Dr. Bethany Juhnke is a passionate and accomplished researcher and engineer with a strong background in mechanical engineering, human-computer interaction, and medical device design. She holds a PhD in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Minnesota, where her research focused on extended reality technology in the medical device industry. Her diverse academic background also includes a Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering and Human-Computer Interaction from Iowa State University, as well as a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering.

Currently serving as a Senior Human Factors Engineer at Intuitive Surgical, Inc. Bethany leads user experience (UX) and human factors research to identify user needs, improve product usability, and inform design decisions and ensured that products are intuitive, user-friendly, and align with human capabilities and limitations. She collaborates with interdisciplinary teams of engineers, designers, and product managers to ensure that human factors principles were integrated throughout the product development lifecycle and worked closely with stakeholders to translate user insights into actionable design recommendations balancing user needs with business goals, technical constraints, and market demands.

Prior to her work at Intuitive Surgical, Inc. Bethany’s contributions to academia include numerous journal articles and conference proceedings on topics such as the use of virtual reality for surgical planning, dynamic human body measurement, and medical device simulations. She has a strong record of interdisciplinary collaboration, working with professionals from various fields including medicine, engineering, and computer science. Her work has been published in respected journals such as Frontiers in Robotics and AI, Journal of Engineering in Medicine, and Ergonomics in Design.