Gabriel Glynn

How do you actually invent a piece of hardware tech? Gabriel Glynn, CEO of MākuSafe discusses how he created a small device that monitors, tracks, and shows worker safety data to make workers safer. With no hardware or product experience, he goes into detail on how his cofounder created their first product by hand, how they found manufacturing partners, how he found the right people, and what partners helped him make this a reality.

For anyone who has a product in mind they’d like to invent. This is for you.

 

 

 

Gabriel Glynn, CEO of MākuSafe

Gabriel Glynn had created a few small businesses in the past, but when he noticed that common workplace safety issues could be fixed with advances in technology, he founded his first hardware company, MākuSafe. To date, MākuSafe has raised over 10 million dollars, is 5 years, old and just launched a product 8 months ago–in the middle of the COVID Pandemic. Despite this, MākuSafe’s wearable safety technology is being used by 2,000 workers in 20 states.

 

A Worker Safety Wearable

Glynn explains MākuSafe’s EHS 4.0 technology is packed with quite a few sensors designed to capture granular data and have a clear view of safety conditions in the workplace. The data collected is then organized and presented in a web dashboard so managers and company leadership can see any areas of concern on the worksite or in the workplace.
Typical worker safety concerns could be high decibel levels leading to hearing loss, repetitive or strenuous motion, poor lighting conditions, or poor air quality. Glynn explained that sometimes a “safe” work area can be only a few feet away from a “dangerous” work area.

 

How do you make hardware and tech?

I wanted to know how Glynn figured out how to make a complex piece of tech with no previous experience. I can wrap my head around creating a project in CAD, and 3D printing it, but how did he figure out how to make circuit boards and find sensors? He explains that asking for help and swallowing your ego is a big part of the learning process.
His answers echo former guest Amanda Goetz, who simply called cannabis farms and started asking questions as she created a premium CBD company for women, House of Wise. Glynn also went after some strategic co-founders that had experience in the areas he did not. Founders like Glynn don’t have a clear roadmap of success; they set goals and start asking questions and researching. If you want to invent something, listening to this interview is a great start to your journey.