Hypershell has announced a new kind of body-movement-assisting exoskeleton called Hypershell Halo, which will feature at the IFA tech show next week.

The major change in this generation is force is applied by the knee joint as well as the hip, for more complete support for the body’s walking motion. It should help save your knees as well as reducing overall fatigue on hikes and walks, and represents the biggest shift in Hypershell exoskeleton design since its first reveal in 2023.

Hypershell Halo does this with what the company calls its Hypershell Unified Architecture, dubbed “an industry-first architecture that integrates hip and knee assistance into one continuous system built around the complete lower-body kinetic chain,” by its maker.

The difference is clear to see from the product images Hypershell has revealed ahead of Halo’s full unveil next week.

Hypershell Halo Vs Hypershell X Ultra

In today’s Hypershell X Ultra, there’s a round motor enclosure at each side of the hip. In the Hypershell Halo, these are joined by additional powered elements near the knee joint.

This also leads to the introduction of another point of interface with the body. These sit around the waist as before, and there are straps that help hold the Hypershell Halo in place both above and significantly below the knee. It runs near the full length of the wearer’s leg.

The concept is to make Hypershell’s exoskeleton “a much more complete support system,” compared to current models.

Such a design re-raises all the issues I was concerned about when first seeing one of these exoskeletons, and more — like is there a potential for the joint being pushed in unintended directions? And how natural is walking going to feel in one of these things? Hypershell has some comeback answers.

To preserve a relative sense of freedom of movement, the Halo uses a "patented Fish-Spine Adaptive Joint” according to Hypershell.

“For a multi-joint exoskeleton, this creates a delicate balance: too much rigidity can restrict natural movement, while too much freedom can compromise stability and force transmission,” it says.

This solution was landed upon after a more modular design was rejected for causing too many potential issues with wear, noise, comfort and reliability.

Hypershell’s last few releases have worked on improving weight, power, torque and efficiency, which is useful but not fundamentally hugely interesting. The Hypershell Halo marks the first major shift in the company’s designs since I became familiar with these exoskeletons.

It’s not the very first consumer grade exoskeleton to offer such a knee-supporting design, though. Hypershell rival Dynsys announced the Dynsys Z1 more than a year ago in July 2025, followed by a crowdfunded campaign. It’s not clear how many of the units have actually been made, sold or shipped to date.

The Hypershell Halo has a cleaner-looking design, but it’s too early to tell which is more effective or efficient. But Hypershell has apparently been working on this knee-supporting design since its early days.

“Hypershell began exploring this generation of exoskeleton three years ago. What followed was years of prototyping, architectural changes, engineering trade-offs, and repeated attempts to turn the concept into something people could genuinely wear and move naturally in," it says.

Hypershell will show the promising Hypershell Halo at the IFA 2026, which begins on September 4, and hopefully reveal additional details like pricing and release date plans during the show too.