MBT, Masai Barefoot Technology, was invented by Swiss engineer Karl Muller. During a visit to Korea he made the startling discovery that walking barefoot over paddy fields alleviated his back pain. Back in Switzerland, Muller began to develop a footwear technology that would make the natural instability of soft ground such as Korean paddy fields or the East African savannah accessible also to those, who have to walk on hard surfaces. In 1996, after years spent on research and development, Masai Barefoot Technology was mature enough to be launched on the market. MBT's are now available in over twenty countries, and approximately one million pairs of this revolutionary footwear technology are sold every year.