We are excited to announce that Hardware Workshop is coming back to Boston on May 4th and 5th, 2017.
Hardware workshop is a two day event for hardware startups. Taught by experienced operators, it’s purpose is simple: Teach important lessons to the next generation of hardware entrepreneurs.
What makes this workshop unique is the quality of the content, the deep operational experience of the teachers, and the long term connections you will make. Hand curated, each teacher covers a unique topic that falls within the startup’s life cycle from an idea to reaching market fit.
Who Should Attend?
This is for startups that are between an idea to successfully shipping their first product. We will have 12 different 60 minute sessions, taught by experienced operators, covering a variety of topics from defining your product to picking the right suppliers to successfully launching your company.
What Will I Learn?
Lots. We will have 12 different 30 or 60 minute sessions.
- Hardware product development process.
- Prototyping
- Building a team
- Defining your brand
- Product launches
- Picking a supplier
- Raising seed funding
- Building press relationships
- IP and patents
- Certifications
- Building initial distribution
- Founder panel
When?
Thursday, May 4th and Friday, May 5th.
Doors open at 9:00am
Sessions run every hour (except for lunch) from 10am – 5pm.
Followed by Happy Hour
Where?
Bolt – 110 Chauncy Street, Boston, MA 02111
Cost?
$75.00
This includes two breakfasts, two lunches, beverages, and happy hour.
Being entrepreneurs we are sensitive to charging for events, but we found a minimum amount enables us to make the events better (good food, audio/video equipment, location, organizer help, etc), while ensuring you are committed to the event.
How Do I Attend?
First you have to apply. We only have 100 open spots. We are looking for startup teams who are working on a hardware product and who really want to attend. We aren’t judging what people are building, just verifying people are actually building hardware. Otherwise the lessons we’re teaching can’t be applied. If your application is accepted you will get an email to purchase a spot.
How Do I Buy A Ticket?
Once you are accepted you will be emailed a code to purchase your ticket.
Who Is Teaching?
Marc Barros – Moment
Marc Barros is the co-founder of Moment, the best tools in the world for mobile photographers. Prior to Moment, Marc was a co-founder and former CEO of Contour, a hands-free camera company that makes action video easy to capture and share. Shortly after graduating from the University of Washington, Marc co-founded Contour in 2004 and led the organization from a garage to a multi-million dollar company with hundreds of thousands of customers around the world. @marcbarros
Ben Einstein – Bolt
Ben Einstein is an experienced product designer and entrepreneur. He is currently a General Partner of Bolt, an early stage venture capital fund that invests at the intersection of hardware and software. Prior to starting Bolt, Ben ran Brainstream Design, a product design and development consultancy in Massachusetts. Ben has been directly responsible for bringing a long list of products to market covering diverse sectors including consumer electronics, high-performance audio, sporting goods and green energy. @BenEinstein
Dulcie Madden – Rest Devices
Dulcie Madden is a co-founder and the CEO of Rest Devices. Prior to Rest Devices, Dulcie worked in India as a Program Officer for the Deshpande Foundation, where she developed programs promoting entrepreneurship, managed grant portfolios, and led the team’s operations and growth. She received her BS in Biology from Georgetown University, her MPH from Boston University, and half an MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management.
Scott Miller – Dragon Innovation
Scott is the CEO of Dragon Innovation, a company whose mission is to help hardware entrepreneurs succeed in every phase of the journey from a crowdfunding to manufacturing at scale. Prior to founding Dragon, Scott spent 10 years at iRobot and was responsible for setting up and leading the team that manufactured Roomba, Scooba, Looj and ConnectR. Scott is also a partner at Bolt, and has served as an Adjunct Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Olin College and taught the Mechanical Design and the Design for Manufacture courses. @dragoninnovate
Carsten Jensen – Bolt
Carsten is an electrical and embedded engineer at Bolt, a VC firm that invests in startups at the intersection of hardware and software. Carsten has helped dozens of startups with technical challenges, including design, manufacturing, and certification. His previous experience includes bringing a wearable from concept to mass production, working on much of the Google server infrastructure, and designing several key system for the Google self-driving car. Carsten holds a Masters of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from MIT.
Jackson Wightman – Proper Propaganda
Jackson Wightman is Minister of Propaganda at Proper Propaganda, a PR firm that specializes in helping hardware companies craft and spread their stories. Since 2013, Jackson and his team have helped clients raise over $20 million on Kickstarter. A big believer in pay for performance PR, Jackson developed a pricing model for services that puts output before hours. In a previous life, he worked in issue management for a Canadian Prime Minister. He holds an MBA and an MA in international relations.
Kat Ely – Clear Design Lab
Kat is a co-founder and Principal Designer at Clear Design Lab, an industrial design firm that believes in designing for scale from the start. Kat earned her BFA from Massachusetts College of Art and Design before starting a career that spans the breadth of the design and fabrication space: she’s worked on everything from half a million dollar glass sculptures to production plastics molding. At Clear, Kat has helped numerous startups navigate the design and prototyping process in a broad range of fields including medical devices, consumer electronics, and children’s toys, using her passion and experience to help bring their ideas to market.
Rob Stevens – CRO and Co-Founder, Tive Inc
Rob has spent almost twenty years working in sales, marketing and business development for high-tech startups. Most recently Rob was VP Marketing and Business Development at GrabCAD, a community for 1.5+ million mechanical engineers and provider of SaaS tools for mechanical engineers. Before joining GrabCAD Rob led sales and marketing for Backupify, the leading provider of cloud-based backup for SaaS services. Prior to Backupify he helped robotics manufacturer Kiva Systems in a variety of roles including VP Sales, VP Business Development and VP Strategy. Rob holds a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Cornell University and a MBA from MIT Sloan School of Management
Andy Payne – Revenio, Angel Investor
Andy is a Boston based angel investor/advisor with several companies including Pebble, GrabCAD, Care.com, and HubSpot. He was the CEO and Founder of Revenio, an engine for executing sophisticated, long-running multi-channel marketing programs. Revenio’s patented flagship product is now shipping as Vignette Dialog. Andrew also co-founded Open Market (one of the first eCommerce IPOs) in 1994, where he co-invented and co-designed the company’s commerce architecture.
Chris Quintero – Bolt
Chris Quintero is an Associate at Bolt, a venture capital fund designed to address the unique needs of early-stage startups at the intersection of hardware and software. At Bolt he handles sourcing new investments and splits his time between the Boston and NYC hardware startup ecosystems. Chris has a mechanical engineering background and previously worked on international development projects in Chile, Vietnam, and Cameroon.
Greg Wolos – IDEO
Greg Wolos is a Design Director, industrial designer, and mechanical engineer at IDEO’s Boston studio. At IDEO, he has worked with clients across a breadth of industries including consumer electronics, wearables, consumer audio, healthcare, medical products, manufacturing strategy, and furniture. Prior to IDEO, Greg worked at The Boeing Company on composite structures for the 777 and 747. He also worked for W. L . Gore & Associates designing and leading teams to develop high-volume, industrial technology products. Greg holds a BS in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Colorado, and an MS in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Delaware.
Thank You To Our Amazing Partners
Image Credit: Werner Kunz via Creative Commons