The latest Forbes Accessibility list is a useful signal for the prosthetics and orthotics sector. While the list covers a broad accessibility economy — from digital platforms and workplace inclusion to mobility, sport, communication, travel and consumer products — several honourees are directly relevant to prosthetics, orthotics, rehabilitation and assistive technology.
For IMEA CPO readers, the list matters because it shows how accessibility is increasingly being treated as a serious innovation and business category, not only as a social or charitable concern. This is highly relevant for the Middle East, India and Africa, where demand for prosthetic and orthotic care is growing, but access remains uneven.
Forbes launched its inaugural Accessibility 100 in 2025 and expanded the concept to the Accessibility 200 in 2026, highlighting innovators and impact-makers in accessibility worldwide. The most relevant names for the O&P sector include established global manufacturers, emerging prosthetic startups, adaptive sport innovators, rehabilitation technology companies and advocacy organisations shaping coverage and access.
Embla Medical: global O&P scale through Össur, College Park and Fior & Gentz
One of the most directly relevant companies for prosthetics and orthotics is Embla Medical, the parent company of Össur, College Park Industries and FIOR & GENTZ.
Embla Medical announced that it had been recognised on Forbes’ first global Accessibility 100 list for its work in prosthetics, neuro-orthotics, bracing and patient care services. The company said the recognition reflected its history of innovation in prosthetic and orthotic solutions, as well as its wider global reach through patient care and mobility brands.
For IMEA markets, Embla’s inclusion is important because it shows that mainstream business media is recognising O&P as a major part of the accessibility economy. Össur’s prosthetic feet, knees, liners and bracing systems are already well known across many regional markets, while Fior & Gentz is especially relevant to neuro-orthotics and lower-limb orthotic management.
The company’s portfolio also reflects a wider industry trend: major O&P groups are no longer only component manufacturers. They are increasingly combining devices, clinical networks, data, patient care models and emerging-market strategies.
Ottobock: mainstream recognition for one of O&P’s largest global brands
Ottobock is another highly relevant name for IMEA CPO readers. The company has publicly stated that it was included in the Forbes Accessibility 200, placing one of the world’s best-known prosthetic, orthotic and mobility technology companies within the wider accessibility innovation landscape.
Ottobock’s relevance is clear. The company is active across prosthetics, orthotics, wheelchairs, mobility products, neurorehabilitation and exoskeleton-related technologies. Its prosthetic knees, feet, hands, microprocessor systems and orthotic solutions are used globally, including in the Middle East, India and Africa.
For the IMEA region, Ottobock’s inclusion reinforces the idea that large O&P companies are now being evaluated not only by product innovation, but also by their role in access, rehabilitation systems, training, clinical support and user participation.
Koalaa: soft, modular upper-limb prosthetics with global access relevance
UK-based Koalaa was recognised on Forbes’ Accessibility 100 and is particularly relevant to low-resource and emerging-market prosthetic care.
Koalaa focuses on soft, modular upper-limb prosthetics. Its model differs from many traditional rigid prosthetic approaches by emphasising comfort, early use, affordability and activity-specific attachments. The company’s prosthetic sleeves and swappable tools are designed to help users perform daily activities such as cooking, exercise, cycling, playing music or other functional tasks.
The company has also been supported through the AT2030 programme, led by the Global Disability Innovation Hub. AT2030 noted that Koalaa had expanded into the African market, making it especially relevant for IMEA CPO readers.
For prosthetic services in Africa and other cost-sensitive markets, Koalaa’s recognition is important because it highlights a different model of prosthetic innovation: not only high-end bionics, but also user-centred, affordable, modular and functional design.
Circleg: accessible lower-limb prosthetics with East African relevance
Swiss-Kenyan social enterprise Circleg was also recognised on Forbes’ Accessibility 100. For IMEA CPO, Circleg is one of the most regionally relevant names on the list because of its focus on accessible lower-limb prosthetic systems and its work in East Africa.
Circleg has developed the Circleg One, a modular lower-limb prosthetic system designed for real-world access. The company launched the system in Nairobi, Kenya, and has positioned its work around affordability, local relevance, holistic care and community visibility for amputees.
This is particularly important because many amputees in Africa still face major barriers to prosthetic care, including cost, distance to services, limited component availability, lack of follow-up and social stigma. Circleg’s model combines product innovation with local representation and public awareness campaigns.
For the IMEA O&P sector, Circleg’s inclusion points to a key question: how can lower-limb prosthetic systems be designed not only for advanced markets, but for the realities of everyday life in Africa, South Asia and other emerging regions?
Hopper Prosthetics: accessible sport blades and adaptive recreation
Hopper Prosthetics, based in Albi, France, appears on Forbes’ accessibility company coverage as a sports and recreation innovator. The company develops more accessible sport blades for people with lower-limb amputation and has also emphasised sustainability by using upcycled carbon fibre.
Hopper is relevant because access to sport-specific prosthetic devices remains a major gap globally. Many amputees may receive a walking prosthesis but have no access to affordable running blades or sport-specific components. This limits participation in rehabilitation, fitness, school sport, community activity and competitive pathways.
For the IMEA region, where adaptive sport is growing but remains under-supported in many countries, Hopper’s recognition raises an important issue: prosthetic access should not stop at basic mobility. Sport and recreation are part of health, confidence, social inclusion and long-term rehabilitation.
Bionic Power: exoskeleton and wearable robotics relevance
Bionic Power has publicly announced its inclusion in the Forbes Accessibility 200. While not a traditional prosthetics or orthotics manufacturer, the company is relevant to the wider rehabilitation technology space because of its work in wearable robotics and mobility support.
For IMEA CPO readers, this category matters because the boundaries between orthotics, exoskeletons, powered mobility and rehabilitation robotics are becoming less rigid. Devices that assist walking, reduce fatigue or support neurological rehabilitation may increasingly sit alongside traditional orthotic services.
Hospitals, rehabilitation centres and private providers in the Gulf, India and parts of Africa are already exploring exoskeletons and robotic rehabilitation. The challenge will be matching technology with clinical evidence, service models, trained staff and affordability.
Trexo Robotics: paediatric gait support and rehabilitation technology
Trexo Robotics has also shared that it was named to the Forbes Accessibility list. Trexo develops robotic gait-training technology for children, making it relevant to paediatric rehabilitation and mobility support.
Although robotic gait trainers are not conventional orthoses, they sit close to paediatric orthotics, cerebral palsy management, neurorehabilitation and early mobility intervention. For children with mobility impairments, technologies that support stepping, upright positioning and gait practice may complement AFOs, KAFOs, standing frames, physiotherapy and other rehabilitation interventions.
For IMEA markets, the relevance is clear but complex. Paediatric rehabilitation demand is high, but advanced robotic systems require capital investment, maintenance, trained clinicians and careful patient selection. The opportunity is significant, but adoption must be clinically grounded.
MIT and Hugh Herr: the research pipeline behind future prosthetics
The Forbes accessibility coverage has also highlighted the role of research leaders such as Hugh Herr at the MIT Media Lab. While MIT is not a prosthetic company, Herr’s work is deeply relevant to the future of prosthetics, neuroprosthetics, bionics, amputation surgery and human-machine integration.
For IMEA CPO, this matters because many technologies that appear experimental today may shape clinical practice in the future. Osseointegration, neural interfaces, powered ankles, advanced socket design, surgical-prosthetic integration and AI-assisted rehabilitation are likely to influence the next generation of high-end prosthetic care.
However, the region must balance excitement with access. Cutting-edge systems are important, but the majority of amputees globally still need timely assessment, a comfortable socket, reliable components, physiotherapy, repairs and long-term follow-up.
Nike and adaptive design: why footwear companies matter to O&P
Nike is not a prosthetics or orthotics company, but its inclusion in accessibility coverage is still relevant. Nike has developed accessible footwear lines such as FlyEase, and Össur has previously partnered with Nike on the sole system for the Össur Cheetah sports blade.
For O&P services, footwear is often a practical barrier to successful rehabilitation. Prosthetic feet, AFOs, custom insoles, diabetic footwear and adaptive shoe design all depend on the interface between the device, the foot and the shoe.
The recognition of mainstream footwear companies in accessibility lists suggests that adaptive design is moving beyond specialist medical supply and into consumer markets. This could be important for diabetic foot care, AFO users, elderly users, children with orthoses and people with limited dexterity.
So EveryBODY Can Move: policy and reimbursement as accessibility innovation
The Forbes list also recognised organisations connected to advocacy and access, including So EveryBODY Can Move, a US campaign focused on insurance coverage for prosthetic and orthotic care related to physical activity and exercise.
While this campaign is US-focused, its relevance to IMEA is significant. Access to prosthetics and orthotics is often limited not only by technology, but by reimbursement policy, charity dependence, public procurement systems and lack of recognition of O&P as essential healthcare.
For emerging markets, the lesson is that advocacy is part of accessibility innovation. Better access requires not only better devices, but better policy, funding, clinical pathways and public understanding.
Why this matters for IMEA CPO
The Forbes Accessibility list is important because it places prosthetics and orthotics inside a much larger accessibility economy. O&P is no longer only a specialist clinical field. It is now connected to consumer design, robotics, sport, AI, digital health, venture funding, public policy, insurance, education and inclusive cities.
For the Middle East, India and Africa, the most relevant messages are clear.
First, accessibility is becoming a recognised business opportunity. This may attract more investment into assistive technology, rehabilitation products and scalable clinical models.
Second, the most successful innovators are not only making devices. They are addressing affordability, training, user experience, service delivery and community inclusion.
Third, sport and recreation are becoming part of the prosthetic conversation. Devices that support participation beyond basic walking are increasingly seen as important for health and dignity.
Fourth, emerging markets are no longer only recipients of imported technology. Companies such as Circleg and organisations such as AT4D show that African-led and Africa-focused innovation is becoming part of the global accessibility conversation.
Finally, the list reminds the O&P sector that access is the central challenge. Advanced prosthetic technology is valuable, but it must be matched with systems that can deliver assessment, fitting, follow-up and repair at scale.
A broader definition of O&P innovation
Forbes’ recognition of prosthetic, orthotic and mobility-related innovators is a positive sign for the profession. It shows that O&P is being understood as part of a wider movement toward inclusion, independence and participation.
For IMEA CPO readers, the most important takeaway is that the future of prosthetics and orthotics will not be shaped by component manufacturers alone. It will be shaped by a wider ecosystem: global O&P companies, emerging-market startups, adaptive sport organisations, robotics developers, footwear brands, research labs, advocates and policy leaders.
That ecosystem is already visible in the Forbes Accessibility list. The challenge now is to ensure that the innovation it celebrates reaches the people who need it most.
- Forbes Accessibility list
- Forbes: How the Accessibility 200 list is made
- Embla Medical recognition by Forbes
- Ottobock
- Koalaa
- AT2030: Koalaa and AT4D recognised in Forbes Accessibility 100
- Circleg press and media
- Hopper Prosthetics Forbes company page
- Hopper Accessibility
- Bionic Power
- Trexo Robotics
- MIT Biomechatronics Group – Hugh Herr
- Nike FlyEase
- So EveryBODY Can Move
- World Health Organization: Assistive technology