Style -- 14 days ago
Words: Vincent Lim
Long gone are the days where the only way to finance your project was to piece together funds from savings, loans and investors, and that only happened if you were lucky. Crowdfunding is now a serious force, and you wouldn’t believe some of the incredible ideas it’s been responsible for.
An Academy Award-winning film
An idea that rose to the heady heights of the Hollywood film industry, Inocente, a documentary about a young homeless artist, won over hearts and minds, as Sean and Andrea Fine’s creation received an Oscar in the Best Documentary Short category. Films have been surprisingly prevalent on crowd funding websites, with other successes including a Cannes award winner and a Veronica Mars revival. The project reached $52,527 on Kickstarter, with an initial goal of $50,000.
A civilian spacesuit
As commercial space travel begins to rear its head, it only follows that the sartorial space tourist should have his own suit. With any luck, they’ll become as ubiquitous as wetsuits. The Final Frontier 3G suit aims to be a lightweight and inexpensive safety backup in case of loss of cabin pressure, akin to oxygen masks on planes. Backers could get a suit for a meagre $10,000, a tiny fraction of the cost it takes to manufacture a NASA equivalent. The project reached $27,632, having initially asked for $20,000. The future is here, and it’s crowdfunded.
Solar powered road panels
As with the previous entry, this idea is proof that the future is most certainly here. A modular paving system which will pay for itself with the renewable energy it generates, the creators of these panels are looking to replace all ground surfaces in the world with energy-generating panels. That would mean roads, playgrounds and pavements all being able to generate energy rather than simply baking in the sun.
Ingenious features include an ability to heat themselves, thereby melting the ice and snow that cripples London every few years; lights on the panels being able to change lines, markings and decorate roads; and pressure sensitive panels, which will notify drivers of upcoming obstacles or wildlife. The project has been backed by the US State, and the Indiegogo campaign raised over $2.26 million. That’s more than $1 million over its initial target.
A handheld molecular sensor
SCiO is yet another example of just how far we’ve come technologically. Want to see which fruit is sweeter, check how many calories are in your food, or which pill is which? Look no further, as this little device is able to deduce an item’s chemical fingerprint, just by pointing a light at it. With a mobile app and database that will both grow with time, SCiO is on its way to becoming a key part of everyday life. And don’t you know it; the project raised over $2.7 million; the initial target was $200,000.
An e-paper smart watch
The trouble with smart watches, apart from being smart watches, is that the LCD screen often just doesn’t cut it; it uses up too much power for the watch to be that functional or it produces an unbearable degree of glare in the sun. Pebble, however, circumvents both these issues by using e-paper. Connected to your iPhone or Android device, Pebble represents the best of both worlds in features and ease of use. It’s an absolute wonder. Kickstarter backers clearly thought so too, providing the project with over $10 million in funding, compared to the paltry $100,000 sum they asked for.
Wireless smart in-ear headphones
Perfect for fitness, The Dash’s headphones have an embedded 4GB music player, and you also have the option of connecting it to your phone. It’s not just about the music, however, as The Dash tracks your speed, heart rate, oxygen saturation and energy spent, in order to give you all the data you need to measure and improve your performance. It even has two audio settings, allowing you to fully escape with noise isolation or engage ‘transparent audio’ when running in a busy setting. The product has done exceptionally well, with the Kickstarter raising over $3 million more than the $260,000 target.
