When I first laid down in the Altwork Station, I squealed. While I held down a button, the fully configurable desk-and-chair combo slowly began to move, the seat reclining like a dentist chair and the monitor rising to follow. My stomach churned a bit from the unexpected feeling, and all of a sudden I was fully reclined, the magnetized keyboard and mouse hovering above me. It would be a great way to watch movies. But for working? I wasn't so sure.
The workstation is the signature product of the startup Altwork, which has spent the past six years developing an ergonomic solution that is completely customizable, converting from a standing desk to a more traditional sitting desk to a reclined position. The chair was inspired by the company's cofounder, John Speicher, who had been injured in a car accident and could only work comfortably while reclining. After research and testing, Speicher and cofounder and CEO Che Voigt came up with a medical-looking workstation. But it's not meant exclusively for people who are injured or disabled—Voigt imagines the Altwork station for anyone whose main professional tool is the computer. It is designed to be a chair you never have to leave—a fitting metaphor for our work-obsessed culture.