The Pitch
Where real startup founders pitch to real investors—for real money. Forget everything you think you know about the world of venture capital. Host Josh Muccio takes listeners behind closed-doors and into the room where deals are made.
#117 Lotus: Hardware Hail Mary
Despite a decade in engineering at Apple, Dhaval Patel didn’t have any smart technology in his home. So he designed a ring that converts every home into a smart home – using old technology found in your typical TV remote. But hardware startups are extremely difficult to get off the ground and many VC’s avoid investing in them altogether. Can Dhaval convince our investors that his 10 prototype rings will turn into a 10 billion dollar business? Today’s investors are Paige Doherty, Neal Bloom, Elizabeth Yin, Mark Phillips and Charles Hudson. To learn more about Dhaval's hardware startup, Lotus, and the investors featured on this episode, check out the Lotus show page.
Key Points
- Hardware startups face a notoriously difficult fundraising landscape due to the high costs and complexities associated with product development and scaling.
- Duvall's startup, Lotus, aims to transform homes into smart homes with a wearable ring that uses infrared to control household devices, targeting a largely untapped market and addressing the needs of people with limited mobility.
- Despite initial skepticism and the challenges of hardware investment, Duvall secured funding by demonstrating his technical expertise from Apple, a clear mission, and a strategy focused on B2B sales to large organizations like Veterans Affairs and senior living facilities.
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Transcript
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