Wait. What?
Astro, a recent R|GA Techstars graduate and the first smart home platform for apartments has introduced Twist. Twist is not only an LED light bulb which saves energy and money but it also has an integrated AirPlay speaker for your aural pleasure. In the ever increasingly expensive “shoeboxes” many of us call “apartments” in NYC, form and functionality are of paramount importance and this marks Astro’s first product designed to make the lives of city dwellers better by making our homes smarter. A Twist package will run $249 and will include one Twist Speaker LED, two Twist LEDs and one Twist Dimmer.
Today, we sit down with Shaun Springer, CEO and Founder of Astro to discuss this new product, the company, and the next products we can expect to see in the pipeline.
Tell us about the product or service.
Twist is a beautiful LED light bulb with an AirPlay speaker built in. It’s designed to give everyone from homeowners to space-deprived apartment dwellers wireless, hub-less, and installation-free lighting and audio anywhere they can screw in a light bulb.
How is it different?
No other connected light bulb offers users access to an AirPlay speaker in the same bulb. Other LED lights and Bluetooth speakers either rely on a hub or a less than ideal Bluetooth pairing process. With Twist, you can seamlessly get the best quality light and stream music from any app, hassle free.
What market are you attacking and how big is it?
Twist aims to simplify connected home products for the roughly 100 million space-deprived apartment renters, many of whom live in major metropolitan centers.
What is the business model?
At launch, we will be selling our Single Room Set, which we believe is the perfect introduction to connected lighting and audio for every home. Over time, we will be able to build out the Twist platform with additional products and a la carte software upgrades that help our users make the most of the space they have.
How did participating in RGA Connected Device Accelerator, powered by Techstars, help your company?
Our partnership with the R/GA and Techstars teams helped us take our product vision and shape it into something that consumers can relate to. Working with the accelerator gave us invaluable feedback and support in not only developing our product, but also building an impactful brand with a point of view.
What are the milestones that you plan to achieve within six months?
We will be finalizing the production and manufacturing process on our initial launch products, as well as working on the development of additional products in our roadmap.
Why did you launch in New York?
Twist is built out of our whole team’s experiences dealing with the trials and tribulations of living in small apartments across New York City.
Which is your favorite NY area beach to go to, when you feel like getting away from your connected home?
We’re more of a skiing and snowboarding team. We’ll take the mountains over the beach any time.
