeep.com Follow Tessa on Instagram --- Connect with Made for Us Show notes and transcripts: https://made-for-us.captivate.fm/ Social media: LinkedIn and Instagram Newsletter: https://madeforuspodcast.beehiiv.com/

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  • May 29, 2025 · 28 min

    REPLAY: Reflections on creating the headscarf emoji, with Rayouf Alhumedhi

    This week, we’re rewinding back to one of our most popular episodes from Season 1, with Rayouf Alhumedhi, creator of the headscarf emoji. (The episode was also shortlisted for last year's International Women’s Podcast Awards in the ‘Moment of Insight from a Role Model’ category.) Rayouf launched the Hijab Emoji Project at the age of 16 to push for digital representation for Muslim women around the world. She was named one of Time magazine’s most influential teens and also featured on the Forbes 30 under 30 list. Rayouf has a Bachelor’s degree in Product Design and an MS in Mechanical Engineering from Stanford University. She currently works as an investor at Bessemer Venture Partners. In this episode, Rayouf shares: Her motivation for creating the headscarf emoji What it takes to design a brand new emoji and get it approved The praise and backlash she received during her campaign How Gen Z is pushing inclusive design to the forefront Know someone who’d be inspired by this? Why not share it with them - and help even more people discover this show by leaving a 5-star rating or review wherever you listen! You might also like: The emoji puzzle: how to fit everyone in --- Learn more about Rayouf Alhumedhi: https://www.rayouf.com/ Follow Rayouf on Instagram --- Connect with Made for Us Show notes and transcripts: https://made-for-us.captivate.fm/ Social media: LinkedIn and Instagram Newsletter: https://madeforuspodcast.beehiiv.com/

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  • S2 · E12
    May 22, 2025 · 29 min

    Where is the female crash test dummy? | Astrid Linder and Emily Thomas

    *** Help shape the next season of Made For Us! Please share your feedback in our 4-minute listener survey for the chance to win a $25 Amazon Gift Card and get instant access to our curated reading list of every book ever recommended on the show: https://forms.gle/pNyrCooa23oYsaVk7 --- In this episode: What happens when women aren’t considered in car safety design? For decades, crash test dummies have been modeled on the average male, but studies now show that women are more likely to be injured or killed in certain types of crashes. As the data mounts, so does the urgency to fix the gender gap in car safety. This week, we’re joined by Emily Thomas, PhD, Associate Director of Automotive Safety at Consumer Reports, and Astrid Linder, Professor of Traffic Safety at the Swedish National Road and Transport Research Institute, who developed the world’s first crash test dummy representing an average woman. Together, we’ll explore what it will take to design truly inclusive and safe cars. The conversation covers: Why women face higher injury risks in car crashes What’s involved in designing a female crash test dummy How the shift to driverless cars presents a chance to correct past biases --- Resources Astrid Linder’s research University of Virginia study U.S. Government Accountability Office recommendations --- About Professor Astrid Linder Astrid Linder is Professor of Traffic Safety at Swedish National Road and Transport Research Institute, VTI, and an Adjunct Professor of Injury Prevention at Chalmers University. She received her PhD in traffic safety from Chalmers from where she also has a MSc in Engineering Physics. Prof Linder initiated and led the research resulting in the world’s first physical dummy model based on the average female, the Seat Evaluation Tool (SET 50F) and was named one of the BBC's 100 most inspiring and influential women in 2023. Learn more about Astrid Linder: https://www.vti.se/en/employees/astrid-linder Follow Astrid Linder on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/astrid-linder-2a0b5a53/ About Emily Thomas, PhD Emily Thomas leads the occupant protection and vulnerable road user safety programs at Consumer Report’s Auto Test Center. Her expertise extends to crash safety, vehicular heatstroke prevention, and child passenger safety. Emily has 15 years of automotive safety experience and holds a PhD in pediatric injury biomechanics from Drexel University and The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Learn more about Emily Thomas: https://www.consumerreports.org/about-us/our-people/our-experts/emily-thomas/ --- Connect with Made For Us Show notes and transcripts: https://made-for-us.captivate.fm/ Social media: LinkedIn and Instagram Newsletter: https://madeforuspodcast.beehiiv.com/

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Showing 21–26 of 26 episodes