Why Douglas believes the strongest inventions start with solving your own problem first, then asking how big that problem really is
How a circular saw blade in his workshop became the first prototype for a knife that reduces strain on joints and grip
What the Ability Curve™ is, and why he argues ability should be measured as a task-based scale rather than a yes-or-no label
How he brought a physical product to market by giving away ego and equity to build the right team
Real-world lessons on hearing no, protecting your idea, and getting smart on IP beyond just hiring a lawyer
00:00 – Welcome, and who Douglas was before the invention
02:50 – What the Army built into him, and the one word he keeps coming back to
14:18 – Facing a shoulder rebuild and losing the ability to cook
15:18 – A circular saw blade and the very first prototype
17:18 – The Ability Curve and rethinking who counts as disabled
28:38 – Meeting Dr. No, and what it takes to sell a physical product
39:10 – The Abilities Expo moment that changed how he saw the mission
55:36 – NULU Navigator, and using AI as an assistant without over-relying on it Douglas Katz is a West Point graduate, Army veteran, inventor, and co-founder of NULU, an adaptive kitchen knife company based in Chicago. A longtime lender and hobbyist knife-smith, he began building NULU while recovering from shoulder surgery that left him unable to cook. He is also the creator of the Ability Curve™, a framework for understanding how human capability shifts across age, injury, and context, and speaks on adaptive design, resilience, and universal design.
Tools, Frameworks, and Strategies Mentioned
The Ability Curve™, Douglas's model for treating ability as a task-based scale rather than a binary
NULU Navigator, an AI guidance tool now in beta that helps people work through whether the knife fits their situation
The Ulu, the ancient Inuit blade that inspired NULU's geometry
The AT3 assistive technology program and state lending libraries. NULU says its knife is now available to try free through more than 35 state assistive technology libraries
Kickstarter as a way to test messaging and fund a first production run
A note on IP: Douglas describes the NULU patent as still pending Douglas hopes his knife outlives his name, that in a hundred years people use it without a thought for who made it, and everyone is better off for it. His story is a reminder that innovation does not always start with ambition. Sometimes it starts with pain, frustration, and the courage to rethink what others have simply learned to accept.
NULU (official brand site): https://nuluknives.com/
Douglas Katz (keynote and advisory site, his primary promoted link): https://dougkatz8.wixsite.com/douglasmkatz
Doug's personal YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@gnulou/videos
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/douglaskatz/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/d.m.katz/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DOUGLASMKATZ/
Reddit (r/AdaptiveKitchen): https://www.reddit.com/r/AdaptiveKitchen/Watch the video version on YouTube: https://youtu.be/CVlN1hA61iA
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