Dear Backers,
It has been a fantastic launch! With only a short notice of prelaunch, our initial goal of $50,000 was fulfilled within one day! At the moment of writing this update, we just hit $80,000! It is a historical moment for me, for Petoi, and for everyone who loves robotics!
A brief celebration on the factory's roof
When I bought a Raspberry Pi four years ago, I was an international student in the US worried about jobs after graduation. I never expected to be so addicted to the pet/toy that I would found a company for it. There have been many challenging and doubting moments, but today I know it was my best decision. I can feel all my knowledge and passion are combusting to make small steps. It's lonely and slow, but the warmth is what brings us together to make this campaign. I see your votes for small, stylish, dynamic, and affordable open source robots. And I'm dedicated to delivering four-legged robot Bittle and my future inventions to you!
The body language of "excitement"
Reaching the original funding goal will help us continue finalizing the R&D of quadruped robot Bittle. We just paid for the mold of silicone tail and paws, and will include them as standard components in the Bittle kit. But we need more funds to pay retainage, prepare for the inventory, break-even, and pay ourselves.
Please shout out to your friends and network that we are setting a STRETCH GOAL at $200,000. If we meet our stretch goal, we will gift one Grove module in the Bittle kit (even if you didn't back the sensor pack) to encourage you to utilize Bittle's extensible features. Of course, the module should not overlap with the sensor pack. You can browse the following list and tell us your favorite:
https://www.seeedstudio.com/category/Grove-c-1003.html?p=2&price=5-10.
We will pick the most popular one.
Since it's just the third day of the campaign, we will add some more early bird slots for early adopters. If you previously backed the Bittle Kit (Kickstarter Special), you can adjust your pledge amount whenever the early bird slots are open. They are identical except the prices.
I have to take a nap after two days of excitement and conversations. You can follow me on Twitter and Instagram @petoicamp. I'm wordier than in official updates.
My deepest thanks to all of you!
Rz and the Petoi team