prosteer

Hardware is hard

Wed, 02 Feb 2022 02:44:04 GMT

Hardware is hard. This old cliché is very well known in the startup community. Apart from the obvious truth that any startup project is a difficult task, I want to investigate some of hardware’s traditional challenges and some new challenges that have changed the hardware startup landscape in recent years.

Traditionally, hardware has been considered not for the faint-hearted because of the sheer difficulty of creating an innovative device into the physical world. With any development, you must go through the learning loop many times, and that process of Develop – Build – Test – Reflect takes longer and costs more when you are creating physical models and prototyping a physical device as opposed to writing code. The increased risk and expense for hardware development is still true even after the cost barrier dropped somewhat in recent years with the advent of CAD, 3D printing and rapid prototyping. In spite of the challenges of higher expense and length of time required to develop, there has always been plenty of innovators developing new products and plenty of keen investors looking to get in early and support that innovation. In the last two years, some new hurdles have been added for the hardware startup to deal with. These challenges are temporary although there is uncertainty around when they will ease. They are unprecedented and have increased the difficulty of hardware development considerably.

The COVID pandemic has created a greater demand for hardware devices as more of us now work and play from home. While this is a positive and seemingly ongoing trend for hardware, it has contributed to the worldwide supply chain crisis which affects the availability and cost of components negatively. This has since been followed by the semiconductor shortage, another blow to tech manufacturing. Add to this the lockdowns and travel restrictions which slow work in collaboration for the three hardware disciplines (hardware/firmware/prototyping). Unlike software developers, hardware, firmware and prototyping teams need to collaborate in person from time to time. If this is not possible, it slows development and pushes up costs.

Ideally, it goes something like this...a new product is conceptualised, drawn then discussed at length in order to nail down the UVP (Unique Value Proposition) and the disruption it creates within an existing market. If this new invention has merit, a start-up is formed, and this small team invest their own funds initially to create a mock-up or proof of concept. Further (friends and family) investment is often needed to complete all the tasks consisting of design, development and build along with the commencement of any intellectual property protection required. Usually, it takes a number of models and at least one prototype to achieve proof of concept. After this effort and expense and if the proof of concept actually works as figured then the team might connect with a larger entity for licensing or a partnership, or they might look to develop and manufacture themselves.

At this stage decisions are made on the path to market. The hardware startup path to market is high risk, high reward which involves the start-up seeking further investment to develop and commercialise in-house. Alternatively, at this stage they could choose to license or sell the product entirely to another established manufacturer who will take on the risk and cost to commercialise, this is the lower risk lower reward model. This decision is made based on factors such as the start-up team’s ability to execute, available funding and the attractiveness of any potential licensing opportunities. A committed and capable hardware startup should take the leap and develop in-house, this brings us to the final new challenge for hardware – investment.

Until the pandemic and supply chain issues came along there were plenty of early stage hardware investors, but that has changed from the top down. Venture Capitalists opted out first, which trickled down to Angel Investors. This lack of investment has in turn seriously affected the number of founders developing hardware (cue tumbleweeds).

Once proof of concept is achieved the hardware startup must first look to Angel investment. Angels have traditionally been happy to get in at the seed or even pre-seed stage and help the hardware team complete development and commercialise. Angel investors have seen the change of policy from the Venture Capitalists and have also deemed pre-commercial hardware borderline risky and many have “ran for the hills” when it comes to investing. When Angels do consider hardware, they now want greater percentages of the company for less money to compensate for the perceived extra risk. This creates a situation that is often not viable considering an Angel investment will be the first sophisticated investment the start-up has taken. This is a stage where the founders will look to give up 10- 20% of their company knowing there will be a need for much more follow on investment once they’re actually manufacturing the product. Unfortunately, there is no opportunity for investment from Venture Capitalists either, although once there were many hardware-centric VC’s that would happily support the right team and project from the pre-commercial stage especially if you had solid proof of concept, an industry alliance and IP protection such as a patent.

Now, if they do look at hardware they are looking for post-commercialisation only with a start mark of around $2 million in ARR (annual run rate), meaning if you have reached market and generated at least $166,666 in your first month’s sales, this extrapolates to $2 million annually. The problem is that it takes years and most often greater than $1 million dollars to develop and commercialise a product. So, Venture Capitalists are no longer a viable funding option at the hardware seed stage. This leaves the final group of investors - High Net Worth Individuals (HNWI). These wealthy individuals are the last bastion of investors that accept pre-commercial risk for the right potential ROI (return on investment) or for the love of a project. The problem is these individuals are not easy to find and a start-up can easily run out of money chasing their own tails looking for a wealthy investor.

It certainly seems it is far harder now than before to commercialise hardware. There are many more hurdles in development, and there are fewer investors and inevitably there will be fewer government grants for hardware. It is important to acknowledge that this extra difficulty caused by the current constraints is temporary. It adds difficulty, but it will not last. It seems akin to a dry growing season.

Grapes are better in dry seasons

Grapes grown in the harsher difficult conditions of a dry season are known to be richer with nutrients and sweeter, resulting in a higher quality wine. Why are grapes better in dry seasons? The short answer is due to less water, and warmer temperatures there are smaller yields and the Grapes that do make it are denser and richer with nutrients and ultimately far more delicious than a regular grape. This may also be true of a start-up in challenging times. Difficulty in any particular sector for a period ensures fewer participants, but maybe it also ensures those teams that do persist and find a way to develop and grow in spite of the challenges are higher quality overall with greater belief, skills and perseverance. Start-up founders live for the journey, through the good and bad they must maintain the ultimate belief in their vision.

After all, a disruptive innovation is no less of a disruption just because the business conditions happen to be difficult at the time of development. Every start-up requires belief, and an absolute dedication to the cause without waiver. Good investors can spot this, they understand the effort that has gone in, the challenges that have been overcome. They know evidence of overcoming adversity and struggle trumps ease of development, an abundance of materials and a trending technology every day.

Hardware development does have some challenges right now, but they won’t last, just like a warm dry growing season doesn’t last.

To Mission Statement or not?

phil@boxdark.com (Phil Croft) — Thu, 14 Oct 2021 01:01:01 GMT

When the ProSteer was first conceived and Boxdark was incorporated we were very aware of the Mission Statement and its importance to a start-up

After all, I had been a Corporate Adviser to many start-ups in my previous business - Harvest Business Growth Partners, and we certainly espoused the use of a Mission Statement as a grounding force in the often turbulent waters of early-stage innovative business. This all-encompassing statement was a tool to focus, guide, and help founders hold course, return to source, or pivot as times dictated.

Very little remains consistent in the life of a start-up – sometimes things develop so quickly your head will spin, sometimes so slowly you will tear your hair out in frustration but ultimately the Mission Statement acts as a home base. The thinking is while chaos reigns and things start to overwhelm, the team can retreat to the comfort of the Mission Statement to remember who they are, what they stand for, and what effect they want the start-up to have on the world. From there sound decisions can be made. While never taking it too seriously, I’ve always seen the Mission Statement as a kind of security blanket for founders to use as they navigate the unknown.

So why did we not institute an official Mission Statement for Boxdark Industries? We had one, it fitted our purpose and goals for the company. So why not?

The problem was I had never been a start-up founder before, (and this may be a hangover from being on the other side of the coin as a Corporate Adviser), so it was easy for me to see Mission Statements as self-indulgent and even a little arrogant. I felt any start-up team should know and understand their mission but not everything has to be broadcast to the world. Again, the corporate adviser in me was thinking that people just don’t care until you show them something worthwhile, so be humble and do that instead of talking about your mission. It all seemed redundant and a little too pretentious. Think of it as a will to get on with the job and show them as opposed to being a braggart that has achieved little!

I always saw the Mission Statement’s benefit to my team was as a private reflection and re-calibration tool. And passively it has been, very passively.

We have never revealed our mission statement, not on our website or in a pitch deck, grant application, or any other literature. Outside of the Boxdark Industries Board of Directors it is unknown, and even from our board members, you will probably get different wording of the mission.

The Boxdark Industries Mission Statement:

“TO CREATE INNOVATIVE, HIGH-QUALITY GAMING INPUT DEVICES FOR ALL GAMERS.”

So why institute our Mission Statement now?

We established Boxdark in 2016 and quickly got the attention of investors as well as PlayStation and Xbox. Things were moving quickly, and I jokingly (naively) said to fellow shareholders and board members Fred Ottosson and Nigel Cushing that we needed to develop a philosophy as I worried we would not have enough of a story to tell or “skin in the game” to justify our success when it came. I sometimes wish I could go back and eat those words...

In the last five years we have had the rollercoaster ride of highs and lows, we’ve developed 23 versions of the ProSteer with eight prototypes, we’ve taken steps forward and steps back, we pivoted from a license model to a manufacturing model, taken new investors, changed core component technologies more than once, along the way we’ve met some great allies, we changed development partners, tested and re-tested then planned and commenced a crowdfunding campaign and then cancelled it! We changed marketing partners, rejected a major investment offer, moved part of our development offshore, fell short after applying for many grants, and along with everyone else we have endured the COVID19 global travel shutdown (while developing hardware internationally!). We then achieved our full US patent, signed a development agreement with Xbox and we continue to navigate the global semi-conductor shortage and resulting component scarcity and price hikes as our manufacturing date approaches... SKIN IN THE GAME!

Developing a new product from scratch is very challenging. Hardware is hard, we were told more than once that we had chosen a very difficult task and would probably fail.

There have been dark days filled with doubt when we had little to no funding, and we felt like we were banging our heads against a brick wall! And there have been those brilliant exciting days when we could see the mountain top! We are extremely grateful for this experience and through it all our belief has been resolute.

Now as we near the end of this development and we gear up to take investment to commercialise onto the Xbox platform it has been a time of reflection and planning. What has been revealed is that through all of the successes and failures we’ve had, we have used our Mission Statement as that grounding tool. So, I was wrong, the mission has been the one consistent factor in this journey and all decisions (good and bad) have been made with our core mission in mind and our will to make it happen! We have come to realise it is not window dressing simply intended to impress; it is not a pretentious reach. Instead, it shows we have legs beyond the initial project, that Boxdark is mission-driven and in for the long haul. It is a statement of intent, backed by 100% belief. So it should be “ran up the flagpole” again and again regardless of who else salutes.

Through this journey, I have come to believe all start-ups should have an appropriate Mission Statement. It is not self-indulgent or arrogant. That’s like saying a mountain climber is arrogant for planning the climb and using safety ropes! Those outside the organisation should see the mission. It constitutes the team’s underlying belief in the whole business, not so much for the good times but mainly for the grind, the dark days. The mission statement is the reminder of what you are striving for, and the underlying absolute belief that you can, you will succeed.

New ProSteer is on its way!

Wed, 04 Aug 2021 05:38:08 GMT

The team at Boxdark has been busy developing the ProSteer incorporating Xbox specifications.

CEO of Boxdark Phil Croft said “Xbox have very strict specifications to ensure maximum quality, functionality and reliability for their users. We have signed on to develop in line with these specs, and our team has embraced the challenge, we’re making great progress!”

This ProSteer version tests the latest form factor and firmware. “These units will finally put the ProSteer ‘on the map’, until now we have been the best kept secret in gaming, which is frustrating for our team as we know what the ProSteer can do! These units will be game optimised and we’ll put them in the hands of gaming journalists, influencers and gamers.” Boxdark plan to have the new ProSteers available for testing in October 2021. Join the ProSteer waitlist here .

BoxDark Strikes Gold With ProSteer – A ‘Made For Xbox’ Gaming Innovation

Mon, 17 May 2021 04:32:04 GMT

BoxDark struck a deal with Xbox last week, fast-tracking the patented ProSteer gaming innovation into the Microsoft Partner Development Program.

The deal makes BoxDark the first ever Australian company to be welcomed into the program, exposing ProSteer to an active customer base of over 130 million active Xbox users upon commercialisation.

ProSteer is the world’s first handheld steering controller to provide a seamless racing experience thanks to its 80 degrees of linear steering compared to traditional game pads with only 22 degrees.

The ground-breaking ProSteer has been developed in an effort spanning Silicon Valley, Europe and Asia and is praised by industry giants and gaming enthusiasts for its Multi-Single Axis Control (M-SAC) making racing more realistic at a fraction of the cost.

Forecast to be available for purchase in less than 12 months, ProSteer creator Phil Croft says the concept came to him after identifying a major gap in the racing gaming market.

“I was inspired to engineer ProSteer because I recognised the need for better accuracy and control for experienced gamers and easier handling for beginners,” Mr Croft said.

“We’ve created working prototypes in a massive global effort and I’m very proud of our technical development team’s achievements in combining mechanics with electronics and bringing everything together in one simple, robust unit.”

Leaders in the gaming industry have traditionally invested millions of dollars into handheld steering technology that has ultimately failed as the dated accelerometer and motion sensor technology they used failed to provide enough “touch” and steering control.

“We’ve built a market-leading unit in collaboration with racing simulation giants like Forza that will change the outlook of racing gaming for a market of over 875 million people.”

“ProSteer is highly effective, ergonomic and conducive to family entertainment zones. It also offers multi-use capabilities like shooting and generic gameplay.”

US Patent Office Grants Articulated Gaming Controller (ProSteer) Patent.

Sun, 15 Nov 2020 03:52:45 GMT

The development team at Boxdark are very happy to report that our US Patent No 10,688,387 for our Articulated Gaming Controller (ProSteer) has been granted and Issued.

“This patent is the culmination of 4 years of hard work, so it’s really great for our whole team to finally achieve this milestone.” Commented Boxdark CEO Phil Croft.

Boxdark’s first US patent is the first official validation of Boxdark’s handheld steering innovation and comes ahead of expected European and Australian patents.

ProSteer Development Team Travel To Ukraine To Complete Hardware/Firmware Calibration

Tue, 19 Nov 2019 03:57:03 GMT

Development of the ProSteer is now 3 years and 18 versions old.

As a precision input device it is key that the ProSteer’s hardware interfaces correctly with the software (games) it controls.

Our final testing has uncovered some areas where our hardware needs adjustment and firmware calibration. These are minor adjustments that are critical to the ProSteers high performance.

To fast track this final step our team will travel to Kiev, Ukraine to access ‘state of the art’ test facilities and technical expertise. This short trip will complete the ProSteer’s development journey!

We can’t wait to show the ProSteer off to our many followers at our upcoming Test Drive Day in Brisbane, Australia slated for early April.

CEO And COO Visit Factories In Shenzhen, China.

Mon, 01 Apr 2019 01:54:31 GMT

Our CEO Phil Croft and COO Fred Ottosson have just returned from a weeks trip to the electronics manufacturing hub of the world – Shenzhen, China.

While in Shenzhen Phil and Fred visited with a number of factories to perform due diligence on critical factors such as:

Manufacturing Technology and quality
IP Security systems
Process for materials handling and logistics
Admin and communication
Overall quality

Both men were very happy with the connections made, Phil commented “Based on what we have seen during this trip, we are confident we can commit to a contract manufacturing agreement that will ensure the highest quality and reliability for the ProSteer’s manufacture.”