Research

We hold the vision that the untethered computing devices—wearables, implantables, energy harvesting sensors—hold significant promise for revolutionizing global scale applications across healthcare, environmental stewardship, infrastructure management, and space exploration.

We build fully integrated, end-to-end computer systems to demonstrate the efficacy of the underlying scientific advancement we are concerned with. We run physical experiments to validate our hypothesis on hard benchmarks. We run user studies in the wild to test our sensing technologies, gathering quantitative and qualitative results that inform future work and guard against failures.

Ka Moamoa has multiple pillars of research which include a diverse portfolio of active research projects.

For a complete list of publications, see the lab director Google Scholar.

Intermittent Computing

Exploring how computing systems can be designed to function reliably when power is scarce, intermittent, or harvested from the environment. By treating power loss as a normal operating condition rather than a failure, intermittent computing enables long-lived, battery-free devices that support real-world applications in sensing, interaction, health, and sustainability.

Sustainable and Indigenous Cyberinfrastructure

Co-designing sensor networks, and educational tools, and other digital systems with Indigenous and other local communities to address goals around environmental justice, civic action, and self-sufficient agriculture.

Health: Wearable, Implantable, Accessible

We design, develop, and deploy wearable and implantable computational devices that reduce the effect of structural, access, societal, monetary, or mental barriers to receiving healthcare treatment, across cancer, nutrition and diabetes, and respiratory care.

Carbon Aware Internet of Things

Make carbon and sustainability a first-order design and operational parameter for future edge computing devices that range from tiny, energy-harvesting IoT devices to higher performance consumer electronics, to dissolvable electronics

Education

We design place-based and culturally revitalizing educational experience and evaluate there effectiveness. We deploy novel educational infrastructure that embodies local values, and AI productivity tools for teachers. Our efforts prioritize Indigenous language support, community-based projects, and environmental stewardship.

Sustainable Robotics

Reinventing robotic platforms, with sustainable metrics in mind, reducing waste, energy, and increasing longevity. We reimagine full stack roboitics including materials, devices, propulsion, and controls across biohybrids and flying platforms.

Interactive and Playful: Devices and Experiences

We build battery-free, interactive devices as provocations from the hardware up, design wearable plant based interfaces for ecological reflection, and design Hawaiian culture grounded table top games emphasizing sustainability values.