Car Computers - Hobby to Business

I’ve been quoted about my car computer in the Atlanta Journal Constitution (the Atlanta Newspaper) for a story about a company here in town that’s launching a large in-car telematics business:

Dunwoody firm hooks up Chrysler’s computers

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I mentioned to Mike Pearson (the writer at AJC) to definitely ping a few of the locals (Matt Turner of TunerTricks, Jack Shakes, and some others at mp3car.com) in town who are more into this hobby than I am, but it was nice to see my quote as the very first line!

As an aside: When I first got out of school, I tried to start a little company doing custom in-car computer systems. A prototype built, a demo-presentation to Ludacris’ business manager in Luda’s driveway, and 6 months later — it was a miserable flop, but terribly fun. I later came to understand it was more like an expensive hobby, and it helped me realize that there’s more to starting a business than just saying you’re “President and CEO” and then doing all the incorporating and froo-froo stuff. This probably goes to show why I’ve been so successful in my newer ventures — I’m doing the opposite. I’m not doing any “company related stuff” like printing business cards or “incorporating” until I absolutely need to — two things I have already done, only now at the appropriate times. I’m just spending time focusing on the business itself (to be honest: on making money), and it’s working out great.

Reading the article made me realize that back then my marketing (among other things) was just too big for my britches — the automobile industry is a crazy one, full of a few big players and very large deals. The aftermarket industry is even crazier, and should have been the sole market for my failed company.

Come to think of it, I still think there’s a product and a market and a whole lot of money fun to be had. If you’re listening, Hughes Telematics, fund me as a spin-off company and let me build a team and an after-market product — software, hardware, the whole-nine yards for in-car-computing and we’ll see how that meshes with your new big deal.

In the mean time, I’ll be focusing on my wonderful day jobs.