Carbitex, the company behind flexible carbon fiber materials used in , launched the Center for Better Flex, an educational hub that operates as a shared, open resource for footwear designers, engineers, brands, researchers and consumer who want to understand how footwear flexes and why that is important.
The site, CenterforBetterFlex.org, draws on developments in biomechanics, material science, and Advanced Footwear Technology (AFT). It provides for the footwear industry an understanding of what flex is, how the foot moves and how footwear design influences biomechanical outcomes. The site relies on a common language and definitions so that everyone from shoe designers to engineers and brands can communicate more precisely about flex properties and performance. And for consumers, who include athletes and wearers, they can now understand how their footwear moves with them and why it matters.
Carbitex’s flexible carbon fiber is used in performance footwear by brands that include FootJoy, The North Face, Saucony, Adidas, among others.
Carbitex founder and president Junus Khan discusses the evolution of the concept of tune flex, or specialized insoles or cushioning systems for customized arch support and flexibility, as well as what’s ahead on the innovation front, such as using artificial intelligence (AI) that powers design tools.
FOOTWEAR NEWS: What led to the decision to make your research available to the industry?
Junus Khan: As a materials development company, we spent our early years working across a number of industries. We chose footwear based on our ability to eliminate two fundamental compromises that have existed since the start of footwear over 10,000 years ago.
These compromises ultimately revolved around the ability to tune flex. Through working to translate tuned flex into footwear engineering, it became apparent that flex was largely a byproduct of decisions made around cushioning, protection, or stability. If you wanted more stability, you often had to accept more stiffness. If you wanted more cushioning, it influenced how the shoe flexed. Those tradeoffs made sense because materials and footwear engineering placed limits on what could be controlled independently.
Today, that’s changing. Advances in materials, biomechanics, and footwear engineering mean that flex can now be engineered much more intentionally and independently than in the past. This is a new paradigm for the industry.
We’ve spent more than a decade building knowledge around how engineered flex influences movement and performance. Perhaps more importantly, we realized this idea was bigger than Carbitex. Better understanding leads to better footwear, regardless of whether a brand ultimately uses our technology. Rather than keep that knowledge to ourselves, we wanted to create a platform where the industry can share research, frameworks, and ideas that raise the overall understanding of flex.
FN: What is the goal for the Center for Better Flex?
JK: The goal is simple: make flex as well understood and intentionally engineered as cushioning, traction, or stability.
We don’t believe there’s one “best” flex. The right amount and type of flex depends on the person, the activity, and what the footwear is trying to accomplish. Our goal is to give designers, engineers, researchers, marketers, and consumers better language, research, and frameworks so they can think about flex more intentionally.
Ultimately, if the industry’s baseline understanding improves, we believe footwear across all categories will get better.
FN: What’s next for Carbitex regarding innovation?
JK: The next phase for Carbitex is to expand from a materials company into a technology and knowledge company centered on engineered flex.
The first area is AI-powered design tools that help translate sport biomechanical objectives into footwear specifications. We’ve developed a framework that connects movement science to footwear design, and we’re building tools that help designers apply that knowledge more quickly and consistently.
Second, we’re expanding our biomechanics capabilities. Alongside our materials and footwear laboratories, we’re building an in-house biomechanics lab that will allow us to generate new research, work more closely with our brand partners, and explore applications beyond athletic performance, including medical and mobility-focused footwear. Just as importantly, we intend to share much of that fundamental research with the broader industry.
The third area is working with professional and collegiate athletes. Elite athletes are constantly optimizing nutrition, recovery, and training, yet most still wear footwear designed for the mass market. We see professional sport as an opportunity to develop and validate technologies that aren’t yet practical for consumer products, much like Formula 1 advances eventually make their way into everyday vehicles. While that business won’t be large in terms of revenue, it’s an invaluable environment for learning, validating new ideas, and ultimately improving products for everyone.
When we first entered the footwear industry, I thought it would simply be our first market. Over time, it’s become something much bigger. Footwear is arguably the first wearable technology people interact with every day.
