Internet of Things market is rapidly growing: according to PwC forecasts, the amount of IoT products will reach 20-50 billion worldwide by 2020.
What is/was the challenge?
In 2010 Roman Kravchenko team wrote software for display advertising, but in 2014 they faced problems with sales of it. Back then, Roman went to the USA and understood there that the infrastructure controlled via the Internet was the Internet of Things category. Ukraine still did not have such a notion. In the USA, he heard a range of negative feedback about their software and business and found out that the project entered the so-called Red Ocean, explored the Blue Ocean Strategy, and returned to Ukraine without any clear plans.
Having experience in software development and the team, Roman decided to find hardware experts and move beyond display production. At that time, Ukraine did not have any business incubators and accelerators: there was no format allowing to enhance the probability of exit, known as interest sale. As a result, he managed to become not only a programmer but also an entrepreneur and an investor in three years.
Internet of Things is a complex aspect. The infrastructure is all well, but production scaling is a problematic issue. Roman realized the necessity to establish a hybrid model in Ukraine: a kind of partnership where one should both invest in a project and participate in it. They have seen that a community was required: a group of people to perform some useful things consistently. It is a DIY format: you have an idea and begin to create something. Over a month, one can build a team of people on a volunteer basis who will be ready to create things at no charge.
It is the key to the emergence of new products. The USA selects out of thousands of startups. Ukraine has nobody to select. Thus, it should grow specialists. And they went into this activity.
The Internet of Things does not invent items, but only combines them. At some point, Roman arrived at the conclusion that, besides his team and partner, they also needed investors believing in the future potential of this technology.
IoT Hub has an exciting format for fundraising: crowdsourcing, crowdfunding, and co-investing. To make a project evolve, you should launch it on Kickstarter. This resource is not a cheap one, but it creates a brand, loyalty, and the global community. Therefore, IoT Hub moved beyond Ukraine: only programmers and engineers generally stayed in the country.
What is the project?
Today the IoT Hub Program includes:
- DIY Lab – 24/7 technological laboratory for the new products. Non-government organization to support the inventors and entrepreneurs
- Business development. The expert team in Marketing, Finance, Sales, Production, Communication, Logistics, and IP helps to refine the business model, marketing strategy, and financial plan. The engineering & product development team help to develop the product from working a prototype to mass production and support with certification, supply chain & logistics to targeted countries of export. Demo Days.
- Venture Capital is the community of the investors you can trust. Funding the projects through the network of VCs and business angels all over Ukraine/Europe/world.
IoT Hub treats technology like the Internet of Everything. For example, they have a project called Pix, where a typical display is combined with a backpack: so, the app allows to broadcast emotions on the back. Such a simple thing required a year to develop a positive user experience software. The project launched Kickstarter and Indiegogo campaigns in fall 2018 and raised over $340,000 of funding. Since then, the Pix team has set up mass production and now selling this new gadget worldwide. Also, at the end of 2019, the IoT Hub team presented the PixMovie – a documentary film about the story of creating Pix.
Besides, IoT Hub is engaged in the Senstone project: a voice recorder that renders voice into text. In our case, a backend for recognizing voice with noises, text, and other interferences distinguishes our project from such mainstream products as Siri. It’s worth noting that the voice recorder and backpack market already exists, but they do not reinvent the wheel – only combine items.
Also, Ukraine is rapidly developing renewable energy projects, and smart energy is evolving in the Ukrainian market. One of the most prominent projects is SolarGaps, a blend of louver and solar panels. When the founder offered this idea, it turned out that there were not so many similar concepts. The idea seems quite simple, but its implementation requires assembling and developing software and voice control. Ukraine and China are already producing it.
Moreover, IoT Hub has focused on a concept supposing energy being generated and consumed in a single place. The Sirocco project is engaged in this issue: the team is designing wind panels for cities. They are installed on roofs. As of today, we have three or four experimental units.
On December 10, 2018, Azure IoT Edge included offline support, providing indefinite offline operation after one-time sync with IoT Hub. It also has marketplace support for third-party edge functionality and high-availability/multi-device support in development.
On July 11, 2019, L Squared, a global leader in Digital Signage and Corporate TV powered through Azure and the IoT Hub, has earned the prestigious IP Co-Sell Ready Status through the Microsoft One Commercial Partner Program (OCP).
“It is a cohesive team that makes a project succeed.” What Roman and IoT Hub team have concluded is that the single-handed development process is useless. Successful projects need a community of likeminded people who will always support each other. Now IoT Hub moves forward in developing the environment in Ukraine, engaging various specialists, from developers to marketers.
About this Show Case
