A host of hopeful startups will be in evidence today the Bay Area Maker Faire. The fair’s list of sponsors includes a startup category. Maker Faire is a chance for many of these companies to show their products to an appreciative audience. The relationship goes deep; the companies were started by people who identify themselves as makers. Being part of Maker Faire is sort of like a family graduation day party. There is even a dedicated startup area at Maker Faire.
Here is a sampling of small innovative startups have timed the release of significant news with Maker Faire.
Barobo, an innovator of educational robots, announced this week that the company’s Kickstarter will coincide with the Maker Faire debut of their new Linkbot. The Linkbot is more hackable, more configurable, and comes with more features than the original Mobot. Barobo expects attendees from all ages to create with the Linkbot at their booth (#404).
Deezmaker will announce its new lightweight, portable 3D printer at MakerFaire. The Bukito (named after Diego Porcheras’ dog, Buko) is designed to be portable and rugged so you can take your printer on the go. It even comes with an easy-to-grip handle and only weighs around 6 pounds.
F-3 Labs will be launching a new site, MakerPair.com that provides application workflows to intelligently pair ideas with design skills, design skills with manufacturing, and manufacturing with a marketplace.
Form Labs just announced that their highly anticipated Form 1 Stereolithography 3D printer has begun shipping orders to their Kickstarter backers and pre-order customers. The Form 1 makes a previously expensive technology available to the designer and maker in an end-to-end package. The Form Team will be at booth 304 in the 3D printing area.
gTar is a fully digital guitar with a multi-touch LED fretboard and smart sensor strings to pick ups in the bridge. It has a real guitar feel and is fully hackable. They just launched their new web site and web store.
The OUYA game console team presented at the MAKE Hardware Innovation Workshop. Their platform allows anyone to try their games for free, and anyone can develop games for the system. It will be available in June.
The panStamp is an open source project for measuring and controlling things wirelessly. The panStamps are small wireless boards designed to fit in low-power applications. They created a new product bundle called panStamp minikit, consisting of three panStamps and a panStick for Maker Faire. You’ll find panStmap at booth 408 in the Expo Hall (Startup Area).
If the dream of Maker Faire is to awaken the maker in all of us, then surely the involvement of so many innovative small companies is a sign that the dream is becoming a reality.
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