The Power of Openness - How SmartThings Grew from Kickstarter to a Leading Platform | Jeff Hagin

TL;DR

Smart Things started as a solution for a house damaged by water and eventually became a top platform for the Internet of Things with a big hairy audacious goal, great PR, and a fun product to build.

Transcript

good morning everybody are you happy awesome okay hello our dear startup directors hello my name is laise I am the East Community manager for startup grind which means I take care of Africa Asia Pacific and Eastern Europe just a little bit of the word and we don't lack on human resources just because we like challenges and uh I'm very glad to intro... Read More

Key Insights

• 😃 Smart Things had a big hairy audacious goal of becoming the leading platform for the consumer Internet of Things, which drove their vision and strategy.
• 😊 Great PR played a critical role in the success of Smart Things, helping them gain visibility and credibility in the market.
• 💪 Building a strong and experienced team, with over 150 cumulative years of working together, allowed Smart Things to execute rapidly and make quick decisions.
• 🍄 The fun and innovative nature of the product attracted customers and created a buzz around Smart Things.
• 💆 Smart Things is just getting started, with plans for expansion into retail, mobile operators, and international markets.
• 🌐 Being acquired by Samsung provides Smart Things with the resources and distribution channels of a global consumer electronics company.
• 🥺 Smart Things acknowledges that they have a long way to go in achieving their goals and recognize the need for more resources, leading to a rapid hiring process.

Questions & Answers

Q: How did the idea for Smart Things come about?

The idea for Smart Things came about when one of the founders' houses was destroyed by water, leading to the realization that there was a need for a connected solution to monitor and alert homeowners of potential issues.

Q: What were the challenges of running a Kickstarter campaign for a platform product like Smart Things?

Platform stories on Kickstarter can be challenging because they involve multiple stakeholders. Smart Things faced the difficulty of telling a multi-stakeholder story, which led to a successful campaign but not as much funding as a more focused product like Oculus Rift.

Q: How did Smart Things grow its team and raise funds?

Smart Things started with seven founders and gradually hired more employees, raising $1.2 million through a Kickstarter campaign. They later secured a $3 million seed round and continued to grow their team.

Q: What were some key milestones for Smart Things?

Some key milestones for Smart Things include winning the Dublin Web Summit startup competition, raising a $3 million seed round, shipping their first products, and eventually being acquired by Samsung.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• Smart Things was born out of a personal experience of a house being destroyed by water and the lack of an efficient alert system.

• The founders of Smart Things started by building a sensor package for second homeowners and quickly grew their team and raised funds through Kickstarter.

• They eventually developed five consumer electronics devices, created a cloud platform, and were acquired by Samsung.