Tilly Lockey Has the World's Most Advanced Bionic Hands

I'm going to start by shaking your hand.

Hello, nice to meet you.

Because a 19-year-old British girl has been fitted with some of the world's most advanced bionic hands which are powered by her own thoughts and which, as we'll discover, can even move when they're not attached to her arm. It's amazing.

Well, Tilly joins us now. I mean, obviously you probably don't remember being 15 months old when this all happened to you, but I know that your mum said in your hospital you will that I had to get at the time, and boy, have you taken that on and spaced it all out completely. These are your latest, aren't they? And they're extraordinary. Just first of all, show us what they can do and why it's different from before.

Yeah, so these are made by Open Bionics. These are called the Hero Pro, which I was a part of the co-design and development of. So they're like 3D printed, but they're extra strong, extra quick, and yeah, they're most advanced on the market. So they're muscle operated. We've got these little Myopods which track my muscle movement Squeeze to close, flex to open, and I can cycle through like 30 grip modes. Do anything from like a peace sign to a pinch to a point, and yeah, pretty much anything.

And you can pick up the glass as well, can't you? Yeah. Is something that your previous ones don't— couldn't do. Could you show us? Would that be possible?

So you can pick up the glass and like you can just pick any sort of Grip mode, whatever it is. If it's like popcorn out a bowl, I would use a little point mechanism. So yeah, you can do pretty much anything.

That must be life-changing.

And do you consciously have to think of the movement? Do you think, I'm going to move my finger now, and it—

Yeah, there is that little extra thought process because they are muscle-operated. I think that's a big misconception, is like, I just think and it comes to reality. So there is that like thought-to-muscle sort of connection. So I am thinking—

So you tell your arm what to do?

Yeah, like squeeze the clothes, flex the arm.

Open.

I'm conscious of where I'm at in the, in the grip mode cycle as well. And obviously over time, just going to get more and more advanced and even less thought.

And does that come with, with practice and, as you say, improving the tech to get it more coordinated?

Yeah, for sure. It's the more tech advances, the easier it's going to get and the more accessible it'll be for everybody.

I mean, one of the things this piece of kit does for you is that you can even control it when it's not attached.

Yes.

Now I've got to be part of this. Should we, should we do this together? Yeah. Because, um, right, there we go.

So they're completely wireless. So if you like pull and twist, do it again, press the button again.

Oh my God, I feel like I'm hurting things.

There you go. I know, right? But yeah, so it can actually operate when it's detached as well, which everyone's quite excited about, and that's due to the wireless.

So let me put this down.

So you are thinking it'll still work.

I'll just move that glass so the cameras can see it.

Yeah.

Wow, can you do it again?

Yeah, so it's just like frozen here, so I can just press that button, and from that point onwards you can make it crawl or do whatever over the table.

But the thing is, you're not pressing a control panel, your, your mind is making—

Yeah, I'm just operating it all internally.

It's just incredible. Can I ask you, you said that you first—

Yeah, you can put it back.

You said you first came on GMB when you were 8 years old. And back then you must have been using a much more basic technology than now, but also you had your arm to look like your, you know, a flesh-colored arm.

Exactly.

You've decided to do something quite different. I mean, these are, you know, properly bionic in their look. Why did you decide that?

I'm like, I'm obsessed with the design, and that's why I feel like co-design is so important. Like, before I was even given a hand and a prosthetic that would move, I was given a glove, like a cosmetic glove, love, and that to me, my family was like, why are we doing this? Like, it's not something that I wanted to hide, it was something that we wanted to like actually be functional. But also I always say these don't just accept those differences, but they also accentuate it in a really beautiful light. So that's what I like to talk about over my social media. And yeah, you can dress them up different colors, put glitter on them, and I love that. It's just—

can you change them like day to day?

Yeah, they're just magnetic, so you can have any color.

If you're wearing a different outfit, can you have a different—

yeah. Match it to your outfit, match it to your mood, whatever it is.

And I suppose psychologically that means that you're, in your brilliant influencing, you're saying to people not having a hand isn't something to be ashamed of, as in hide it under a glove. It's out there giving you strength and power.

Yeah, exactly. I talk about all the mental benefits and like it's so important that they're accessible to more and more people as well. Like I for one have like experienced that firsthand where like they've just opened so many doors for me. Physically and mentally as well. And now the goal is just to make sure as many people can get them as possible. So we're actually launching a podcast called Tilly Talks Tech, and that's going to be launched today. So you can actually subscribe on YouTube, and basically it's going to be a views for hands sort of situation. So every time you're watching, that ad revenue is going to go towards making them more accessible, making sure more people can get money and be able to get this tech. So I'm really excited about that.

When I was a boy, a little boy in the 1970s, there was a TV program called The Bionic Man, and we thought this was like science fiction and made up. We never thought it could ever become real. You know, we can rebuild him. Yeah, about the Bionic Man. But you have become the Bionic Woman in real life. It's amazing, isn't it?

I guess so. And like, I'm honestly just honored to be at the forefront of it because, you know, there's, there's still so much we can do. Like, they're gonna be, I feel like, as good as the science fiction world and give people that independence and like that, you know, just their ability back.

Just sum up that little action. I mean, obviously it's fascinating to see you control the table, but for you in your life, that little action to be able to grab a glass, what difference does that make for you in your day-to-day life and for others if they could have it?

It's massive. I mean, I was talking to like Lord Craig McKinlay recently and like he's somebody who lost all hands, all limbs, sorry, like legs and arms, like overnight, you know. And it's one of those things that can happen to anybody. So that is why it is so important to have this technology to fall back on, to make sure people have access to it, you know. So yeah, it's so, so important. There's no point in being there if people can't get it.

Are there things that you're still, you know, watching you, you can pick up a glass, you move your hair back from your eye.

Yeah.

Are there things—

I know that you gesticulate when you talk with us. I do as well, which must be again really interesting. It's amazing.

Are there things that you are still thinking the technology could be better? Can you put your eyeliner on?

Yeah, I do my makeup with them. Do you? Completely.

That's amazing.

Yeah, but like, I mean, I'm full of ideas. Ever since I started with the company, I rocked up with like my massive vision board. I was like, I want Bluetooth speakers, personal assistant, lasers, you know.

Is there one thing that you can't yet do with them but you want to be able to do?

One thing I'm yet to master, let me know anybody if there's any tools or whatever, is like tying my hair up. I could achieve like a really messy bun, But I would love to be able to, like, you know, do all these fancy hairstyles the girls do.

Oh, a messy bun is fine.

Yeah.

You don't mind a messy bun?

You don't mind a messy bundy?

Well, I'm so useless with two hands that I was born with, that it's always messy. But you, I mean, you've done your hair beautifully today and you've done your makeup beautifully. But I guess it's those details which might seem small and a bit funny which actually make you feel like your life is the same as everyone with all their limbs.

Yeah, even being able to like shake you guys' hands. Like before, it was like a little buffer, a little hesitation, whereas now it's just like—

Can you do a fist bump?

Yes, of course.

Can I get one as well?

There you go. Like that.

That's just really cool. And you know, when you were first aware of, you know, your hands not being there, did you think back then this would be possible?

Absolutely not. Like in my, like, you know, in my ideal world, I mean, I saw like the likes of like Marvel and Iron Man, and to me as like a little girl, I was like, yeah, I don't want that. But then obviously it was all high-definition silicone. I was just like, oh, like, why aren't we doing the super cool high-tech looking arms? And then when I saw Open Bionics, they were collaborating with Iron Man— well, Iron Man, Tony Stark. They were collaborating with Marvel at the time. And they were making like Elsa arms. And that to me was just really exciting. It was the first time I just put them on and I was like, this feels right and empowering. So, you know, that's what I try to talk about now. And hopefully on the podcast, people can tune in and we can get more and more people these hands and, Yeah, it just opens so many doors.

Tilly, your kit is amazing, but your energy and your spirit is fantastic, and you will have helped so many people watching today, whether or not you get to have greater access for everybody else.

Sounds a great podcast.

Wonderful.

Bring it in.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, exactly. Now, thanks very much indeed.