A Vancouver startup’s new helmet design uses modular foam sections to reduce both direct and rotational head impacts, earning top marks in Virginia Tech’s STAR ratings.
A small Vancouver startup, Pikio, has earned top marks in Virginia Tech’s STAR ratings with its Oblik helmet system. Oblik uses independently mounted foam sections that can move during an impact to reduce rotational energy as well as direct impact energy. The result is a helmet that protects more of your head in a wider range of crash scenarios, though it comes at a premium price.
For everyday riders, this could mean better protection on busy streets or during falls on angled surfaces. The helmet weighs roughly 279 grams in medium and has 17 vents for cooling. If you’re considering upgrading, you’ll pay more upfront, but Pikio offers discounted replacements if your helmet is damaged in a crash.
Expect more brands to explore modular, multi-part foam designs in the coming years as the industry leans into STAR-style testing and real-world safety data.
The tiny Vancouver startup Pikio has grabbed attention in the bike-helmet world by delivering a design that targets a broader range of impact forces. Its Pikio Si Oblik beat the best competitors in Virginia Tech’s STAR ratings, a testing program that now weighs how helmets handle rotational as well as direct impacts.
STAR ratings have pushed helmet makers to move beyond simple crush resistance. They measure how well a helmet mitigates both linear impact energy and the rotational forces that cause brain injuries during angled crashes. Pikio’s result is a notable gap-closing achievement for a smaller company that isn’t attached to a major sports brand.
Oblik isn’t a single pad or shell trick. It splits the helmet’s interior into independently mounted foam sections that sit on top of a base EPS layer. Those sections can move or detach in response to the direction and strength of an impact. The goal is to reduce rotational forces while still absorbing the sharp, direct impacts that cause fractures or brain injuries.
The design draws on ideas from BrainShield-style research into head protection and combines dual-density foam with flexible connections. In practice, that means a helmet can deform and redirect energy in multiple ways, rather than relying on a single, rigid structure to absorb everything.
In testing language from Pikio founder Daniel Abram, the system is described as allowing sections to move, detach, and deflect depending on impact intensity, location, and direction. That combination helps manage both linear and rotational energy more effectively than traditional shell-and-foam helmets.
STAR ratings are not new to helmet design, but Pikio’s position at the top of the ladder matters because it shows a small player can push the big brands to innovate. Pikio is often compared with MIPS-style solutions, which use a low-friction layer that allows a portion of the helmet to slide relative to the head on impact. Pikio’s approach is more complex, tying multiple moving parts into the foam layers themselves.
According to testers, Pikio’s performance translates into real-world protection, though the caveat remains: it’s still a helmet with extra components and a more intricate build. That translates into more parts to assemble and more manufacturing complexity overall.
For riders, the most immediate takeaway is better protection in a wider range of crashes. The trade-off is cost. The Pikio Si Oblik carries a premium price compared with many mainstream helmets, largely because of the extra parts and the manufacturing steps they require. The helmet reported weighs about 279 grams in the medium size, and it offers ample airflow with 17 vents for cooling on hot rides.
If you’re deciding whether to upgrade, consider your riding style and budget. If you often ride in traffic or on roads with lots of debris, the added protection could be worth the cost. If you ride casually and don’t want to invest in a premium helmet, you might still want to look at other STAR-rated options with simpler builds.
Pikio says it’s standing by to replace damaged helmets with a discount on replacements, a nod to the realities of helmet use where a crash is not a pleasant outcome for any rider. As more brands experiment with modular and multi-part foam systems, we’ll likely see more designs aiming to reduce rotational energy without sacrificing comfort or weight.
It uses independently mounted foam sections that can move or detach to manage both linear and rotational impact energy, rather than relying on a single shell and foam layer.
That depends on your riding style and budget. It’s a premium helmet with a more complex build, which drives up cost but can offer better protection in certain crashes.
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