Online Panel: Hardware

Hardware isn’t the easiest vertical to attempt. Over the years, we have seen the rise and fall of startups, some with simplistic ideas, and some aiming to revolutionize the world. Vision, team and foresight are a huge factor in building a strong hardware startup. And of course, so is being prepared for setbacks and hiccups along the way.

Today’s online panel lineup features:

Dema Tio – Co-founder of Vibease, the world’s first smart vibrator. Dema was part of HAX accelerator in Shenzhen and he successfully launched Vibease on Indiegogo crowdfunding. He and his team was able to ship the first 1,000 units just six months after the campaign. Vibease brings fantasy to life by combining a smart massager that vibrates in sync with an audiobook. Vibease also help couples to stay intimate with its long distance remote control function. Vibease was nominated for Crunchies Awards 2013 nomination and Best luxury toys of 2015.

Joe Wee – Co-founder of AFTERSHOCK PC. Joe has seen the growth of the company from a fledging start-up to one of the biggest PC vendors in Singapore. When he’s not at work, you can find him at his second “office” at Virgin Fitness or making futile attempts at trying to up his MMR in DOTA 2. Aftershock PC is the leader in customised high performance gaming laptops and desktops.

Manav Gupta – CEO of Brinc. A technology visionary, strategist and serial entrepreneur, Manav has spent the past decade developing tech and startup ecosystems in China, he is familiar with the hurdles hardware companies face in getting products that drive deep consumer engagement to market. Manav works with startups, corporates and manufacturers from all over the world to meet market demand for connected devices.

Brinc is the world’s first end-to-end integrated platform designed to support global IoT entrepreneurs by accelerating startups from concept to sustainable commercialization. Offering a new blend of acceleration, product development and sales.

Lin Wei Liang – Co-founder & CEO of Tware. He is an award winning Interactive Products and User Experience Designer. Backed with a core skillset towards electronics prototyping and design for manufacturing, Wei Liang leads the user experience and engineering team in Tware, where he shares his love for innovating interactive products with user empathy.
Tware is the leading innovator in intelligent, active wearables which help the user understand and monitor their body’s needs. Tware’s wearables also provide pain and stress relief using their patented touch technology, working closely with world renowned physicians, clinics and fashion gurus.

• How to build hardware
• Prototyping
• MVP’s for hardware
• The building process
• Funding – Crowdfunding, VC, Bootstrap?
• The pros and cons of going through a hardware accelerator
• What are the different stages to go through when building a startup

Ask them anything!

Here are some reads about hardware that you might find interesting:

• Building a hardware startup: the vision and team (Infographic)
• Building a hardware startup: prototyping and supply chain (Infographic)
• We are Brendan Goh & Roger Chang, Co-Founders of Pirate3D. AMA!
• I’m Benjamin Joffe, General Partner at HAX. Ask me anything!
• 5 ways for your hardware startup to succeed
• 15 top-funded hardware startups in Southeast Asia (INFOGRAPHIC)

Note from Daniel, TIA’s community manager:
The host(s) may choose at their preference to not answer particular questions. The Online Panel is moderated by the community managers, so let’s keep the questions friendly. 🙂