An MIT News profile highlights the work of Camille Cunin, a recent PhD graduate whose research focuses on transforming rigid electronic systems into flexible bioelectronic devices capable of integrating more naturally with the human body. Her work sits at the intersection of materials science, electronics, and biomedical engineering, where researchers are attempting to build devices that can stretch, bend, and operate inside soft biological environments without damaging tissue or losing functionality.
Cunin’s interest in bioelectronics emerged during a 2019 internship at Massachusetts General Hospital, where she witnessed the limitations of existing medical technologies firsthand. A patient with Parkinson’s disease struggled to swallow a tethered capsule device intended for gastrointestinal exploration, revealing the gap between laboratory concepts and practical medical use. That experience shaped her goal of creating biomedical devices designed around real human needs rather than purely theoretical performance.
Working in the lab of MIT materials science professor Aristide Gumyusenge, Cunin developed organic electrochemical transistors designed for soft electronics applications. These devices must solve two major engineering challenges simultaneously: enabling both ions and electrons to move efficiently through hydrated environments while remaining soft and flexible enough to conform to living tissue. Traditional electronics are rigid and brittle, making them poorly suited for long-term interaction with the body.
One of the defining features of Cunin’s research is a layered polymer-metal structure she compares to a “crepe cake.” The design combines conductive metallic elements with stretchable polymers, creating transistor architectures capable of amplifying biological signals while maintaining mechanical flexibility. Her doctoral research involved material development, device fabrication, and even animal-model testing to evaluate real-world biomedical performance.
The article also emphasizes Cunin’s broader philosophy toward engineering research. Rather than focusing solely on theoretical demonstrations, she aims to create technologies that can eventually translate into usable healthcare products. Her work reflects a growing movement within bioelectronics toward wearable and implantable systems capable of monitoring neural activity, improving medical diagnostics, and strengthening connections between biological systems and digital devices.
Now working at neurotechnology startup Axoft, Cunin continues developing soft implantable brain interfaces designed to study neural behavior and improve therapies for neurological disorders. The article presents her work as part of a wider shift in electronics research, where future devices may no longer resemble rigid machines but instead operate as adaptable systems integrated seamlessly with the human body.