The show was conceived in 1989 by Jeff Segal, who had been head writer and story editor of "Challenge of the GoBots" for Hanna-Barbera Productions prior to joining Universal as President of Universal Cartoon Studios. Segal intended to create another robotic boy-action property. The show was originally entitled "Exoforce". It was modified in 1993 and the title was changed to "Exosquad" (as a result of a trademark conflict) when Playmates Toys made a deal for the "Master Toy License". Segal receives "Created by" credit on the show, however Will Meugniot contributed immensely to the look and style of the show, and Michael Edens, as story editor, supervised development of episodic stories and helped to guide the story arc.