How This Tiny Startup Built the World’s Safest Bike Helmet
The startup Pikio has developed a new road cycling helmet called the Si Oblik, which significantly outperforms competitors in safety testing. The design, inspired by woodpecker anatomy, utilizes a new safety system to reduce rotational forces during impacts.
Why it matters
Advancements in helmet technology driven by independent testing standards like Virginia Tech's are significantly improving consumer safety in cycling.
Not waiting for the CPSC to catch up, the cycling industry got to work. Multidirectional Impact Protection System, or MIPS, hit the market in 2007 and is now a common feature on premium helmets. At the same time, Virginia Tech turned helmet safety into something of a competition for manufacturers. In 2018, it launched helmet STAR ratings (Summation of Tests for the Analysis of Risk), testing beyond the legal minimum and measuring both linear and rotational impacts.
Only four of the first 30 helmets earned five stars, but by 2025, 167 of 272 achieved five stars, and Virginia Tech had to tighten its grading. That only drove competition and improved helmet technology. Suddenly, hitting the number one spot was good for business and brains.
Get smarter about the news
Sign up free for a feed built around what you actually care about, Dive Deeper research on any story, and the full text of every article.
Create free accountAlready have an account? Sign in