From Rural Turkey to Real-World Impact: How LaunchX Helped Turn a Personal Struggle into Spinalight

When Arda Gün joined LaunchX’s Fall BootCamp, he didn’t come in with a polished startup or technical background. He came in with a problem: “I had scoliosis and when I looked at the market, the solutions weren’t enough.”

Some devices were too expensive; while others lacked intelligent tracking. None felt accessible and for Arda, this was a personal matter.

At 16 years old, living in Diyarbakır, a rural city in Turkey, Arda was already active in his community. He participated in cleanup initiatives, organized hackathons, and sought ways to develop solutions with limited resources. When he discovered LaunchX, it felt like he had found a pathway that would allow him to create something bigger.

An Idea That Started with Brainstorming

During the first days of BootCamp, students were asked to brainstorm and share ideas on a collaborative platform. Arda proposed something that felt close to home: a wearable device that could help people correct their posture and prevent spinal problems. His idea was voted to the top.

“That made me think,” he says. “Maybe this could be something real.”

That idea became Spinalight - an AI-powered wearable device that tracks posture, provides professional-level feedback through a companion app, and delivers daily, monthly, and yearly analysis. The system integrates data packs developed with input from university experts to ensure accuracy.

Learning How to Think Like a Founder

Before LaunchX, Arda says he didn’t know how to build a prototype or even how to fully structure a business idea. Over three intensive weeks, he met with mentors every day. The consistency of showing up daily became one of the most transformative parts of his experience. One pivotal moment came when discussing product design. Initially, Arda imagined a device placed directly on the back. His mentor challenged him to rethink usability.

“He suggested I create something more wearable - something more basic and practical,” Arda recalls. “When I thought about it, he was right.”

The device evolved from a rough concept into a more realistic, user-centered solution. Another mentor emphasized integrating AI analysis and market positioning. In the second week, Arda learned how to price a product properly by balancing demand, supply, and consumer perception.

More than just refining Spinalight, LaunchX reshaped how Arda thinks.

Then The Real Work Begins

After Bootcamp ended, Arda partnered with a classmate, and together they started building. They taught themselves coding — C#, C++, and other languages, while simultaneously developing their marketing strategy and business plan. In a city without easy access to manufacturing resources, even soldering prototype components became a challenge. To assemble early versions of the device, they traveled three hours to a larger city, worked with a contact in a TV factory, and traveled three hours back home.

They raised $800 through a school charity fundraiser to finance the first prototype. They built a website, developed an app, launched social media channels, and decided to take an even bolder step.

Testing in Hospitals (At 16!)

Rather than limiting validation to friends and classmates, Arda reached out to hospitals directly. Many emails and calls later, his request to test Spinalight on real patients was approved by Turkey’s Ministry of Health.

Out of 192 individuals tested across different hospitals, including pediatric facilities, 86 joined the official waitlist for the product - we're talking nearly 50%. For a startup built by two high school students in a rural city, this is no longer a promising ideal but real proof of demand.

Beyond Profit: A Vision of Accessibility

In the short term, Arda plans to pitch Spinalight at entrepreneurship summits in Istanbul and secure investors to support full-scale production. He has applied to LaunchX’s In-Person 2026 Program at UC San Diego, hoping to access even more in-depth mentorship and larger funding networks.

Long-term, his goal is to make posture correction and preventative spinal care affordable. “When you look at the market, the prices are very high,” he explains. “But health is one of the most important rights of humans. Everyone should have access to it.”

He plans to officially launch Spinalight in November 2026, after completing his IB Diploma. By then, he hopes to have funding secured and manufacturing streamlined.

Speaking about his other goals for the year, as he mentions Harvard, UPenn, and other top universities, he pauses. “Before academic or tangible achievements, to me, being happy is what I prioritise.”

The LaunchX Effect

When asked whether LaunchX made him more passionate about entrepreneurship, Arda doesn’t hesitate. “A lot,” he says.

More than technical skills, pitch decks, or pricing frameworks, LaunchX has given Arda something deeper: belief. A belief that a 16-year-old from Diyarbakır can build a medical-tech solution, that feedback can transform raw ideas into viable products, and that community-driven initiatives can truly resonate with the people they aim to serve.

For Arda, this is only the beginning for Spinalight. Check out Spinalight here.