The Ultimate Hardware Asia Edition
Introduction to the Shenzhen Hardware Ecosystem
We focused on one of the core strengths in Asia: hardware manufacturing where Shenzhen is currently leading the pack. From the largest corporations to the smallest start-ups, they leverage on the Shenzhen ecosystem to build on demand. Shenzhen has two other important advantages: (a) it is an important logistics destination for export and (b) it is close to Hong Kong, a financial capital within an hour of train ride.
The most well known hardware startup accelerator in Shenzhen, China is HAXLR8R. The accelerator is located very close to Hua Qiang Bei, which is probably the largest market of electronics ever assembled on Earth. Some deemed it as the maker’s dream. HAXLR8R has provided the best navigation map for makers who want to check out the area. Of course, Shenzhen is also the home to two important Chinese corporations: Huawei and Tencent (the parent company behind Wechat).
We have selected three interesting interviews on Analyse Asia that will give you a primer and gain an adequate understanding of the Shenzhen hardware ecosystem. Depending on which aspect of the hardware startup you want to understand, each speaker offer a different perspective to the topic at hand.
In the first interview, Benjamin Joffe (@benjaminjoffe)from HAXLR8R offered a primer to how entrepreneurs from all over the world can leverage on the Shenzhen ecosystem to build an integrated hardware and software companny and scale them out to the world. He shares his story as a consultant, an angel investor (and his three notable companies: CMUNE, Gengo & Tokyo Otaku Mode), a mentor in 500 Startups and HAXLR8R and his role within the global entrepreneurial ecosystem. Of course, we have an intellectual discussion that focus on leveraging Huntingdon’s “Clash of Civilizations” on messaging apps in Asia (WeChat, LINE, Kakao and Whatsapp) and Jared Diamond’s “Guns, Germs & Steel” on startup ecosystems from Silicon Valley to the rest of the world.
In the second interview, Bunnie Huang (@bunniestudios), founder of Bunnie Studios and Kosagi and a renowned hardware hacker, shard his experience on building hardware companies in Asia. There is a backstory behind this interview. I often heard from many hardware entrepreneurs who have sought Bunnie’s advice in building a hardware startup and he’s often generous with his time. One of those recipients happens to be my wife, Yuying on her smart standing Aspirus desk that is about to launch soon. Hence I suggested to Bunnie over email that I will like to scale his advice by producing a podcast so that he can refer the first timers to listen to this before seeking more specific advice.
Bunnie also shared his early experience in hacking the XBox and Chumby to recent open hardware projects: Safecast Geiger Counter Reference Design, Novena Laptop, Chibitronics: peel and stick electronics, he shared great advice and thoughts on trends to hardware entrepreneurs out there who are looking to bring their products to market globally. In this episode, he has offered us a guide on how hardware entrepreneurs need to think about from prototyping a hardware product to scaling it in the factories, navigating the factories in China, figuring out the certifications required and running a crowdfunding campaign that don’t end in disaster.
Last but not least, the interview with Cyril Ebersweiler, the founder of HAXLR8R & venture partner of SOSventures is a must listen. While Benjamin Joffe offered the strategy and overview and Bunnie offering the basics in how one should think about hardware, Cyril helps us to understand the concept of the lean hardware startup and why hardware is the new black. While we are focused in building products, Cyril also offered advice from a marketing and retail viewpoint, for example, how to run a successful crowdfunding campaign such as Kickstarter or Indiegogo. We also tapped on his perspective as an investor to understand what the metrics are in the evaluation of hardware startup for venture capital.
Here are some recommended references for any hardware entrepreneur which we have found useful among different hardware startups:
- Software is from Silicon Valley & Hardware is from Shenzhen by Cyril Ebersweiler.
- An Investor’s Guide to Hardware Startups by Ales Spetic.
- Hardware Trends 2015 by HAXLR8R.
- Hardware Startups sees exits twice as large as those in other tech sectors by CB Insights
- Who invests in hardware startups by Chris Quintero.
