Samantha Johnson Built a Robot Hand That Lets DeafBlind People Make Calls

A DeafBlind woman called her daughter using a robotic hand.

As the call connected, she kept repeating, “It’s your mom. It’s your mom on the phone.”

In this episode of Automated, Brian Heater speaks with Samantha Johnson, co-founder and CEO of Tatum Robotics, about the tactile signing robot helping DeafBlind people access information, make phone calls, and communicate more independently.

Samantha explains how meeting a DeafBlind woman named Elaine first inspired the idea. When Samantha asked how they could stay in touch, Elaine told her they could not call each other. Months later, the pandemic disrupted the interpreting services and physical contact many DeafBlind people relied on, turning Samantha’s idea into an urgent engineering problem.

Brian and Samantha discuss how she taught herself robotics, built early prototypes in her apartment, and discovered that nearly every assumption she made during the first user test was wrong. A silicone covering intended to feel human instead felt like a monster, and users refused to touch the robot until she removed it.

They also explore why investors repeatedly encouraged Samantha to abandon the DeafBlind application and build a general-purpose robotic gripper, how she protected the company’s mission, and why designing directly with DeafBlind users led to a better product.

Samantha shares how people are now using the robot to check the time, receive news and weather updates, schedule appointments, reconnect with old friends, and call their families. She also explains the technical challenges behind a tendon-driven robotic hand and Tatum’s plans to develop a full arm capable of more complex signing.

This is a conversation about robotics, accessibility, and what becomes possible when engineers build with a community instead of simply building for one.

KEY MOMENTS
(00:00) The first phone call to a daughter
(03:14) What axolotls taught Samantha about engineering
(05:21) Why she entered robotics during the pandemic
(06:00) Learning robotics from the ground up
(07:26) Building prototypes in her apartment
(08:17) How COVID isolated the DeafBlind community
(10:10) The conversation with Elaine that started everything
(12:33) Why every assumption in the first test was wrong
(13:02) When the silicone hand felt like a monster
(14:22) How DeafBlind users validated the product
(17:21) Proving an accessibility startup can become a business
(18:27) Reconnecting two friends after 15 years
(20:44) Why investors wanted her to abandon the mission
(21:51) The challenge of not knowing what time it is
(23:35) Why tactile sign language requires a different robotic hand
(25:14) “I forgot it was a robot”
(25:57) Shipping the first Tatum robots
(27:03) Helping an ex-NASA engineer reconnect with the world
(27:43) “It’s your mom on the phone”
(28:37) Customizing and training the robot for each user
(30:27) Learning how to become a technical founder
(33:00) Scaling with DeafBlind consultants and advisors
(35:48) Building a full arm for more complex signing
(37:56) Expanding into museums and healthcare
(39:04) Why accessibility startups have more opportunities today

Connect with Samantha Johnson
https://www.linkedin.com/in/samantha-johnson-7001b413a
Learn more about Tatum Robotics
https://tatumrobotics.com/

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You can find the transcript and more episodes of Automated at automated.fm.

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