At its very base his company LightUp is a line of e-connected toys that teach kids how the world around them works through magnetic circuit blocks and an augmented reality (AR) tutor app. According to Chan, this toy is intriguing for both young girls and boys, but it goes well beyond that. The first product Chan and his team released has reached kids in over 90 countries: these young learners have built over 100,000 circuits with LightUp in the past few months. Typically the kids are ages six to twelve at home, in school, and at after school workshops. In 2013 LightUp saw huge success on their Kickstarter campaign, and they’ve recently launched a second campaign to unveil their newest product: the Faraday Kit. Named for the famed English scientist Michael Faraday, the new kit will teach kids how to code in addition to building circuits. After their first Kickstarter, the LightUp team participated in the second class of the HAX hardware accelerator, and spent over six months living in China, which helped them learn firsthand how to best work with manufacturing partners. Going from a few hand-taped prototypes to hundreds of thousands of blocks wasn’t easy by any means. The challenges haven’t ended now that they’ve moved back home to Silicon Valley, but the focus these days is about developing the software platform and growing the team. As Chan explains, Nest is transforming the living room wall and thus LightUp wants to transform the living room floor. Connected toys have the potential to turn anything a child touches into a fun and immersive learning experience, and the team wants to do more than simply teach kids STEM skills. Together, Chan and his crew are dedicated to creating a world where kids can experiment and learn anything in a fun, interactive, and personal way with their products.
