Sony has announced a new phase in their Seed Acceleration Program, “First Flight” which merges crowdfunding and e-commerce site features to help promote ideas and products generated internally by Sony employees. The Seed Acceleration Program is Sony’s means for encouraging new business ideas by employees and if good enough, eventually transforming them into a full-fledged business. The new First Flight initiative is meant to help “move people emotionally through innovation” by connecting creators with possible customers.
Sony CEO Kazuo Hirai says,
“Sony’s innovation is ingrained in the company’s founding spirit of `doing what has never been done before.’ Nothing embodies this spirit more than passionate entrepreneurs who give shape to their ground-breaking ideas and introduce them to the world, without fear of failure. The First Flight platform and other Seed Acceleration Program initiatives accelerate and optimize this process. Sony itself originated as a start-up, and through the Seed Acceleration Program we are challenging ourselves to return to our entrepreneurial roots. At Sony we will continue to explore ways of delivering new, emotionally compelling experiences and enhanced customer value.”
To help mark the public launch of First Flight, albeit only in Japan for now, two projects are in the e-commerce stage and one project has launched a crowdfunding effort to see whether there is enough interest. The first product available is MESH, which is described as a “smart DIY kit” to help users become inventors of their own gadgets. Through First Flight, interested consumers can also place an order for the FES Watch, an e-paper based smartwatch. Finally, crowdfunding has commenced for the e-paper based HUIS Remote Controller that will change based on what a user wants to control.
source: Sony First Flight (site), Sony First Flight (press release)
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