How Ukrainian Innovators Shaped the Modern World
Behind some of the most significant breakthroughs in aviation, medicine, engineering, and green technology stand Ukrainian changemakers. It’s worth revisiting the legacy and ongoing impact of those who helped drive global innovation.
Igor Sikorsky: The Man Who Gave Us the Helicopter
Igor Sikorsky was fascinated by flight from a young age. Inspired by the sketches of Leonardo da Vinci and the scientific breakthroughs of his time, he built his first working model of a flying machine at just 12 years old. That early passion would eventually reshape the future of aviation.
In the years before World War I, Sikorsky designed and flew the world’s first successful multi-engine airplane, the Russky Vityaz, and later the Ilya Muromets, a massive four-engine bomber that introduced innovations such as enclosed cabins and in-flight walking space. These aircraft changed military aviation and also paved the way for long-distance passenger travel.
After the Revolution, Sikorsky emigrated to the United States in 1919, arriving with little more than ambition and a belief in vertical flight. He worked odd jobs before founding Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation in 1923.
In 1939, Sikorsky built and piloted the VS-300, the first practical single-rotor helicopter. It featured a main rotor and a vertical tail rotor – a configuration still used today. His design overcame the limitations that had stalled helicopter development for decades, making vertical takeoff, hovering, and controlled flight a reality. The helicopter, once a fantasy, became a tool for rescue missions, military operations, medical evacuations, and more.
Stepan Tymoshenko: Father of Modern Engineering Mechanics
Stepan Tymoshenko is widely regarded as the founder of modern engineering mechanics, a discipline fundamental to structural, mechanical, and civil engineering. He laid the theoretical foundations for understanding material behavior under stress, strain, and deformation.
Amid early 20th-century political upheaval, Tymoshenko left Ukraine and held academic positions in Germany, Yugoslavia before settling in the U.S., where he taught at the University of Michigan and Stanford University. His textbooks became standard references in engineering education worldwide and remain in use to this day. He had a rare talent for combining mathematical precision with real-world application, making complex theory accessible and practical.
Tymoshenko’s most notable contribution – the Timoshenko Beam Theory – corrected and expanded on classical Euler-Bernoulli beam theory by accounting for shear deformation and rotational bending effects. This innovation allowed for far more accurate analysis of short beams and high-frequency vibrations, reshaping mechanical and civil engineering calculations.
Mykola Amosov: Heart Surgery Pioneer
In the mid-20th century, open-heart surgery was still in its infancy. Ukrainian surgeon Mykola Amosov revolutionized cardiac care in the Soviet Union by performing the country’s first successful mitral valve replacement using a prosthesis he designed himself. His antithrombotic valve implants reduced the risk of blood clots and dramatically improved survival and recovery rates for patients with severe heart disease.
But his work didn’t stop in the operating room. Amosov founded the Kyiv Institute of Cardiovascular Surgery, which quickly became one of the most advanced cardiac centers in the Soviet Union and remains a leading institution today.
A prolific inventor, Amosov held dozens of patents and developed new tools and surgical techniques still in use. His work went beyond biomedicine, as he also explored human-machine interaction, system dynamics within the body, and the impact of behavior and lifestyle on health, pushing the boundaries between medicine and systems theory.
Yevhen Paton: Revolutionizing Welding
Before Paton’s innovations, welding was a slow, manual task, limiting the scale, speed, and strength of industrial construction. In the 1930s, while leading research at the Electric Welding Institute in Kyiv, he developed a method of automatic arc welding that used a flux to shield the weld from atmospheric contamination. This breakthrough enabled high-quality, consistent welds that could be mass-produced, revolutionizing manufacturing precision and efficiency.
His method found application during World War II, when the Soviet Union urgently needed faster ways to produce durable tanks, ships, and weapons. Thanks to Paton’s system, the first all-welded bridges and armored vehicles were built – stronger, lighter, and faster to manufacture than ever before. Welding under flux reshaped the logistics of war production. In 1941, Paton’s team built the first fully welded bridge in the world across the Dnipro River in Kyiv. Though later destroyed during the war, it laid the foundation for modern welded bridge construction globally.
Paton also established a world-class research institution – the E.O. Paton Institute of Electric Welding, which continues to lead in welding technologies and materials science.
Serhiy Korolyov: The Architect of the Space Age
Serhiy Korolyov was a brilliant engineer and visionary behind the Soviet space program and a man whose ideas and determination helped lift humanity beyond the Earth for the very first time. Often referred to as the father of practical astronautics, Korolyov’s work launched not only satellites and cosmonauts, but the entire modern era of space exploration.
A skilled designer and test pilot, he was fascinated by rocketry long before the world fully understood its possibilities. However, his journey was far from smooth. In 1938, Korolyov was imprisoned during Stalin’s purges and spent years in labor camps. His genius, in contrast, could not be ignored. Eventually released to work in a secret research facility, he went on to lead the design bureau that would become the center of Soviet aerospace engineering.
Under his leadership, the Soviet Union launched Sputnik 1 in 1957, the world’s first artificial satellite, shocking the West and ushering in the Space Race. Just four years later, Korolyov directed the historic mission of Yuri Gagarin, who became the first human in space in 1961 aboard Vostok 1. These missions were profound scientific and technological achievements, carried out under extreme secrecy and pressure.
Korolyov dreamed of crewed lunar missions and permanent space stations long before they became feasible. Unfortunately, he died suddenly in 1966 before many of his ambitions could be realized, and the Soviet government kept his identity secret until after his death, fearing the strategic consequences of revealing the mastermind behind its space program. Despite this, Korolyov’s legacy endures in every spacecraft, satellite, and human mission launched since.
Valentyn Frechka: Turning Leaves Into Paper
In 2017, at just 17, Valentyn Frechka discovered a way to turn fallen leaves into paper, replacing traditional wood pulp with a sustainable alternative. What began as a school science project became Releaf Paper, a startup pioneering tree-free packaging solutions.
In Kyiv alone, over 120,000 tons of leaves are gathered annually. While that posed a waste management problem for local authorities, Releaf saw untapped potential.
The company’s rise aligns with a global movement to eliminate single-use plastics. With the EU targeting a full phase-out by 2030 and Ukraine enacting its own restrictions, Releaf is perfectly positioned to offer a viable, planet-friendly alternative.
However, what truly sets Releaf apart is its data-driven commitment to sustainability. A ClimatePartner certified assessment shows Releaf Paper’s carbon footprint is just 303.77 kg CO₂e per ton, from raw materials to end-of-life, four to five times lower than virgin kraft paper and far below even recycled options. That impact comes from a simple shift – no trees are cut. The paper is made from urban leaf waste, using energy-efficient methods and a local supply chain designed to minimize emissions.
On November 14, 2024, Releaf Paper reached a historic milestone – after two and a half years of dedicated research, development, and international collaboration, Releaf officially launched the first-ever Pilot Production Line and Innovation Center in France, powered entirely by fallen leaves.
The grand opening, held in France, drew over 50 distinguished guests, including representatives from major media outlets, political and business leaders, and sustainability partners. Among them were key figures from L'Oréal, AXA, BPI, BNP Paribas, and COPASEL, signaling strong industry interest in Releaf’s scalable, circular solution.
Dima Gazda & Anna Believantseva from Esper Bionics: Merging Human and Machine
Esper Bionics is a Ukrainian-founded augmentation startup developing advanced robotic limb prostheses and human-machine interfaces. Their flagship invention, the Esper Hand, is a smart, self-learning prosthetic hand with moveable fingers, up to 3x faster control than traditional models, and a sleek, human-like design. It comes in five sizes, is lightweight and safe, and mimics natural hand movement with impressive precision.
Founded by medical doctor and embedded engineer Dima Gazda and product visionary Anna Believantseva, the company raised over $2 million from investors like NewLab Fund and Alchemist Accelerator. Believantseva, who was featured on Forbes’ 30 Under 30 North America in 2024 (Consumer Technology), envisions a world where bionics serve medical needs and enhance human capabilities more broadly.
In 2022, the Esper Hand was named one of TIME’s 100 Best Inventions and won the prestigious Red Dot: Best of the Best Award in Product Design. Esper Bionics is also making a real difference on the ground – they provide Esper Hands to Ukrainian soldiers injured in the war with Russia.
The startup’s ecosystem includes Esper Control, a non-invasive brain-computer interface, and Esper Platform, a cloud-based software tool for personalized wearable control, building not just better prosthetics, but a whole new era of human augmentation.
Anastasiia Stepanenko, grant writer, project manager, cultural critic, expert at the United Ukraine Think Tank