The Hardtech Podcast
The Hardtech Podcast pulls back the curtain on the bold ideas, design challenges, and engineering breakthroughs behind today’s most innovative hardware products — and the people who make them happen. From first sketch to final build, we dive deep into the minds shaping the future of physical tech.
Episodes
October 6, 2025 • 52 mins
In this episode of The Hardtech Podcast, hosts DeAndre Harakas and Grant Chapman welcome David Gil, Managing Partner at VERT Performance, a company pioneering jump and load measurement technology for volleyball athletes.
David shares how VERT’s sports tech platform has become an essential tool for coaches and trainers tracking jump counts, monitoring fatigue, and analyzing landing techniques to reduce injuries. The discussion highl...
Mark as Played
September 29, 2025 • 42 mins
CBQ shares his journey from exited founder to building a new venture through the venture studio model, highlighting the importance of customer discovery, hyper-specialization, and building in public. The conversation dives into how software updates transform hardware performance, why listening to customers is the ultimate competitive edge, and how to find product-market fit in crowded industries.
Whether you’re a founder, engineer,...
Mark as Played
September 22, 2025 • 52 mins
Design isn’t just about how a product looks, it’s about how people experience it. In this episode, we dive into the world of coffee equipment and explore how industrial design and hardware interfaces shape intuitive, user-friendly products.
From balancing complexity with usability to gathering early user feedback, we cover the practical lessons every designer and product builder needs. We also dig into innovative ways to run focus ...
Mark as Played
September 8, 2025 • 48 mins
In this episode of The Hardtech Podcast, hosts DeAndre Harakas and Grant Chapman talk with Aabesh De, founder of Flora, about turning a personal problem; being a self-proclaimed “serial plant killer” into a fast-growing gardening technology brand.
Aabesh shares how Flora was born from the need for better plant care solutions, and why integrating hardware and software is essential for creating a seamless user experience. The convers...
Mark as Played
September 1, 2025 • 38 mins
How do you build medical devices that are both innovative and compliant without drowning in paperwork?
In this episode of The Hardtech Podcast, hosts DeAndre Harakas and Grant Chapman talk with Ashkon Rasooli, founder and CEO of EnGenius Solutions, about rethinking quality management systems in medtech. Ashkon shares his perspective on the No BS QMS manifesto, why redundancy is good but duplication is waste, and the challenges of v...
Mark as Played
July 28, 2025 • 48 mins
In this episode of The Hardtech Podcast, we sit down with Eric Martinez, CEO and founder of Modjoul a startup tackling one of the most overlooked but critical challenges in industry: workplace safety.
Eric shares the raw story of building a hard-tech company from the ground up including how Modjoul evolved from tracking repetitive motion injuries to building collision avoidance systems that protect workers in real time.
Highlights ...
Mark as Played
July 22, 2025 • 42 mins
John Grady, CEO of Ayla Networks, joins the Glassboard team to unpack what it really takes to build and scale successful connected products. Ayla supports some of the world’s leading brands—like Shark and others—by delivering the cloud platforms, mobile apps, and device integrations that power great smart home experiences. But as John explains, the real value lies in helping hardware companies translate their product vision into se...
Mark as Played
July 14, 2025 • 46 mins
In this episode of The Hardtech Podcast, hosts DeAndre Harakas and Grant Chapman sit down with Rafiq and Monica from Dipalo Ventures, a VC firm backing early-stage hard tech startups.
They dive deep into what makes building in hard tech so different from the high cost of mistakes to the critical importance of user validation before a single part is built. The conversation explores why founders must clearly articulate why their prod...
Mark as Played
July 7, 2025 • 54 mins
In this episode of The Hardtech Podcast, we dive into the world of medical device innovation with Tom and Bill from The Waddell Group, a firm that specializes in project management for MedTech ventures.
We explore why many healthcare systems still rely on outdated tools like Excel, and how this slows down innovation in a field where precision and progress are critical. The conversation touches on groundbreaking therapies like light...
Mark as Played
June 30, 2025 • 62 mins
In this episode of The Hardtech Podcast, we sit down with Andy Ording, former CEO of Zipp Wheels, now co-founder of Fundraiser Capital. Andy shares the wild ride of building Zipp into a world-class brand, navigating the brutal carbon wheel wars of the '90s, and bootstrapping through near-failure to a successful exit to SRAM in 2007. The conversation dives into the realities of hardtech entrepreneurship, what makes a founder truly c...
Mark as Played
June 23, 2025 • 44 mins
In this episode, we dive into how AI is fundamentally changing the landscape of software and product development. From accelerating engineering workflows to raising the bar for junior developers, AI is both a powerful tool and a potential pitfall. Our guest shares hard-earned insights on why you still need to be the boss when working with AI, and how unchecked automation can lead to a flood of low-quality output.
We explore the imp...
Mark as Played
June 16, 2025 • 49 mins
Eric, DeAndre, and Grant discuss the importance of social entrepreneurship, community impact, and the journey of building a sustainable business model. Eric shares insights on customer discovery, go-to-market strategies, and the role of conviction in entrepreneurship, emphasizing how genuine community involvement can lead to success in the startup world.
Get your HOOPTEQ -- www.hoopteq.com Special Guest: Eric Roberson.
Mark as Played
October 10, 2024 • 41 mins
The discussion delves into the intricacies of investing in early-stage companies, highlighting the importance of having the right team, particularly separating scientific expertise from business leadership. It touches on the strategic decisions behind investment, including timing, regulatory de-risking, and product-market fit. The conversation emphasizes the importance of storytelling in early development and fundraising, understan...
Mark as Played
June 30, 2024 • 50 mins
In this episode, we explore the intricacies of custom development with experts from SEP (Software Engineering Professionals). Starting with a brief history of SEP, we delve into the challenges of hiring and retaining top talent, the evolution of project management methodologies, and the delicate balance of managing client expectations with project realities. We discuss innovative strategies for adapting to diverse client needs, the...
Mark as Played
March 19, 2024 • 40 mins
0:00-1:08 - Intro
1:09-3:03 - The Start of Developertown
3:04-23:30 - Taking Equity for Services
23:31-32:05 - Pros and Cons of the Studio Model
32:06-36:44 - Sharing Risk as a Solution to Common Studio Pitfalls
36:45-39:11 - Software Development vs. Hardware Development
39:12-40:27 - Outro Special Guest: Mike Kelly.
Mark as Played
February 29, 2024 • 44 mins
In this episode of the Glasslab Podcast, we sit down with Dick Aderman of Boomerang Ventures to discuss his career path, his current role, and the differences between an accelerator and a venture studio. Special Guest: Dick Aderman.
Mark as Played
September 11, 2023 • 61 mins
On this episode of the Glasslab podcast, we speak with Dr. Patsy Brackin of Rose Hulman Institute of Technology about their unique and real-world-focused Engineering Design Program. Special Guests: Chase Strother and Dr. Patsy Brackin.
Mark as Played
August 1, 2023 • 46 mins
On this episode of Glasslabs, the Interns take over! Join Glassboard's Xtern Class of '23: Matthew Kane, Chase Strother and Alaina Wol as they talk about their experiences and what it's been like working with the team this summer. Special Guests: Alaina Wol, Chase Strother, and Matthew Kane.
Mark as Played
July 10, 2023 • 44 mins
On this episode of Glasslabs, we talk with Devon Campbell, Founder at Prodct Medical Device Advisory, about best practices early-stage founders can take when creating a new product and how companies like Product and Glassboard support their development.
Special Guest: Devon Campbell.
Mark as Played
May 11, 2023 • 43 mins
On this episode of Glasslabs, we talk with Christie Johnson, Partner at Prodct Medical Device Advisory about the importance of quality, regulatory, and risk management when working in product development. Special Guest: Christie Johnson.
Mark as Played
Popular Podcasts
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
The official podcast of comedian Joe Rogan.
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!
Listen to 'The Bobby Bones Show' by downloading the daily full replay.